SFG’s Review for BioShock 2

Back when SFG was just a discussion among friends, before we even had the A-frame built for the first barn, 2k released BioShock for the main gaming platforms.  The first BioShock quickly became a contender for many peoples game of the year.  The Farmhands loved it.  Now BioShock 2 has hit the Farm and farmhands have to decide if this sequel is worthy of the same love.  Does the City of Rapture still have what it takes to become the Game that everyone talks about, or does it dive into the deep abyss?

Have you ever played a game or watched a movie where the opening scenes grab you and didn’t let go?  BioShock 2 did that for me.  I was hooked right from the get go.  I don’t want to spoil it for anyone who has yet to play it, but rest assured that this opening really sets the pace for what Rapture has in store for the player.

Image via Wikipedia

Players may remember in BioShock, Rapture was a city dedicated to the individual.  The best way for me to describe it is a city that was run from the Far, Far Right of the political aisle.  Flash forward to BioShock 2 and the city is now run from the Far, Far Left.  Showing that if ever there was a city in need of some sort of political balance, Rapture is surly the place.

BioShock 2 allows the gamer to play as the original Big Daddy. In the first BioShock players rarely felt like their was nothing they couldn’t handle with their plasmids; in BioShock 2 you can throw that out the window.  The splicers have been given an upgrade.  They are much more aggressive and harder to take down.  When facing off against more than three splicers, it would be best to have some sort of strategy besides the usual run and gun.

If splicers were all the player had to worry about gamers could get a sense of being the Top Dog.  However, gamers have to worry about more than just splicers.  Players now have to deal with much meaner and tougher Big Daddies, not to mention the baddest bitches of all the time, the Big Sister.

Big Sisters are the little sisters that have grown up.  They are mean, unforgiving, and down right brutal in  their pursuit to kill the player.  And I love them for it.

The Story of BioShock 2 is told the same way as Bioshock.  Gamers will have a two-way radio in which they will communicate with their comrades inside the city.  Players will also find audio recordings along the way, that when listened to will give the City of Rapture much more depth than many games ever think about possessing.  The voice acting in the game rivals other big budget titles, solidifying the franchise as a truly story driven single player experience.

When BioShock was first released it raised the bar for water effects in games. Its sequel, while looking just as good as the first, doesn’t hold up to the standards that the industry now have.  That’s not to say that BioShock is an ugly game, not at all, just that it is hard to say this game stands out of the shadow of its predecessor. There are some parts of the game where the visuals really shine, others where they are just kind of meh.

Surround sound was made for games.  The audio in Bioshock 2 is top notch.  The level of immersion that the player is able to get in this game is due in big part by the games audio.  While not perfect, it more than gets the job done.

Gameplay was just a little on the stale side.  While there were some new weapons to be added to your arsenal, there wasn’t that much improvement over the first BioShock.  Sometimes I found myself backtracking for, what felt like, no other reason than to try and stretch the game out.  Some of the missions felt a little repetitive, but that is the nature of a First Person Shooter.

Bioshock 2 introduced a Multi-Player mode to the franchise.  I didn’t spend alot of time in the online mode, but what I was able to gather was that it didn’t have the tacked on feel that most online modes for single player games have.  The action felt solid and there was no lag worthy of mentioning.  It seemed like a nice addition to the game that would have been fine without it.

BioShock 2 has many more good things going for it than  bad.  SFG gives BioShock 2 a well deserved 8 out of 10.  Think that SFG’s review is off somehow? Log in and let us know!