The book also offered an interesting insight into the RIG’s ribbed design, revealing that, in addition to fitting Isaac’s role by trade, enabling the team to implement a diegetic health bar on his back, and reflecting the design of the USG Ishimura, there was another, more technical reason for its implementation.
According to Ian Milham, Dead Space’s Art Director, the suit’s ribbings were partly implemented because the developers wanted to push the game’s lighting to its limits. The serrations on the RIG allowed them to experiment with shadows, making them appear lifelike as the player moved through different light sources. “Technologically, we wanted to invest in the lighting, so a serrated texture like that gives a lot for the light to play around on. The player’s going to move through the lighting, and it gave the shadows a lot to do,” Milham said.