BioShock

BioShock does some really remarkable things. The storytelling, that I've brought up before. The gameplay is also very tight and approachable - yet complex enough to keep combat interesting. Something I don't think I've mentioned is how it makes the presentation relevant; lighting and sound are used throughout the game for not just graphical flair, and not just ambience, but for dynamic, emergent gameplay. Figuring out where a Splicer is hiding by the echo and direction of voices or footsteps is almost as exhilirating as seeing one revealed in an adjacent room by an ominous shadow.

I would be remiss if I didn't mention that, in the final levels, BioShock does lose some of its stride. The story outpaces the maps - whole series of rooms are optional, to the point where the map feels wasted, and the rooms relevant to the story are few and unengaging. The first 75% of the game heavily encourages and rewards exploration, but in the last several areas I was really just doing it out of habit and general curiosity.

By this point enemies have also become difficult enough, and ammo pickups plentiful enough, that the resource management balance begins to break; throughout the last third of the game, I almost invariably had full cash, full ammunition, or both. Granted, I never turned down an opportunity to find hidden items - nor to hack a vendor for reduced prices - but while I did it before to gain an edge on the game's resources, finally it had become, like exploring the optional rooms, habitual and unnecessary. I even turned the difficulty up to Hard, but even wasting more ammo on Splicers and more health packs on myself, I had no trouble replenishing my resources almost instantly.

But please allow me to clarify: the last parts of the game are not bad. For any other game, they would be good, possibly even great. And there are some surprises yet to be had in the architecture and scattered diary recordings of these final levels. But, they are not quite up to the standard set by BioShock's earlier content.

So, the endgame is a bit underwhelming compared to what preceded it, which is kind of a shame. On the other hand, the game that preceded it was incredible, ground-breaking, and fantastically fun. It's also not what I would call a short game. Notwithstanding the vaguely unsatisfying ending, BioShock is a marvel of a game, an inspiring experience, destined to become a classic - and since it now retails/downloads for $20 you would be a fool not to play it.

Progress: Finished on Medium/Hard