Re: Half-Life 2 three years on.

In my opinion, System Shock is still the finest example of first person
gaming ever devised, creating atmosphere and immersion that hasn't been
matched as of yet, not even by the sequel which came close. Bioshock is
looking very impressive, but I doubt it will be a true match given its
obvious focus on shooter action.

Sure, if you want an endless shooting gallery with a ton of physics based
obstacles, then Half Life 2 is for you. But if you want something to truly
engage your mind, then it wouldn't be half the game System Shock is (pun
intended).

Half Life 1 was hailed as the second coming, with everyone praising features
like they weren't done 4 years before, in a much more convincing fashion.
Just goes to show how important visual appeal and mindless shooting seems to
be, though I found System Shock relatively good looking when it was
released. However, Doom totally obliterated it in terms of popularity and
that games was admittedly better looking so there we are.

Funny how people are only now starting to appreciate the kind of depth that
a game like Bioshock can offer, merely because the basic shooter gameplay is
in place well enough for the masses not to vomit at the experience of mildly
complex decision making. Maybe they will be ready for a true System Shock 3
when it comes along, so it won't fall totally flat on its face in financial
terms.

Oh, sorry for being way off topic, but I felt like rambling.

Back to praising your unsophisticated but competently made shooting gallery.


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Relevant Pages

  • Re: Half-Life 2 three years on.
    ... However, I found SS2 to be a fairly average game, especially in level ... System Shock 1 had a lot more believable levels. ... design to be far worse than that of the sequel; ... I've never gotten the SVGA mode to run reliably. ...
    (comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action)
  • Bioshock my thoughts. No plot spoilers.
    ... when I first played the game it took me a moment to notice that it had started because the graphics were so good that I thought I was still in a cut scene. ... via spoken diraies, radio messages and the odd meeting of an NPC, much like System Shock. ... Basic weapons are upgradable with the use of one use upgrades stations scattered through the game. ... Plasmids as basically secondary weapons that add to the depth of gamplay, you can do thing like free enemies, shock them, shock turrets so you can hack them. ...
    (comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.rpg)
  • Bioshock demo - Great game but no shocker
    ... Way too much handholding and hints popping up, ... thus not removing the immersion from the game. ... that encompassed the advancements made in System Shock 1, ...
    (comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action)
  • Re: Bioshock demo - Great game but no shocker
    ... Way too much handholding and hints popping up, ... thus not removing the immersion from the game. ... that encompassed the advancements made in System Shock 1, ... The glowing locks only happen at the beginning of the game. ...
    (comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action)
  • Re: system shock 2 any good?
    ... > the pc game industry is an extremely UNGRATEFUL one ... > don't think you are not to blame for system shock 2 not selling ... > and are the reason why classic titles like system shock 2 did ...
    (comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action)