Bioshock 2 A Pleasently Surprising Review

Once in a blue moon a game is immediately taken as a single story entity that simply does not need an expansion.  Think of the original Bioshock as the Fight Club or 300 of video games.  A sequel to Fight Club or 300 would be a cheap cash in that did more to hurt the original than grow the franchise.  See “The Matrix” sequels as a reference.   There aren’t many sequels in the video game industry that garner as much immediate criticism as Bioshock 2.  Just the thought of a sequel, not to mention a sequel from a different developer, had so many people up in arms, that it was even hard for level headed professional journalists to take on Bioshock 2 without a preconceived and often openly negative opinion of the simple existence of the game.  Needless to say, the development teams had a lot of work ahead of them.

Bioshock 2 puts you back in the decaying arms of Rapture, the underwater distopia created to be the perfect city free of  God and Country.  As in the original, Rapture is as much a character in the game as anything else and its Steam-Punk inspired art and settings are still completely intact.  All of the standard enemies from the original are present and the weapons and plasmids are still in place.  So, if we had a check list for things that MUST be include in a Bioshock game, Settting and Atmosphere, would be checked immediately. Since 2K Marin was responsible for the PS3 port of Bioshock, they understood how to make the game look and feel like Rapture.

I stress this aspect of the review because most of my preconceived notions about Bioshock 2 were but to bed almost as soon as a started my first save file.  Its easy to get so caught up in remembering the story, twists and the “would you kindly..” of Bioshock 1, that the feeling you get exploring the lush, and spooky art-deco environments is all but forgotten.  Many improvements have been made to the actual gameplay, (like you would expect from a sequel) but from the onset of the single player campaign its obvious that you are playing a Bioshock game.

What has changed?  Well, Bioshock 2 is a bit more of a shooter than the first game.  All the weapons are easier and more comfortable to aim.  They do the right amount of damage and are actually fun to use.  The wrench has been replaced by a drill (since you play as a big daddy) and melee attacks, which are still effective cannot be your only form of attack, like they could in Bioshock 1.  Plasmids and guns can now be dual-wielded which really seems like a feature the first game should have had.   The improvements made to the gameplay are really a measure that brings the game closer to par for overall experience.

The story picks up eight years after the original game, but that is really a negligible number, the only things you need to know about the first game are: what is rapture, who is Andrew Ryan, and Andrew Ryan is dead.    With that knowledge Bioshock 2 should make sense.  What this game explores, is the creation of Big Daddies and Little Sisters.  The main characters are Subject Delta the protagonist, Sophia Lamb the antagonist, Sinclair your guide, and Eleanor the teenaged former little sister and daughter of Sophia Lamb.  I’m not going to give away the plot points, but I will say that the game’s story leans heavily on the social philosophies of both Andrew Ryan and Sophia Lamb.  Most of the story is told through audio logs and many of the secondary characters you meet are directly tied to Ryan or Lamb.  The story isn’t bad for a normal game but for a Bioshock game its significantly weaker than the previous one.

The identity of Subject Delta is never directly revealed during the game, although several audio diaries hint at a few things.  2K did a good job of segregating this story from its predecessor.  Instead of trying to bolt an unnatural side story on to the Jack Ryan tale, Bioshock 2 helps establish the series as a “Tales of Rapture” venue.

Visually Bioshock 2 is one of the most beutiful games I have played in a long time.  The Unreal Engine’s age is obviously not getting the way of the developers.  The underwater sequences, while boring, are especially stunning.  Because of the dark nature of the landscapes, the lighting effects help hide any low res environments and heighten the sense of immersion.

With all of that said, is Bioshock 2 good?  Yes, very few things are off putting about the title.  Probably the most egregious problem is the inability to visit previous parts of the game.  Many of the achievements are collection based, so if you miss something in an earlier level, there needs to be a way to return to that level and retrieve it.  Otherwise, players will need an FAQ and/or player’s guide next to them,  or multiple play-throughs will be required.

The multiplayer aspect of Bioshock 2 warrants mention, but it doesn’t break any barriers down that other other shooters haven’t tried.  It works, I came across a few buggy connection issues with players, but its a completely competent multiplayer shooter.  Much like the multiplayer in Uncharted, it maybe good, but I really don’t want to play it.  Anyone like myself, a player that has little experience with competitive shooters, will have a really high barrier of entry, and will most likely stop playing very shortly after starting.

I like what 2K did with Bioshock 2. Was it necessary? Probably not.  Will I play Bioshock 3?  You bet.  Am I calling a moratorium on multiplayer modes?  Definitely!

Verdict: Atmosphere, Atmosphere, Beetlejuice…er…I mean…Atmosphere