A revolutionary shooter that will change the industry forever
Pros:
-Great storyline and setting
-Big Daddies are fun and challenging
-Innovative gameplay with great variety
-Good art direction
-Freedom to play and upgrade however you want
Cons:
-Hacking mini game can become tedious
BioShock is an intelligent game. Not only in terms of it's fantastic and deep gameplay, but also in terms of it's story and setting. No other game has portrayed political and social themes like the way BioShock does, hell most games don't even touch them. But BioShock is different, it is bold and ambitious, is it a thinking man's game, but more importantly, BioShock is proof that games are art.
BioShock takes place in an underwater city built in the 50's called Rapture. The setting of BioShock is the real star of the game, being based around Ayn Rand's philosophies, Rapture was built to be a paradise, a place where there would be no government oppression of trade or ideas of any kind and a place where people could live their lives however they wanted, even at a cost of their morality. However things take a turn for the worse and the promised paradise becomes a dark and cruel world, filled with a mad driven populace. This is the world of Rapture that you arrive in, and it will be the world you fight your way out of, which thanks to BioShocks great gameplay, you'll have a great time doing it.
Armed with a variety of weapons, BioShock gives you a full arsenal to overcome enemies with. From the pistol, shotgun, machine gun, cross bow, and more, the gun play in BioShock is solid and offers a wide selection of yours to choose from. There are also a variety of different powers you can use as well, called "Adam", a wonder drug that grants the user a wide variety of powers ranging from shooting lightning, fire, ice, and even killer bees, and much, much more.
This makes combat far more interesting in BioShock than in most shooters, allowing the player to form strategies and ideas for how they will taked down enemies and overcome obstacles. See a pool of water? Zap it with a bolt of lightning and watch your enemies fry, or freeze your enemies with a blast of ice then shatter them to shreds up close with your shot gun, or draw them out with machine gun fire and lay waste to t hem with a blast of flames, or whatever else you can think of. BioShock puts the power in your hands, giving you the ability to handle combat how you want.
However Adam is not free, and in order to get more you will have to face down the Big Daddies. These are monster enemies that are large and guard things known as "Little Sisters", young girls who have been turned into monsters that drain the Adam out of dead bodies. Each fight with against a Big Daddy will require careful planning and skill, however the result is a challenging and rewarding experience that you will look forward to each time you come across a new one. However Big Daddies are entirely optional, so if you don't feel up to the task of taking one down you are free to pass it by. Doing so however will cause you to miss out on a lot of Adam.
After you kill a Big Daddy you are faced with a choice, either to harvest or rescue the Little Sister, harvesting her will grant you more Adam but it will also take her life, rescuing her will give you less Adam but also return her back into a normal child, BioShock gives you the choice of either succumbing to your environment or over coming it. BioShock also gives you the ability to hack into various things, such as vending machines, robots, doors, and more.
And while the rewards for doing this are worth it, the hacking it's self can become tedious. It involves a mini game where you move various pipes around to guide fluid to the goal, however it can become tiring, especially later in the game. But overall it's a minor issue at best. From a visual standpoint, BioShock is impressive. It is not the best looking game, but it's certainly good. The lighting is dynamic and casts powerful and creepy shadows across hallways and rooms, water reflects realistically, textures do have an occasional pop in, but for the most part the game looks great. Even better is it's fantastic art direction, which helps to bring Rapture to life.
Final Verdict:
BioShock is one of the most important games ever made. It's storyline, setting, and gameplay will stay with you long after you beat it, and you'll want to revisit the world of Rapture again and again. BioShock is a game that is well worth your money.
BioShock get's a 5/5
