Forget all the nose candy and floor polish I been wastin' time with! THIS stuff is the mother's milk! - Fontaine.
Graphics 9
Sounds 9
Value 10
Tilt 10
The Good
* Choices have consequences
* Compelling story
* Extremely well optimised
* First encounter of the big daddy
* Sander Cohen
The Bad
* The fake widescreen option
* A tad too easy
* Owning your own water park
I really couldn't agree more with the above statement by one of the major characters of Bioshock, Frank Fontaine. Ever since the announcement made by the developers of System Shock, I really couldn't avoid tagging this game. Of course it could be the case of being the victim of over-marketing however I took the gamble and honestly my 'investment' has certainly paid off. There were at times I have placed my doubts over this game (e.g. the concepts of the little sisters as apposed to the PC game FEAR) however I bit my tongue and purchased the now rare Limited Edition Box and drown myself into the world of Rapture.
Looking back now after finishing the game some two months later (I really took my time searching every bit of Rapture), I felt a great sense of achievement and that means the ingredients of a wonderful game. I will admit that during the 'demo' sequence when you first arrive in Rapture and almost immediately playing a puppet in practically injecting every friggin plasmid you'll come across, it did raise a skeptical eyebrow thinking 'here we go, another ported console disaster' and thought this was the idea of the developers as an excuse to get straight into the 'bam-bam' action otherwise our cousins, the console players will get bored and ditched the game in total disgust (which equates to lost revenue). This and the some-what linear game play made me a little disappointed. However, just like a very good mystery novel, when the secrecy is revealed, I swear that this is probably the most cleverly disguised linear game play I have ever encounter; period.
To those (like me) who studied philosophy will know that the Bioshock concepts were derived by the ideas Ayn Rand. Therefore Bioshock can be looked at as an interactive experience of understanding Ayn's works as there are many references made back to Ayn (e.g. Ayn Rand - Andrew Ryan; Her novels 'The Fountainhead' and 'Atlas Shrugged' - Fontaine and Atlas and the list goes on). Also to those who visited the Rockefeller Center in New York City, remember that art deco style 'Atlas' statue? See the familiarities?
That said, considering the (very cleverly disguised) linear game play, the developers make sure that the player decide the 'fate' of Rapture (i.e. is it the flaw in the philosophies of Objectivism, or in the men and women who practice them). You are not required to nuke everyone or even to raise your gun. Like System Shock, you have many options to dispose your foes by hacking into turrets, wisely use your plasmids (similar to 'spell casting') or even get your foes fighting against each other. There is also this moralistic choice of saving the little sisters or to put it gently harvesting them. If you decide to 'sit and wait', you can see the splicers (people who literally overdosed on Adam - the main ingredient for 'altering' one self - think of plastic surgery on a 'plasmid' scale) go about doing their own business and talking among themselves. Later on, you will get in hold of the ever-valuable camera where you can research your foes and hopefully learn more about their talents and have the opportunity to upgrade your weapons and plasmids.
Considering the game uses the latest Unreal Engine, you will have really no issues running the game. Extremely well optismised to run almost any mid-range PCs, everyone will enjoy what this engine can produce. Graphically, the game is impressive. Nice shadow effects and detailed environments will naturally enhance the game play. Apparently there was a dedicated team that created all the water effects so do yourself a favour and take a look at these marvelous ripples as impressive algorithms are used to create these wonderful effects. However the widescreen option is some-what a flawed concept. Unfortunately it's not truly widescreen as the developers simply cut the top and bottom to create that widescreen effect. A real shame in my opinion considering how much time was taken to create a visually impressive 'art deco' style world but with the new patch is on its way will correct this flaw.
One of the most memorable moments of this game (and arguably one of the most noticeable icons in a video game) is when you first encounter the big daddy and the little sister. The extremely heavy 'thump' of the big daddy accompanied by the gloomy moan will bring shivers down your spine. I really felt the immense power of these big daddies and the uncanny voice of those little sisters are abnormal indeed. Even if you managed to dispose the big daddy you really need to hear the unnatural cries of the little sisters. Other sounds like the creak of the floor boards, the announcements made throughout Rapture ('Hey there, fellas. You know that 9 out of 10 ladies prefer the athletic man?'), or even the skittering of the spider splicers above you really makes you think twice about your next move. The now free-to-download musical scores are pleasant to hear and if you have a chance, listen to the 'hits of the 50s' played throughout the game (remember the song 'How much is that dog in the window?').
As mentioned above, the entire game play is really up to the player. You can literally steam roll the game hence should be able to finish it probably under 10 hours however if (like myself) try and explore every nook and cranny, it can take around 20 hours. Also, like many other games of this genre, there is that easy, medium and hard settings to tailor all players. I personally played it on the hard difficulty and it was challenging enough. That said, seasoned FPS players should avoid the easy and medium difficulty settings. There is also this 'debatable' issue about the concept of death. In Bioshock, there is no 'true' death as there are ample of 'vita-chambers' which resuscitates the player. This made the conception of the game being too easy however what is the difference between the player using the 'quick save' option and being revived in the vita-chambers? And please don't say 'sense of achievement' either (unless you are playing it using the Xbox 360).
The packaging of Bioshock comes to me of a great surprise. I bought the Limited Edition Box as I really want to view the 'Making of' therefore getting into the developer's eyes. However, to those who were very lucky enough to purchase the box will have the pleasure of also owning the big daddy figurine. Just think of originally the developers have no plans of making a Limited Edition Box therefore my sincere thanks to those who placed that petition on their website demanding the Limited Edition Box set. You guys rock!
Ever since the announcement made by Take Two, I religiously tagged this game and followed the footsteps to see if this is one of the greatest games for 2007. I know it's a bold statement however considering the flurry of FPS in the market, it's really hard for any FPS game to stand out of the crowd. If the game does create a form of uniqueness then it will permanently etch in people's minds as a memorable game and Bioshock has done exactly that. I can assure you that even though you may not want to play the game, you will still recognise icons like The Big Daddies, Little Sisters and probably Andrew Ryan. If you have gotten this far in just recognising these figures then an interest has already planted in your mind and all it takes is that seed to make a mega success as this game has already done. So instead of reading this review any longer, would you kindly install the game like millions of players have already done so and immerse yourself in the world of Rapture.