BioShock 2 Remastered

Despite being a fan of Bioshock for many years, I had never played BioShock 2 before. Today I finally repayed that debt.

As expected from a Bioshock game, this was nothing short of great. However, and this is just a personal opinion, this one might be even better than the first one. At least gameplay-wise. Since this is 2 Remastered and I've only played original 1, I won't compare stuff like graphic, bugs, and that sort of things. What I'll say is that 2 felt a little more polished, and some mechanics are so much better. The game puts you in the shoes of a fearsome Big Daddy (BD), and honestly that's the best thing about this game. As a BD, your main weapon is your drill and using it is really satisfying (and vicious), and the best part is that it remains useful throughout the whole game. The other weapons that you get have all their relevance, and can be useful, but I found myself not using them that much, and always going back to melee.

Talking about good stuff, I liked some of the changes they made in this one. The increased wallet size was nice (even though it was still small), the added Big Sister bossfights were amazing (and terrifying). The sounds and atmosphere were really well made. And of course, the hacking minigame. It didn't suck this time. I actually think it is good.

On the more bad size, the worst part was the new Little Sister (LS) mechanic. Now, besides curing or killing them, you can play this "defend the spot" game where you protect the child as she gathers the drugs. The first few times is actually fun, but by the middle of the game I was really tired of doing it (luckily, it is completely optional). However, I did like going around carrying a LS and hearing them make commets about the things you see and do. Also the moral choices in this game don't really have a point. Literally, there is no reason at all to pick the "evil" choices, other than intentionally being an asshole.

In general, the game's biggest problem, at least for me, is that it isn't memorable. Considering how epic the previous game is. 1 has it's flaws, but it is iconic. Seeing Rapture for the first time, characters like Ryan and Fontaine, the sick plot twists, all of that was memorable. 2 lacks all of that. The places are a little repetitive, the characters are forgettable most of them, and the story is pretty straightforward and, honestly, not that interesting.

Alright, that's more text than I thought it would be. Sorry. Overall, I believe that this is a great game, and I regret that it took me so many years to actually play it. And I definitely will replay it at some point.

"Love is just a chemical. We give it meaning by choice" - Eleanor Lamb

•highest difficulty beaten: Hard

+ Marvelous Storytelling & Characters Development
+ The World, its Horror-like Ambiences & its NPCs
+ Superb & Daunting Soundtrack
+ Delightful Combat - from weapons, powers and a State-of-the-Art Enemy AI
+ Improved Character Models & Amazing Visuals
+ "Minerva's Den" episode & Extra Content
+ A familiar, but VASTLY improved, experience

- Certain sections are OVERbalanced when it comes to Resources & Ammo, even on the highest difficulty
- Immersion can be somewhat affected by an always-present UI & Character model
- UI Navigation can feel slow & sturdy in some aspects


Final Score: 9.3 / 10
(Expecation: 8.5 - 9.0)

Replaying the series. Although conceptually the themes and writing aren't as thorough this time around, the gameplay is much better and the writing is still a lot more thoughtful and generally smarter than 99% of AAA games. Deserves a second look for anyone who didn't care for it before.

Story: The events of Bioshock 2 take place 8 years after the events of the first Bioshock. Rapture, as we mentioned, had become prosperous and its development was continuous due to the presence of the best scientists and minds. Of course, Andrew Ryan had given them complete freedom to implement their ideas. However, Andrew Ryan was fearful of the parasites above him trying to take over his city, so he prohibited any external communication, leading to the isolation of the city. The lack of sunlight plunged the city’s inhabitants into depression, which prompted Andrew Ryan to hire a psychiatrist named Sofia Lamb to treat the mental health issues of the citizens. But Andrew Ryan made one of his biggest mistakes by hiring her because Sofia Lamb held completely opposing views to his.

Andrew Ryan’s philosophy can be described as individualistic objectivism, while Sofia Lamb’s philosophy is collectivist utilitarianism. It’s clear that Andrew believed the individual should be the center of attention, and that society progresses when everyone focuses on their own self-interest, while Sofia believed that society should serve the collective good and that the individual lives to serve the community. Sofia’s philosophy became more dangerous as she turned Rapture’s citizens against Andrew Ryan, believing the city would be better if they followed her ideas. Sofia made a smart move by treating people for free and turning them against Andrew Ryan, gaining followers. Eventually, Andrew Ryan organized public debates to regain his popularity, but Sofia’s followers grew, forming a religious sect called the "Rapture Family," who followed Sofia’s teachings to the letter.

Andrew Ryan decided to take legal action and planted a spy named Stanley Poole inside the sect to gather evidence to imprison Sofia Lamb. Sofia had a daughter named Eleanor, and before being imprisoned, Sofia decided to leave her with one of her loyal followers, Grace Holloway. Eleanor suspected that Stanley Poole was sabotaging the Rapture Family and threatened to expose him, so Stanley kidnapped Eleanor and sold her to the Little Sisters orphanage. Eleanor became a Little Sister and was successfully paired with a Big Daddy named Delta. They were the first successful pairing of a Big Daddy with a Little Sister. Sofia Lamb spent some time imprisoned while a civil war took place. Later, Delta and Eleanor were walking when a group of Splicers attacked them to capture Eleanor. Subject Delta fought fiercely, but one of the Splicers used a hypnotic plasma to control him. These weren't ordinary Splicers; they were followers of Sofia Lamb, who had escaped somehow. Sofia told Delta that she came to retrieve her daughter Eleanor and ordered him to kill himself. And that's when the events begin, and you see the twists and incredible story unfold. The Bioshock games have some of the most amazing stories.

Gameplay: The gameplay was decent—nothing bad, but also nothing extraordinary. I loved the plasma system, which is a staple of the series and a really cool feature. The ability to combine powers and create combos was a great addition. As for the weapons, there wasn't much new variety—maybe two or three new ones, but most were carried over from the first game. Hacking became easier; it was more intense before, but still fun and useful. You can now hack machines to assist you and even lower their prices. The hacking system is a great feature, but there are some frustrating negatives, like the slow pace of the game. Sometimes it’s so slow it makes you want to fall asleep. Also, crouching early in the game was annoying—you had to stop to crouch instead of being able to crouch while moving, and sometimes it didn’t work at all, which was irritating.

Characters: The characters were great. Eleanor was an impressive character, and Sofia Lamb was also amazing. Unfortunately, the protagonist didn’t have much of a character, and there weren’t many characters overall, but most of the ones present were fantastic.

World and Atmosphere: Of course, the world was amazing since it's set in a city under the sea. The environments were always impressive, and the level design was solid. However, I really disliked the excessive bleakness. The overall tone could be too gloomy at times, but the design and the connections between areas were still great. There were many details that made Rapture stand out as a unique and special world.

Music: The music was outstanding. The old music was perfectly fitting, and the loading screen music was so good that it made me want to stay in the loading screen longer and just listen to it.

Voice Acting: The voice acting was top-notch. It was one of the best voice performances I've seen in games. Bioshock games are very distinctive in this regard, and the voice acting was exceptional, creating a truly immersive experience.

Love the story and the gameplay but can be frustrating at times

It doesn't feel like a sequel at all, I completely get why bioshock 2 isn't talked about. Regardless, it's still fun, but just slightly worse than the first