Why Bioshock 2 Is The Best Bioshock

Bioshock 2 Review: taffer's is it a hot take  to say bioshock 2 is the best bioshock it's   far superior to the ambitious but convoluted  infinite and takes from the foundation that   bioshock laid down and improves on it in almost  every single way bioshock 2 did sell well yet at   large the game seems to be somewhat forgotten  and less fondly remembered in various circles   beyond the nervous dead dlc regards one of  the best dlcs around why has that been the   case for bioshock 2. the first bioshock is well  remembered and discussed even the year that was   released in 2007 one of the strongest years in  regards to releases in gaming history bioshock   2 sold well in 2010 and got great reviews  but seems to have gotten lost in the shuffle   compared to some of the other noble releases at  the time like red dead redemption mass effect 2   of course sonic freeriders bioshock 2 in a way is  like the rodney dangerfield of the bioshock series   seems to get no respect in years past i've seen  its reputation and discussion circles arise and   then doing research for this video saw a number  of articles in the last few years praising him as   the best bioshock while bioshock infinites has  declined and in my opinion my tap for friends   are rightly so but that's a video for another day  bioshock 2 has plenty to offer and after recently   replaying the game i want to bring more awareness  for those to at least check it out again from the   vastly improved gameplay to a story that relied  more on heart compared to the original which tried   to mess with your head and being ahead of the  curve of the aaa quote-unquote dad simulator games   that we saw through the 2010s and up to today  including bioshock infinite bioshock 2 like rodney   dangerfield deserves more respect please note for  this video that i will not be covering my nervous   den for that will be a future video at some point  and there will be a whole separate discussion   as far as the multiplayer was i only played  bioshock 2 for the first time a few years ago   and multiplayer was not available so i have  nothing really to say on that front give us honey after the success of bioshock ken levine went off  with some of the bioshock team to work on what   would become bioshock infinite released in 2013.  jordan thomas the level designer fort frolick in   bioshock 1 widely regarded as the best level in  the game and level designer of the memorable shale   bridge cradle from thief deadly shadows which  i've done a full video on here moved from boston   to california for 2k marin along with some of the  other previous team in 2008 to start working on   the sequel for bioshock jordan would fill the  role of creative director of the game there was   a core team from the first bioshock along with new  hires and working with 2k australia not only were   they putting together game they're also putting  together a studio on how jordan thomas ended up   as the creative director for bioshock 2 from one  interview i've asked myself so many times why   he's picked a direct bioshock 2. the reality is  while he's working on that first bioshock i sat   next to alyssa finley she became executive  producer at bioshock 2's developer 2k marin   she's the one who had watched me stay late every  night it was alyssa who got in touch and asked me   to come to california to work on the sequel unlike  the original or infinite which had development   times at around five years the studio just had  a little over two years to put out a sequel   interesting note the team received some outside  help from various studios including immersive   sim main stays arcane studios who i've done a  few videos on in the past so how do you make   a sequel for a game that doesn't really need a  sequel well jordan's first pitch was to play as   a former little sister in an underpowered return  to rapture full of fertile trauma that would be   uncovered as he went very silent hill but told  from a higher up we think bioshock can be a big   shooter franchise like gears of war or call of  duty and i thought good lord why did you hire me   but the team decided to focus on some areas that  were still worth exploring like the relationship   between the big daddies and little sisters one  of if not the most interesting aspect of bioshock   developers want to further examine some questions  or things that they didn't get a chance to in the   original and pursued forward i'm daddy no i'm  daddy let's take a look at the improvements that   bioshock made upon the original starting with  the gameplay bioshock 2 is a great example of   looking at player feedback with what worked and  didn't work in the original and improving on it   instead of dropping aspects altogether something a  title like mass effect would do which was released   around the same time as great as the first  bioshock was there were some notable shortcomings   and flaws with the gameplay the hacking in the  original was a tedious process here it's fairly   quick and painless and it doesn't pause the whole  world around you and add some more urgency to it   in the original bioshock you had to constantly  shift back and forth between plasmids and weapons   here you have a weapon in one hand and your other  hand is for plasmids using weapons and plasmids at   the same time makes for a far more engaging front  when it comes to combat there's far more strategy   and interesting combinations that you can make use  of however it can be easy to fall into patterns   earlier in the game and just stick with a couple  plasmids and weapons without trying the other ones   out and yet this game kills two birds with one  stone and how they encourage players to experiment   along with doing research at the same time one  of the other major flaws in momentum killer   in the first bioshock was the research with the  camera here you click to film on an enemy and you   get a few seconds to hammer them out with various  attacks to build up points for research the system   similar to character action games like devil may  cry the game rewards you with more points for   trying different plasmids and weapon combinations  while not providing as many points should use the   same weapons and plasmids over and over this  is a great level incentive to get the player   to experiment with different combinations and  plasmids it can lead to us discovering different   combinations that we might have not stumbled  across otherwise as a result the gameplay in the   original which was enjoyable yet flawed becomes  quite a joy that didn't have me rolling my eyes   realizing i had another combat encounter ahead to  me as what happened near the end of bioshock 1.   one of the most disappointing things in the first  bioshock is the end of the game is we gotta become   a big daddy and well nothing really changes but in  bioshock 2 they took the idea and ran with it we   are a big daddy the first one to be successfully  paired to a little sister so all those weapons   that we can only look at longingly in the first  bioshock we can now use the drill charge for   example or the rivet gun now we're not a super  powerful big daddy it's not like we could just   mow down splicers with ease and in groups splicers  can still pack a punch and of course being a daddy   means little sisters one of the most if not the  most fascinating aspect of the original bioshock   we got to explore it here in bioshock 2 with  greater depth on both the gameplay front and the   story front and let's look at how the two overlap  like the original little sisters make their way   around rapture with their big daddies who we have  to take down and with that we have a few options   we can adopt them from there we could take them to  event and either harvest them you monster rescue   them or we could carry them around with us to  go collect some atom from corpses or i mean   angels and then decide what we want to do with  them do we want to harvest them now you monster   or should we rescue them we could help them find  another way no more living life behind the shadow   what's interesting to know is when we have  a little sister with us as we're referred to   as daddy while other big daddies are referred  to mr b or mr bubbles don't make me carry you some of the new comments they make with us on our  sides are really adorable yet very unsettling a   little sister telling spicers to go play with  spooky daddy when you lay down a decoy is   probably my favorite one go play with spooky daddy  gathering atom is highly advisable because all the   upgrades it offers from gene tonic slots more  plasmids and more powerful versions of plasmids   of course getting little sisters to collect  more atom isn't just straightforward   we have to set up a little defense perimeter  beforehand lay down some traps plasmids and   get yourself ready these encounters happen in  fairly open areas of multiple points of attacks   from splicers so there's plenty of strategy  here to keep an eye on our little sister   ourselves and where enemies are coming from  while these areas are optional i found them   very enjoyable and they did give a nice test of  everything and to try out some of these different   powers and a chance to do some filming because  of the improved combat these encounters can be   really chaotic and fun where you're constantly  checking which areas enemies are coming from   switching between plasmids and weapons to deal  with them while bouncing our health and making   sure our little sister stays protected it could be  a fun little dance it's real shame that bioshock   infinite didn't take a number of cubes from  bioshock 2 on this front so while we ourselves   are a big daddy even for more on equal footing  with big daddies in the original the developers   did the right thing and introduced a rival for  us to deal with that exceeds our strengths and coming powers there's a new heavy hitter  in rapture and that's the big sister   this is one of the very first major design  decisions in the development of bioshock 2   and took a lot for the team to get right they did  a lot of motion capture with ballet dancers to get   what they were looking for and that was looking  for something that's a cross between a ballet   dancer and a three-legged dog the big sisters are  a result of little sisters getting older growing   large quickly due to adam and being driven insane  they'll come after us after saving or harvesting   enough little sisters let's ensure that future  sisters don't turn to one to paraphrase elvis   little sister don't you do what your big sister  done the big sister makes a great antagonist and   foe for us to deal throughout the game instead  of being extremely bulky they are extremely agile   instead of the low blooming noises of the big  daddy these are replaced by high-pitched screams these are by far the toughest fights in the  game especially early on when you don't have   that many weapons or plasmids when you hear that  piercing scream you have about half a minute to   get ready for a fight so stock up and get some  traps ready because these are not easy fights   as you grow throughout the game this anticipation  changes early on it's more of a oh [ __ ] a big   sister while later on it becomes more of a bring  it on big sis the team wasn't actually going to   have just one big sister that you encountered  throughout the game but would run away after   taking down a certain amount of health but they  decide not to go this route as would fall into   a predictable rhythm and cause frustration on  the other note of additions there are some ideas   and concepts early on tossed around about having  little brothers but those are cut fairly early on   the relationship between us being a big daddy  dealing with other big daddies little sisters   and big sisters are the key drivers of the  story in bioshock 2 which we'll now look into   one thing that's commonly said about bioshock  2 is that the story doesn't hold a candle to   the original and let's look into why that's  actually not the case the first bioshock is   well remembered for its would you kindly  twist and for good reason it's a fantastic   plot twist that changes everything and how you  look at the game when people discuss the story   of bioshock the plot twist tends to take the  center stage which is a bit of a shame because   the rest of the story is really well done and  hell it's not even this is like the first time   ken levy made use of this kind of plot twist  system shock 2 which i've done a video on has a   very similar plot twist to bioshock which bioshock  would take use of and tweak in a different form way dead insect are you afraid in the  way it's like the sixth sense or the usual   suspects where the plot twist is all everyone  seems to remember or discuss even though both   of those films are excellent beforehand and why  those movies work so well with bioshock 2 there   is no major plot twist or revelation which  i've seen people use against it to me it's   a strange thing when you go to the plot twist  well too many times you end up like a shyamalan   what jordan thomas had to say in an interview  is i knew that people who came back expecting a   giant twist would be disappointed with its lack  but i also feel like repeating that formulaic   kind of shyamalan story would have led people  saying bioshock 2 was a carbon copy of the first   game anyway it was a bit of a damned if you do  damned if you don't situation for the team the   use of plot twists and the differences in stories  reminds me a bit of knights of the old republic 1   versus knights of the old republic 2. i would  be a poor teacher if i did not give you the   answers you seek here now just a little spoiler  warning i'm going to discuss a bit about coater   1 and 2 and the plot twists knights of the old  republic one has the plot twist where you were   revealed to once been the leader of the sith darth  revan and now had their memories and powers wiped   fantastic twist which changes everything that  came before and the way it builds up to it   but when people talk about the story of  kotor 1 the rest kind of gets forgotten   while most discussion is focused on the plot twist  and for good reason because it's very well done   knights the old republic 2 on the other hand  had no major plot twist or revelations like the   original in fact at the end of the game in the  somewhat meta moment crea addresses this fact   perhaps you were expecting some surprise for me to  reveal a secret that had eluded you something that   would change your perspective of events shatter  you to your core there is no great revelation   no great secret while bioshock 2 doesn't reach  that storytelling level that kotor 2 does it still   is a fantastic story that is more emotion driven  than messing with your head that bioshock was and   i've seen it mention that due to not having a plot  twist made it a lesser story which to be frank   is a dumb dumb argument if i ever heard one before  we talk more about the plot i want to talk a bit   about the shortcomings the for the game's first  hour is pretty rocky and doesn't really pick up   until you get to ryan amusements dr tenenbaum  returns here and then she's gone for the rest of   the game although she does pop up in the nervous  den where she plays a much more prominent role   initially she was going to have a larger role in  the story but more aspects that were taken over   by another character which we'll be discussing  shortly on the note of ryan bioshock 2 had some   big shoes to fill when creating an antagonist  that's as compelling as andrew orion and while   sophia lamb the antagonist in bioshock 2 is not as  compelling as andrew ryan she's a great addition   to the rapture lore and does help with creating a  story that's more emotionally driven and explores   some of the ideas of rapture remember elena one  must know the beast before it can be slain sophia   lamb is a great antagonist to andrew ryan as  she is the opposite compared to ryan with her   beliefs in the collectivists versus his beliefs  in the individual this tests andrew's character   and having to resort to some nefarious tactics to  have her locked up that goes against his beliefs   the tapes that we find of ryan and his dealings  with sophia and the debates they have between   one another are some of the highlights of the  game to have ryan all about the individual not   having to be censored going against his beliefs  to have someone who stands on the other side of   his beliefs locked up is a really interesting  conflict that brews within ryan one thing that   bioshock 2 does not get enough credit for is  how it helps flesh out andrew ryan even more   while he's been dead now for a number of years  his shadow still holds strong over rapture and its   people and to hear these tapes of his debates with  lamb what he does to dispose of her gives a lot   more insight into who he is as a character one of  the tricky things that the game pulls off fairly   well is inserting sofia lamb into the story for  as if she was such a prominent cis in a rapture   why didn't we hear about her in the original  well the game does address this with ron using   the fairest means to have her locked up swept  under the rug and forgotten by the public at large   when she does return it has been a number of  years is it perfect no but it does a far better   job than most other sequels or expanded works  who struggle with answering the question of   why are we just learning about this character  now i do wish bioshock 2 did go more into   sofia's reasoning and push her flaws a bit more  to the surface with her collectivist thinking   because while they do it wasn't to the extent  that they did with ryan in the first place   it would have been nice to have the game push back  more on sofia lam and her beliefs and her goals   while there's characters like father wales who  helped show the wrong and the ideas of lamb along   with gil alexander they weren't as compelling of  showing other sides of rhyme with characters like   fontaine or cohen did in the original bioshock  while bioshock has a starting as an unknown factor   coming into rapture only to realize how much we  are connected to some of the major players as a   result bioshock 2 makes it clear that we're a big  daddy but uses the characters around us and how   we're connected with them to drive a story that's  more emotionally driven compared to the original   let's take a look at some of these characters  i like to look a man in the eye when i give   him my word you and me kid we're going places  sinclair is an interesting character that will   be in contact with most of the game like atlas or  fontaine the original but he is completely upfront   about his vices and sins and it's refreshing  to see some like that and while it does feel   like he'll turn on you at any time he doesn't and  he's just so damn charming with that accent of his   opportunity to raise up some affordable housing  when atlantic express was constructing their   luxury passenger line this place was hollowed  out beneath as flop houses for the railway crew   and to see him at the end of the game being  turned by lamb is a very tragic moment that   there's a lot of sympathy for him even all of his  nefarious dealings in the past and our character   does have a history with sinclair which comes  about more later in the game this is all great   stuff when it comes to story and connecting these  characters in three levels we'll encounter three   people decide their fates and part of the game's  quote-unquote morality choices that were popular   at the time grace holloway stanley poole and gil  alexander aka alexander the great at the climax of   these levels we could determine their fates living  or dying what's great about these characters is   how we're all connected to them and sophia our  history with them and also playing roles in being   extension of sofia lamb and her ideas and how  they clash with ryan's like a good side character   should grace holloway a singer blacklisted by ryan  becomes one of sophia lamb's most vocal supporters   and helps represent how sophia lamb made use of  the down and out and the poor to drive her cause   ford against ryan in a way similar to how fontaine  made use of the poor while the first bioshock   mostly focused on the elite of rapture bioshock  2 dealt more into the down-a-note neglected by   rapture as mentioned in one of the audio logs in  the first game someone has to clean the toilets   down there and we have a history with grace where  she tried to take away our little sister that she   raised for some time who was sophia's daughter  but we retaliated against her and broke her jaw   but more on who that little sister was in a bit  stanley pool a journalist was used by ryan as   a mole to get dirt on sofia lamb to give reason  to lock her up and he interviewed our character   calling us johnny topside when we discovered  rapture deep diving after sophia was arrested   stanley poole takes control of the area and  throws extravagant parties and indulges in vices   when sophia's daughter discovers what he's been up  to he sends her off to fontaine's orphanage to be   turned into a little sister who we would be paired  with he's killed many people to cover up his lies   and in the moment where we want to he's quite  pathetic with all that he's done it's up to us   if we want to kill him and get a revenge or spare  him and leave him with his fate then we have gil   alexander who with sophia lamb was to become her  idea of being the collectivist individual to rule   rapture with all's knowledge of the city by being  injected with great quantities of adam but instead   goes insane and turns into well this there is a  bit of a missed opportunity here in regards to how   these characters fates were handled well what you  do does determine the differences in your ending   that you get they don't really play much a factor  in the game otherwise beyond grace briefly helping   you shortly after you spare her and that's it  it would be nice to see some additional dialogue   occur a few levels down or they could help us in  some way perhaps this is something they were going   to put in the game the short development time made  them chop it out now there's one character i've   been holding off mentioning until now it's because  our relationship with her is the key driver of   the story in the game and revisiting bioshock 2  leaves me feeling safe to say that the story in   some ways is better than the original and in many  ways does this idea that they go with far better   than bioshock infinite mom says i'm not to play  with the other children because they are being   raised on a diet of dog eat dog our relationship  with eleanor lamb daughter of sophia lamb and once   our little sister is the core of this emotionally  driven story that would be used by other games   in which i'm referring to as the triple a  dad simulator but we'll get to that shortly   eleanor lamb was our little sister and we were  the first successful pairing between little sister   and big daddy in rapture our goal the entire game  has been to reach eleanor and save her along the   way she'll help us out with various messages that  we talk to her through and the game makes use of   little sisters to tie our relationship together  how we treat little sisters along the way whether   harvesting them or saving them will be reflected  back to us through eleanor in the ending of the   game near the end of the game we finally reach her  and after a few obstacles thrown our way she joins   us as a big sister that we could summon with her  sanity intact and she'll demolish and [ __ ] up   everything in her path with the greatest of ease  it's a fantastic moment that we finally get to   have her by her side i would love for the game to  add another level just because our time together   with her ends up being far too short plus it's  great to have a big sister on your side now after   all those encounters we've had previously against  them when we reach the ending depending on how we   dealt with little sisters and the characters  along the way of stanley poole grace holloway   and gil alexander will get a variety of different  endings that are far more satisfying than what   bioshock 1 offered elmore's choices will be  reflected back at us and depending on a few   factors we could have quite a bit of a say  in the ending as well but the core of this   relationship between us and eleanor our little  sister and we as our big daddy is what drives the   plot forward and one that's more about the heart  and less about the head that bioshock won and an   infinite made use of the team did the right thing  in focusing on these relationships in the sequel   for a game that didn't overly need a sequel and  they made the most of it i'm daddy no i'm daddy   earlier i made mention that bioshock 2 was ahead  of the curve when it came to games that i like to   dub the triple a dad simulator so what are those  exactly the last of us bioshock infinite god of   war and even the witcher 3 made use of some  of these dad simulator cues from bioshock 2.   while i'm not sure if these games did take cues  from bioshock 2 it should be noted that bioshock 2   did beat these titles to the punch by a number of  years i wonder if ken levine saw what the team was   doing and was influenced by that so let's first  compare it to bioshock infinite in which elizabeth   joins us fairly early on and stays with us for  most of the game although their relationship takes   time to form and for them to trust one another and  grows over the game we do eventually learn about   the history between the two of them but beginning  the game they are strangers to one another of   course the relationship is different due to the  nature of having a voice protagonist with booker   dewitt while she does toss us some ammunition or  coins she doesn't really help us mess [ __ ] up   like eleanor does at the end of the game although  looking at earlier builds of bioshock infinite it   did look like it would go that way but that's  a topic for another day this is also different   than two and when we're trying to find eleanor  for most of the game as she awaits us for the   last of us it's very similar in structure for the  father-daughter relationship that's in bioshock   infinite and fine to note how close together these  games were released with troy baker as the voice   of the dad figure in each that being joel and last  of us and booker and bioshock infinite same case   of taking time to trust one another and how their  relationship grows and plays a large part in why   these games have resonated so much over time due  to the emotional punch that you can make use of   these kind of stories the witcher 3 is more  in line with bioshock 2 as we spend most of   the game finding siri we have a past relationship  with and are very important in each other's lives   and yennefer being the motherly figure and  we spend a long time getting to siri it's   interesting that amongst these group of games that  bioshock 2 gets lost in the shuffle as being ahead   of the curve on that front bioshock 1 did have  elements of it bioshock 2 delve much more into it   looking deeper into the relationship between the  big daddies and the sisters what is different with   bioshock 2 compared to the examples i just listed  are the fact that we are a silent protagonist   maybe that's why it's been a bit lost in the  shuffle that said i don't think the game loses   a ton of that emotional punch as a result but  it has to be noted while the story between us   and eleanor lamb is powerful we can't talk  about this without looking at arguably the   most tragic story of the game that of mark  meltzer and his daughter cindy but here it is   and it's real rapture originally not  supposed to be in the game mark meltzer   comes from the arg the game had prior  to release there's something in the sea   and was such a hit that he was eventually added in  mark's daughter cindy was kidnapped on the surface   and after much investigation mark discovers  the city of rapture where she had been taken   we follow his journey on the audio logs he leaves  behind and we just know that there's not going to   be a happy ending here we know that should he find  his daughter which he does he's going to be seeing   a little sister which is exactly what happens  and it's optional depending on how you decide   to counter the big daddies but after taking down  one late in the game we say its name is not give   this a big daddy but as mark meltzer there's a  tape on him where caught by lamb mark becomes big   daddy to be with her there's no fanfare there's  no cutscene but it just hits like a ton of bricks   when you realize what happened ask yourself mr  meltzer is it better to be summarily executed   as an outsider caught within these grounds or  to be united not just with your daughter cindy   but with the rapture family as well a choice is  yours i urge you to accept the protector program   you will live by her side and  remember nothing beyond your lover i wasn't the first to find rapture you  crazy [ __ ] and i won't be the last you do   whatever you want to me as long as i'm with cindy   i'm a happy man this is such a fantastic yet  tragic story beat it's a great story of someone   having their daughter taken away from them and  them doing everything in their power to gang them   back mark meltzer is like an older version of liam  neeson and taken for how much he goes through in   order to find her only his story ends in tragedy  and then should you rescue his daughter cindy who   is with them that just makes knowing what happened  to her even worse that her father was for a time   her big daddy the span of about five minutes  of audio logs spread throughout the game and   some environmental storytelling the story of mark  meltzer hits extremely hard this story could made   for a very interesting dlc hell it would have made  for a very compelling game to be fleshed out on   but there's one section in particular that i think  is not only bioshock's two finest scene that hits   like a ton of bricks and possibly the finest scene  in the entire series in the grand scheme of games   a terribly underappreciated section that i  wonder why more people don't talk about it   go play with spooky daddy the scene i am  talking about of course is taking the viewpoint   of a little sister later in the game when this  moment happened it took me a moment to process   wait a minute why does everything look  so different and then it hits you that   this is the world that the little sister sees they  see people as angels with rose petals around them   everything is so shiny and bright look at how big  daddy looks to her look at how the splicers look   to her in their masks for collecting the suit of  the big sister we see that she sees it as a dress   and we get some brief moments as a little sister  where it cuts back and forth between reality and   what they see it's another jolt that gives a lot  more context to the lives of the little sister an   incredibly powerful insight it's an incredible  moment of show don't tell where something like   this could have been conveyed in recording  but instead we get to see it ourselves through   the eyes of a little sister it's an incredible  moment that gives a whole different perspective   to rapture and adds a layer of depth and tragedy  to this world it amazes me that the scene doesn't   get held up in such high regard compared  to the would you kindly scene or other ones   because it's such a powerful scene that  says so much in such a short period of time   hear why does bioshock 2 seem to get a bit lost  in the shuffle when it comes to discussion lean   bioshock series and the gaming landscape as a  whole while the game did underperform on the front   of sales expected by 2k it's not like it sold  drastically less than bioshock 1. on that note of   all the games to guest sequel bioshock seemed like  one that didn't really need one and that the game   wrapped up nicely as a whole in the end early  on the development the team behind bioshock 2   were looking to take in a different direction away  from rapture but the higher ups wanted them to go   back to the world of rapture so that skepticism  of coming into this world did play a part in a   game that didn't overly need a sequel the team  went in excellent directions and focusing more   on that compelling relationship between the big  daddies and little sisters another mention of why   it's not remembered as much as the lack of a plot  twist that for whatever reason i've seen people   use this against bioshock 2 because it doesn't  have a plot twist like bioshock does again as i   mentioned earlier in the video from jordan thomas  the creative director the team made the choice not   make use of a plot twist and go back to that well  of a story telling technique and yes while the   plot twist of bioshock is extremely well done it  does seem to overshadow the rest of the story in   bioshock which is still very well put together and  that's the problem with the plot twist tool i see   it more of a in case of emergency brake class kind  of tool where you only want to use sparingly using   it too much gets tiresome and predictable and you  end up someone like m night shyamalan who went to   that well too many times and that being known as  the plot twist guy as well we have to address the   cannon levine factor after the release of bioshock  ken levine became for better lack of a term   on those rockstar game developers that most gamers  know the name of this is reserved for just a few   with people like hideo kojima or miyamoto instead  of working on bioshock 2 ken and parva's team went   to go work on bioshock infinite with more  or less free reign and no constraints while   bioshock 2 did have a number of people working  on it from the original it could be seen more   as a b team like what happened with dark souls 2  when miyazaki was off working on bloodborne and   ken levine has this magic touch of making games  like bioshock and bioshock infinite sell well   and has fans of critics at his fingertips even if  over time the cracks appeared but at launch that   doesn't matter and bioshock 2 doesn't have that  it's much more emotionally driven than more of   the bombastic approach that bioshock and bioshock  infinite took not going with huge twists or turns   that get you rethink everything that came before  that and that's fine instead they delved into one   of the most fascinating aspects of rapture with  the relationship between big daddies and little   sisters and went to tug on your heartstrings  as opposed to tugging at your mind it took the   foundation of what came before in bioshock fixed  a number of the gameplay flaws to make a really   fun game it created a worthy sequel for a game  that didn't necessarily need one and made the   best of it with a short two-year development by  no stretches is it perfect and that first hour so   is quite clunky but once it gets going it keeps  building and building to a fantastic crescendo   and that's not even talking about the nervous den  which many regard as the best piece of bioshock   content one of the best dlcs of all time but  that my taffer friends is for another day well   my friends those are my thoughts on bioshock  2. give it another try if it's been a while i   hope you enjoyed it check out some of my other  videos if you enjoyed leave a comment how you   feel about bioshock 2 leave a like subscribe hit  that notification bell ring my bell baby you know   all that jazz anyways i'm way overdue for going  back to punching boulders so bowler punch out

Channel: Boulder Punch

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Keywords: Bioshock 2 Review, Bioshock 2, bioshock 2 remastered review, Bioshock 2 underrated, bioshock 2 is underrated, Bioshock 2 is the best bioshock, Bioshock 2 story, bioshock 2 remastered, bioshock 2 is the best, bioshock 2 is better than 1, bioshock 2 analysis, bioshock 2 retrospective, bioshock 2 critique, boulder punch, bioshock jordan thomas, immersive sim games, immersive sim review, bioshock, bioshock 2, bioshock collection, bioshock 2 remastered analysis

Id: Xqk9SGdDYZI

Length: 31min 11sec (1871 seconds)

Published: Mon Oct 12 2020

Reddit Comments

[u/Fuzzball_7]

I'm definitely thinking I need to replay 'BioShock 2', but for me at least, the first game and Infinite will always be more special.

!SPOILERS FOR ALL THE BIOSHOCK GAMES!

In regards to the point about people not liking 'BioShock 2' as much because it doesn't have a plot twist, I think it's more complicated than that. The reason the "Would You Kindly" twist is so special is because it's commenting on the player's agency. The player thinks they have control over how the game progresses, but the "Would You Kindly" reveal highlights not only that the player character is under Atlas' control, but that the player themself is under the control of the game's designers.

Infinite's "constants and variables" raises something similar but a bit different, in that it tells the playerbase that there are countless little variances in how they will each experience the game, because of their individual agency, but ultimately every player is experiencing the same overall story, crafted by the game's designers.

These twists are so special not just because they're a surprising reveal, but because they're highlighting their medium as a part of the surprise. They bring the player's subconscious understanding of how games work - which we normally suppress to immerse ourselves in the experience - to the forefront.

'BioShock 2' doesn't have anything like this. While the other games' themes are intrinsically linked to them being video games, 'BioShock 2' is simply a story in video game form. So perhaps it is not usually remembered as fondly because players (consciously or not) think of BioShock as the series that talks about games as a storytelling medium.