It’s been just about five years since Bioshock revolutionized the world of first person shooters, with its story driven campaign and refreshing gameplay mechanics. I originally played the title in 2009, stifled in awe by its originality and dark roots, excited to have played a game with such enormous depth and creativity. After playing the 3rd game in the series, Bioshock Infinite, I instantly wanted to play it again. Writing this review feels retrospective in a way, but I truly wanted to capture Bioshock like it was the first time I have played it. As always, I will stick to my “spoiler free” review for anyone who was looking to get into the series for the first time, while sharing the nostalgia with the people who were fans from the get-go.
GRAPHICS/VISUALS: 9.0/10
For a game that came out relatively early in the 360’s lifetime, Bioshock looks pretty damn good. The world of Rapture is a beautiful disaster of sorts, with most of the city in shambles from a long stemming war sprouted from Splicers and the like. The game looks slightly futuristic, but still has that 60s charm it was meant to have. The environments are beautifully rendered, and the enemies are grotesque and believable. I remember being amazed by the expansiveness of the underwater Rapture scenery, especially during parts of the game when you travel in the “water tunnels” where you get the opportunity to examine the outside blue abyss.
The frame rate is pretty decent in Bioshock, using a superpowered gaming engine to prevent slowdown, even when the game is at its most hectic. One aspect of the visuals that I found most amusing was the ability to access a “high framerate” option in the in-game menus, slightly blurring the textures, but speeding up the flow of the game quite a bit. The two alternatives almost offer a completely different, but equally immersive gaming experience. There are few graphical glitches to take notice of in Bioshock, other than the occasional “oops” in texture rendering, where I noticed the shadow of the Little Sisters present even after they’ve disappeared. With only the slight mishap here or there, the average gamer wouldn’t notice in the slightest. The plasmids also looked great, as throwing giant fireballs or sending huge bursts of electricity sailing toward your enemies never looked so good!
One thing I specifically remember about the graphics in Bioshock was how awesome the characters looked. It was a huge breath of fresh air from normal FPS games, often shoveling out generic characters with blank faces, focusing more on gameplay issues. The NPCs in Bioshock fit the times with their vintage wardrobes, and they perfectly describe their situation (Splicers in particular) with disheveled looks and ragged clothing. In essence, they were the epitome of “crackheads”. The Big Daddies were also very impressive, both monstrous in size and presence, protecting the morbid looking Little Sisters. They freaked me the hell out the first time I played it!
STORY: 9.5/10
For the amount of games that have launched since the release of Bioshock, few have rivaled its story depth and complexity. You play through the game as Jack, an unfortunate soul who has survived a terrible plane crash, only to be transported to the devilish underwater metropolis known as Rapture. Once inside, you witness the chaotic mess firsthand, as you encounter a Big Daddy and Little Sister right off the bat. To make matters worse, Jack is effectively defenseless and is no match for the Big Daddy, shortly being made a toy of. You reawaken, this time to encounter Splicers firsthand, learning quickly the detrimental effects these plasmids have had on the Rapture populous.
Once things seemed as grim as could be, a savior emerges (Atlas) as a voice to Jack, guiding him through the fight with the Splicers. Jack is then forced with the decision of whether or not to help Atlas with his own agenda. And so spawns a series of precarious events, all stemming back to Rapture and its roots, and the player quickly realizes that this city isn’t what it appears to be. Death, deception and life changing decisions are all utilized to give the gamer the feeling that the choices he/she makes really affects the outcome of the story. The game confronts you with a decision process which is rare in games these days, and although ultimately all gamers reach the same destination, the ride is the best part.
It is exceptionally rare that I would go back some five years later to replay a game I had considered “dead” or “shelved”, but the dark storyline of Bioshock makes it worthwile, and I would guarantee to any gamer hours of mind-bending fun.
GAMEPLAY: 9.0/10
The gameplay in Bioshock is almost flawless. With as unique of an approach as it offers, it executes almost all facets with ease. Gamers will find themselves warmed up to the playing style with essential shooter elements such as crouching, aiming down sights, etc., and the intricacy builds up from there. In addition to the classic pistols, shotgun and machine gun, the player will be introduced to Plasmids and Tonics. These are where the heart and soul of Bioshock’s gameplay lie. Plasmids are sort of “magic attacks”, the same style of drugs that the Splicers of Rapture are obsessed with. With plasmids, one can do anything from freeze enemies to attacking them with a swarm of killer bees. They are also upgradeable by using the Adam (which will be introduced to the gamer early in the story) you acquire throughout your journey. Jack will also collect Tonics, or personal upgrades, during his trip through Rapture. Tonics are divided into three categories: Physical (giving you special abilities/resistances), Combat (allowing you to deal more damage) and Enineering (allowing you to hack and such more effectively). Unfortunately, Jack can only be equipped with 6 plasmids/tonic types at a time, making the decisions that much more complicated.
Players can also tap into their computer-savvy selves to hack anything from safes to security robots and cameras, making the player solve a simple water pipe puzzle to achieve hacking success. My only complaint is the linearity to this method, only offering one type of puzzle for all hacks. More creativity could have been spent on evolving this aspect of gameplay, making hacking more rewarding and fun. Hacking security items can prove vital when played on higher difficulties, allowing turrets and such to fight on your side, possibly turning the tide in a major battle.
Gamers can also invent items by using ordinary items scattered about Rapture. By using these items at a “U-Invent” station, ammo, quest items and more can be invented to help the player to combat his foes. I rarely found myself using this method, often forgetting about it entirely other than the cheevo associated with it. A key tip to success for inventing is to loot EVERYTHING. You never know what shiny object could be waiting amidst an ashtray or desk. J Weapons can be upgraded using “Power To The People” stations and more enemy based ammunition can be purchased or constructed for use. Researching enemies with your trusty camera will also allow gamers to obtain bonuses and tonics to give them the upper hand in battle, while creating photographical masterpieces.
The controls are very well portrayed in Bioshock. The look sensitivity is perfect, and the physics are realistic. I never found myself cursing about the controls, or angry that the game wouldn’t let me do something. Throughout my 2 playthroughs of Bioshock, I never got bored of the game, as the combat is not too repetitive. Whenever I wanted to change up the flow of things, I’d switch over to a Plasmid and wreak havoc on the enemy in my line of sight.
AUDIO: 8.75/10
Bioshock’s sound effects and musical score are great. Moments of suspense are well emulated during critical points in the storyline by dramatic music, and the gun blasts all sound realistic. The voice acting is also a force to be reckoned with, using authentic sounding characters to portray an antique, steampunky world, with characters that are far from sensible. There aren’t that many individual audio tracks in the game, but early jazz style songs can be heard playing from radios scattered throughout Rapture. All in all, the music is good, but nothing to be blown away by.
REPLAYABILITY/ACHIEVEMENTS: 9.5/10
Of course Bioshock has replay value! I mean, why else would I revisit a 5 year old game that I had already completed on a prior account? The story holds so much weight, that it could easily becoming a biannual playthrough for me. Chances are that you missed some Audio Diaries along your journey, and collecting them really gives you a better perspective of the motives behind some of Raptures inhabitants. Or, quite possibly you want to go for the title update achievement for beating the game on the hardest difficulty without dying? (And NO CHEATING!) Quite simply, Bioshock offers multiple playthroughs, incorporating collectibles into the mix of a fantastic storyline and awesome gameplay.
The achievements in Bioshock are all easily collectible in one playthrough. Normally I dread collectible achievements on account of redundancy, but the collectibles in this title all have a point. Various other achievements include researching various enemies, inventing a certain number of items and generic story based achievements. Little or no post-game grinding would be required for obtaining all of them in Bioshock.
OVERALL: 9.2/10
In summation, Bioshock is a “must-play” for the Xbox 360. Whether or not you think you’ll like it, be sure to suck it up and give it a try. This will be a title that will go down in history as a classic masterpiece, and one that I highly regard as revolutionizing the FPS genre. The best part is that there’s a sequel! And let me assure you, it’s just as good as the first game. So thanks for taking the time to read this review, and as always, happy gaming!
Time to Complete: About 20 hours
Favorite Achievement: "
Research PhD"
Hardest Achievement: “
Brass Balls”
4.5