After yesterdays brief note on Bioshocks multiplayer I decided to write something a bit more in-depth as I notice around the forums and other places on the net there is a lot of interest on how it works.
My initial impressions of Bioshocks multiplayer was pretty poor, the problem however was not with the game but with my perception of it. Initially I felt like them game was too basic too provide much fun but after a quick read of the manual and checking out a few tips online I went back and give it another shot and second time around I am enjoying all the little nuances that make the game great.
First of all the maps are all locations from the first game which brings back a lot of memories for me, some good times in these maps, Anyone who played through the original will definitely remember Arcadia and its creepy apparitions, this same map appears as a battle ground this time around and as maps in this game go it's one of my favourites with plenty of big open rooms surrounded by small tunnels and corridors great for tense fire fights and sniping with the crossbow. Other maps such as mercury suites are small cramped affairs which focus on a central chamber where all the action occurs, in the central chamber there is a large pillar 3 stories high with a series of balconies surrounding it which forces the players out in the open with everyone vying for control of the good spots like the high balconies or the lower alcoves which are easily defensible.
The game play reminds me of classic FPS games such as unreal tournament or even quake 3. Rather than one shot kills and instant death grenades players will absorb quite a bit of punishment before dying meaning that you are relying on using your plasmids and weapons consistently throughout the fight rather than trying to get the jump and relying on your twitch skills. A game for campers this is not, like the previously mentioned games in order to stay alive you need to keep moving and play smart.
The weapons are well balanced, the pistol although weak can be fired rapidly and is incredibly accurate even at range, grenade launchers are powerful but slow to reload, crossbow is accurate to fire has a moderate fire rate and takes ages to reload, shotgun is great up close and terrible at long range and the machine gun is your typical weak but fast firing spray gun.
The unique take on the gameplay comes in the form of the plasmids, though the plasmids are relatively weak when compared with their single player counter parts in the game they can be used to give you the edge over the competition.
The plasmids and their uses:
Incinerate- sets target on fire and take damage over time, stopping them from regenerating health, the downside though is that anyone you hot will gain a faster attack rate and move faster. Friendly players who have been frozen can be thawed by casting this at them.
Winterblast - freezes the opponent making them slower and take more damage, frozen players can also be shattered with a melee hit. Cast this on friendly players who have been set alight to put them out.
Electro bolt- temporarily stuns an enemy and does a small amount of damage, hitting a stunned enemy will kill them in one hit.
Aero dash- player does a quick dash in the direction they are facing, helpful to move across areas quickly, though if you hit a player they will be knocked back and briefly incapacitated.
Geyser trap- you can use this too place a trap that throws the enemy in the air, enemy can sustain fall damage or damage from hitting roofs etc. Also this is very disorientating for players who aren't expecting it. You can also use this to jump up between levels and reach out of the way places.
Telekinesis- not really sure what all this can do but you can definitely pick up objects and hit people with them for damage...
Houdini- turns invisible though you will be unable to attack.
Insect swarm - deals minor damage to the target over time, using this plasmid on an enemy will blur their vision making it difficult for them to attack you consistently.
How you use the plasmids in combat is very important as you only get too pick two of them you need to choose a good combination for the tasks you face, some of the powers such as incinerate can be charged for extra damage/duration and other combinations can be combined to make them more effective. Some examples of this are mixing a geyser trap with winterblast which freezes an opponent before shooting them in the air, add in a low ceiling and you got a smashed opponent.aero shock or freeze an opponent and then aero dash them for an instant kill.
The maps themselves also have environmental features such as oil slicks which increase the damage done by incinerate and water which increases the damage and area of your electro bolt.
There are several game types ranging from traditional free for all, team deathmatch, king of the hill and one flag of course they all have rapture themes so team deathmatch becomes civil war and king of the hill becomes turf war.
The other major addition to the gameplay is the big daddy in most game modes a big daddy suit will be spawned into the map allowing one lucky player to become a big daddy for a while. The big daddy has a ton of health but can't regenerate so they are tough to take down and will require some teamwork to take down quickly. The big daddy is slower than the other players so use plasmids that further disadvantage him, wintersblast and electro bolt work well and make sure to keep moving out of his line of vision and pumping shots into him.
The big daddy also has some moves of his own, stomp will stun all close range enemies allowing you to make mince meat out of the little people, instead of plasmids the big daddy also has a finite amount of proximity grenades which you can just leave scattered around the maps (the maps are small enough that someone will eventually run into it), lastly but certainly not least your standard firearm , the rivet gun is powerful and accurate and can rapid fire bolts until it overheats.
Combining all this and smart use of the weapons will help you to rack up the kills.
Overall the experience in the multiplayer seems highly polished and with the pedigree of the programmers you wouldn't expect any different the only thing that feels tacked on is the storyline which is little more than audio tapes explaining your latest upgrades and the characters motivations. I think the multiplayer is a great addition to the Bioshock game.
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