Bioshock


:oops:

Thrilling, terrifying, moving, confusing, amusing, compelling, and very very dark. BioShock isn't simply the sign of gaming realising its true cinematic potential, but one where a game straddles so many entertainment art forms so expertly that it's the best demonstration yet how flexible this medium can be. It's no longer just another shooter wrapped up in a pretty game engine, but a story that exists and unfolds inside the most convincing and elaborate and artistic game world ever conceived. It just so happens to require you to move the narrative along with your own carefully and personally defined actions. Active entertainment versus passive: I know which I prefer.

Quote:
If you were looking for a reason to invest in a high end AV set-up, then this is definitely it. It justifies every last penny you can throw at it, because it's no exaggeration to report that not only does BioShock boast the most staggeringly beautiful environments you've ever lain eyes on in a videogame, but adds infinite depth to them through the absolutely astonishingly well-crafted audio that accompanies the experience. The significance of BioShock currently being console exclusive to the 360 can't be underestimated. If you don't already own a 360, you'll most certainly find your resolve weakened to breaking point - and failing that, you'll want to make your PC dance to its tune.


Quote:
But here's BioShock in August 2007, looking for all the world like a game that's landed fully formed from a couple of years in the future. It's a game that's going to make a lot of rival developers either very excited or very depressed indeed over the coming months as they come to terms with how far ahead this game is - not just in technical terms, but in practically every other angle as well. Admittedly, the very nature of the tight, enclosed environments help give Irrational the extra headroom it needed to really pile on the detail levels, but that's not the only reason. There's genuine talent and vision at work here.
 
I knew it. This game will raise the bar for shooters the same way that the original Half-life did some nine years ago. The demo had a similar level of buzz that "Half-life day one" did on the internet. I think it was intended as a oem bundle but got leaked on usenet before the game came out, and people were signing up for usenet accounts just for that. It was some 130mb of joy that people played over and over again until the full game was released. Sound familiar?
 
That demo is so awesome. The bathyscape introduction is perfect immersion, "Welcome to rapture". I'll definitely buy this one. And odds are good for game of the year against Mass Effect !
 
I find it disturbing that Bioshock isn't in Gamerankings "most popular"section, not even the 360-exclusive section... Let's hope it doesn't just sell with the hardcore. I know I will be buying a copy though. :)
 
After 10/10 to Oblivion it's a joke.

I don't know what peoples problem is with Oblivion to be honest. IMO it was a truly excellent game.

It is fascinating though how popular opinion seems to alter how good a game was over time. For example if you ask most people on the net how good quake 4 was they will tell you it was a steaming pile of crap, second only to Doom 3 for its mediocrate. However on the PC Quake 4 averaged over 80% in the ratings and Doom 3 was close to 90% on both PC and xbox. Thats from game rankings so hardly a limited set of examples.

I never played Q4 but I did have the demo and found it a lot of fun, im sure I would have enjoyed the full game. Doom 3 on the other hand I did have and frankly, I found it deserving of its high score. Graphically superb, extremely atmospheric, and good solid albeit straight forward gameplay.

Anyway I don't think there can be much ambiguity with Bioshock, its clearly a winner on pretty much every measure. I have very little doubt we are looking at game of the year here.
 
I don't know what peoples problem is with Oblivion to be honest. IMO it was a truly excellent game.

It is fascinating though how popular opinion seems to alter how good a game was over time.

It has nothing to do with that, anybody who played Morrowind or was an experienced crpg player before Oblivion can point you out to a gazillion design flaws.
 
It has nothing to do with that, anybody who played Morrowind or was an experienced crpg player before Oblivion can point you out to a gazillion design flaws.

I havn't played many RPG's or Morrowind so you may have a point however the game was very highly rated as well as selling extremely well so it can't really be as bad as some make out.

EDIT: actually I need to temper my opinions of the game since the version I play on the PC has a completely re-done levelling system which significantly changes the gameplay. And if there wasn't a problem in the first place then why would I need that!
 
I am about to order Bioshock from Amazon. What shipping method should I choose to get it on the same day it comes out? Crap I want the special edition but I can only get it from Gamestop... This is no good...
 
Looks like the reviews are all on the same page...

Personally judging from the Demo I would give it a 9.5 ... there are flaws and things which could have been done better! BUT, I would say the overall package far outweighs those flaws and the things it does well, it does VERY well.

It seems to be drumming up support for game of the year and if the final title plays like an extension of the demo (all reviews so far point to yes), then it has a good shot. I wouldn't count out the other titles coming this year though.

At least not yet ... I feel bad for them :cry:

Can anyone confirm ToysRus breaking street date nation-wide or is it just in the NJ area? Any other retailers?
 
It has nothing to do with that, anybody who played Morrowind or was an experienced crpg player before Oblivion can point you out to a gazillion design flaws.

It doesn't change the fact that millions of people got lost in that world for 70+ hours.

Oblivion was addicting as hell.

And yes there were alot of flaws, and eventually you realized the game just wasn't that fun.

But it's still one of the most epic games to ever come along, the size of the world, number of quests, and sheer beauty of the landscape (at the time), make it a great game IMO.

The scaled levelling is annoying, however, clever use of the difficulty slider really can alleviate that problem. If it's too easy at the beginning, turn up difficulty, if you find it getting too hard at the end, reduce difficulty a couple notches.

The random dungeons was another big flaw, but it's not like Oblivion didn't have any static quests/rewards. It had something like 15 different shrines, all limited by level, and containing the best magical weapons/items in the game.

....Anyways, back to your regular programming!
 
Personally judging from the Demo I would give it a 9.5 ... there are flaws and things which could have been done better! BUT, I would say the overall package far outweighs those flaws and the things it does well, it does VERY well.

I don't know how you can score on the demo really.

Things not covered in the demo is the entire u-invent system, and ammo/gun modification system. As well as big daddy battles...
 
I don't know how you can score on the demo really.

Things not covered in the demo is the entire u-invent system, and ammo/gun modification system. As well as big daddy battles...

Indeed.

But my point was, I wouldn't call it "perfect". There were flaws present in the demo that will most likely be in the full game.

I was simply saying that these flaws that are present prevent the title IMO from getting a perfect score, but the positives of the game (that I've seen) keep it in elite company. Judging from the reviews, it seems the positives carry on throughout the rest of the game.

Just trying to keep the hype grounded somewhat! :p
 
I finally got to play the demo last night. Given the reviews and my impressions it will probably be the 2007 GOTY. I was very impressed with the ambiance, story, music, etc. The one thing that didn't knock me out were the graphics. Sure the art deco look is cool, but I don't think it's a show case game. It's a super confined corridor game; no open spaces, no high contrasts, only a few enemies and effects on screen and not even any AA that I could see. If I wanted to impress a non-gamers with 360 graphics BioShock is not my first choice. I still think Gears, GRAW2 and even DiRT look more impressive. They did do a good deal of work on the water and it shows.

The game play felt a lot like Dark Messiah, which is a good thing IMO. The atmosphere also reminded me of the movie 13 Monkeys, one of my all time favorites.
 
...because an underwater city would lend itself to open vistas and scenery as far as the eye can see...?

I think you missed my point. I wasn't asking for Bioshock to include these things (well maybe AA), but it makes a game a lot easier to look "good" when you are in one room with two enemies. So taking these constraints into consideration, it does not look any better than another UT3 game like GoW.
 
Iit makes a game a lot easier to look "good" when you are in one room with two enemies. So taking these constraints into consideration, it does not look any better than another UT3 game like GoW.

What about a room like in the end where you can have a waterfall, a huge pool of flowing water, 2 security bots circling you, another secutiry bot fighting you, a flamethrower in the corner, and 3 or 4 enemies all fighting you at once, being set on fire, or zapped in a pool of water??

And once you add the big daddy & little sister in here, it's not too hard to conceive 6-8 characters on screen, in close proximity, which is as many as gears ever had.

With tons of special effects, and a rock solid framerate to boot. Not to mention spectacular lighting, and strong AI.

To me personally, Gears pales in comparison to Bioshock, it's not even close in my book. It's the colours, lighting, special FX and overall ambience that make the difference.
 
... it makes a game a lot easier to look "good" when you are in one room with two enemies.

Absolutely true, and Bioshock is definitely benefiting from this.

So taking these constraints into consideration, it does not look any better than another UT3 game like GoW.

Well, it looks as good as it looks - if it looks great it looks great. Your above statement is more a reflection as to why it would look so good rather than a statement as to how good it looks.

Anyway, let's not let the thread go down this sort of "why it's not that great afterall" path. :cool:
 
Back
Top