Its the SEQUEL we all were waiting for. Its better than the first.......
Bioshock received some of the best scores - 9.5 average given by 105 critics ratings.
However the sequel had to suffer. But ignore everything all the user scores, critics ratings. Just blindly play this game and you get a game that is superior to its predecessors.
Yes this game is every way improved upon the first. Gone are the stupid silly puzzles and they are replaced with less tedious ones. The gameplay is in every way improved. You have dual wield (meh! Every game has started that these days - first game single wield and second game dual wield).
One one hand you have the plasmids and on the other you have weapons.
The overall story is also better. The ending boss is no push over who gets easily squashed by your plasmids and guns. There are FOUR Alternate endings to this one which is great.
You play as Delta a different character from the first. I cannot exactly say whether the story is a sequel or prequel. Some people suggest its a prequel, but i think the story of Bioshock 2 started before Bioshock 1 and ended after Bioshock 1. Tannenbaum is back to guiding you. No fountaine in this one. You have a new villian. I won't spoil much. Just that there is a specific relationship between you and the villian and there is also an extra character that calls you Daddy.
The Little Sisters are improved and no longer look morose like they did in the first one. They look cute and well dressed with ribbons on their hairs.
The Big Sisters, yeah they are fun at the start, they provide some challenge, but just when they get a little boring in the end, the game has the solution for that too. Amazing!!
Now the plasmids of this game are same as the first except an extra one or two plasmid. But the guns for me were neither better than the first or worser. Sure i missed the Nitrogen guns in this one. But there are other guns such as automatic setting of mini turrets and Rivet traps which actually make you forget of the first game's guns altogether.
Graphics - There is not much significant improvement. But some textures have been detailed. The water graphics is good but it absolutely BLOWS when you compare the water graphics of this game to something like a Crysis game which released way back in 2007 and still has the Best Graphics Ever. Anyways the underwater levels never get old in Bioshock 2 and i hope they retain this aspect and also add some underwater COMBAT.
The main issue which critics and gamers felt with this game was the Familiarity. This is a thing which i also accept and hence i have given this game a 9.0 instead of a 10 which i awarded to the first one. There is not a significant improvement over the prequel. Its just like an expansion. Bioshock 2 is exactly to Bioshock just as Modern Warfare 2 is to Modern Warfare - Overshadowed by the technical aspects of the prequel.
But both games on their own merits are better in many aspects than their predecessors.
Also isn't familiarity a good thing. Rather than change everything from the first and making it a worser game, 2K games just decided that they won't take much risks.
Few other ISSUES on the PC version. I see the User Score of 8.3 and i agree. The game has GLITCHES and Bugs which mar an otherwise beautiful experience. The most common glitch was the automatic disabling of the Plasmids. The hand would go numb and you can no longer change the plasmids. The only solution is to reload a save and play again.
Its IRONIC. When a sequel is much different from the first, it gets bashed inspite of being a great game (eg: Prince Of Persia Warrior Within) just because it lost the "Charm" or "Feel" of the first game. I recently also came across some stupid reviews blaming Mass Effect 2 with the same inspite of it being vastly superior to the first.
OR...... if the game is similar (for the same fans who want the "Charm" and "Feel") like MW 2 and Bioshock 2, there are again people who bash it.
Ultimately, its upto you whether you like this game or not. Believe me, don't see the scores and the reviews. This game definitely has many elements that are better than the first.
Especially if you have never played Bioshock before, GET THIS Game! If you are a Bioshock fan like me then also GET THIS GAME!!