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Bioshock - Reviewed

Started by AN_18_FOOT_SLOTH, January 04, 2008, 01:05:15 PM

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AN_18_FOOT_SLOTH

Bioshock


In this review, I'll be covering Bioshock, rated M for Mature and available for the Xbox 360 and Windows.  I'll be as comprehensive as possible and try to include as much as I can (bear with me; this is my first review).  As for my bias, I had never heard of Bioshock before I played it at a friend's house.  I purchased it a few days later and played the whole thing through.  Also, a word of caution: Bioshock contains extremely graphic images and lots of blood.  If you're uncofortable with these elements, don't play it.  It is not needlessly so, with these things designed to show just how far Rapture sank from its original ideals.  Still, they are there and must be noted.  With that, let's get started!

Statistics

Name: Bioshock
Developer: 2K Games
Category: First Person Shooter/Horror
Players: 1
Setting: Rapture, Atlantic Ocean, 1960
Platform: Xbox 360/Windows
Rating: M - Mature
Cost: $60
Downloadable Content: Yes

Story

A Shooter with a storyline?  GASP!  To me, the storyline of a game is one of the most important aspects, and Bioshock's is one of the strongest I've ever seen.  First, a synopsis:

The game opens with your character, seen from the first person, sitting on a plane in 1960 with a smoking cigarette in hand.  Stewardesses bustle by with beverage carts and chatter can be heard in the background.  The character says, while looking down at a present from his parents, "They told me, 'Son, you're special.  You were born to do great things.'  You know what?  They were right."  At this point the screen fades to black, and explosions and screams are all that can be heard as  the game's title comes into view.  The character awakens in the water, with huge pieces of burning plane sinking around him.  You then take control, swimming to the only thing in sight: a huge tower sticking out of the water.  Upon entering, you see a large golden statue of a man, holding a banner that says "No Gods or Kings, Only Man".



You find an elevator that takes you down, under the water.  As you descend, a projector displays a slide show with a voice accompanying it, saying:
     
     "I am Andrew Ryan, and I'm here to ask you a question. Is a man not entitled to the sweat of his brow? 'No!' says the man in Washington, 'It belongs to the poor.' 'No!' says the man in the Vatican, 'It belongs to God.' 'No!' says the man in Moscow, 'It belongs to everyone.' I rejected those answers; instead, I chose something different. I chose the impossible. I chose... Rapture, a city where the artist would not fear the censor, where the scientist would not be bound by petty morality, Where the great would not be constrained by the small! And with the sweat of your brow, Rapture can become your city as well."

     You have arrived in Rapture, an underground city created by Andrew Ryan in 1945 to be a utopia based totally on free enterprise, science, art, and intellect, with no restricting morals, religions, or authorities.  When you reach the dock of the elevator, you find a short wave radio.  At the other end is Atlas, an Irish man who is another survivor in the city.  He explains things and guides you through the city.  As you soon learn, Ryan's system has become a disaster.  With no morality or any other restriction on science, research soon gives the population of Rapture the knowledge of "ADAM," a genetic material contained in everyone that allows for modification of the genetic code.  This leads to the production of "plasmids" as commercial products.  You see advertisements everywhere for plasmids, like "Incinerate - Fire at Your Fingertips!"  Citizens of Rapture could simply walk into their local store and purchase a plasmid, which comes in the form of a hypodermic injection.  To use "Incinerate" as an example, once injected a person would be able to light a fire with a snap of his fingers.  The only limitation on this genetic modification is the amount of ADAM a person has.  There lies the problem, however.  When the people of Rapture go plasmid-crazy, "splicing" more plasmids than their bodies' ADAM can handle, they begin to deteriorate and lose sanity as well as health.  This is where things stand when you enter the city: decaying citizens roaming the city, half-aware of their former selves, but mostly driven by the desire to kill for ADAM.  All the unused ADAM in the city seems to have been taken, but you are a fresh source!  In order to survive, you must obtain ADAM for yourself, so that you can splice plasmids to give yourself new powers.  The only remaining ADAM in the city, however, is being gathered by the horrific "Little Sisters," zombified little girls going around and draining the ADAM from corpses with needles.  Since these vulnerable little girls are veritable ADAM factories, it was deemed necessary by their creators to provide protection.  This comes in the form of the "Big Daddies," humongous armored companions that follow the Little Sisters wherever they go and defend them from the local populus - and you.



     If you manage to kill a Big Daddy, you are presented with a choice: kill the Little Sister and harvest all possible ADAM from her, or free her from her zombie-like state and only recieve half of the normal ADAM.  Guided by Atlas, you begin your forray into the city to discover what happened to Rapture - and how to escape from it with your life.

Bioshock's storyline is extremely well-made.  There are not many characters left in Rapture to interact with, but the story, other than your own adventure, is presented as history.  As you travel, you find audio diaries of the former citizens, which give you a better idea of how things were in Rapture before, and what changed.  I don't want to reveal the plot of the game, but it is extremely gripping and you feel as though you truly are the character you play as.  The storyline is intricate and fascinating, making Bioshock seem less like a game and more like a good movie.

Story Rating: 10/10


Visuals
Bioshock is presented beautifully, with each horrific detail clearly displayed and visible.  The visuals of the game, combined with the incredible attention to detail, illustrate the theme of the city again and again - as well as what is wrong with it.  You find at one point a crucified man with a sign that says "Smuggler" hanging over his head.  On the ground at his feet is a suitcase filled with Bibles.  In the medical wing, the phrase "ADAM denies you any excuse for not being beautiful" has been written in blood over a corpse by an insane surgeon, whom you must confront later.  Even little touches show the theme, like chains for chandeliers being held in place by muscular arms: the city is based on the strength of man.



Graphics-wise, Bioshock has a very good visual presentation.  There are games with better graphics, but not many.  The errors with the physics engine are few and far between, and technically the game is very sound.

Graphics Rating: 9/10


Gameplay



The gameplay of this game is extremely involving.  As far as controls, there is not much to say: it is a first person shooter.  However, the way in which the game is played makes it very, very fun.  You aquire multiple weapons and plasmids over the course of your adventure, and the combinations of these make for unique and interesting possibilities.  There are five weapons (aside from the Wrench and the Camera), and each has three ammo types that can be used (for examlple, there are regular shotgun shells, Electric Buck, and Exploding Buck).  There are numerous ways to deal with each situation.  How will you kill your enemy?  Light him on fire with Napalm from the Chemical Thrower and then hit him with the Electro Bolt plasmid when he jumps into the water?  Set proximity mines or tripwires and use the Target Dummy plasmid to lure him through them?  Hypnotize a Big Daddy into being your personal bodyguard?  The possibilities are endless.  In addition, hacking brings a new element into the game.  Everywhere in the game you come across vending machines where you can buy supplies, defense turrets, security cameras, health stations, and more.  All of these can be hacked to your advantage in a minigame that involves connecting pipes to allow liquid to flow from one point to another.  Have security cameras send security bots after enemies rather than you; hack turrets to defend you rather than attack; get lower prices at vending machines; etc.  To add even more possibilities, there are also Gene Tonics that you can splice using ADAM, to give you special attributes.  Natural Camoflage makes you turn invisible when you stand still, useful in evading enemies.  Static Discharge releases a 360-degree electric blast any time you are struck with a melee weapon: a great defensive tool when you are attacked by a mob.  All of these possibilities mean that Bioshock is a game that is played the way you want it to be: a rare attribute in a first person shooter.

Gameplay Rating: 10/10


Music

Music is a hard category to rate, seeing as there is very little.  What music there is was not created for the game - it is music from the 50s playing through jukeboxes and radios as you explore the city.  The use of this is effective; the horrifying images of Bioshock contrast splendidly with the upbeat 50s-style music, such as "How Much is That Doggy in the Window?"  Still, there is no original music, or really any at all (besides the occasional 50s tune).  I would have to say a Music rating is not really possible on this game: there is no music to rate.

Music Rating: N/A

Sound

The sounds of Bioshock are nicely presented.  All of the voice acting is good and presents the proper tone of what the speakers are trying to say.  Particularly frightening are the voices of the Splicers (enemies), still half-remembering their old lives.  Gossip-driven women wander around talking to themselves about people they dislike, some of the people will sing or hum, some cry and lament what they have become, and some will even talk to one another.  All this is forgotten, however, when they encounter you.  Their primal desire for ADAM takes over at this point.  All the sounds, work together to make the game truly horrific - the way it was meant to be.  The only weakness is that occasionally when a Splicer is in the middle of talking to himself, but suddenly spots you, the change of voice can be slightly abrupt and could have been improved.  Overall, however, the sound is an effective tool for pulling the player into the world of Rapture.

Sound Rating: 9/10


Conclusion:  Bioshock is an absolutely fantastic game with an engrossing, involved story that almost makes it qualify as an interactive movie more than a game.  The gameplay is addictive and customizable, giving it an extreme amount of replay value and a large amount of possibilities to explore.  It has excellent visual design and convincing, realistic sound effects.  Bioshock is an absolute must-buy for 360 and Windows owners, and is one of the best games I have ever played (and that's saying a lot).

OVERALL RATING: 10/10

Silverhawk79

Excellent review, and excellent game. Is it only for Windows Vista? Because I'd like to try to play it on my Win XP computer, if it can handle it...if not, I guess I'll have to live without it.
But your review really makes me want to play it.

Zovistograt

Quote from: Silverhawk79 on January 04, 2008, 10:06:07 PM
Excellent review, and excellent game. Is it only for Windows Vista? Because I'd like to try to play it on my Win XP computer, if it can handle it...if not, I guess I'll have to live without it.
But your review really makes me want to play it.
no, I think it's for XP.  I remember that ppl had a hard time playing it on Vista, actually, until a patch was found.
"I lovat a gabber.  I could listen to maure and moravar again.  Regn onder river.  Flies do your float.  Thick is the life for mere." - James Joyce (Finnegans Wake, page 213)

AN_18_FOOT_SLOTH

Oops, sorry, I'll change that right away.  Thought it was Vista only.  I have the 360 version, so I'm not too familiar with the PC title.  And thanks for the feedback!

Macawmoses

Great review :)

In fact, I liked it so much...I just happened to drop off a prize! Wait, wut?

You are the first winner of the new RotW :D

Congrats :O ;D

jnfs2014


AN_18_FOOT_SLOTH

Quote from: mackormoses on January 07, 2008, 09:17:56 AM
Great review :)

In fact, I liked it so much...I just happened to drop off a prize! Wait, wut?

You are the first winner of the new RotW :D

Congrats :O ;D
Woah, thanks!

DSWiiMaster42

The graphics look pretty kickass, they almost made my brain explode! Please note I don't only care about graphics in a game, but I'm still saying they look awesome. The game itself sounds good too, this is a MUST BUY if I get a 360.

Thanks to mackormoses for this badass sig!

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Allegretto

Probably my 4th favorite game of all time, Great review, It actually made me jump a few times, pretty scary when you start playing it at midnight =/