"Bioshock", the revolutionary FPS/RPG...NOT! For those who think "Bioshock" is like "System Shock 2", understand it IS "SS2", just dumbed-down to a ridiculous degree for the console market. The graphics, while pretty, are also pretty terrible. The blood looks like congealed jello, the zombies like extras from "House of Wax" and the RPG element, well, it just doesn't really exist. Each level is a corridor shooter with the objective of getting from A to B, but as we all know there will be a myriad of baddies who for some reason don't want you to reach B, which by the time time you reach it is generally blocked by rubble or ice. So back you go to randomly explore the area to find the solution to get through B (cue more zombies, sorry "Splicers") and Big Daddies. So the Little Sisters and Big Daddy's. Treat the former nicely and you have a pretty, flower-filled ending, treat them badly and you are Mr.Nasty by the end of the game. So much for RPG, which includes the irritating plumbing (sorry, "hacking")mini-games while getting things to work and upgrading dubious weapons that sound terrible but can kill faster than a mouse-click. I tried very hard to like this game, but it failed me on so many levels. That's not to say that everyone will feel the same and if you do enjoy the game, then good for you (and I am not "flaming" anyone if they do). I just don't think it deserves the ridiculously high scores it has garnered. It is an average FPS, with a lot of hype attached. Lack of Multiplayer, while not really a problem (as evidenced by "Oblivion" and the lack of MP following in "S.T.A.L.K.E.R.") really could have been a great addition, as the SP campaign is only about ten hours, with little to no replay value.
6/10.