1. Paulie_C

   10

   This is one of the greatest and underrated PC games of all time, simply terrifying to play with its unparalleled level of ambient horror this is the RPS that defined the genre and has set the standard for future games in this category. Dead Space/Bioshock/Deus Ex - all the others stem from SS2 and it's no surprise why.
   The gameplay is superior to SS1 and the sound and voice acting are some of, if not the best I have ever heard in my years of gaming. To me reviewing this in 2011 after playing it for about 8 years - this is the pinnacle of PC gaming and if you can get your hands on a copy and get it running then you are in for a world of horrific joy!… Expand

   • Helpful? 20 of 20 users said Yes.
2. Medallish

   8

   Before we start. I was born in Nov. 85. and was about 14 when this game was released, I remember specifically playing this game with my brother, and although never advancing beyond the first Deck, the game still gave me a lasting impression of it being an amazing game.
   
   Setting:
   System Shock 2 is a Sci-Fi Survival Horror game, it all starts on the ship The Von Braun, which is a type of research vessel, and the most advanced ship the human species has manged to build, you get interrupted in your cryo sleep by another survivor, and told that the ship is under some kind of attack. Even today the game manages to make you feel like you're on a space ship, running down corridors down in engineering to fix something, or rummaging around in a cargo bay for clues. And the game doesn't use levels, as such, you often have to go down to lower levels after you've been other places, and if you research objects you'll often try and remember where the last Chemical Storeroom was. You're on a desolate ship with Aliens that hate you, and want you dead, and an AI that won't hide the fact that you're but a puppet or insect to her, doing as she demands. You do hear from survivors every now and then, but it's far in between, and most of the time you just feel like you're working with someone who just hates you a little less than the creatures who wants to kill you do.
   
   Gameplay:
   I always have 2 fears when playing old games, one of them is graphics, is it so bad that I'll be taken out of the experience? And the second is gameplay, nostalgia is a hell of a thing, and shows us how deceptive our brains can be. I always try and be objective atleast. Imo this game stands up just fine on gameplay, mouse and keyboard just works, and even some of the more different ways of doing things feel natural, like right clicking to interact with things, there's no hand holding, but I was very rarely so lost that I couldn't find my way eventually, although some of the levels for me were a lot of brute forcing just walking back and forth, so that can be frustrating.
   One thing I honestly loved was how much of a panic I was in when I saw a spider because I knew I didn't have enough anti Tox syringes to save myself if I got bit, it caused me to go into such a panic I would just flee and do something insanely stupid, and I don't even have arachnophobia. The combat is the most dated probably. Even the biggest creatures can pretty easily be defeated using melee weapons, although you do have to step back a few times.
   
   Sound/Music:
   One of the things that completely freaked me out as a kid was the fact that you heard the tormented voices of the infected, saying: I'm sorry! or Kill me! As they were hitting, or shooting you, just the idea of being possessed and doing things you normally wouldn't was a really spooky thing, there's a lot of cool things like that, like you'll hear them speak as they are looking for you, and it seems clear they are very aware of your presence. The music worked really well too, it was weird sometimes when I went through a door, and the music changed to something completely different, but I still really liked the soundtrack, and there was something about the music in the Hydroponics area that made my heart pumping. And Shodan just sounds cool every time she speaks.(Looloolooook at you, hahahaaacker!).
   
   Graphics:
   Ok this is a bit of a cheat, didn't play it with it's original graphics, I got a texture mod, as well as some model updates, and environmental mods(Plants, goo etc.), and with these mods the game looks great, it's not perfect, but it's a lot better than triangle hands, and square and flat faces. The game looks old if you don't have any mods on it, it might be charming, but the mods I installed didn't make the experience less epic, or scary.
   
   Conclusion:
   I rarely find myself compelled to play games like crazy, it has to have an interesting story. I got Bioshock after I heard it was basically an alternative take on System Shock 2, but I honestly couldn't be bothered after a while, and I wasn't at all as captivated as I was during my play through with System Shock 2. The game isn't perfect, I hoped there would be a few choices towards the end, but other than that, the game shows that games back in the 90's were onto something, something that's been missing in most recent games.… Expand

   • Helpful? 2 of 2 users said Yes.
3. Jaegar

   7

   It cannot be helped. I'm a veteran in this game series. I've played sshock1 through about 10 times and I loved it. Maybe it's just me but I was a bit disappointed. Where did all the cyborgs go? Don't get me wrong I like the game and it's good but I compare it to sshock1 and that cut's the points down. Hopefully WHEN the sshock3 is for sale (I hope for their sake that they'll make one) it has cyborgs and more guns better puzles and even thicker plot.… Expand

   • Helpful? 0 of 2 users said Yes.
4. ShawnDarichuk

   0

   This game is broken to the point of being unplayable. I don't get a gun when I start, I'm told that I can't even use the gun I just found (because people in the military don't know what guns are), and my only weapon is a wrench. Wow, isn't that fun.
   Easily the worst PC game ever made.… Expand

   • Helpful? 2 of 123 users said Yes.

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