Puker

"God, I thought it was finally over when I closed the bulkhead doors. Me and Miller, we were the only ones left. Everyone else had been killed and...and...I dunno WHAT the hell happened. Anyway, Miller goes around the corner, and that's when I heard it. That sick, wet snarl. Miller started shooting his plasma cutter as I ran to assist. I was too late. It was just standing there. Looking at me with eyeless sockets! And Miller was on the ground...his head corroded away by the bastard's vomit."

The Puker is a Necromorph introduced in Dead Space 2.^[1]^[2]

Descriptions

The Puker's acidic saliva drastically alters their appearance, melting and merging their flesh. The host's original legs have entwined, and a clump of intestines, nerves and muscles have grown down to form an additional leg. Its fingers have merged into three long claws on each hand. Its eyes are missing, and its jaw has fused with its neck, freezing its face in a hollow, blank stare. On its torso, the lungs are clearly visible and are yellow in color, storing a limited quantity of bile to be ejected from the mouth. What remains of the flesh on the Puker's body hangs loosely around its frame. The creature's constant, messy expulsion of said caustic fluids has melted away its facial features and the skin and muscle tissue of its torso, revealing its organs.

Dead_Space_Puker_Necromorph_Sounds_HD — Dead Space Puker Necromorph Sounds HD

The Puker has four forms of attacks: first, it shoots a ball of corrosive bile over a long distance which burns victims and corrodes/rusts armor, preventing those who are hit by it from running. The Puker's second attack is a projected stream of bile towards its prey at a medium to close range. The third is a melee attack using its claws, and the fourth is a grapple attack in which the Puker grabs the player by the head and arm before vomiting on their neck and mouth in order to remove their helmet. The Puker also sports a unique defense mechanism in which their severed appendages spurt corrosive fluid upon dismemberment.

The Puker in Dead Space 3 differs significantly from those in the previous game. The basic body shape and form is the same, but it is now a strange green color and is apparently much faster, reacts quicker and is more aggressive, even on lower difficulties. It uses the same form of attacks and groans in the same fashion as before. All of these variations may be due to the fact that they are aged longer, and much more decayed. There is not a reason told in-game as to why they are so aggressive.

In Dead Space 2 Multiplayer the puker has a six second respawn timer. The Puker is a very deadly adversary. They have a chargable puke attack which deals more damage the longer you hold it, but causes the puker to move slower. When released this charged attack can easily take out half an enemies health, which is a death sentence for damaged Humans. They also posses a very deadly and rapid melee attack, which, if used on an unsuspecting human, can bring them from full health to zero before they can even turn around or react. The best strategy is to hide in the corner with the charged puke, then release it on an unsuspecting approaching enemy and begin melee assault.

Variants

Normal (along with the mummified version)

Dead-Space-3-Puker — Mummified Dead Space 3 variant

Normal variants are the most common Pukers encountered in Dead Space 2 and 3. The Dead Space 2 variant is missing its eye and the right leg has been moved next to the left one and a new leg made from muscle has grown in its place. The chest has been ripped open to make place for the sack that stores the Puker's acid. The rest of the organs have melted into some sort of tissue. The Puker's jaw has been removed possibly by the acid and the arms have grown large claw-like appendages.

The Dead Space 3 variant mostly still remains its host's clothes and is very green. The head is either covered by a hood or the face has collapsed inside the skull. The arms have met a similar fate as the Dead Space 2 variant.

Enhanced

Encountered in Dead Space 2 and 3, this Puker variant is stronger than the normal, common one. Beside the glowing eyes and black skin tissue, the enhanced variant looks exactly the same as the normal variant from Dead Space 2.The first Enhanced Puker is encountered in Chapter 6, in the school.

Strategy

It is always recommended to engage the Puker from a distance or at least put some space between you and it, considering that it is one of the slowest Necromorphs you will encounter. If you choose to attack the Puker up close, it is advised that you Stasis it in order to stunt its reflexes; otherwise, you run the risk of falling victim to the Puker's grab attack and caustic arterial spray.

Pukers do not display any particular weak spots that can be exploited to Isaac's advantage, so the best way to dispose of them is to utterly rip them apart.

Decapitation of the Puker successfully renders it unable to grab Isaac at close quarters, as well as hinders the Puker from projecting vomit for a short time. However, it does not permanently prevent it from spraying, spewing, and/or otherwise projecting vomit. Always make an effort to dispatch the limbs first. Keep in mind also that if you manage to cut both its legs out, it may attempt to crawl toward you.
- Shooting off a Puker's head in Dead Space 3 permanently robs it of the ability to shoot its debilitating bile at the player.
The Puker can withstand serious punishment, even surviving without its legs, arms, and head all at one time, and still manage to puke. This makes explosive weaponry such as an electrified javelin a preferred choice of weapon, as they can do massive damage in a short period of time while giving the Puker a smaller window to retaliate.
Pukers won't always die when their arms are cut off. Keep this in mind when fighting a large group of Necromorphs: make sure it's down before moving on. However, dismembering both arms does prevent the Puker from using its melee attack, which can be devastatingly powerful on harder difficulties.
Pukers do have an Enhanced form which appears dark and slimy, doing more damage and moving much faster than normal variants. Players should always make a conscious effort to neutralize Enhanced Pukers first, as the last thing one needs is a bunch of Slashers or Exploders coming at you when you can not run.
Pukers will spit bile globs from a distance that will not only hurt any Necromorph in its path, but can also be grabbed with Kinesis and hurled at other Necromorphs to do extreme damage. If you grab the bile glob that the Puker spits and use Kinesis to launch it right back, it's usually an instant kill even with the Enhanced forms, and even on Zealot difficulty.
If Isaac is hit with a bile glob, he will recoil for a moment and his movements will slowed down greatly, giving other Necromorphs in close proximity an opportunity to strike. Therefore, it would be wise for players to keep their Stasis energy at its maximum capacity.
Good counter for above is using Contact Beam's secondary fire, if timed right, it knocks out Puker and any nearby Necromorph. Fully upgraded secondary fire further increasing the effectiveness of it, slowing/killing Necromorphs and makes it easier to grab blades of the dead ones. Be wary of ranged attacks, however.
Despite its emphasis on ranged attacks, the Puker has a fatally surprising output of melee damage in single player and multiplayer alike. No matter how much damage you have inflicted on it, avoid the temptation to try and finish it off with melee as it can kill Isaac with two swats even with a fully upgraded RIG on Zealot mode.
Although the bile glob does no damage whatsoever to Isaac, even on higher difficulties, it is a death sentence for almost any Necromorph. It is not uncommon in later levels for errant Puker-attacks to instantly destroy Enhanced Slashers. If there is a Puker in the area, don't be afraid to try keeping a Necromorph or two between Isaac and the creature. It can prove to be quite an amusing strategy, while also sparing the player's ammunition and other supplies. Keep in mind when doing this, however, that one may need to use stasis to ensure minimized chances of the Necromorphs evading the projectile.
When dismembered, Puker vomit will jet out of the severed limb for a second or two. This has the same effect as the vomit attack (removes 2-3 health sections on your RIG on Zealot) and is extremely dangerous on higher difficulties if you have the misfortune to be close to the Puker.
You can pick up bodies with Kinesis to protect yourself from the Puker's vomit.
The Puker's grapple attack is very damaging and can severely damage Isaac, even on the easier difficulties. Being grabbed by an Enhanced Puker with an unupgraded RIG is usually fatal, and even if Isaac manages to fend off the creature he would still be left with a bare sliver of health which, seeing how the Puker can survive being driven off, it would be able to finish off Isaac with ease. This makes it highly advisable to keep your distance from a Puker.
The Puker can engage you at nearly any range with its hindering bile globs, as long as there is a clear way between you and it. Going behind sufficient cover will negate its attack, and will prompt it to try to get closer or to find an opening.
During the Ubermorph confrontation, Pukers should be given the highest possible priority, since they can easily slow you down and make you waste Stasis and ammo simply trying to keep the Ubermorph and its allies from gutting you. The only target that would take priority away from the Pukers would be the Ubermorph if it rears its claws back, as this will be a finishing move to Isaac.
- Pukers CAN be used to Isaac's advantage, however, as the Ubermorph if struck by a vomit projectile will be instantly dismembered.

Trivia

Along with the Slashers, Lurkers and some other Necromorph forms, the Puker in Dead Space 3 also has a major design overhaul, looking more rotten with green mold in various body cavities and on parts of its body. Perhaps the most drastic change is the long, deep gash that runs from what's left of the creature's forehead down to its waist.
- The Dead Space 3 Enhanced Pukers replaces the standard variant during Isaac and Carver's endeavor to stop the Tau Volantis Moon.
In some of the earlier concept art of the Puker, it had Slasher-like blade arms. In the finished game, the Puker has three-clawed hands that it uses to grab and manipulate its prey, notable through the death scene and first in-game encounter with the Puker.
In addition to horrible wretching and splashing sounds, the developers have used a number of colors that make humans naturally uncomfortable such as olive green, pale red, and off-white to color the Puker's vomit, intensifying its impact on players.
Because the Puker's acidic spit slows down the player, making them vulnerable to other Necromorph attacks, one could consider it the Necromorph's version of Stasis, although to a much lesser extent, as the afflicted victim can still perform other actions as usual, the only hampering they suffer is the loss of speed.
The Puker in Dead Space 2 is much less agile than the rest of its Necromorph brethren, as whenever it emerges from a vent, it will fall or stumble onto the ground, slamming its head face first into the ground before slowly rising to its feet several seconds later. This can be used to the player's advantage as Isaac can score a direct hit with the Javelin Gun or Contact Beam without risking injury. With the Enhanced variant, however, Isaac may not have a high chance to do this.
The Puker is also the only Necromorph to have such a large variety of attacks ranging from a simple spitball to a relentless vomit-fall.
Oddly enough, in Multiplayer, the Puker has only two legs which are both skinless and twisted with nubby little feet. Contrary to what would normally be a crippling defect, the Puker's mobility is not affected.
The Enhanced Puker can survive double arm amputation, especially on higher difficulties, making it one of several Necromorph able to do so. The others capable of that are the Hunter, the Ubermorph, Twitchers, and on rare occasions, Pregnants.
Both the normal and Enhanced Puker variants explode in a dazzling explosion of its own bile if hit by a Hand Cannon.
The Puker's melee attack in Multiplayer differs from the campaign. Instead of slow swipes with its claws like in the campaign, in Multiplayer, it flails its arms around in a fast, windmill-like fashion.
One of the Pukers death scenes is similar to that of the Novistadors from Resident Evil 4, resulting in the player's face being melted.
The Puker's legs in Dead Space 3 are its real ones, not made from intestines. However, Enhanced Pukers will have the intestine leg, though this does not hinder their new speed and aggression.
It is safer to approach a freshly dismembered Puker in Dead Space 3 as the bile is not as strong, probably due to it not being as evolved as its present day counterparts.
Whereas there was rarely more than one Puker per encounter in Dead Space 2, there are times a pack of Pukers can spawn in Dead Space 3, forcing the player to keep a constant lookout for projectiles.
A Puker among other noises can be heard in the background of the transmission when Isaac and Carver try to contact Earth in Awakened, showing the Moons Necromorph invasion has begun and more than likely had been going on for quite sometime.
The face of a Puker in Dead Space 3 strongly resembles that of a Lurker in Silent Hill: Homecoming, most notably the vertical slit on the face.
The death scene of the Puker is one of the few scripted Necromorph death scenes that do not involve even a slight touch of dismemberment in killing the main protagonists of the series. Other instances of this include Swarmers/The Swarm, the poison secreted out by the Wheezer, and the 3 Drag Tentacles that attempt to drag Isaac to his death.

Death Scenes

Dead_Space_2_Puker_-_E3_2010 — Dead Space 2 Puker - E3 2010

Puker death scene

If Isaac, or Carver in DS3 co-op and Gabe in Severed fails to repel the grapple initiated by the Puker, it overpowers him as it vomits its highly acidic bile on his helmet and neck, dissolving the airtight bond to his suit and allowing the Puker to tear off Isaac's/Carver's helmet. With his head vulnerable, the Puker then vomits into his mouth and down his esophagus, thoroughly devastating Isaac's/Carver's face and internal organs. He will struggle to regurgitate the vomit before collapsing on the floor, claimed by an inescapable death. This death scene is also present in Dead Space 3.
If Isaac/Gabe/Carver is very low on health and got killed by the acid spray from the corpse of a dead Puker, they will be thrown backwards and their corpses will automatically be ripped apart.
If the player does manage to fend the Puker off by completing the QTE, Isaac/Carver will grab its head and bust it off over his forearm, throwing the Puker back and giving him an opportunity to finish it off.
If the Puker successfully executes a Sprawl Security Member in multiplayer, the Puker will deliver one final splash of puke to his face and tear off his head. Otherwise, the Security Personel will repel the Puker in the same way that Isaac does in the campaign via busting its head over his arm, except it will die when its head comes off.

Gallery

Appearances

Dead Space 2
Dead Space 2: Severed
Dead Space 3
Dead Space 3: Awakened

Sources

[bestiarum-1] Dead Space 2: Necromorph Bestiarum

[2] Facebook: Dead Space Community

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