| Author | DLC Review |
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STZ513
67,880
Posted on 17 June 12 at 22:23, Edited on 19 June 12 at 23:59
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This dlc review has 1 positive vote and 0 negative votes. Please log in to vote. |
Bioshock 2's downloadable content has always seemed to fail to meet expectations. When 2K released its first DLC pack, Sinclair Solutions, it was discovered that players were paying 800 MSP to unlock content that was already on the disc. The second DLC pack, Rapture Metro, added maps that were practically unplayable in public games. Next up was Bioshock 2's first single player DLC, The Protector Trials. At the low price of 400 MSP, many were excited that this was the DLC they were waiting for. While Protector Trials wasn't bad, it wasn't what fans wanted, to explore new areas of Rapture. I can say without a shadow of a doubt, that Minerva's Den is one of the greatest game add-ons you will ever play.
Story:
You play as Subject Sigma, one of the earlier models of the Big Daddies, like Subject Delta. After an opening scene showing the tunnel you are in being blown apart, you wake up some time later to the voice of the mysterious C. M. Porter over your radio. He tells you that you must get to the Thinker, the supercomputer that was responsible for keeping Rapture functioning. However, it is guarded by his former partner, Reed Wahl. The ending is amazing. I was running dozens of possible scenarios through my mind as I neared the finale and I was still shocked. One doesn't expect the story of a piece of DLC to be exceptionally good, but Minerva's Den weaves a gripping and intriguing story in a few hours of gameplay. I want to note that the audio diaries are even more important than usual (at least in my opinion) as they help explain the story of Minerva's Den and tie it to parts of Rapture that we already know.
New Features:
Minerva's Den introduces a lot of fresh content. There are 3 new areas to explore over the course of the story that allow you to further explore Rapture. There is also a new weapon and plasmid, both of which are incredibly fun to use. The Ion Laser, is as the name states, a laser. It is one of the first weapons you pick up, allowing you to play around throughout the entire story. It is quite effective against enemies, from splicers to big daddies. Gravity Well is the new plasmid. It acts like Hypnotise in that it is globule that you throw at enemies. When you hit an opponent it will become a vortex that whirls multiple enemies and objects around and around in midair before sending them flying in all directions. It becomes even more fun when it is upgraded. Gravity Well 2 allows you to set traps on the ground. The final version will send a spray of acid after the enemies that it throws out, damaging them further. The only problem that I had with this plasmid is that the framerate tends to drop when multiple Gravity Wells are used at a time. There are also several new enemies. Fiery Brute and Wintry Houdini splicers have resistance against their respective elements and have some abilities that differ from their normal counterparts. There are also several new versions of security bots: rocket, electricity, and laser. All of these are much more dangerous than the typical machine gun version. The final new enemy type is the Lancer Big Daddy, who carries the Ion Laser. One thing I want to point out is that there are no Power to the People machines in Minerva's Den, all upgrades are acquired by picking up the already upgraded weapon off the ground or fallen enemies. I thought that this was an interesting change from the usual.
Story- 10/10- Surprising just how good it is for DLC, then again this is Bioshock that we're talking about.
New Content- 10/10- New enemies, environments, and weapons in your arsenal means more fun in Rapture.
Achievements- 7/10- Standard Bioshock list, half are won by completing the story, another one for dealing with all the Little Sisters. The one unique one is reaching the max score in Spitfire, an arcade game kind of like asteroids. Pretty easy to get all of them in one playthrough.
Fun Factor- 10/10- Gives you an experience best described as a micro Bioshock campaign, which is exactly what it should be.
Overall- 10/10
Closing Statements:
Minerva's Den is an amazing experience and a must-play for any Bioshock fan. The story is incredible, which is impressive seeing as it unfolds over the course of 4-6 hours. There is definitely enough new content here to justify the purchase.
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