So, yeah, I know it's been a loooooong while (Longer than I thought) since I last posted here.
I haven't abandoned it, just been busy...
...No, really...
Oy
Monday 15 February 2010
Go Team Sea Slug!
Bioshock 2 Review
Bioshock was one of the most entertaining and enjoyable FPSs to come out in recent years, and so a sequel was never really much of a surprise. And so, this hotly anticipated sequel has finally been released. There was much talk and debate as to whether it could better its predecessor, and if playing as a Big Daddy was a good idea or little more than a gimmick...
So, does life still linger in this city, or has the party come to an end?
Diving Right In
As with the previous game, you’re treated to a pre-rendered scene that serves as your introduction. While longer than the first, it serves its purpose well, sticking you in the lumbering diving suit of Subject Delta. From there, you’re thrown into the game right off, deep in the bowels of Rapture. Unlike that first game, which threw a mysterious lighthouse and a beautiful cityscape at you in the first few minutes before throwing enemies your way, Bioshock 2 jump almost right into the action, with you meeting your first Splicer only two rooms away. This helps to differentiate from the first game where, instead of introducing you to a mysterious city, it lets you get to grips with fighting, using your new Drill and duel-wielding Plasmids. A smart move, as most people already know what Rapture is about. After bashing a few Spicers, and running after a Big Sister, you get swept into the water that entraps the city, showing off one of the advantages you have as Delta, and only then do you see a cityscape of Rapture in all it’s destroyed glory...
Welcome Return
For anyone who’s played the first Bioshock, you’ll find that not a great deal has changed in terms of gameplay, and those things that have changed, have been tweaked for the better. The most obvious and biggest change is the ability to duel-wield both your Weapon and Plasmids, and mechanic that allows fights to go smoother, without the constant switching between them. Also including is that you have a standard Melee button that works with all weapons, meaning that you don’t have to switch to your Drill every time you want to whack someone’s face off. The weapons themselves, while being different in look and name, pretty much serve the same purposes as they did in the original game, the only real new addition to your selection being the Remote Hacking Tool. And, of course, there are other returnees in the form of Audio Diaries, Sentry Bots, Turrets and Vending Machines. Although there is a noticeable lack of the U-Invent machine, meaning there’s no random objects either.
For Better Or Worse
While a lot of things remain the same, giving the game quite a comfortable feel when you first dive in, there are some things that have changed. As previously mentioned, you have a Remote Hacking Tool that allows you to hack machines at a distance, which allows for more strategy during fights. Hacking itself is much improved upon, now taking place in real-time with a far simpler mini-game replacing the slow pipe-switching game for before. Another change is the way you equip Gene Tonics. Gone are the three sections for Combat, Engineering and Physical, instead replaced by one large section where you can equip whatever you want. Assuming you’ve got enough slots, of course. Which brings us to the Little Sisters. A lot of people worried that the game was going to turn into the final area from the original Bioshock, with you having to constantly safeguard your Sister, but keeping her safe only really comes into it when you set them down to harvest Adam, and even then they can’t die all that happens is that they get slowed down, the Splicers constantly coming at you until she’s done. While it’s an interesting mechanic, it does get a little laborious at time, but thankfully there aren’t as many sisters in this game as in the previous one, so by the time you’re starting to get fed up with it, you’re pretty much done with them.
Let’s Get Together
One of the major downsides to the single player is that its length is quite shorter than the original game, and while it’s good fun while it lasts, you can’t help but feel that they were likely running low on ideas to stretch out the story. Of course, your ‘Goals’ such as they are, are fairly standard lengthening tactics. Such as needing to find a key on someone who doesn’t want you to have it and so on. And also, it’s likely that it was trimmed down to make room for the Multiplayer. While I would likely use this space to tell you all about it, I’m not a Multiplayer person, so you’ll have to go elsewhere for a Multiplayer review.
Sounding Off
Of course, rapture still gives off a creepy vibe due to the music, or lack there of. While you’ll more often than not be listening to people or the returning Audio Diaries blabbing in your ears, when they’re not, you’ll be able to drink in the atmosphere of a city still destroying itself.
Not All There
For those who’ve kept up with information on Bioshock 2, there is likely to be a few surprises with regards to content. The Big Sister was supposed to have appeared randomly, but her appearances are easy to predict as it’s always once you’ve dealt with all the level’s Little Sisters. Also, the Ghost Sequences were supposed to have returned (they were even in the trailer) and were supposed to have shown the fall of rapture, however they don’t even make a single appearance. While this does raise some questions about what may have been cut out of the game, on the whole what was said to be in the game compared to what is missing isn’t that much of a big deal, and the game itself is still enjoyable, if a little less unpredictable for it.
Summary
Gameplay: 9/10 – The gameplay from the first Bioshock is tweaked for the better. Although there’s not a lot that’s directly new, the changes help it to flow better, and while some things feel a little tacked on, it’s still a lot of fun.
Sound: 9/10 – Classical scores combined with 50s music and decent voice acting.
Graphics: 8/10 – If you liked the look of Bioshock then you’ll like this, as there isn’t a whole lot of difference.
Lifespan 7/10 – Unfortunately the Single Player campaign is shorter than the first game, and it feel shorter too. Of course, this also means that it doesn’t outstay it’s welcome.
Final Score: 8/10
While the return to Rapture is a whole lot of fun, you can’t help but feel that you’ve seen it all before, and even the few tweaks and changes can’t help to disguise this fact. But in the end, Bioshock 2 is well worth picking up if you’re a fan of the first game, or a fan of FPSs in general, as we may have seen it before, but that doesn’t make it any less fun.
Bioshock was one of the most entertaining and enjoyable FPSs to come out in recent years, and so a sequel was never really much of a surprise. And so, this hotly anticipated sequel has finally been released. There was much talk and debate as to whether it could better its predecessor, and if playing as a Big Daddy was a good idea or little more than a gimmick...
So, does life still linger in this city, or has the party come to an end?
Diving Right In
As with the previous game, you’re treated to a pre-rendered scene that serves as your introduction. While longer than the first, it serves its purpose well, sticking you in the lumbering diving suit of Subject Delta. From there, you’re thrown into the game right off, deep in the bowels of Rapture. Unlike that first game, which threw a mysterious lighthouse and a beautiful cityscape at you in the first few minutes before throwing enemies your way, Bioshock 2 jump almost right into the action, with you meeting your first Splicer only two rooms away. This helps to differentiate from the first game where, instead of introducing you to a mysterious city, it lets you get to grips with fighting, using your new Drill and duel-wielding Plasmids. A smart move, as most people already know what Rapture is about. After bashing a few Spicers, and running after a Big Sister, you get swept into the water that entraps the city, showing off one of the advantages you have as Delta, and only then do you see a cityscape of Rapture in all it’s destroyed glory...
Welcome Return
For anyone who’s played the first Bioshock, you’ll find that not a great deal has changed in terms of gameplay, and those things that have changed, have been tweaked for the better. The most obvious and biggest change is the ability to duel-wield both your Weapon and Plasmids, and mechanic that allows fights to go smoother, without the constant switching between them. Also including is that you have a standard Melee button that works with all weapons, meaning that you don’t have to switch to your Drill every time you want to whack someone’s face off. The weapons themselves, while being different in look and name, pretty much serve the same purposes as they did in the original game, the only real new addition to your selection being the Remote Hacking Tool. And, of course, there are other returnees in the form of Audio Diaries, Sentry Bots, Turrets and Vending Machines. Although there is a noticeable lack of the U-Invent machine, meaning there’s no random objects either.
For Better Or Worse
While a lot of things remain the same, giving the game quite a comfortable feel when you first dive in, there are some things that have changed. As previously mentioned, you have a Remote Hacking Tool that allows you to hack machines at a distance, which allows for more strategy during fights. Hacking itself is much improved upon, now taking place in real-time with a far simpler mini-game replacing the slow pipe-switching game for before. Another change is the way you equip Gene Tonics. Gone are the three sections for Combat, Engineering and Physical, instead replaced by one large section where you can equip whatever you want. Assuming you’ve got enough slots, of course. Which brings us to the Little Sisters. A lot of people worried that the game was going to turn into the final area from the original Bioshock, with you having to constantly safeguard your Sister, but keeping her safe only really comes into it when you set them down to harvest Adam, and even then they can’t die all that happens is that they get slowed down, the Splicers constantly coming at you until she’s done. While it’s an interesting mechanic, it does get a little laborious at time, but thankfully there aren’t as many sisters in this game as in the previous one, so by the time you’re starting to get fed up with it, you’re pretty much done with them.
Let’s Get Together
One of the major downsides to the single player is that its length is quite shorter than the original game, and while it’s good fun while it lasts, you can’t help but feel that they were likely running low on ideas to stretch out the story. Of course, your ‘Goals’ such as they are, are fairly standard lengthening tactics. Such as needing to find a key on someone who doesn’t want you to have it and so on. And also, it’s likely that it was trimmed down to make room for the Multiplayer. While I would likely use this space to tell you all about it, I’m not a Multiplayer person, so you’ll have to go elsewhere for a Multiplayer review.
Sounding Off
Of course, rapture still gives off a creepy vibe due to the music, or lack there of. While you’ll more often than not be listening to people or the returning Audio Diaries blabbing in your ears, when they’re not, you’ll be able to drink in the atmosphere of a city still destroying itself.
Not All There
For those who’ve kept up with information on Bioshock 2, there is likely to be a few surprises with regards to content. The Big Sister was supposed to have appeared randomly, but her appearances are easy to predict as it’s always once you’ve dealt with all the level’s Little Sisters. Also, the Ghost Sequences were supposed to have returned (they were even in the trailer) and were supposed to have shown the fall of rapture, however they don’t even make a single appearance. While this does raise some questions about what may have been cut out of the game, on the whole what was said to be in the game compared to what is missing isn’t that much of a big deal, and the game itself is still enjoyable, if a little less unpredictable for it.
Summary
Gameplay: 9/10 – The gameplay from the first Bioshock is tweaked for the better. Although there’s not a lot that’s directly new, the changes help it to flow better, and while some things feel a little tacked on, it’s still a lot of fun.
Sound: 9/10 – Classical scores combined with 50s music and decent voice acting.
Graphics: 8/10 – If you liked the look of Bioshock then you’ll like this, as there isn’t a whole lot of difference.
Lifespan 7/10 – Unfortunately the Single Player campaign is shorter than the first game, and it feel shorter too. Of course, this also means that it doesn’t outstay it’s welcome.
Final Score: 8/10
While the return to Rapture is a whole lot of fun, you can’t help but feel that you’ve seen it all before, and even the few tweaks and changes can’t help to disguise this fact. But in the end, Bioshock 2 is well worth picking up if you’re a fan of the first game, or a fan of FPSs in general, as we may have seen it before, but that doesn’t make it any less fun.
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