Hello everyone and welcome back to Reviews Of All Kinds!
This will be the first official post featuring the first official review. The game I have chosen for this landmark event is Bioshock 2. So without further ado let’s get to it.
A Satisfying Return to Rapture
In Bioshock 2 you play as Subject Delta, a prototype Big Daddy who has the ability to use Plasmids. The game is set ten years after the original Bioshock and after a startling cutscene (which I won’t spoil here) you’re awakened by Brigid Tenenbaum (a main character from the original) with no memory of what has happened. She quickly offers to help you discover what has happened to you and, more importantly, to help you find your Little Sister. Before long you are contacted by Sofia Lamb who is the current leader of Rapture and the games primary antagonist. She also happens to be the mother of Eleanor Lamb, your lost Little Sister. This is where the games main conflict comes from and it proceeds to develop into a thick, rich, tapestry full of well fleshed out characters.
Making a sequel to Bioshock, one of the most acclaimed and revered games of this console generation, is a daunting task. If you somehow haven’t tried the original Bioshock I recommend you do so before trying Bioshock 2 because not only is Bioshock a solid 10 but it also sets up the background and universe required to truly appreciate and understand Bioshock 2. Despite the level of difficulty in doing so, 2K manages to make a sequel is everything it needs to be. I’m not saying that it is better, or even as good, but it does everything that you can hope for a sequel to do. It makes a few minor improvements to the original, not corrections because they weren’t really issues in the first game, but the developers found a way to improve them for the sequel. A few great examples of this are the streamlined combat, the more rapid and intense hacking, and finally the improved enemies. In Bioshock 2 you can use one Plasmid and one weapon at the same time while in the original you had to switch between one and the other. This comes in handy while facing the improved enemies featured in Bioshock 2. Not only are they more intelligent (taking cover, healing at health stations, etc.) but they are also more diverse including a new type of splicer, a new type of Big Daddy, Big Sisters, and a surprising enemy encountered only in the second half of the game. Finally there is the hacking mini-game used to subvert vending machines, turrets, and security cameras. In the original Bioshock it took the form of a game where you connected pipes to conduct fluid from one end to the other which was slower paced than the rest of Bioshock and removed you completely from the rest of the game. While in Bioshock 2 it’s a faster paced game where you are required to stop a needle in the correct coloured section and the rest of the came continues around you while you attempt to do this. These small tweaks add to the experience and make the whole game a bit more streamlined.
One of the only real complaints about the original was the final boss battle. Most people felt that it simply did not fit with the feel of the rest of the game. This is addressed in the sequel in a fairly significant way but before I get to into it I want to warn you that while I will do my best to ruin anything major some small reveals are unavoidable. If you have not beaten the game and don’t want to know anything ahead of time then I suggest you simply skip ahead to the next paragraph. Now in regards to the final battle in Bioshock 2, you don’t actually face one specific boss. Instead you are assaulted by an endless horde of Sofia Lambs strongest followers while attempting to complete a few objectives that are necessary to your success. This is consistent with the feel of the entire series because whether you’re playing Bioshock 2 or the original you almost never face just one enemy at a time and almost always have something to accomplish besides simply defeating them. Once you do accomplish the necessary objectives it does result in a flooding of the room thus killing all the enemies. Once this has occurred you proceed to the exit and after one final explosion one of four final cutscenes begins. Which cutscene you see depends entirely on your actions throughout the game and which option you took at certain pivotal decisions. Three of the four endings also include one final pivotal decision which influences the finale of the video. Ultimately the ending leaves you feeling content and, surprisingly, hopeful for the future of the series. Where the original left you more blown away and most likely more devoted to the game it tended to leave you not wanting a sequel because it was so good it seemed impossible to do it justice. This wasn’t necessarily a bad thing but at the same time neither is a desire for more content from the same universe.
One last aspect of Bioshock 2 is the very controversial multiplayer mode. When this mode was announced it caused stir within the community because fans of the first game strongly believed that it was already perfect without multiplayer and all a multiplayer mode would do was detract resources from the core game. 2K went ahead with the multiplayer despite this negative response and surprisingly enough they succeeded in making a pretty enjoyable multiplayer. Now it’s not going to become the next internationally loved multiplayer and overtake Modern Warfare, Halo, or Gears, which unfortunately means it will probably shortly be abandoned because that is the unfortunate nature of modern day console multiplayer. Despite this likely pre-mature death it is a solid first person shooter online multiplayer but tweaked in ways unique to the Bioshock universe. These tweaks are what make this multiplayer stand out. The addition of gameplay elements like the use of Plasmids, hacking of turrets and vending machines, unique splicer themed melee weapons, researching defeated enemies for a damage bonus, and the ability to become a Big Daddy, make this multiplayer mode feel at home in the Bioshock universe. The real gem of this multiplayer though is the integration of a story aspect. This is achieved mainly through the addition of a personal apartment for the player to visit before and after matches where they receive messages from the company funding there combat and can listen to audio logs made by all the different multiplayer characters. These, added to the comments made by the individual characters during the actual matches, paint a surprisingly full picture of their mindset, motives, and the environment their living in. This story aspect adds a whole new layer to the multiplayer that has never been seen before. These unique traits make the multiplayer worth trying and it clearly didn’t detract from the single player experience, partly I believe because they contracted two studios specifically for multiplayer.
Overall Bioshock 2 is a great game. It expands on the rich universe created in the original without retreading any old information. It refines the experience where at all possible adding another layer of shine to the overall product. While the first game revolved around a view where the individual takes precedence over all else to an extreme degree the second avoids a repetition of this while maintaining the same level of impact by introducing the opposite view of the community taking precedence over all else to the same degree. It adds to what worked for Bioshock without overdoing them to where they detract from the overall quality.
10 out of 10
April 11, 2010 at 3:42 PM
lol Bryce I obviously did not read the review because I don't have any interest in Bioshock, but you should probably write in smaller paragraphs instead of one big long ramble.
Katie
April 12, 2010 at 12:20 AM
Thanks Katie. I actually typed it up in Word and then copy and pasted it on here because I thought it was less likely to screw up that way. Apparently I was wrong. I appreciate you bringing it to my attention so I can correct it from now on.
April 12, 2010 at 11:32 AM
Yeah like Katie said. Its a good review, but presentation-wise is lacking. There needs to be division between paragraphs And also if possible maybe a bigger size of font so its easier on the eyes? Oh and also buddy, please for your next review, choose something a bit less biased. Everyone who knows you knows about all the Bioshock stuff in your room and how obsessed you are with the game. It takes all the fun out of it cause we all know you're going to give it a glowing review...just my thoughts of course. It's a good first step :)
April 12, 2010 at 10:08 PM
Thanks for the input Paul. I just posted my second review and despite not having read your comment yet I think it incorporates all your suggestions. I cleaned up the presentation a bit, although the suggestion of a bigger font is a good idea for the next review. I definately did a game I was less biased towards, as the review clearly shows. And that had actually occured to me when I was picking my first game but I decided to go with Bioshock 2 because a) I hadn't finished putting Bad Company 2's multiplayer through it's paces yet and I really wanted to get a review up and b) I wanted my first review to be for a memorable game, and what game is more memorable then a Bioshock game? Next one should interest you though, Splinter Cell: Conviction. Should be up within a week of the release (aka tommorrow). Check back!
Thanks for reading, both of you.
April 15, 2010 at 4:53 PM
Printed it off and am going to go read it now. Will give input in a bit. But before that, one word: Bees. 2 more: f'ing awesome.