While other developers were busy trying to step forward with games, trying to make them as realistic and open plan as possible, Bioshock took a step back and looked at what was great about what had come before.

The result is one of the best games ever created, a game that doesn't concern itself with the trivialities of realism and instead takes itself simply as immersive fun.

There is a lot of bad that can be said about this game, from the installation difficulty (thankfully 2K have now greatly improved the DRM on the game), to the vast number of video and audio problems, but have patience and you will be rewarded with a memorable gaming experience.

The plasmids are instantly adaptable, used like another gun, but with much more potential, and overcome the flaws of having just 4 enemy types, because there is an almost infinite number ways of overcoming them. Add onto that the genuinely useful gun upgrades (unlike the frustratingly complex adaptations for the guns in… more »

While other developers were busy trying to step forward with games, trying to make them as realistic and open plan as possible, Bioshock took a step back and looked at what was great about what had come before.

The result is one of the best games ever created, a game that doesn't concern itself with the trivialities of realism and instead takes itself simply as immersive fun.

There is a lot of bad that can be said about this game, from the installation difficulty (thankfully 2K have now greatly improved the DRM on the game), to the vast number of video and audio problems, but have patience and you will be rewarded with a memorable gaming experience.

The plasmids are instantly adaptable, used like another gun, but with much more potential, and overcome the flaws of having just 4 enemy types, because there is an almost infinite number ways of overcoming them. Add onto that the genuinely useful gun upgrades (unlike the frustratingly complex adaptations for the guns in Stalker) and you can probably play this game more than you can a multi player (which is sadly lacking on Bioshock).

The gameplay is very old school. You follow a set series of levels and sometimes go off to solve puzzles and find pieces but it doesn't feel tired because it is all played out in a genuinely ingenious setting.

The truly engrossing visual theme being the result of great game design that is more associated with classic literature than what is so typical of game developers - being 'cool'. The story plays more on morals and philosophy than the now standard 'choose a side' plot arch. The references to Ayn Rand's 'Atlas Shrugged' clearly understand the source material whereas Far Cry 2's blasé borrowing from 'Heart of Darkness' makes it look like it is trying too hard.

Overall, the game comes across like The Godfather of computer games (only really challenged by Half Life 1/2), it doesn't have that strong a story (it does have the plot twist compulsory to games) but if you think of it in terms of social context, there are some strong similarities.

Like The Godfather, it was made in a time when all its contemporaries were trying to be realistic and gritty. It was made more like classic stories (or in this case games) and didn't have the pretentions of trying to be superior to what came before it. It was developed with the intention of being mostly entertaining, but the art influences are ever present.

You can call this game old-fashioned and over rated, but by not trying to be anything special, it is destined to be looked upon as one of the best games of all time.

Don't go in expecting a perfectly made game - it doesn't have great (albeit unnecessary) physics, superb AI or realistic fighting - but the design is so brilliant, you'll find it more enjoyable than a game with all of these things.

I found this game extremely claustrophobic and even stiffling. So I only play it in short burts of about 30-40minutes at a time. I think my dated graphics card has contributed to this but I found it to be far too dark for my liking but again this could be down to graphics/shader problems that many people have had problems with. It has a very London dungeon feel to it and if you have never been there check it out. You will see similarities in this game. It does very well at maintaining suspense throughout as you find memos of what used to be the residents of the underwater world as you pass through the game by playing the tapes. Its definately not for those who don't like suprises as the enemy will respawn if you are passing back through a place you need to find something in. So you may get a smack upside the skull if your not careful. The enemy are suprisingly impetuous and gain ground on you quickly but I've had little difficulty making good ground in moderate difficulty setting.… more »

I found this game extremely claustrophobic and even stiffling. So I only play it in short burts of about 30-40minutes at a time. I think my dated graphics card has contributed to this but I found it to be far too dark for my liking but again this could be down to graphics/shader problems that many people have had problems with. It has a very London dungeon feel to it and if you have never been there check it out. You will see similarities in this game. It does very well at maintaining suspense throughout as you find memos of what used to be the residents of the underwater world as you pass through the game by playing the tapes. Its definately not for those who don't like suprises as the enemy will respawn if you are passing back through a place you need to find something in. So you may get a smack upside the skull if your not careful. The enemy are suprisingly impetuous and gain ground on you quickly but I've had little difficulty making good ground in moderate difficulty setting. Although I almost died many times I just about managed to survive. I think larger environments would have given a better feel of size and scale. Sometimes you wander from one area to the next with only a door or passage between them. As its supposed to be an underwater civilization I found this to be a little unrealistic. But I can only speak of the maps I have visitied so far.

Overall I can't say this is really an enjoyable experience. I don't think it was meant to be. But it does screw with your head and at times it does make you think. Combat is very fleshed out and some of the enemy you encounter are extremely gruesome. I just wish I hadn't felt like I'd been trapped in giant fish bowl with the lights off because that's how it felt 75% of the time.

(Note : To those that have graphics cards without shader 3.0 capabilities. Install the game first. Auto patch it by running the game and then download and install version 1.1 which dosen't download from the autopatcher for some reason. Then find a shader fix for 2.0 if you have further difficulties ).