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BioShock

User Rating:

ESRB: Blood and Gore,Drug Reference,Intense Violence,Sexual Themes,Strong Language
Publisher: 2K Games
Genre(s): Shooting
Home Page: http://www.2kgames.com/bioshock/

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By: Aaron Barnes Aug 28, 2007

Good. Damn good.

And nine out of ten gamers will love Bioshock...

Is BioShock the true prophet of the free-roaming, story-based FPS? Not by any stretch. That's no barb, though - the game is a fun and very polished FPS experience, with some new elements thrown in for originality. Does it feel like a title targeted at the console market? At times, yes; but PC gamers should know that no publisher will toss tens of millions at an FPS without a release on at least one (or more) of the Big Three consoles. Finances have dictated that the days of PC exclusives are almost over.

Is it a game worth playing, perhaps more than once? The answer is a resounding "Yes!" on both counts. BioShock brings story back to the FPS with flair and style. Combat is never boring, the atmosphere is superbly crafted, and there are enough choices in the narrative to warrant playing through at least twice (if not more). As Irrational Studios the company (now 2K Boston / 2K Australia) travels further and further from its origins as Looking Glass Studios, it's somehow comforting to know that the studio can still deliver an engrossing and thoroughly enjoyable gameplay experience.

Summary of YouGamers Hardware Testing

The publisher of this game state the following specifications for their minimum and recommended requirements:

Component	Publisher's Minimum	Publisher's Recommended
Processor	Intel Pentium 4 2.4 GHz Single Core Processor	Intel Core 2 Duo processor
Memory	1 GB	2 GB
Graphics Card	128MB DirectX 9.0c-compliant	512MB DirectX 9.0c-compliant
Graphics Card Example	NVIDIA 6600GT or better/ ATI X1300 or better (excluding X1550)	DirectX 9: NVIDIA GeForce 7900GT or better \| DirectX 10: NVIDIA GeForce 8600 or better
Free Disk Space	8 GB	8 GB
Net Link	(Internet Required for Activation)	(Internet Required for Activation)

To learn more about how YouGamers performs its hardware testing, click here. Through our extensive gameplay and hardware testing across the full spectrum of PC configurations, YouGamers suggests that one should use the following guidelines for an appropriate minimum and recommended setup:

Component	YouGamers Minimum	YouGamers Recommended
Processor	AMD Athlon 64 3800+ / Intel Pentium 4 570	AMD Athlon 64 X2 5000+ / Intel Core 2 Duo E6420
Memory	512 MB	2 GB
Graphics Card	ATI Radeon X1650 256MB / NVIDIA GeForce 6800 256MB	ATI Radeon HD 2900 1GB / NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GTS 640MB
Free Disk Space	8 GB	8 GB
Net Link	Broadband	Broadband

Scores

To learn more about our scoring methodology, please click here.

Gameplay	92	A compelling and original narrative played out in a mesmerizing underwater world. Unique weapon system keeps combat fun. Plenty of choices to be made, but this is, at heart, a fairly linear FPS.
Graphics	97	Outstanding across the board. A sense of atmosphere unparalleled in recent shooters, with consistent and masterful art direction. DirectX 10 support adds some niceties, but it's a visual treat even with DirectX 9 hardware.
Audio	98	Excellent in all regards. Voice acting is Hollywood-caliber and sound effects are superb. A memorable musical score and selected period songs round out the package.
Technology	80	Great use of the Unreal Engine 3.0, but bring some high-end hardware. Yet another example of Havok ragdoll physics. Full positional audio support and hardware acceleration. The devious and punitive activation system should have been shelved.

OVERALL

Bioshock is nothing if not entirely engrossing. An example of perfect narrative pacing, the game has intense combat with a unique weapon system. The story pulls you in and doesn't let go, and user choices help to drive the plot. No detail was left untouched in making the game a cohesive and polished finished product. While it's not a genre-busting pioneer, the gameplay in BioShock won't disappoint.

If you wish to comment on this review or talk about the game further, please head over to our discussion board - click right here (registration not required).