My other main annoyance in Bioshock 2 goes nicely with the previous digging-through-my-purse analogy. I’d liken it to how I feel when I dig around in a purse to find my keys.
I want to switch to my rivet gun, so let me either a) pause and slow down the pace of this fight to the point of lameness while I pick my killing tool of choice from the weapon wheel or b) mash the top right button frantically without pausing and wait for it to slowly cycle through my implements of death while my enemies murder me violently? This aspect of Bioshock 2’s combat system felt extra-clunky to me. Oh, awesome - a huge pack of crazed splicers is coming! Fast paced action ahoy! Oh wait- Hold up, guys. But, as this is a shooter that speeds up frantically every time you round an algae-covered corner, all of the weapons and plasmid juggling got in the way of combat for me. As it turns out, to me it felt pretty clunky. Going into Bioshock 2 I kind of had no idea what the gameplay was actually going to feel like. Namely because objectivism led to the first fall of Rapture, and collectivism led to its second fall. Unfortunately, this underwater metropolis in ruin is clearly host to a number of unseemly mutant couchsurfers (called “splicers”) who want to eat your brains or something, not to mention a lot of devious-sounding folks espousing a lot of Ethics 101 worldviews who you hear throughout the game. I’m a Big Daddy, some f*cked up stuff happened in the opening sequence and SOMEONE STOLE MY LITTLE SISTER I AM SO PISSED. For more backstory on what the hell I’m talking about, check out our Bioshock 2 preview.Īll right cool. ADAM is Rapture’s primary export: it makes you into an insta-superhero through mutation, so naturally everyone wants their hands on it. As a big daddy, your sole purpose in your weird semblance of an underwater life is to protect a Little Sister, a creepy little zombie girl who collects ADAM. So yeah, you’re a Big Daddy, one of the iconic monsters of the first Bioshock. But don’t worry, right? You’re this hulking iron beast with a drill for an arm and a really retrosweet old school diving suit. Rapture, Bioshock’s 2’s legendary setting, is absolutely gorgeously rendered and totally, totally messed up. From the opening cut scene everything I’ve heard is true. Original Technostraddle cartoon, y'all! WELCOME TO RAPTURE: So here’s my 100% accurate 100% correct 100% awesome take on Bioshock 2! They are often runaway critical successes in spite of their flaws because they are a) original and b) exceed expectations. Bioshock 2 had an epic fuck ton of expectations which I tried to not absorb. See: Assassin’s Creed 2, Modern Warfare 2, Mass Effect 2, Uncharted 2, etc. In this wild west of sequels, the first games get off easy. Conversely, of course, these games could go on to exceed the footsteps of the originals, improving upon a winning formula that will guarantee a good five more years of follow up games. Along with a lot of 2010 releases, it’s a sequel in a franchise that gamers hold so dear nearly any permutation of the original material could end in flames. Like I said, Bioshock 2 had a lot of hype. If I like something I like it, and if I feel self-conscious about that I’ll just say it’s “ironic” or “retro” or “super fucking personal nostalgia-drenched so don’t question it.” The latter is never true but it means you can’t bug me about it because maybe I played that game or wore that shirt with my ex-wife who died in an unspeakable something accident and look now i’m crying. I’m not one of those people who dislikes shit just to go against the grain or be alternacool. I think in some ways I am well positioned to review Bioshock 2 because I have a kind of clear-headed respect for its predecessor without any fanaticism or nostalgia to cloud my judgment.Ģ. So let me put this out there so we can clear the air.ġ. Naturally, going into Bioshock 2, I’d heard a lot of hype about the first game. I plan to, some day when I find the time or quit my day job or catch up on the one hundred thousand other games I’ve missed along the way. While I know quite a bit about it and my respect for the game is not in question, I didn’t play the first Bioshock. Let me preface this by confessing that I am a Bioshock infidel.
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