Attempting a full "Shock" series run, is it worth getting SS1 to work?

[DrunkOnEstus]

After completing Infinite, I've decided that I'd like to play System Shock 1-Bioshock: Infinite in succession. Now, I know that System Shock 2 is the first one that involves Ken Levine (although Bioshock 2 didn't) and the one that is the real darling of old-school PC gamers.

My question is, is it worth going through the trouble to get System Shock 1 running? I'm having trouble getting it to run in Dosbox, but I seem to have found a wild set of instructions in order to bring it to life in Windows 7. I'm willing to go through with this...but how playable is it these days? I've played System Shock 2, but does the first one do anything to help frame the second one and make it more enjoyable? Would my little journey here feel a little empty without having played it?

I figure that there has to be some people who have played the first and can help sell it as being worth the trouble. If it plays like total ass these days and doesn't really add anything of substance to the chronology of my plan, then I'd feel better about starting with SS2.

Also, feel free to turn this into a System Shock nostalgia thread, or about the hypothetical hilarity of the next Bioshock taking place in space.

 

[DrunkOnEstus]

Alright, I got this going...and there's some things I wanted to share with anyone who happened to be interested in experiencing where it all started.

The definitive way to play System Shock 1 in 2013 definitely seems to be SystemShockPortable [http://www.systemshock.org/index.php?topic=211.0] - it adds better resolution options, mouselook, and higher probability of not self destructing on Windows XP-8. Also, it obviously doesn't hold up as well as System Shock 2, but I find it to be very playable and I'm totally excited about finishing it. For what it's worth, I recommend it even if only to experience it after Infinite and feel just how the series has evolved.

Slightly related and very interesting addition, Doug Church [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doug_Church] got a job at Valve in 2011 for "an undisclosed position and project". Take a look at that page and tell me that the hypothetical potential for his involvement in Half Life 3 isn't orgasmic. Actually, if Valve has him making TF2 hats then their ego has reached mammoth proportions : )

 

[Luca72]

Alright, I got this going...and there's some things I wanted to share with anyone who happened to be interested in experiencing where it all started.

The definitive way to play System Shock 1 in 2013 definitely seems to be SystemShockPortable [http://www.systemshock.org/index.php?topic=211.0] - it adds better resolution options, mouselook, and higher probability of not self destructing on Windows XP-8. Also, it obviously doesn't hold up as well as System Shock 2, but I find it to be very playable and I'm totally excited about finishing it. For what it's worth, I recommend it even if only to experience it after Infinite and feel just how the series has evolved.

Slightly related and very interesting addition, Doug Church [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doug_Church] got a job at Valve in 2011 for "an undisclosed position and project". Take a look at that page and tell me that the hypothetical potential for his involvement in Half Life 3 isn't orgasmic. Actually, if Valve has him making TF2 hats then their ego has reached mammoth proportions : )

I was going to suggest SS Portable but you got there first Also, not sure if SSP comes with it, but there's a mouselook mod that'll make it a lot easier to get into the game - in 1994 the shooter model was a bit less standardized, and their solution to controlling a character in 3D is... interesting. I could see it being amazing for the time (since you even get to crouch, go prone, look around corners, etc) but it's hard to adapt to today.

How far into it are you? I tried it for the first time a few months ago and found it's still a very cool experience

 

[KelDG]

Never played System Shock 1, but my mate said it was good but awkward to play (this is back in the day BTW). I bought System Shock 2 when it came out and it was amazing, the scariest game I ever played at the time. That one is definitely worth a play through.

 

[XMark]

I love System Shock, but the control scheme will be a bit of a hurdle to get over (I think it was even considered awkward at the time it was released).

It's kind of interesting playing the old Shock games and seeing where different parts of the Dead Space, Bioshock, and Deus Ex games originated from.

 

[Albino Boo]

SS1 does not really add to SS2. The have a few plot elements in common, but playing the first one doesn't give you any extra knowledge.

 

[teh_Canape]

this should help
I played it, had a bit of fun in it until I got completely lost in the first stage and fuck those cyberspace sections
but shodan is creepy as hell I tells you
if you can get past how outdated it is, there's quite the experience to be had, so I'd say yes

 

[Mike Richards]

Alright, I got this going...and there's some things I wanted to share with anyone who happened to be interested in experiencing where it all started.

The definitive way to play System Shock 1 in 2013 definitely seems to be SystemShockPortable [http://www.systemshock.org/index.php?topic=211.0] - it adds better resolution options, mouselook, and higher probability of not self destructing on Windows XP-8. Also, it obviously doesn't hold up as well as System Shock 2, but I find it to be very playable and I'm totally excited about finishing it. For what it's worth, I recommend it even if only to experience it after Infinite and feel just how the series has evolved.

Thanks for posting this, just got it running and so far it's working great. I didn't think I was ever gonna have a chance to try it out unless gog snagged the rights.

 

[DrunkOnEstus]

How far into it are you? I tried it for the first time a few months ago and found it's still a very cool experience

I'm about an hour into it. The main hurdle I'm dealing with right now is that the log text font is very difficult to read, but I'm sure there's some kind of fix for that. Mouselook is essential, at least to me. I played around with the original keyboard situation, and while some of the things you can do were probably innovative at the time, it's certainly unwieldy. What's going to push me through it are the similarities to Ultima Underworld (though I was very young when I played that).

I can confirm that there's very little lore continuity to be concerned with, outside of SHODAN being the antagonist. Word of God says that System Shock 2 was supposed to be its own standalone experience inspired by System Shock in setting, but when EA acquired the rights to the System Shock name they asked Irrational that it become an actual sequel.

Either way, it's a great retro experience that holds up quite well, and feels quite revolutionary if you imagine the context of the era. I'm excited about the System Shock 1 - Bioshock: Infinite journey now that I've gotten my foot in the door.

 

[DrunkOnEstus]

Thanks for posting this, just got it running and so far it's working great. I didn't think I was ever gonna have a chance to try it out unless gog snagged the rights.

No problem, I was hoping I could help some people give it a shot if they felt up to it. I was struggling with the idea of tracking down expensive CD copies on Ebay, until I found that it was apparently deemed unworthy of the IP iron grip that SS2 was put under. All the better, if anyone feels like giving it a try, all it costs is time.

 

[ThatCatHead]

Oh its very much well worth playing. The story is still there, obviously the gfx arent up to much in this new age but that doesnt bother me. Yes, the control system is clunky but at the time the whole "leaning around corners" thing was an innovation. Give it a chance and its a rewarding game in its own right. Google "Strange Bedfellows" for a splendid forum with lots of info on getting it running, upgrading textures etc, usqed to be a member there many moons ago. I still have the big box version

 

[Luca72]

SS1 does not really add to SS2. The have a few plot elements in common, but playing the first one doesn't give you any extra knowledge.

I disagree. You're right that there isn't much shared story continuity, but there's a lot of similarity in terms of atmosphere. I played SS2 first, and I thought it was really cool to see what SHODAN does when she's in control of an entire space station. In SS2, she's powerless for the most part. In SS1, she's converted an entire station into a mobile laboratory (and if you fail, you're part of the experiment!)

 

[TaintedSaint]

SS1 did not age well the controls and ui are stupid. Start with ss2

 

[Luca72]

snip

Are you thinking about recording any of the playthroughs or posting it on a blog? A full shock run (especially if it's your first time running through SS1 and 2) would make an interesting read!

 

[DrunkOnEstus]

snip

Are you thinking about recording any of the playthroughs or posting it on a blog? A full shock run (especially if it's your first time running through SS1 and 2) would make an interesting read!

I've never done a let's play or anything like that, but that's a very interesting idea. If I went with the blog route I'd have to figure out a way to do it without essentially reviewing each title one by one, but that's something I'd love to put the work into if people would want to read that. Since it wouldn't be a money-making venture, I would even do it through a thread on this site if Susan or our corporate overlords would be cool with that.

I'll ponder this, but it's probably something I want to do. Obstacle one would be having fraps/gamebooster recording over DOSbox, but I'll definitely get back to you once I do the research and get the answers I need.

 

[XMark]

SS1 does not really add to SS2. The have a few plot elements in common, but playing the first one doesn't give you any extra knowledge.

Well, there's a certain big reveal in the middle of SS2 which will have a lot more impact on you if you've played the first one.

Seriously, that's like the biggest "oh shit!" moment in games for me.

 

[octafish]

How will you Remember Citadel if you have never played System Shock? I played it at the time and the controls were fine, now however I need mouse look.

 

[Luca72]

snip

Are you thinking about recording any of the playthroughs or posting it on a blog? A full shock run (especially if it's your first time running through SS1 and 2) would make an interesting read!

I've never done a let's play or anything like that, but that's a very interesting idea. If I went with the blog route I'd have to figure out a way to do it without essentially reviewing each title one by one, but that's something I'd love to put the work into if people would want to read that. Since it wouldn't be a money-making venture, I would even do it through a thread on this site if Susan or our corporate overlords would be cool with that.

I'll ponder this, but it's probably something I want to do. Obstacle one would be having fraps/gamebooster recording over DOSbox, but I'll definitely get back to you once I do the research and get the answers I need.

There's a decent amount of confusion and downtime between the really interesting stories in SS1 and SS2 (at least if you play anything like me ) so what you could probably make a cool "highlight reel" style blog.

For example, this blog from back in the day did a hilarious run focusing on absolutely breaking the original Deus Ex:
http://www.it-he.org/

I know DOSbox is tricky to get recorders working, but I think it would be a pretty cool project!