Bioshock Review

Bioshock Review

A critical and relatively commercially successful title, Bioshock places the gamer in the role of Jack, the only survivor of a plane crash who finds his way into the underwater utopia that is Rapture, a city created and built in 1946 by one Andrew Ryan in a bid to not only give citizens a new way of living in freedom but to also experiment with pseudo-democratic regimes and powers.

As the game progresses and the story begins to unfold, we are explained through audio diaries just went wrong. As Rapture began to thrive, Ryan decided to experiment with new ocean organisms and create ADAM which gave test subjects increased abilities and supernatural powers. Led by a revolt started up by aggressive opposition leader Atlas, the citizens of Rapture upset Ryan by launching a full scale war which effectively crippled the environment, the hierachy and the society Ryan had envisaged. Ryan chose to create splicers, a personal army of offensive creatures who would fend off unwanted trespassers, leaving Atlas to rely on the player, known as Jack, to find a route to the heart of the problem and bring down the tyranny.

The game itself is incredible. The atmosphere created by the retro, grim and diverse surroundings manage to recreate a time long past magically and the audio diaries allow the player an idea of what it was like to not only live in Rapture when Ryan was in total control but also when the riotous behaviour seized control of the city. The audio deserves special mention as it conjures scenes most other games fail to do in the present-day form and the settings within the metropolis-cum-microcosmic society are a sight to admire. Market stalls are recreated, train stations loom large and rainforest-like botanical gardens make up the various environments within Rapture, all full of life in one way or another.

The biggest criticism of the game is the gun gameplay mechanics in that shooting is incredibly basic. Calling upon the plasmids created by Ryan's one-time competitor, Fontaine, Jack is able to stun, shock, hyptonise, throw, burn and freeze enemies at the pull of a trigger, allowing them to follow up with either a spatter of bullets or a whack of one's wrench. The oversimplified controls can become tedious especially when enemies appear all at once and the game doesn't always recognise when specific enemies are purposefully targeted. However, the random and varied attacks possible through the plasmid/weapon combination makes killing the vicious creatures slightly more enjoyable.

Looking back on the game as i do now, i appreciate it for it is. It is a masterpiece in story-telling. The twists and turns are unpredictable and the at times random splicer battles are invigorated with the always foreboding echoing of nearby Big Daddies, the game's infamous enemy whos powerful footsteps and unmistakable groans add to the terrifying atmosphere already laid at for the player to marvel at. With the added moral choice offered to the gamer, in that they can choose whether to spare the life of every Little Sister (the brainwashed servants employed by Ryan, guarded by the Big Daddies) may make little difference to some but i felt it served as an emotionally loaded reminder of the reality behind the tragedy that brought about the downfall of a once-prospering Rapture, they are the last remainging 'real' humans and their existence within the world reiterates not only the sense of what once existed there but also acts as a disturbing nod to the methods employed by Ryan as a means of fulfilling his political and egotistical realms of power.

As a game, Bioshock comes highly recommended. As a piece of gaming history - maybe even solely as a powerful, emotional and thought-provoking rollercoaster ride of storyline narrative - i do it no justice in placing it in the top ten games i have ever played.

Aside from slighly underwhelming gameplay mechanics, sometimes repetitive enemy battles and a ridiculously short and easy final encounter, the game is near-enough perfect.

9/10