[Multiplatform] BioShock 2 - I thought what I'd do was, I'd pretend I was one of those Big Daddies.

"I'm going, going, back back, to Rapture Rapture" - Notorious B.I.G. (Daddy) -- 1968



Released earlier this month, Bioshock 2 takes us back to the underwater city of Rapture. The year is 1968, eight years after the events of the original. The two former titans of the city have fallen and all traces of the man, the myth, the legend, Jack, are long gone from the halls. You are Subject Delta, the Big Daddy before there were Big Daddies. Awakened in the middle of nowhere with no recollection of your past you must work your way through the city, now under the control of a one Sofia Lamb, and find your missing Little Sister.

Bioshock 2 features several improvements over the original, including the ability to wield both weapon and plasmid at the same time, and you can now melee with every weapon (including your drill which is probably all you'll fucking use). Familiar stuff like the research camera, shotgun, grenade launcher and the plasmids from the first game all return as well. Also new to the series is the addition of the Big Sister, which combines the ADAM gathering abilities (yes they can use plasmids) of the Little Sisters with the raw power of the Big Daddies.

There's also the Multiplayer Mode, which takes you into the role of a splicer during the Rapture Civil War of 1959. But honestly, you're not playing this shit for the multiplayer so I'm not getting into that. There's a trailer here if you still don't know what the hell this is all about. Go play the first one!

Anyway I'm surprised there's not a thread on this one yet. I know a bunch of you fuckers played the first one and enjoyed it to some degree, so I am cry that I don't really see a whole lot of other negros playing it now that it's come out. It's kind of neat, even if at first glance it does feel like an almost direct-to-DVD sequel, it starts to come into its own once you give a chance.

Plus you can Bouncer Rush people, unlike in the first game, and you know you want to do that shit.

Anybody else giving this one a shot?

Jam it back in, in the dark.

I loved the first one, and that's exactly why I'm cautious about the second one. I just don't feel like it was the kind of game that needed or could accommodate a sequel. Of course, I'm not going to write off the second instalment before playing it, but I figure I can wait until the price drops.

The collector's edition does look nice, but this was never going to be the kind of game where I'd spring for one. The only pre-order bonus on offer was some multiplayer skins that I don't care about, so there's nothing to be lost by waiting until this hits the bargain bucket.

So... I don't hate the idea of it, but I'm not all that keen to play it either. Maybe a lot of other people feel that way too which is why there's no thread? I just don't know, we'll see by the responses. The mechanical improvements do indeed sound good, I won't deny I'm slightly more interested in it after reading about 'em.

How ya doing, buddy?

cannot unsee bomberman on the cover

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

You play as Big Daddy?

I didn't realise this was a wrestling game.



I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

Originally Posted by Qwarky

Cannot unsee Bomberman on the cover

So true, I first saw it a while ago, I can't possibly not see it every single time, now.

I was speaking idiomatically.

I've been playing it for a couple of hours so far and I'm not as impressed as I was with the first one. I can't help but feel like I've SEEN all this before but being able to wield dual plasmids is pretty interesting, if nothing else. It doesn't exactly change combat much and I still prefer to use a weapon supplement for my attacks but at least it doesn't feel like an afterthought. I got the Special Edition for $100, which was pretty steep for a special edition if I do say so myself. I did, however love the special little touches they added to it: hardcover art book, four "vintage" product posters from Rapture printed on granite stock to make it look gritty, the soundtrack on CD and the first game's original score in a 180g vinyl record. I want a phonograph now~

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

Give it another hour or two. It's not really until the second or third area does the game come into it's own. Sadly, there is nothing in Bioshock 2 that quite rivals the awesome that was Sander Cohen.

FELIPE NO

Finally finished it.

Maybe it needs some more time to sink in, but I liked bioshock 2 over the first. If you call bioshock 2 repetitive, you'd have to admit that bioshock 1 is more repetitive. There's next to no backtracking, and much less (I can't actually remember any) of that ~spend half an hour going all over the place to proceed 30 meters further into the map past some arbitrary blocked area~ stuff. Sup arcadia. I guess you could claim that going from / back to the train is that, but I'm satisfied with the reasons the game gives you for doing so.

I understand why it might be called just an expansion pack to Bioshock 1, but that's the entire point - it's a sequel, you're going back to the same place. Of course it's going to be similar looking, it's not like they built half of rapture different. They removed my gripes with the first (can't use plasmids and weapons at the same time), and most of the annoying and more tedious/boring puzzles.

Bioshock is a pretty hard game to top, and this feels rightly more like a continuation. I'm satisfied with it, and looking forward to a Bioshock 3. They left enough open points to justify one I think.

There's not much explained for you from the first, so if you're thinking of playing Bioshock 2 then it's pretty much required for you to have completed the first beforehand, else you'll be pretty confused.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

Originally Posted by Roph

There's next to no backtracking, and much less (I can't actually remember any) of that ~spend half an hour going all over the place to proceed 30 meters further into the map past some arbitrary blocked area~ stuff. Sup arcadia. I guess you could claim that going from / back to the train is that, but I'm satisfied with the reasons the game gives you for doing so.

See, so far THIS is actually a GRIPE with me. The first game created this beautiful and lush city just begging to be explored but the game had this vehemence to keeping you on track (mostly because the game was so long) that you felt compelled to just ditch your current objective just to SEE shit. To be fair, I kind of want to do that here too but, if I felt the first game egged you on a little more than necessary to get you back on task, this game is straight up hamfisted about keeping you focused on an objective to the point where parts of the city I want to see are completely unreachable.

Don't get me wrong... I'm still really digging it and it's still a great game but I wish I'd been given the option to explore a bit more instead of being asskicked into pursuing my objectives.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

The bouncer rush makes it worth the while. I have 2 out of 3 possible upgrades for the drill (since I want straight up melee for like 80% of the time) and the moves wrecks the shit out of everyone.

Otherwise, would like to return to previous places (is it available at a later time?).

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Originally Posted by Terminus

Otherwise, would like to return to previous places (is it available at a later time?).

Nope. When they say "Make sure you've finished everything before leaving" they mean that shit. Triggering final events in some cases, and leaving the area in others forces you onto the next level permanently. There is no backtracking to previous places you've left.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

Yeah, if you're trying to plow through the game and deal with every little sister, you better make sure you did all of that before you hit the train to the next area. Also, am I the only one who feels like the entire "complete objectives on level and get back to train" level setup is just like it was in Dead Space? It's not a detriment or anything but Dead Space came immediately to midn when I was playing this last night.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

well for anyone with the limited edition and owning a blacklight. There are secret messages hidden on the posters!

There Are Secret Messages On Your BioShock 2 Posters - bioshock 2 - Kotaku

This is really the kind of details i appreciate in a limited edition XD

I was speaking idiomatically.

OK. THAT. IS. BAD. ASS...

I have a black light in the game room but the bulb has been out for quite some time now. MUST. BUY ONE. TODAY.

How ya doing, buddy?

Can you imagine how frightened the first guys to discover that must have been? "Yea dude, come over man, im just about to smoke a bowl, turn on the black lights and play bioshock 2!"

FELIPE NO

I'm in Fontaine Futuristics in what I assume to be near the end of the game now. Throughout this entire joint, I've felt something has been missing from this game...

Spoiler:

Where are the GHOSTS? The first game was chock full of ghostly apparitions (which were apparently the hallucinant side effects of splicing plasmids) that told the story of Rapture in its glory days. Now they're nowhere to be found and that's the thing I find that truly disconnects me from this world. Oh well...

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

Spoiler:

Yeah it's a shame to see them go, but they were tossed out in favor of the "flashbacks" instead. Also you've got like one and a half more levels to go. It gets much, much more awesome from where you are.

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