So, System Shock 2....

[Headdrivehardscrew]

I think it is really important to compare System Shock 2 to Bioshock and Bioshock Infinite, maybe even the original Deus Ex first.

I would say that the level of atmosphere, lore, immersion and pure playing pleasure (all actual words, not their hollow marketingspeak zombie counterparts) is comparable.

But, and that's a huge 'but' - we have to acknowledge that making bigger games with more assets, more people and more money involved is a rather complicated thing, so I would wager that playing through the original Deus Ex or the original System Shock 2 is, on some levels, much more rewarding than going through the overcomplicated over-burdened and yet dumbed-down and streamlined, tunnel-visioned and cut up experience of modern, resource-hungry 'rides'.

I don't think Dead Space compares well to that. It tried to do it, and boy was I looking forward to the original title. Turns out the box-kicking, the fighting mechanics, the darn tram rides, the decidedly 'different' fighting mechanics, the customer segregation with paid DLC and the general clunkiness of the whole experience were all major turn-offs for me. I never finished Dead Space 2 and I never actually bought Dead Space 3. It just all felt randomly cobbled together and without a soul, like most of what J. J. Abrams pumps out these days. It's not quite on the same level as the 'Movie' movies, but it's pretty much in the same drawer: Empty stories, empty calories for empty brains. Hooray.

 

[Johnny Impact]

System Shock 2 is a true masterpiece. It was the most uncompromisingly scary, difficult game I had played at the time. It's still one of my top 5 in any genre.

Other games just don't measure up.
Doom 3 was beautiful, but it vastly, VASTLY overused darkness and relied too heavily on the monster-spawns-right-behind-you trick.
FEAR was hobbled by a ridiculous story and insufficient enemy variety, plus the ghost girl isn't half as creepy as SHODAN.
Dead Space hyped every monster spawn like there was a neon sign telling us ***BE SCARED NOW***. Also, QTEs do not belong in this kind of game. The series is almost a parody of itself.
Even as I enjoyed BioShock I continually lamented the "spiritual successor" falling short of the bar. If it had been a bad game I could have just forgotten about it, but it kept being ALMOST as good as it needed to be.

The only gripe I have with Shock 2 (and I'm a champion nitpicker, ask anyone) is that it was done in the Thief engine, which even at the best of times was....let's say cantankerous. Oh, and tooth jumping. That's the only truly unfair part of the game.

I am so happy to see a Steam release. Forget the buckets of dross -- Train Simulator, seriously?? -- buy Shock, everyone! I know I will.

 

[Luca72]

Glad you're enjoying it OP, and that it holds up for you ten years (almost fifteen holy shit) later!

Since some of you are bringing up Bioshock, I just realized something that had been bugging me. I always liked Bioshocks' narrative, but I never felt that connected to it's world. It was interesting and clearly thought out, but I had trouble connecting with the audio log characters. I never seemed to have a time frame. Was this recorded while the city was flourishing? Was this one recorded when things had started to deteriorate? Or when everything had completely gone to shit?

For some reason the audio logs in System Shock 2 tell a very clear story to me. I loved seeing certain recurring characters (Diego, Korenchkin, Delacroix) react to the situation and show their true colors. I loved how these mini-dramas play out in your mind as you figure out what a characters' real motivation is, and the effect it has on the rest of the cast. SS2 had some iffy voice acting, but excellent writing.

 

[Tomaius]

I bought it on Steam and the sound won't work and it keeps crashing. Does anybody have any suggestions.

Turn off Hardware Acceleration in the options menu.

Snip.

Whilst I kind of agree, I think the shock games all give a very different experience from one another, and kind of reflect on the state of games in the period they were made in. SS2, boasts an incredible trifecta, great plot, great setting and brilliant gameplay, though the graphics are really dated (That said, I think that adds to the atmosphere of the game). Infinite, whilst having arguably the weakest gameplay of the shock series (Though still not that bad) had the best narrative and plot.

Snip.

Totally agree. The best way to create a horror experience is to hide the monster in question. A Necromorph running at you may make you jump, but something you can hear but not see is absolutely terrifying. I think the "Many" in SS2 personifies this well, it talks to the player just like the rest of the enemies up until its first introduction had done, but because you're used to hearing enemies just before seeing them it freaks you the flip out as you're expecting some kind of new threat to emerge. Which is much scarier than any necromorph will ever be.

Snip.

IMO (And I stress this), the only thing that has gotten worse with the Shock games is the level of depth the player has over their own character development. Plotwise I'd argue that the games have gotten consistently better, Infinite's story being amazing on every level to create not only its own world, but also its own detailed and intricate plot.

 

[Sacman]

If there is one drawback to the game, its that I'm finding it tricky knowing what skills to invest in. I've from more than a few people that its not like Deus Ex where any combination is viable, so I'm being really cautious with my investments.

They must mean the new Deus Ex, because in the original it was extremely easy to screw yourself over. Hmm, gotta have that sweet sweet swimspeed aug!

I dunno if you beat the original Deus Ex, but with enough patience and ingenuity, it's pretty viable to beat the game without putting points into anything, or even using a single augmentation, especially if you go out of your way to thoroughly explore the levels... Sure some of the skills and augs are pretty useless but none of them are necessary... and I find that the game often rewards higher level thinking, than it does a good character build... really what was so great about the original Deus Ex is that the entire skill and augmentation system is built around reinforcing your own playing style, rather than exclusively forcing you into a specific role...<.<

OT: yeah System Shock 2 is a really good game, quite atmospheric and the like, and it holds up infinitely better than System Shock 1, and even the first two Thief games, to a degree... though it is a bit disappointing to find out how much the first Bioshock anyway just followed the template, while cutting tons of stuff off...<.<

 

[CrashertheSmasher]

I bought it on Steam and the sound won't work and it keeps crashing. Does anybody have any suggestions.

Turn off Hardware Acceleration in the options menu.

Snip.

Whilst I kind of agree, I think the shock games all give a very different experience from one another, and kind of reflect on the state of games in the period they were made in. SS2, boasts an incredible trifecta, great plot, great setting and brilliant gameplay, though the graphics are really dated (That said, I think that adds to the atmosphere of the game). Infinite, whilst having arguably the weakest gameplay of the shock series (Though still not that bad) had the best narrative and plot.

Snip.

Totally agree. The best way to create a horror experience is to hide the monster in question. A Necromorph running at you may make you jump, but something you can hear but not see is absolutely terrifying. I think the "Many" in SS2 personifies this well, it talks to the player just like the rest of the enemies up until its first introduction had done, but because you're used to hearing enemies just before seeing them it freaks you the flip out as you're expecting some kind of new threat to emerge. Which is much scarier than any necromorph will ever be.

Snip.

IMO (And I stress this), the only thing that has gotten worse with the Shock games is the level of depth the player has over their own character development. Plotwise I'd argue that the games have gotten consistently better, Infinite's story being amazing on every level to create not only its own world, but also its own detailed and intricate plot.

Oh my God dude thank you it works.