System Shock 2

The Good
The atmosphere, the atmosphere, the atmosphere, baby. I have never been as literally frightened by a computer game as I was by this one. Beyond that, the monster AI is quite good, in a they-really-just-make-a-beeline-for-you kind of way, and of course the graphics and (particularly) the sound are stellar, as one would expect from Looking Glass Studios. Much has been made about the fact that this game uses Thief's Dark Engine, but let me tell you that that all comes to nothing in the end. Making everything photo-realistic wouldn't have added a thing to this game. It's as completely immersive as anything you'll ever play.

The Bad
The story is slightly hackneyed (think Alien with only one person investigating the distress beacon this time--you), and I found some of the dialog on the recorded messages you discover lying around the ship a bit hard to swallow, although the voice acting is competent enough. Also, the weapons wear out far too quickly and there is not nearly enough ammunition to get through some areas unless you already know what to expect and conserve accordingly. Monster respawning takes place far too frequently--sometimes right in front of your face--as well, although that can be adjusted with a patch.

The Bottom Line
Worth its weight in gold to any fan of the Alien movies, RPG's, and/or shooters. Worth a look from everyone else if for no other reason than to see what is probably the greatest character ever invented for a computer game, Shodan.

The Good
System Shock 2 is a quite simply a great game, the sequel has perfectly captured the spirit of the original while delivering at the same time a whole new batch of gaming goodness. Surely the game's strongest point is it's abbility to draw you into a superbly crafted atmosphere. Just like in the original, this game puts you IN THE GAME like few others, and the terror you'll feel if you surrender to the fantasy is out of this world. The game uses Thief's Dark Engine, so as you may guess the sound in the game is simply spectacular, with surround effects and incredible depth (which only adds to the creepy atmosphere). The storyline is superbly crafted, and instead of being simply laid out for you to "sit and watch" it's sprinkled all over the game in the form of those wonderful logs, e-mails and even ghosts, forcing YOU to put the pieces thogheter and essentially making it much more rewarding when you finally achieve that "A-HA!" moment. A lot of creativity and originality has been placed on this game, and it shows. It manages to stay true to the spirit and at the same time add original touches like the psy powers, nanites, etc. moreover, the game is now much more of an obvious rpg with clearly defined stats, levels and experience in the form of cyb-aug chips. Something that I didn't really need, but that certainly gives the game a lot of gameplay depth.

Also I should mention that the game follows an interesting philosophical undercurrent throughout it's entire gameplay, that of technology vs nature. Which would have been made much more powerful if you had been able to choose which side to take, but still as it stands, makes a powerful statement (and without spoiling the sci-fi/horror theme).

Of course, no "good" part of a SS2 review would be complete without a mention of Shodan, it is quite simply priceless to be able to face her again. I'm sure that anyone that has played the original feels the same way about this, she's quite simply one of the most memorable characters ever placed on a computer game, and the opening sequence alone almost brought tears to my eyes...along with that familiar shiver! ;)) Terry Brosius once again voices her, and her job is priceless (ditto the rest of the cast, but we are talking about Shodan here!) and the way she's handled in the game is true to her nature, she's still Shodan, she's still a bitch, and she still rocks. Period. Plus, there's a little surprise at the end of the game that was really sweet. Thanks guys.

The Bad
Well for starters all the critter models are...to be tactful, of the crap. The interface can give you some headaches at times (but still is way above the one in the original) but that's it.

The only great gripe that I have with SS2 is that it could have been more, much, much more. As I read on a review somewhere, "System Shock 2 is a game so good it's surprising it isn't better". That truly defines my feeling with the game sometimes, it's as if you were given a taste of this wonderful dessert and had it taken away from you before you could finish it. For instance, I know Xerxes could never amount to anything versus our beloved Shodan, but they should still have given him a stronger presence, he's just there to whine every now and then, and that's it, and speaking of Shodan, we don't get nearly enough quality time with her! Seriously, where are the hordes of robots sent your way to annihilate you? where is the villain that trapped you in rooms and sent you to her "Death Machine"?? Most of the Hal-ness of Shodan has been replaced, and though she's still mean and evil, I really wish we could have had more of that.

The biggest dissapointment in the game however, comes in the way it's placed. If there is something great about Half-Life is that it introduced us to a game where you are in the "middle of the party" so to speak. On SS2 you arrive and...the party's over, and this was great on the original but it feels sort of shallow in a post Half-life world. There are no npcs to interact with, you are the "sole survivor" once again and though it's cool to bear silent witness to the aftermath of the Von Braun and the Rickenbacker, I can't help but think how cool it would have been if you were there when it all happened. Obviously this responds in part to the legacy of the original, but still....

Other than that, I should add that the game isn't as non-linear as it's advertized to be, a fact you'll find out the hard way if you try to play the game being a tech nerd and avoiding shootouts, the final fight with Shodan is way too easy, and though I understand the need for the time gap between the two games, I believe it would have been infinitely cooler to play the game as the good ol' hacker. He's got more charisma than your nameless "Mr. Magoo" soldier, and it would have made your relationship with Shodan much more tense and interesting. Ah well, can't have it all!

The Bottom Line
Essentially SS2 is a fantastic game, which seems to have taken a couple of bad design decisions. Still you have to understand that they were dealing with more than just a sequel and as most people know, making a good sequel and a good game/movie/etc. don't always mean the same. The guys at LG and Irrational had to come up with the right balance to both honor the legacy of one of the greatest games ever made (which is one hell of a though act to follow!) and also come up with something original and fun to play. If you consider that, then yeah, they made a good job. Without taking that into consideration then...well, they fell a little short in both accounts. But make no mistake either way: the end result is way above average and System Shock 2 is a definitive must.

The Good
God only knows why the sequel to System Shock was released even after the original did not make enough copies. System Shock 2 takes place in 2114, which is 42 years after SHODAN was hacked on Citadel Station. The starship Von Braun, which is owned by TriOptimum, is claimed to be the first faster-than-light vessel in human history. But not everything is what it seems to be.

Before the game begins, you must do some basic training, followed by one of three advanced ones, than you have a choice of being in the marines, the navy, or the OSA. After the training, the real game begins. You are faced with the same situation of SS1. You are transported to somewhere, put to sleep in a cryo tube, then wake up in the medical deck with no memory of the past few weeks, realizing that something is wrong, as you see people dead on the floor and an evil alien race, simply known as The Many, running around all over the place.

You are also given a more cybernetic interface which is more advanced than the one in SS1. You can store more inventory, and refer to the map, find out what your current mission objectives are, and research items that you have found. But what you do in the game will depend on your profession, and the skills that you acquire for it. If you join the marines, you will spend a lot of time in the game shooting at everything (alive or not), but if you have joined the navy, expect to hack locked doors and security systems. If you are with the OSA, you get to develop psionic powers such as the ability to pull objects toward you, stop alarms, do more damage to aliens, and heaps more.

This game is basically about exploring. Explore all areas and you may accomplish a task given to you by a fellow crew member or SHODAN herself. More often than not, audio logs can be picked up. Playing these logs is important as door keycodes and secondary objectives are given to you, plus some rather interesting information about experiments involving monkeys and conversations involving other crew members.

You have an arsenal of weapons that you can use to take out enemies, and these include the shotgun, plus some energy weapons like the laser pistol and the EMP rifle. With the exception of these two weapons, ammunition is fairy limited, but unlike SS1 where you have to search dead corpses, you have something called a replicator, which allows you to buy ammunition for whatever weapon for a certain number of nanites, which can be lowered if you are able to hack the replicator. Energy weapons need to be restored using an energy unit.

Most of the enemies you meet have good AI. When they see you, they tend to follow you around all over the place like puppy dogs. What gave me the creeps is the protocol droid. Not only does he sway left and right while he walks, he looks hideous as well. The hybrids, the first enemies that you meet in the game, attack with a shotgun at first, then manage to throw grenades even when you are on a deck up. There are security cameras that actually do something, alerting The Many to your presence. They are able to find you, no matter whether you think you are hidden.

In almost every area that you go to, there is always machinery in each corner of a room, operating at its full potential. There are also flashing monitors that are similar to the ones in SS1. System Shock 2 is supposed to be scary, and this is demonstrated by the dark lighting in some areas, and the creepy music, as well as certain enemy sounds. Later in the game, you must perform tasks for SHODAN. Her voice sometimes gives me the creeps, especially when she stutters.

To distract you from your mission, there are mini-games that you may pick up along the way. These games have interesting objectives. (One game is an adventure where you must slay goblins, while another is a clone of Minesweeper where you must avoid revealing corn.) Also, these games look much better in your PDA than they do in the pissy 128x128 square that they are restricted to in the original.

The Bad
You get e-mails throughout the game which give you new objectives and some “cyber modules” which you can use to upgrade your stats throughout the game, and they play automatically. Playing them the first time is useless as you usually fight off enemies when they are playing, so you have to go to one of those quiet spots, and listen to them again there. Listening to them a second time is not worth it, considering that you have to get from point A to point B in limited time.

Even though they do not affect the game in any way, there are a couple of bugs. One of them allows you to jump out a window and go through a little spacewalk. If I do this, I fall down quite a distance and cannot get back inside the building.

The training is useful, but it would be better if there was an option that allowed you to return to the training immediately, instead of having to start a new game and do it again if you happen to forget how to do things.

I recently brought a copy of System Shock 2 which only lets you watch cut-scenes only once. Subsequently, the game just bypasses them, making me feel that I am actually playing a CD-Rip that has the cut-scenes removed from it. Installing the only patch to the game did not work, so the only way that I can watch those cut-scenes again is if I crash the game on purpose, forcing me to reboot the computer and starting the game again.

The Bottom Line
System Shock 2 is similar to its predecessor. You are faced with the same situation of waking up from a deep sleep to a massacre. Before that, you have to do some training, and this is really good because it lets you know how to perform certain tasks, and if you forget during the game, you can always go right back to the start and repeat the training. Also, SHODAN is back. Only this time, you work for her instead of against her when you get proper into the game.

I agree that System Shock 2 is scary. It has scary music and some dark lighting that gives the game its scary feeling. You also get to hear some scary e-mails. So in conclusion if you are going to play the game, then be prepared to be scared.