LTTP failure: Uninstalled Bioshock 2 after 20 minutes of play

The gameplay is better than the other games, but the story and characters are better in the other games. It starts a little slow, but once you get traps weapons and plasmids, it gets pretty damn fun.
I had a blast with BioShock 2, and because I bought the bundle, immediately moving to Infinite after B2, there was a noticeable change in the gameplay style (not as fun imo).

It's my favourite BioShock Game.

Sorry to hear you diddn't like it.

Too bad. It's a great game that does a better job at the story and gameplay aspects that 1 and Infinite aimed for. I appreciate that it has a much more heartfelt and intimate story, instead of the constant on-the-nose themes about ideology.

Sucks to hear, Bioshock 2 is imho the best game in the series.

I did not like Bioshock 2 as much as the original, but Bioshock 2, but 20 minutes is pretty short period of time to come to a final conclusion about any game, especially if you liked the original. That being said, Bioshock 2 has one of the best DLCs of any game, Minerva's Den. You should take a break from the game, then go back and try again.

Plays much better than the first game.

20 minutes only ?
It's a joke.

For a game that positions you as playing as a Big Daddy complete with Drill, the main character sure controls like any old average joe, and the game much like the original has crappy game feel to me (look I can't think of a better term than game feel)

Oddly though I can absolutely understand the idea of it being the best of its trilogy, even though I'd never touch it again, if nothing else it gave the player a lot of options for combat but man, I just didn't ever enjoy how the combat actually felt.

It's strange how at launches 2 was considered the worst of the three and now in hindsight is loved the most.

That's a shame, while I consider BioShock my favorite (and in the discussion for my top 10) I'd say BioShock 2 is the best overall game, especially with the Minerva's Den DLC.

Barrel Cannon said:

It's strange how at launches 2 was considered the worst of the three and now in hindsight is loved the most.

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Bioshock is older now than SS2 was when Bioshock came out. The newness mask on the game has faded and now it's relegated to history, and as it stands it really doesn't hold up that well at all in that place when stood up next to other classics in the genre. Even in it's own generation DXHR and Dishonored were better games, and behind it games like Thief, Deus Ex, System Shock 2, STALKER, Arx Fatalis, etc are all better than it is.


It's honestly one of the lesser games in the genre, all told.

Recently started it myself after finally completing the first game and I'm enjoying it. Too early (about 2 hours in) to say whether it's better or not, but so far, so good.

pa22word said:

Bioshock is older now than SS2 was when Bioshock came out. The newness mask on the game has faded and now it's relegated to history, and as it stands it really doesn't hold up that well at all in that place when stood up next to other classics in the genre. Even in it's own generation DXHR and Dishonored were better games, and behind it games like Thief, Deus Ex, System Shock 2, STALKER, Arx Fatalis, etc are all better than it is.


It's honestly one of the lesser games in the genre, all told.

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Haha, I agree. Played everything in that list (except I haven't finished Dishonored but got fairly far). It's not all that strange I guess. I guess "it's funny how" is how I should phrased my earlier comment.

Cybersai said:

Bioshock 2 is pretty decent though. Not as good as the first game, but still a competently made sequel.

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+1

You should give it another chance OP. I beat it last year and think it was worth it. Also many people believe Minerva's Den is one of the best pieces of DLC for a FPS, I have it but didn't play it... Yet.

Lukemia SL said:

I played the whole game and if my recollection on things are iffy that would be based on it being a forgettable game. Its seams shows, it is not the game Levine originally intended to make.
In trailers Elizabeth was a lot more useful, she took down part of a bridge and used her powers in combat. What we got was splenda-Elizabeth. No seriously opening tears and giving you mana and money (stopping you mid combat too) is not what I was sold on for Elizabeth.

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The early demos of Bioshock: Infinite weren't even demos. They were 100% scripted and created specifically for hands-off E3 presentations. The enemies didn't even have AI and there was no actual gameplay. Those "demos" were at no point representative of the game because there was no game at those points. Infinite was still in pre-production. It's not uncommon for developers to create mock-up videos to help sell their pitches to publishers. However, these mock-ups are never representative of the final product because they don't account for budgetary or technical limitations. They're equivalent to concept art. Irrational made the mistake of showing their mock-ups to the public and creating expectations of a game that never existed.

As a general rule, it's best to just judge games on their own merits and ignore hype and marketing. You won't be disappointed nearly as much.

You aren't alone. I finished 2 but really wasn't a fan of it.

I sold the collection before I even touched infinite.

I loved it, especially the story dlc. A worthy sequel.

Lovely game but I never liked playing as a big daddy. Its nowhere close to 1, probably on par with Infinite.

Good call OP. Hated bioshock 2 and I also stopped after about an hour.


Highly recommend infinite though...

After 20 minutes? Man, that's... really harsh. You even missed out on Minerva's Den, the greatest Bioshock release of all time (in my opinion.)

Play Skyrim for a little bit and then BioShock 2's hits will feel like a wrecking ball, problem solved

I restarted Bioshock 2 like 5 times and only committed with the remaster. Its really goddamn good.

The DLC is quite better than the main campaign.

I remember playing the first Bioshock on PS3 and shelving after an hour or two when I realised that "dying" literally just meant teleporting a somewhere a little further back. Not like a check-point where things get reset, but literally the entire game state remains as-is and you just teleport. It was like I was just playing the whole game with a cheat enabled, which felt totally pointless.

I still want to try Infinite though, does it still use this mechanic?

Incredible game, haterz be crazy.

hwarang said:

Why would you dislike the immersion argument? I feel as if it has weight to it when you consider the popularity of the Souls series. The impact of the player's and enemy's actions which culminates in a difficult gameplay seems to create the immersion that every action you take matters. When a game disregards it then the immersion is watered down. Same as when you hold too much inventory in the fallout games. It's like implementing physics without any notion to weight.

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We have different definitions of the word immersion, then. Because I don't consider things like weight to be important when playing something like that. I think it would detract from what the core gameplay is trying to express.

hwarang said:

Seeing as how you're currently playing it, does it bother you how weightless your actions seem? (In a literal context.) It doesn't feel as if you're playing as a Big Daddy.

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I did expect it to control more like you've described, but it didn't bother me at all. The power drill move is a great though.

Bioshock 2 is unfairly maligned. I'm surprised to see so many "it's overrated!!!" posts in here. It was never highly regarded until Minerva's Den hit. Personally I think it's the strongest Bioshock game to date as it doesn't rely on a 'shock' twist for its payoff and the defining moment of the game is really wonderfully executed. On top of its solid, if overly repeated, mechanical hooks it stands the test of time way better than the original or Infinite. I think it's biggest issue in terms of the 'trilogy' is that it doesn't really have a strong identity of its own, instead revisiting what is an incredibly powerful and iconic location. If it wasn't set in Rapture I think people would have given it a fairer shake of the stick upon release.

And I say all this as someone who's never played Minerva's Den.

Also, somewhat off topic - Bioshock games are really something! Whew.

Probably the most overrated game on Era/Gaf, and yet it's still fucking brilliant. It's the opposite of the original in that it starts slow and gets progressively better.

MartinB105 said:

I remember playing the first Bioshock on PS3 and shelving after an hour or two when I realised that "dying" literally just meant teleporting a somewhere a little further back. Not like a check-point where things get reset, but literally the entire game state remains as-is and you just teleport. It was like I was just playing the whole game with a cheat enabled, which felt totally pointless.

I still want to try Infinite though, does it still use this mechanic?

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For a start, you can turn that off in Bioshock, and there is an extremely important plot reason for it to exist. Also it's not completely free in so far as enemy health will regenerate when you come back. This is important in Big Daddy fights, especially early on, as you will have less ammo the second time and they will be back to full health. When you think about it, it's actually more damaging and less time consuming than just reloading your last save.

Bioshock Infinite has a similar mechanic, but it's much more limited and has a bigger impact on your resources.

McBradders said:

And I say all this as someone who's never played Minerva's Den.

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Well then whatcha waitin' for? Get on that! :D

panecasio said:

If 20 minutes is all you're going to give to an immersive sim game, it's probably not the genre for you.

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Immersive sim, We're talking about Bioshock 2 right?

Playing Bioshock 2 now and feel the enemies are too bullet spongy even on the lowest difficulty setting. Feels like I can shoot some fool 5 times point blank in the face and they don't go down. I vastly prefer Infinite as your not stuck seeing everyone other NPC behind some glass door or in shadow, etc. You can see the emotion in their face and you've got more open area to mix up the combat.

Sign My Guestbook! said:

Well then whatcha waitin' for? Get on that! :D

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Yeah I should dust off my 360 and get on that...

What's up with the importance of immersion these days?

Chase Lebowski said:

What's up with the importance of immersion these days?

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Ultima Underworld came out in like 1991 man =\

The gunplay is shit, but it is shit for all Bioshock. I'm surprised seeing lots of people talking about Bioshock 2 being the best of the franchise. I thought I was the only one lol Bar the repeated setting, it's a better game than 1 and Infinite in almost everything. Really good Level Design and the gameplay was really fun.

Best in the series, it gets better as you go along. unlike 1 which peters off in the final few levels and especially Infinite which never really gets going. The main thing against it is that it's basically a retread of 1 story-wise; it feels derivative.

Literally the best playing game in the series.

Chase Lebowski said:

What's up with the importance of immersion these days?

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I ask myself this question every day when reading this forum.

Next week in LTTP: uninstalling RE4 because the village section wasnt exciting enough.

I would never, ever make a decision on any game based on 20 minutes of gameplay unless it was just broken.

Nothing1016 said:

I ask myself this question every day when reading this forum.

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some people, at this point, appear to be looking for games to provide a whole lot more than simply some entertainment. it's mildly disturbing :) ...

Epinephrine said:

They're not. I didn't care for 2, never finished 1 (but good god that game was dripping with atmosphere) and are you ready for it ...

Like really ready for it?

I enjoyed the hell out of Infinite, thought it was easily the best one.

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I think Infinite is the best one, too. I didn't like Bioshock 2 very much.

I've never played Minerva's Den, and I've owned it on Steam since forever ago. I've always seen people praising the hell out of it, too.

Bioshock 1 and 2 were boring as fuck. Infinite was a little bit better, but not a good game at all (imo). It took me a lot of effort to finish it and it was one of the worst gaming experiences I had. So I'm with you OP.

honestly i like the gameplay of bioshock2, the left hand and right hand always there instead of keep switching between them it's awesome, but storywise is not my favorite.

Bioshock 2 is the best Bioshock game, but I respect the fact you quit the game so early after not liking it. More people should do this.

Max Payne said:

Bioshock 1 and 2 were boring as fuck. Infinite was a little bit better, but not a good game at all (imo). It took me a lot of effort to finish it and it was one of the worst gaming experiences I had. So I'm with you OP.

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I bought all 3 games for the 360 because I want to play them all, but holy shit they're such a slog. The atmosphere is so good, but the gameplay is slow, clunky, boring. I really want to like it, but I have a hard time doing so. Too bad.