Total BS!
In short, the game was highly anticipated by me back then. I pre-ordered it, couldn't wait... but it was clear from early on the game was over hyped and not particularly fun to play. It's nice theme and concept kept the interest for a while but then it all got too repetivie and boring. The main problems being bad physics, bad weapons/gun play and bad enemies to fight. All combined it made for a fairly ham fisted attempt at a unique FPS game. I still love the setting, even in Bioshock 2. It's obvious the underwater city of Rapture is this game's main allure, it's a really neat idea (even if paradoxical) but I can't get over how non-fun the game is. If you just want a story then sure play through this and 'listen' to the game, not that it can hold a candle to a good book or movie but once you start looking at the actual gameplay and it's plethora of bugs and flaws it just brings the whole thing down.
Could have been so much more. If they try and make a Bioshock 3 I highly recommend:
.Dumping the Unreal Engine, it brings with it a number of flaws including bad default widescreen handling, dated graphics (if not used right) and means the developers (2k) don't fully understand the ergonomics of interaction within a game. Coding their own engine or using a better one (Cryengine?) would hopefully lift this burden and allow them to make a Bioshock that doesn't come off like a jokey cartoony poor mans novel.
.Get rid of the SPLICERS. They were boring in the original and even more boring in 2. Get some proper 'meaty' enemies in, without stupid voices, that feel good to kill... that actually scare you a little.
.Stop porting so haphazardly and sort out your control schemes and gameplay incentives. It's not enough to hope a player will just walk around for hours to pick up tapes. The whole gameplay needs a redesign. Imagine going back to Rapture with a modern engine, with top notch (not scruffy/cartoony) graphics, amazing physics and tight gunplay... then it would the 'best game ever' that everyone insisted it was the first time around (and wasn't).
edit: to reviewers who reckon we can't properly review a game unless we finish it 100%, sorry but that is nonsense. I put hours into the Bioshocks and got little back for it. The well known fact that in Bioshock 1 the last third of the game is where it REALLY goes down hilll would make the review scores even worse had all the critics played it to the end. The fact I gave up playing before the end, even after weeks or trudging through show that it was lacking, boring and repetitive. Maybe for youngsters it's an awesome game, but for me approaching my 40s and been gaming since the late 70s I've seen it all done it all and this game blinds people with it's theme and colour but strip it away and you find an extremely irritating game underneath with almost no redeeming gameplay features. Nobody should encourage games to continue down the route of 'hype and story' over fundamental interaction and fun gameplay.