This short narrative introduces new characters in an engrossing plot that culminates Rapture's existence in style
Contains: Strong Bloody Violence and Horror
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Minerva's Den is a narrative driven single player DLC for Boshock 2 that is quite possibly the last journey you'll take in the memorable underwater city of Rapture.
In Minerva's Den you take control of a new Big Daddy called Sigma and assist Brigid Tenenbaum and a new character named C.M. Porter tackle "The Thinker", in the home of Rapture's Central computing. This standalone story (which runs parallel to the main plot) takes place at the core of Rapture, and you are initially guided by a very polite Charles Porter, who helped create The Thinker alongside Reed Wahl - now a spiteful rival. It's not clear why you're wading in until the end, but the emotional and thoughtful dénouement applies a retroactive motivation of sorts, even if it's at the expense of cohesion between yourself and the character you're supposed to be, Subject Sigma. The plot unfolds in regular Bioshock fashion (though this time a little quicker) and is deeply engrossing. Minerva's Den also manages to squeeze in a clever twist with a huge and satisfying effect that will have an everlasting effect long after you've completed it.
The new environments are just what you'd expect, artistically spectacular and combining imagery which is both beautiful and disturbing perfectly. "The Thinker Knows" is frequently seen scribbled across walls and it's a chilling phrase that will send a chill down your spine. Visually amazing, and with level design that cleverly conceals secrets and items for you to search delicately for, Minerva's Den is identical to Bioshock 2 except for new areas, a new weapon, new plasmid, and a new big daddy type. The new weapon is an Ion Laser, which projects an intense beam of searing hot laser that tears at enemies flesh, and comes with 2 special ammo types which are immensely deadly aswell when used against the correct Splicer type. The new plasmid is Gravity Well, which is a fluid of polyp that sucks objects and enemies into a whirling vortex before throwing them back out with tremendous force dealing great amounts of damage. Its use is not only for the offensive situations, but for unlocking doors with magnetic locking. The new big daddy is called a Lancer, and is equipped with the Ion Laser which you carry. It uses it with unprecedented accuracy, but is also smart when needing an advantage, where the Lancer produces a blinding flash of light that stuns you for a brief few seconds.
The game, just like Bioshock 2, does a good job of slowly unveiling each weapon, but this time the weapons can be found with upgrades already integrated, as weapon upgrade machines aren't in Minerva's Den. All other weapons and plasmids will be encountered, and the same good old vending, ammo and plasmid/tonic machines are featured. Some various forms of Splicers have elemental abilities of their own, making them invulnerable to fire or ice attacks, and forcing you to change tactics accordingly and efficiently. The game is extremely well paced, and from quiet moments of exploration to full-on chaotic combat, you have to be well equipped when venturing around every corner and expect the worst.
Minerva's Den is well priced, and while it's a short narrative, if you're keen on exploring every inch, you can well find 5-6 hours of gameplay here. Rapture is something truly special, and this virtually perfect add-on makes the best out of the possibilities of Rapture, a place which is quite simply the best fictional world ever created.
This single player add-on may not offer much new, but the small new implementations are well appreciated and introduced into the game brilliantly, and as you venture deeper into new areas of Rapture you never knew existed before, you'll come to realise Minerva's Den holds a dark secret that doesn't want to let go…
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OVERALL SUMMARY - 9.5/10
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Good Points: New areas of Rapture to explore which are just as beautiful and disturbing as before, New weapon and plasmid that are well introduced and mix in with the regular amazing gameplay perfectly, A deeply engrossing short narrative with a clever twist.
Bad Points: Occasional slow-texture loading issues.