Bioshock 2
It is difficult to know where to start with a game this perfect, so let's go straight to the headline act: the storyline.
Much has been made of Bioshock 2's narrative, and for good reason: it's glorious. You could watch someone else playing and enjoy it as a movie. At its centre is the ideological battle between free-market individualist Andrew Ryan and proto-Stalinist collectivist Sofia Lamb, and this philosophical conflict affects everything you do. You are moving through the wasteland that they created, trying to find the girl you were charged with protecting, and as you progress you learn more about Ryan – who was the deus ex machina in the first game – and about Lamb, who is a new addition. There is an ongoing argument about whether games can be considered as literature, and this one presents by far the most compelling case yet for "yes".
The dilapidated underwater city of Rapture is rendered so lovingly that simply exploring it is a pleasure. The art deco, jazz-age-meets-Jules-Verne architecture is achingly beautiful, and the environment brims with thoughtful little touches. For example, Splicers (your main enemies, the grunts of Rapture) do not simply stand and wait for you to arrive; instead, they have their own lives, and conversations on which you can eavesdrop. At one point, I crept into a dilapidated bar to see two of them dancing together, one of many genuinely touching moments.
But Bioshock 2 isn't just a pretty face: there is a fundamentally excellent shooter here too, with some of the best combat dynamics in the business. Fans of the first game will understand the significance of playing as a Big Daddy. For the uninitiated, these are the titanic guardians of the vulnerable Little Sisters – half deep-sea diver, half behemoth killing machine. You start with a gigantic rock drill and an industrial-sized rivet gun as your primary weapons. Because you are so big, the combat has become necessarily much grander since the first game, but the combat mechanics are perfectly judged – satisfyingly meaty when you just want to go nuts, but allowing for all sorts of cunning alternatives as well.
There are larger, scarier enemies after you than Splicers, too, including the genuinely unsettling Big Sisters – spiky terrors that come after you when you free their diminutive siblings. Their screeches warn you of their approach, giving you time to prepare, setting traps and choosing the best defensive position from which to meet them. Similarly, Big Daddies do not attack until you attack them, allowing you to prepare yourself before doing battle. This ability to pick your fights is a welcome alternative to the standard boss-fight convention.
The game deserves its 18 rating; it doesn't pull any punches, gore-wise, and is genuinely scary at times – partly because the quality of the writing makes you very quickly invested in the characterisation. But it manages to be vastly rewarding intellectually as well as viscerally satisfying. Bioshock 2 is a modern classic; a 7-star computer game. More than that, it is a powerful answer to anyone that still thinks all computer games are mindless, childish or dull.
Bioshock 2
"Jack from the first game wouldn't last long in this new Rapture," I am told, as I get my first glimpse of Bioshock 2. In which case it's lucky that you now play a Big Daddy – the huge, hulking baddies that made the first game famous – and are armed with a drillbit the size of Optimus Prime's arm and a boltgun that could take out a T-rex.
But this is 10 years after the original Bioshock. Splicers are unsurprisingly easy to kill, but there are a hell of a lot more of them; and there are other, more powerful foes to contend with. These include the sinister Big Sisters, terrifying creations which hunt you as if you were a gigantic metal fox, making for a genuinely nerve-wracking, edge-of-the-seat experience.
Getting stuck straight in, the combat is some of the most satisfying of any game I have played. Balanced and intuitive, it is serious fun, and more tactical than in the first game, too. For example, you adopt a Little Sister, but when you set her to work collecting ADAM mutagen for you, a rush of splicers will appear. There are a large number of tactical options: hack the bots – hacking has been streamlined – lay a minefield, prepare a fire plasmid to ignite an oil spill, or just power up the drill and fight them off the old-fashioned way; it's all up to you.
The game's atmosphere, too, is outstanding. The mournful, ominous screech of a Big Sister stalking you is genuinely unsettling; radios play big-band classics in a broken-down theme park, with working attractions; you can sneak up on a pair of splicers and eavesdrop on their conversations. The attention to detail is stunning.
The kitsch 50s artwork and music are juxtaposed perfectly against the Kubrick-esque ultraviolence, and if that sounded dangerously like literary criticism it's because this game has real literary aspirations. The original game was at the forefront of the games-as-art movement: the founder of the fictional city-state of Rapture, Andrew Ryan (his name intentionally recalls the philosopher Ayn Rand), and the disastrous dissolution of his underwater utopia was a work of exquisite satire, and the sequel goes even further.
In the brief demonstration I played I spotted references to Jules Verne, Rand again, Ralph Waldo Emerson, some Shakespeare and Walt Disney, just to name a few; and satires so diverse as to lampoon American consumerism one minute and Russian socialism the next. Nor is the game merely a series of satirical and literary vignettes; the storyline is rich and intense, and the gameplay sublime.
There is a very exciting multiplayer component, too, set back in the time-frame of the first game, which features several familiar locations. Plasmids carry over from game to game, and your character changes and improves as you win matches. This part is being coded by Ontario-based Digital Extremes, who were largely responsible for the fantastic Unreal Tournament series and know the Unreal engine backwards and inside-out, meaning that the gameplay is likely to be top-notch, though expect familiar modes like deathmatch, team deathmatch and capture the flag.
By this point it will hopefully be clear that I liked this game. A lot. If it lives up to the promise of the demo level, then BioShock 2 is going to be a classic.
EXCLUSIVE: ‘BioShock 2′ Guide – Every Plasmid And Tonic Revealed
"BioShock 2" drops next Tuesday, and I know that feels like a long time, but I've got a juicy exclusive to tide you over: A guide to every plasmid and tonic in the game. Don't worry, no story spoilers here. It's just a lengthy list of all the delightful powers you'll be able to discover in the strange and creepy world of Rapture. And here we go!
PLASMIDS
Plasmids are the equivalent of magic in the world of Rapture. Using "eve," you can unleash all sorts of interesting attacks right from the palm of your hand. Many of the plasmids from the first "BioShock" return in the sequel, but they've all been given interesting enhancements.
Most plasmids can be purchased at the Gatherer's Garden vending machines, while some will be given to you throughout the story.
(Note: These are only the single-player plasmids. There are some multiplayer-exclusive plasmids to unlock, but we'll save those for another time.)
Electro Bolt
Level 1 – Fire lightning from your hand. Shoot water to cause it to become electrified, killing enemies standing in it.
Level 2 – Charge up a lightning attack and release it. Lightning will arc to multiple enemies.
Level 3 – Charge up to fire an extended beam of lightning (think "Ghostbusters"). Also, every non-charged shot will cause lightning to arc between enemies.
Telekinesis
Level 1 – Pick up objects and dead enemies and use them as projectiles.
Level 2 – Pick up heavier objects and do more damage with thrown projectiles.
Level 3 – Pick up all moveable objects as well as living creatures (!) like splicers.
Security Command
Level 1 – Throw a ball of energy which will cause security cameras, turrets and bots to attack anything targeted.
Level 2 – Charge up to summon up to two friendly security bots.
Level 3 – Charge up to summon boosted security bots.
Incinerate!
Level 1 – Throw a ball of fire, igniting a single targeted enemy. Set oil slicks ablaze, dealing fire damage to anyone standing nearby.
Level 2 – Charge up a fire attack and release it. A fire bomb will be unleashed, igniting multiple enemies at once.
Level 3 – Charge up for a flamethrower attack. Also, every non-charged shot will be an area-effecting fire bomb.
Scout
Level 1 – Become an invisible scout who can move throughout the world without threat of attack. You can fire plasmids, but you'll have to return to your physical body (which remains in place) to progress.
Level 2 – While scouting, you're also able to hack security and vending machines.
Winter Blast
Level 1 – Throw a ball of ice, freezing foes for a brief period.
Level 2 – Charge up and attack to freeze a foe in a solid block of ice. They remain frozen for longer and can be used as a telekenisis projectile.
Level 3 – Charge up for a beam of ice attack. Also, single shots cause enemies to become a solid block of ice.
Hypnotize
Level 1 – Throw a ball at a splicer to enrage it, causing it to attack anything nearby (including you).
Level 2 – Charge up and hit a targeted splicer to make it an ally for a few minutes. The splicer will follow you around and fight for you.
Level 3 – Charge up and hit a Big Daddy to make him friendly for a few minutes.
Cyclone Trap
Level 1 – Set a proximity trap on the ground. Enemies that walk over it will be thrown high in the air and land hard, causing damage.
Level 2 – Traps can now be charged with attack plasmids like fire, ice and electricity, dealing specific kinds of damage.
Level 3 – Traps can be placed on walls and ceilings.
Insect Swarm
Level 1 – Send a swarm of bugs and home in on an enemy, causing damage.
Level 2 – A single swarm can now attack multiple enemies.
Level 3 – Enemies killed by swarms will become proximity swarm bombs. Enemies that walk over the hive corpse will be attacked by the swarm.
Decoy
Level 1 – Create a decoy of yourself, distracting enemies.
Level 2 – Decoy will reflect damage back at enemies.
Level 3 – Decoy will reflect damage and heal the player as it takes damage from enemies.
Secret Plasmid
Sorry, there's one plasmid I'm not allowed to talk about until after the game releases. But trust me, it's worth the wait.
TONICS
Tonics are boosts that you can equip to give your character certain passive abilities. In "BioShock 2" you're able to unlock around two dozen tonic slots by the end of the game, so you're able to mix and match a whole host of different effects at once. Also keep in mind that tonic effects will stack on top of each other. Most tonics can be purchased at the Gatherer's Garden vending machine, while others can be found throughout the world of Rapture or can be unlocked by using the research camera on enemies.
Security Tonics
Hardy Machines – Friendly turrets and bots have more health.
Handyman – Repair damaged bots and turrets with a small eve cost. Also gives random names to friendly bots and turrets.
Deadly Machines – Friendly turrets and bots deal more damage.
Machine Buster – Increased damage against turrets and bots.
Short Circuit – Security is disabled for longer when hit with electricity.
Short Circuit 2 – Security is disabled permanently when hit with electricity.
Shorten Alarms – Shorter alarms (natch).
Shorten Alarms 2 – Even shorter alarms.
Security Evasion – Cameras and turrets take longer to see you.
Vending & Hacking Tonics
Vending Expert – Reduced prices in vending machines.
Vending Expert 2 – Further reduced prices in vending machines.
EZ Hack – Hacking success zones become a little larger.
Careful Hacker – Hacking needle moves slower.
Careful Hacker 2 – Hacking needle moves even slower.
Quik Hack – Hacking has fewer stages.
Thrifty Hacker – Hacked vending machines have even lower prices.
Hacker's Delight – Earn some health and eve when you hack something.
Hacker's Delight 2 – Earn more health and eve when you hack something.
Hurried Hacker – Landing in the blue bonus zone ends a hack instantly.
Vitality Tonics
Fountain of Youth – Gain health and eve when standing in puddles of water.
Sports Boost – Move slightly faster.
Booze Hound – Drinking alcohol increases eve instead of decreasing it.
Eve Saver – Plamids use less eve.
Eve Saver 2 – Plasmids use even less eve.
Eve Link – Using a first aid pack also gives you some eve.
Extra Nutrition – Get more health from bandages and snacks.
Medical Expert – Carry 1 more first aid kit.
Cure All – Health stations also refill eve when used.
Eve Expert – Carry one more eve hypo.
Defense Tonics
Armored Shell – Reduces physical damage taken.
Armored Shell 2 – Further reduces physical damage taken.
Natural Camouflage – Become invisible when standing still for a few seconds.
Research Tonics
Keen Observer – Bigger research bonus when using the camera.
Keen Observer 2 – Even bigger research bonus when using the camera.
Damage Research – Increased damage for research bonuses.
Extended Reel – Research sessions with the camera last for longer.
Elemental Tonics
Elemental Storm – Emit a random burst of fire, ice or electricity when hit with a melee attack.
Fire Storm – Emit a burst of fire when hit with melee attack.
Electrical Storm – Emit a burst of electricity when hit by melee.
Elemental Vampire – Level 3 plasmid streams (like flamethrower or electric beam) siphons enemy health to you.
Electric Flesh – Take no electricity damage and deal more electricity damage to enemies.
Walking Inferno – Take less damage from fire, inflict more fire damage on enemies.
Ice Storm – Emit burst of ice when hit with melee attack.
Little Sister Tonics
Proud Parent – Little Sisters gather more Adam per corpse.
Damanding Father – Little Sisters gather Adam from corpses faster.
Melee Tonics
Drill Vampire – Gain health and eve when attacking with the drill.
Drill Power – Drill does more damage.
Drill Power 2 – Drill does even more damage.
Freezing Drill – Freeze enemies for longer, drill is able to freeze enemies.
Drill Specialist – Significantly decreases eve cost of plasmids, but you're limited to only using the drill, camera and hack tool as weapons.
Drill Lurker – Quiets footsteps and increases damage on unaware enemies, especially when using the drill.
Projectile Tonics
Headhunter – Headshots do more damage to enemies.
Loot Tonics
Scrounger – When searching for loot, you can search again to find more in the same container.
Arms Race – More ammo found on bodies and containers.
BioShock 2 Update: Single- Player From the Start… Almost
We return to Rapture in 2K Marin's BioShock sequel and get a pretty deadly homecoming.
As we get closer to BioShock 2's February release, 2K Marin is finally opening up a bit about its upcoming sequel to BioShock. The original game was a careful balance of stunning design, rich story, and solid gameplay that surprised and delighted players. This time out there's a slightly different mix to the qualities that made the original game special. While there's still gorgeous design, the city of Rapture feels like a familiar place. While there are still some very cool things to surprise and delight players, a fair amount of BioShock 2's punch is going to come from its story, which we can say, now that we've played a bunch of the game, is rich and disturbing. The downside to this is that previews will be spoiler minefields from here on out. We'll go ahead and drop a spoiler warning here and say that while we'll try to be sensitive, expect spoilage ahead.
Our look at the Xbox 360 version of the game started up right after the game's opening cinematic (which 2K is still keeping under wraps), in a sequence titled "10 Years Later". While the basic opening is similar to what we saw back in April for our first look, the sequence was now properly dropping into the game as opposed to a demo of edited gameplay designed to showcase various aspects of BioShock 2. You'll still be roused to consciousness by Dr. Tennenbaum, last seen in the original game, who still hasn't quite gotten her people skills down. You'll get a quick, inelegant rundown of your situation: You're a big daddy that has had his free will restored, and Tennenbaum needs you to haul tail to reach her. Your journey will send you through parts of Rapture that have never been seen, to find her in the old mass-transit terminal.
Your trek starts in the Adonis Luxury Resort, which has clearly seen better days. The once-fabulous spa is now run-down and awash with hazards in the form of splicers. While they are a problem, the splicers aren't the life-threatening issue you faced at the start of the original game, but they do have numbers on their side, so some caution is required. This early part of the game is the tutorial to get you reacquainted with the core gameplay and introduce you to the special hotness of the big daddy, such as the assorted weapons you can use and your drill. The early section also introduces the new hacking mechanic in the form of the hacking dart, which lets you use a funky rabbit-eared contraption to hack mechanisms. The device lets you go into the new hacking minigame by targeting a lock or machine or by getting up close to it, which will let you call up the minigame interface. This time out the minigame has been changed up some and requires timed button presses. You'll need to stop a needle that's moving side to side on green or blue patches on a meter. If you can stop the needle on the blue patches, you'll get a bonus of some kind depending on what you're hacking, such as an extra item from a vending machine or increased damage for security bots.
The early run through the resort also lays out quite a bit of story groundwork via the many voice recorders you'll discover. As before, you'll hear from a diverse array of voices from assorted Rapture residents who, as before, have felt compelled to record their personal thoughts on recorders. The picture that's painted from these recordings is, unsurprisingly, a troubled one. You'll hear pedestrian concerns about someone's day-to-day job or one side of a bickering couple. While all this is an expected storytelling mechanic, there's a new thing that happens as you explore, which piqued our interest. You'll be addressed by the apparition of a young girl named Eleanor, who, you'll discover, is the little sister you've been bonded to. She communicates in visions that yield useful info or items but that make clear she is calling for you as well as guiding you to escape Rapture.
This unique new element to the narrative raises a wealth of questions that, in some cases, only raise more questions when you get answers. For example, Eleanor's full name is Eleanor Lamb, which makes her relationship to the game's new villain, Sofia Lamb, pretty clear…or so it seems. Without spoiling too much, we'll just say that if you thought the Ryan family tree was messed up in the last game, the Lambs are the kind of next level of crazy you'd find on The Jerry Springer Show. Beyond that, it's clear that Eleanor's pretty different from the other little sisters, which is saying something considering what a "normal" little sister is like. More importantly, the residents of Rapture have a very unhealthy fixation on her.
But while the family-tree shenanigans are a big part of the BioShock 2 story experience, the larger issue is the big sister, the big-daddy-killing adolescent terminatrix that we've seen since the game was announced. Our time in the game led us to a confrontation with her that resulted in a window-smashing flood that let us walk outside Rapture for a bit and check out the awesome sights of the city from another perspective. In speaking with 2K Marin reps during our demo, it turns out that this sister is one of several bosses you'll face, although one in particular is going to be a distinct, possibly recurring, problem for you that you'll deal with over the course of the game.
Following the big sister battle and underwater stroll, you'll wind up back in Rapture, again guided by Tennenbaum, and headed for the Atlantic Express section, which houses the city's old mass-transit system. It seems Lamb's rise to power has resulted in a distinct drop in bathysphere usage, mostly because she's having them destroyed, which leaves the subway system one of your only options. The main terminal is where Tennenbaum is hanging out. We're not entirely sure why Lamb doesn't have her taken out, but we expect that's one more thing to discover over the course of the game. The journey to Tennenbaum also introduces you to the various ammo types and weapon upgrades that will be available. We're pretty taken with the trap rivets, which are essentially proximity-sensitive damage dealers you can leave behind to take out enemies. These become key when you're using an adopted little sister to harvest ADAM from a corpse. The rush of enemies that storm you when you set her down and she goes about her business is pretty rough, despite your plasmids and arsenal of weapons, even early in the game. As a result, you'll need trap rivets, upgraded weapons, and security bots in play to survive. We can only imagine it will be tougher farther in, so fans should brace for that.
Our demo ended with a meeting with Tennenbaum, who is holed up in one of the offices in the station with a group of freed little sisters. The pushy doctor is clearly not big on thanks and sends you on your way to another part of the city. The journey dovetails into the Ryan Amusements level we saw not too long ago. The last batch of voice recorders we hit prior to the end of the section of the game that we saw raised some pretty provocative questions about your identity, above and beyond being a big daddy prototype. Much like how Eleanor seems a bit off from her peers, you're a pretty unique individual too, which left us wondering how bad (or good) a thing that is going to turn out to be.
We've waxed poetic on the visuals in BioShock 2 before, so we won't dwell on them too much. The game looks pretty fantastic thanks to the smart marriage of tech and art direction. You'll see a ton of detail complemented by moody lighting and water effects. Your view of the world as a big daddy doesn't differ too much from the original BioShock, although there are new effects in play when your adopted little sister is guiding you to an ADAM-rich corpse for harvesting. There's also a satisfying array of special effects for weapon and plasmid fire, as well as your trusty drill. In our incomplete version of the game, the action zipped along at a good clip regardless of how nutty the action got onscreen.
