Well here we are once again folks and its review time as you can tell the way i am pumping them out i have a lot of time on my hands
. As you can tell from the topic title i will be reviewing bioshock 2 today the sequel to the critically acclaimed bioshock released in 2007. I am pointing out that the first bioshock holds a special place in my heart and i still have the game to this day so like many others i was really looking forward to this game so does it float like a dead splicer or sink like a big daddy:-
Story
The plot to this game is set in 1968 which is eight years after the events of the first bioshock and follows the first big daddy created more commanly referred to delta throughout the game. You wake up with a single purpose which is to find your original little sister that was paired to yourself 8 years ago. In the years since andrew ryans rule over the city sophia lamb has now taken over city of rapture and has very different ideas to that of andrew ryan. I will not mention any more as to mention too much would give away plot points. In my opinion for review purposes the story does not hold up against the first one, whilst the first one had some pacing issues i felt more connected with andrew ryan and the character of jack that you played as. Plus one point is that if lamb is meant to have been a big issue for ryan then how come she was never mentioned in the first one? The story feels tacked on in a way but it serves the purpose for getting you through the various sights of rapture.
Graphics
When the first bioshock was released back in 2007 i was quite frankly blown away from both a technical and from an artistic point of view. There was nothing quite like it on the market and it was made all the better for it. Now over 2 years later i have to admit the only positive is the art design for me. They still used the unreal engine 2.5 and it does certainly show whilst playing the game. Textures appear muddy when viewed close up and i could swear they have re - used a lot of the splicer designs from the first one. I will say though that the atmosphere of rapture is still very present they have done a good job of giving you the impression that the city could crumble at any point.Also a lot of the areas look.....the same there does not to be any variation unlike the first one where each area had a distinct look to it. All in all if you enjoyed the way rapture looked then you will enjoy the way this looks, if you go in expecting to be blown away then you will come away dissapointed.
Sound
The sound design for the game is as good as you would expect it to be the sounds of the main weapons that you have all sound like they should do. I might add that drilling a splicer sounds very nice and never got old for me. Each loading screen has its own music for the time period of the game but it will often be repeated but its still a nice touch. The voice acting throughout is all fantastic as well and i certainly had no complaints with it. There is not a lot in the way of background music but what music there is sets the dark and dank atmosphere well. Also as always the random sets of dialogue for the splicers are always a joy to listen to as are their screams whilst you drill them.
Controls
The controls for the game are very smooth and something i never had any real issue with. They are standard fare for an FPS with the 4 face buttons being used to jump, melee, interact with objects (looting etc) and reload. Each weapon will have different types of ammo that can be changed with the d - pad and you can assign plasmids to wheel similar to dragon age by pressing the RB and LB is for the weapon selection.
Gameplay
The gameplay is standard shooter fare but with its own bioshock twist to it as you can now dual wield firearms and plasmids. Plasmids alter your DNA in order for to use powers such as incinerate, winter blast etc. Each plasmid that you buy can be leveled up at certain stations scattered throughout the game as can your weapons at certain points. You upgrade your plasmids by harvesting adam that you get from little sisters. Each level will have a certain number of little sisters that are protected by a big daddy that you have to take down. Once you have got rid of the big daddy you have the option of either harvesting them for more adam or adopting them. Adopting them is new to this game and gives you the ability to find bodies full of adam for your little sister to collect. During this time you will need to protect her whilst she is collecting the adam. Once she has done that you take her to the vent and decide if you want to let her live or kill her for the adam the choice as always is yours. Once all the little sisters have been dealt with a big sister will turn up these are very agile and hard to take out. Now i do have some complaints here one of them being with protecting the little sister it gets very old very fast and in the end i was skippping the adopting and going straight to the harvest option. Also another complaint for me is with the big sisters when they are coming there will be 3 loud screams. If you die during the fight once you come out of the vita chmber you will have to listen to those 3 screams again......and again........and again. Now you may think thats not too bad but once you are halfway through the game it is just plain annoying. Another aspect of the gameplay is the ability to hack turrets, cameras and vending machhines. Hacking each one will present bonuses to the player and the mini game is in real time in this game. People who hated the pipe mini game can rejoice as in my opinion this is a better way of dealing with it. Also the game is not as open as the first one was once you have done with an area you cannot go back so make sure you loot all you need to before moving on. The core gameplay of bioshock 2 is as solid as it was 2 years ago and i still enjoyed taking people out in different ways and setting up traps then watching events play out.
Multiplayer
Now when it was announced that the game would have online a lot of people disrigarded it and in my opinion rightly so as this seemed like a game that did not need it. However i can say that i have been impressed with the online for this game and at level 22 i feel like i have a good feel for it. You have the standard modes that you would have in most online games like deathmatch, capture the sister, turf war etc. There are 7 modes in all and it uses an experience based system to level your chaaracter up very much like modern warfare 2. The online has its own bioshock twist though for example being able to hack turrets and tuen vending machines against the opposite team. Also you can take a photo of a downed player which will give you a damage boost the next time you meet them on the field of battle. Also the online takes place prior to the events of the first bioshock with you working for sinclair solutions as a test subject. Its again a nice touch that gives you another incentive to go back and play the online some more. Whilst i dont see it taking your attention for months on end its a nice addition that turned out to be a pleasent suprise.
Lastability/Replay value
The main campaign on normal took me 14 hours to finish with a GS of 685 and there are incentives to play again. The game has several different endings if you feel inclined and audio diaries to collect on a second playthrough if you did not get them on your first one. There is also an achievment for playing through it without using the vita chambers so there is replay value in the single player mode. There is also the online which you can rank up to level 40 which will take a while.
Final Thoughts
If i am honest the game did not live up to the expectations set by the first game for me. The story was ok and i get the feeling that the developer played it a bit too safe with the game. Once you take the mystery that was rapture out of the equation your left with an FPS with some expanded ideas from the first one. If you played and enjoyed the first one then you will enjoy this one just dont go in expecting the same level of awesome that the first one delivered.
3rd
Linear Mode
