System Shock

aka: Alien Commander
Moby ID: 681
DOS Specs
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Description official descriptions

The year is 2072. A hacker from a Saturn colony breaks into computer system of TriOptimum Corporation and gets arrested. He is taken to the Citadel Station, where Edward Diego, a TriOptimum executive, offers to drop all charges against the hacker, as well as grant him a valuable neural implant, if he agrees to hack into SHODAN (Sentient Hyper-Optimized Data Access Network) , the artificial intelligence that controls the station. The hacker removes the AI's ethical constraints and undergoes the promised implant surgery, after which he is put into a six-month healing coma.

The hacker awakens into a horrifying reality: with her ethical restrictions removed, SHODAN took control over the station, reprogrammed all robots and machines to suit her needs, and disposed of the crew members by either transforming them into mutants and cyborgs, or killing them outright. Rebecca Lansing, a TriOptimum counter-terrorism consultant, contacts the hacker and informs him of an even more terrifying possible future: SHODAN's plan involves using the station's mining lasers to annihilate all life on Earth. The hacker must explore and traverse the desolate corridors and rooms of the large space station, fighting SHODAN's minions on his way to thwart her maniacal design.

System Shock is a first-person shooter with puzzle-solving and light role-playing elements. The gameplay incorporates gradual exploration of the Citadel's ten levels, interaction with the environment, problem-solving, fulfilling objectives, and combat.

On his way the hacker encounters numerous enemies - robots, cyborgs and mutants, all of which can be fought back with a variety of weapons. Some of the weapons use ammo, while other have infinite ammo and instead draw on electric energy. Some weapons are more effective on certain foes - e.g. the dart gun only works on organic enemies, while the magpulse is best used against robots. Once killed, the enemies can be searched for ammo and other items. The player can also find items in crates, cabinets, corpses or just lying around on the ground.

Apart from weapons and ammo, the player can find patches (such as medical patches, which replenish the hero's health; berserk patches, which temporarily increase his strength but cause hallucinations; detox patches, which remove the harmful effects of radiation and biohazard; etc.), grenades of various kinds (EMP grenades are effective against robots, gas grenades are good for mutants, land mines can be used to set traps, etc.), battery packs for replenishing electricity, first aid kits for restoring health, and others.

Thanks to the hacker's implant he is able to install various pieces of hardware into his body, such as a booster which makes him go faster, or a head lantern to bright up dark areas. As the player progresses in the game, higher versions of existing hardware are found, which are more effective and useful. However, most hardware uses up electric energy while it is active.

At some places in the game, the player has to find a wall-mounted "cyberjack" to go into cyberspace in order to find helpful data, remotely open doors or unlock sealed areas, or give himself clearance to access off-limits areas. Cyberspace is represented as a 3-D wireframe place, where the protagonist floats around freely in three dimensions, shoots hostile cyber-guards with phasers, and collects files represented as colorful cubes.

The story of System Shock is mostly told through e-mail messages the protagonist received, and electronic diaries (logs) left by various characters (as well as SHODAN herself), which are scattered around the space station. The game features separate adjustable difficulty settings for combat, mission objectives and puzzles. The CD version of the game includes full speech for e-mails and logs, as well as higher-resolution, more detailed graphics.

Spellings

  • システムショック - Japanese spelling
  • 시스텡쇼크 - Korean spelling

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Credits (DOS version)

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Reviews

Critics

Average score: 89% (based on 23 ratings)

Players

Average score: 4.0 out of 5 (based on 194 ratings with 22 reviews)

Killer A.I, LITERALLY!

The Good
The A.I, SHODAN seems to be reading your mind, like if you go to blow something up, after picking up some plastique or stuff, it was all quiet before you left, but then when you go to blow it up, SHODAN send you a little e-mail, with an attachment you probably won't survive.

The weapons, the Railgun especially, (who doesn't like the Railgun? Quake fans love it!), and then there's the physics engine, another "before its time" thing, you can push stuff around, you can blow stuff up causing a chain reaction.

The Bad
The reactor destruct code is randomly selected everytime you start a new game. I mean, c'mon stick to STANDARDS people.

The Bottom Line
If SHODAN suddenly appears on your screen after playing System Shock...be very afraid. Heh heh

DOS · by RoboCop_2029 (7) · 2005

The Finest First-Person Shooter Ever Designed.

The Good
Everything. To put it into perspective, if this game were released tomorrow, in its current state, it would be better than 99% of the games released all year (well, 2001). Even with the archaic graphics. Even with the dated AI technology. The core gameplay is so damn good. In fact, the gameplay is more varied and detailed than today's modern classic, Half-Life.

Another way to put it into perspective: A much more well known game released about the same time as System Shock is Doom. Doom is more widely known, and is more widely praised, as shown by the accolades for Serious Sam, an evolutionary throwback of a game releases recently.

Think of Doom's graphics and gameplay: Both are very, very dated. The gameplay is simple, easy, and dumb as a post. Shoot, run, shoot, run, hit switch to end level. Ad nauseum. Exciting in its day, but modern games (some of them) have evolved past that point. The wonderful thing about System Shock was that its gameplay was already evolved, almost ten years ago.

It has a coherent, interesting story that is integral and important every moment of the game. The story is enriched by audio logs scattered about the station, e-mails, and scraps of information gleaned from the stations computer net. The logs, presented in mostly well-acted audio, do wonders in fleshing out the game world. They tell the stories of hopeless groups of survivors trying to fight the mutant and cyborg onslaught. You hear their hopes for stopping the computer SHODAN, and pick up their fight. All the while, you receive e-mails from your contact on earth, instructing you and guiding you through the station. You also receive mail from your nemesis, SHODAN, as she mocks you, threatens you, and occasionally, fears you. She is present throughout the entire game. While approaching a CPU node with mayhem on your mind, she chirps in "Enter that room, hacker, and it will be your grave. You hesitate, but continue. And indeed, when you destroy the nodes, she sends a small army of cyborgs to do you in. She repeatedly ambushes you, taunting you in her computer-psychotic voice. It's unnerving, and the effect has not been repeated in any game I've played, sequel included.

System Shock's interface is also leagues ahead of Doom's. While much more complicated and cumbersome, it allows you to do so much more. You can lean around corners, you can crouch and even crawl on you belly, you can jump across chasms, you can look up and down. Aiming is also more interesting. You use a cursor to aim your guns and fire them. It does take a while to get used to it after years of mouselook, but I do like the more realistic effect of the aiming cursor. In addition, the recoil effects of the weapons is perfect. You feel like you're firing off a powerful machine gun when you rip off a burst from the Skorpion. The view bows back, and as you swing the gun from side to side the recoil swings with it. It's an amazing effect, particularly from such an aged game. It makes using the fully automatic a more visceral experience.

Finally, the gameplay goes FAR beyond the "find key, find door" gameplay that has been so prevalent since the release of Doom. You have a specific, detailed purpose in this game. No ambiguous alien invasions, no purposeless mazes masquerading as "levels." The enemy, SHODAN, is always plotting some insidious fate for earth, and you, as the hacker, go about the various levels attempting to stop her. Never do you wonder "why am I here? What exactly am I doing?" Each level, from the medical deck to the executive deck, serves an obvious logical purpose. Even the mazes are presented within good context. To put the gameplay into perspective, only very recently have FPS games struggled to break the gameplay barriers that Doom presented, while System Shock obliterated them almost TEN years ago!

This game defines what it is to be a classic. It is nearly perfect in every way, and is the epitome of the PC gaming experience. It is my opinion that computer gaming would be much better today if System Shock had been received the same Doom was, as it's a considerably better game that would hold its own today.

The Bad
Very little. The graphics are outdated, obviously, and the sound and AI technology is lacking. Also, the level design is very blocky, by today's standards. However, those are all limitations due to age: considering it by 1994 standards, the game's technological aspects are brilliant.

The Bottom Line
Well, I did so already. I'll just add that it is a VERY good game. It's not for sale, but certain websites on the internet have the complete CD version for download. I don't think Mobygames would appreciate it if I posted the link. Sorry!

DOS · by Doug Peterson (5) · 2002

A Classic Game in league with Ultima Underworld I and II

The Good
And why wouldn't it be in the same league? Looking Glass Studios was responsible for UU1 and UU2! This game is well thought out.

There are three main things that make this game great:

  1. Story - The backstory is unlike any other in RPG gaming. You start on CITADEL, and you are the only living being on board. Everyone else is dead. You find out the backstory through the journals and datacards left by the dead residents of the space station. By the time the game is over you will have pieced together, bit by bit, the events leading up to the time you awoke (the start of the game).

  2. Configurability (if that isn't a word, it is now) - The fact that the player can configure the game to his or her tastes is a great feature. Combat, Missions, Puzzles, and Cyberspace could be made as easy or as tough as you want. Like hard puzzles, but don't like strong enemies? You can set it with System Shock

  3. Sound - One word: Eerie. Along the same lines a Dungeon Master and Ultima Underworld, the ambient sounds are well placed, and very creepy. Not overbearing, but not so soft that you can't hear them. Just the right mix.



The Bad
The graphics are very dark, making it difficult (for me at least) to discern the end of a wall, etc.

The Bottom Line
If you like a very flexible game system, combined with the graphical feel of Ultima Underworld I and II, and sci-fi setting, grab System Shock. It's difficult to find, but you'll enjoy every minute.

DOS · by Chris Martin (1155) · 2006

[ View all 22 player reviews ]

Discussion

Subject By Date
Video review DJP Mom (11333) Oct 21, 2010
Finally completed Unicorn Lynx (181780) Oct 18, 2008
Voices? Unicorn Lynx (181780) Apr 3, 2008

Trivia

CD version

The CD-ROM version adds SVGA modes, full speech for e-mails and logs, slightly improved intro/end sequences and a few other adjustments and additions.

Ending (Spoiler!)

If you engage the mining laser BEFORE activating the station's shields, then you'll destroy earth! And guess what? Shodan sends you an e-mail thanking you and inviting you to a celebration! The e-mail also includes a nice picture of a city being incinerated, but unfortunately the game restarts afterwards, so no robo-party.

Engine

System Shock's engine was derived from that of Ultima Underworld, from 1992. Nonetheless it was more advanced that that of Doom or Duke Nukem 3D, featuring sloped surfaces, variable gravity, realistic physics, '2.75d' environments (with limited 'sector-on-sector', but otherwise 3D), functional camera viewscreens, weapon recoil, leaning and several other clever things.

References to the game

  • During the end-game sequence, you hack into another corporate computer to grab some data. The data is info on some powered battle armor, which made its way into Terra Nova: Strike Force Centauri..
  • In the end sequence, the hacker breaks in the corporate network of a corp. called 'Tetracorp'. In System Shock 2, the name tetracorp is printed on a generic two-state switch. Kinda rough change of business..
  • It is hinted in the Wing Commander and Crusader games that they are set in the same universe as System Shock. For example, an article in a "newspaper" from the Crusader: No Remorse box mentions an artificial intelligence and the Citadel station.

References

  • The Hacker's employee number, 2-4601, is a reference to the inmate number of Jean Valjean, the protagonist in the novel Les Misérables.
  • There is a reference to the movie Soylent Green in the game (although it's spelled slightly different). In level 3, Maintenance, there is a relay panel in the northern section called "Soylant Green Filtration".

Sequel

There were rumours of a possible sequel, soon after System Shock's release, but fans had to wait five years for System Shock 2.

Awards

  • Computer Gaming World
    • November 1996 (15th anniversary issue) - #98 on the “150 Best Games of All Time” list
  • GameSpy
    • 2001 – #24 Top Game of All Time
  • GameStar (Germany)
    • Issue 12/1999 - #15 in the "100 Most Important PC Games of the Nineties" ranking
  • PC Gamer
    • April 2000 - #43 in the "All-Time Top 50 Games Poll"
  • Power Play
    • Issue 02/1995 – Best Action-Adventure in 1994

Information also contributed by Adam Baratz, Ashley Pomeroy, dasfatso, DreamWeaver, PCGamer77, Stefan Pieratzki and Zovni

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  • MobyGames ID: 681
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Contributors to this Entry

Game added by xroox.

PC-98, Macintosh added by Terok Nor.

Additional contributors: Patrick Bregger, Rik Hideto, MrFlibble, firefang9212, somato.

Game added January 6, 2000. Last modified February 19, 2024.