Post by jssf1992 on Nov 25, 2013 18:13:44 GMT -8
I had been asked on another forum if I was going to do a "proper" review of the game when I was done, and I did, so I thought I would share it.
So, now I've finished, and I'm going to write a more "proper" review. This is the first time any of you have seen this, so watch close.
Bioshock is fairly well-known game, known for the Big Daddies, creepy little girls, and what is said to be one of the most stunning reveals in a video game. I've now played through the game myself, and while I may have known some spoilers, I have had a positive experience with it. To elaborate:
Gameplay:
Bioshock plays out fairly like an FPS, though it eschews many of the modern tropes of the genre, health kits instead of regernation, no "actuall" limit on your number of arms, and a number of what basically amounts to super powers. To start with, the gunplay is solid, little to complain about other than that it takes some time for all of your options to open up, your weapons and thier various ammo forms give you multiple ways to deal with enemies (some easier than others), and by the end of the second "level" you shouldn't have trouble keeping armed, you may run out of ammo for your favorite weapon, sure, but there's always either ammo or a vending machine. Now, the plasmids, that's what makes the gameplay unique. There are several types of plasmids, many are supplemental passive abilities, like making your health kits more effective or helping with hacking. The active abilities, however, feel like splicing yourself superpowers, creating fire, throwing lightning, freezing people, telekinisis, and it's all usefull if you take the time to get a feel for it. I personally had a liking for the electric shot (shock droid/camera/turret > hack > sit back > win). Now, I don't know if it's possible to play through the game playing mainly plasmids, but I do know they aren't completely neccesary, but are good for making a difficult fight easier.
Story:
All right, so this psuedo-anarchist/industialist Andrew Ryan (it's difficult to tell exactly what he is, his actions and philosophy don't quite line up) has an expansive undersea city built so that he doesn't have to answer to any world government. Here, he gathers artists, scientists, and industrialists who don't want to deal with others holding them back be government, rivals, or moral objections. Then there's Jack, the player character, who is in a plane that crashes in the sea near the lighthouse/tower that marks the entrance to Rapture, Ryan's city. What he finds however, if far from Ryan's vision of idealic, intellectual freedom . . .
The people of Rapture have abandoned reason (and for the most part, sanity) after a near-civil war following the discovery of a material dubbed "Adam", which allows people to radically change thier genetic structure. The "genetic arms race" and the result of the war has not left Rapture or it's people untouched. Even the first person you "meet" in Rapture, Atlas, is not as well off as he appears.
While Jack is a silent protaganist for most of the (even though he speaks the first two lines of the game), the other major characters more than pull thier own weight. The residents of Rapture, such a the homocidal Dr. Stienman and the entertaining but equally insane Sander Cohen, the philosopher and "king" of Rapture, Andrew Ryan, always a step ahead of you. The desperate Atlas and the regretful Dr. Tenenbaum. Even posthumous characters, like Dr. Suchong are given a good bit of story and personality.
There is one issue however, the ending. What's there (well the good ending) is good, but it came too abruptly after the final cutscene of the final boss . . .
Art:
Atmosphere is the name of the game for Bioshock, and it plays the game well. The different sections of Rapture that you see are quite distinct, but all carry the same feeling. It is dying. There was once prosperity here, remniscent of the "roaring 20s" for the U.S.A. Ryan's vision lived, however shallow, however brief, it was alive. Now, madness runs rampant, and Ryan . . . well, there's no easy way to explain what happened to him. The game creates a world that, ruined though it is, truly feels lived in, creating many emotions.
Music though, I love music, but there's only one original piece that stands out (Cohen's theme), but what is there is used very well to add to the atmosphere.
Gameplay: 8
Story: 8.5
Art: 8
So, now I've finished, and I'm going to write a more "proper" review. This is the first time any of you have seen this, so watch close.
Bioshock is fairly well-known game, known for the Big Daddies, creepy little girls, and what is said to be one of the most stunning reveals in a video game. I've now played through the game myself, and while I may have known some spoilers, I have had a positive experience with it. To elaborate:
Gameplay:
Bioshock plays out fairly like an FPS, though it eschews many of the modern tropes of the genre, health kits instead of regernation, no "actuall" limit on your number of arms, and a number of what basically amounts to super powers. To start with, the gunplay is solid, little to complain about other than that it takes some time for all of your options to open up, your weapons and thier various ammo forms give you multiple ways to deal with enemies (some easier than others), and by the end of the second "level" you shouldn't have trouble keeping armed, you may run out of ammo for your favorite weapon, sure, but there's always either ammo or a vending machine. Now, the plasmids, that's what makes the gameplay unique. There are several types of plasmids, many are supplemental passive abilities, like making your health kits more effective or helping with hacking. The active abilities, however, feel like splicing yourself superpowers, creating fire, throwing lightning, freezing people, telekinisis, and it's all usefull if you take the time to get a feel for it. I personally had a liking for the electric shot (shock droid/camera/turret > hack > sit back > win). Now, I don't know if it's possible to play through the game playing mainly plasmids, but I do know they aren't completely neccesary, but are good for making a difficult fight easier.
Story:
All right, so this psuedo-anarchist/industialist Andrew Ryan (it's difficult to tell exactly what he is, his actions and philosophy don't quite line up) has an expansive undersea city built so that he doesn't have to answer to any world government. Here, he gathers artists, scientists, and industrialists who don't want to deal with others holding them back be government, rivals, or moral objections. Then there's Jack, the player character, who is in a plane that crashes in the sea near the lighthouse/tower that marks the entrance to Rapture, Ryan's city. What he finds however, if far from Ryan's vision of idealic, intellectual freedom . . .
The people of Rapture have abandoned reason (and for the most part, sanity) after a near-civil war following the discovery of a material dubbed "Adam", which allows people to radically change thier genetic structure. The "genetic arms race" and the result of the war has not left Rapture or it's people untouched. Even the first person you "meet" in Rapture, Atlas, is not as well off as he appears.
While Jack is a silent protaganist for most of the (even though he speaks the first two lines of the game), the other major characters more than pull thier own weight. The residents of Rapture, such a the homocidal Dr. Stienman and the entertaining but equally insane Sander Cohen, the philosopher and "king" of Rapture, Andrew Ryan, always a step ahead of you. The desperate Atlas and the regretful Dr. Tenenbaum. Even posthumous characters, like Dr. Suchong are given a good bit of story and personality.
There is one issue however, the ending. What's there (well the good ending) is good, but it came too abruptly after the final cutscene of the final boss . . .
Art:
Atmosphere is the name of the game for Bioshock, and it plays the game well. The different sections of Rapture that you see are quite distinct, but all carry the same feeling. It is dying. There was once prosperity here, remniscent of the "roaring 20s" for the U.S.A. Ryan's vision lived, however shallow, however brief, it was alive. Now, madness runs rampant, and Ryan . . . well, there's no easy way to explain what happened to him. The game creates a world that, ruined though it is, truly feels lived in, creating many emotions.
Music though, I love music, but there's only one original piece that stands out (Cohen's theme), but what is there is used very well to add to the atmosphere.
Gameplay: 8
Story: 8.5
Art: 8