So, System Shock 2....

[Tomaius]

This game is brilliant. The atmosphere, the lore (What little I know of it) and the level design is superb. I've only played up to the Medical deck, so granted I'm only an hour in, but what I've seen so far is absolutely amazing.

Also its led me to make a few decisions on game design:

1) An enemy is much scarier when you can hear it, but you can't see it. Dead Space gets it wrong by creating an entire orchestra when you see an enemy, creating whats at first a nice jump scare followed by a grating symphony with every encounter. All the enemies I've fought (Thus far) lack a big introduction, they are really underplayed and hidden away, and thats what makes them so scary. It's like Yahtzee said: the best kind of horror games are the type which just had you a cheese grater and let you grate your own balls off, and System Shock 2 delivers this experience.

2) Atmosphere is definitely a thing in video games. Too many garme jurnalists and internet commentators deny atmosphere being a thing in video games, claiming its use to be trite and cliche, but again System Shock 2 proves its existence and demonstrates how an effective atmosphere makes a good game years after its creation.

 

[The Madman]

Medical Deck? You've got a long ways to go my friend, and it's only going to keep getting better... then slightly worse, but for the most part better.

And for me at least part of what makes System Shock 2 so memorable is just the unrelenting tension it creates. You're never safe, never, often running low on supplies, on the edge of your seat listening for anything that could signal a sign of danger, and the villains just never stop. They pound you down and keep taunting and mocking you endlessly, seriously, System Shock 2 has not one, but two brilliant villains both of which do a great job in creating a hostile atmosphere for the player.

Such a good game, easily one of my all time favourites. It makes me really happy to see so many people people getting into the game thanks to its recent re-release. Enjoy!

 

[Tomaius]

Oh yeah, I'm playing it in the small yet glorious periods in between work (I should probably be doing my last university essay but nevermind ). Though come monday I intend to plow through it. I think it's also hilarious how despite being considerably older, it manages to be head and shoulders above Dead Space 1 & 2.

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.

 

[The Madman]

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!

And honestly the ones you 'need' in System Shock 2 are standard weapons, hacking, and maintenance. As long as you keep those three fairly high feel free to play around with the other skills to your hearts content, you should be fine.

 

[Tomaius]

Snip.

Okay, swimming and poison resistance were fairly useless. But outside of that any build was viable on the lower difficulties. In fact I think its more than doable to finish the game without upgrading anything.

 

[2fish]

The worst part is when the enemy is begging you to run or to kill them. Anything can kill you and you must always be keeping an eye on everything from your guns and ammo to health and stims. This is something that many horror games seem to forget, let alone horror FPS games.

Spoiler

monkeys, fucking monkeys

I too picked it up recently and I am stuck for the time being mostly because the game is so nerve wracking that I need to take a break from it.

Spoiler: where I am stuck

finding those keys to the holo rooms is hell with low ap ammo. So many cyborg midwives, cyborg assassins, oh my

 

[Jimmy T. Malice]

I'm loving it, although I seem to have hit a snag on the penultimate level. I'm now surrounded by loads of psi reavers and rumblers with no way out. I've been stuck on that bit for weeks because I can't find the brains to deactivate them.

 

[The Madman]

I'm loving it, although I seem to have hit a snag on the penultimate level. I'm now surrounded by loads of psi reavers and rumblers with no way out. I've been stuck on that bit for weeks because I can't find the brains to deactivate them.

If you're in the part I think you are, you're not supposed to fight them. There should be a way to escape around there somewhere although the exact location escapes my mind at the moment.

Okay, swimming and poison resistance were fairly useless. But outside of that any build was viable on the lower difficulties. In fact I think its more than doable to finish the game without upgrading anything.

If you know what you're doing and are willing to be patient and put some time into it, System Shock 2 can be beaten with just the wrench. Doesn't make it fun however and it's definitely not something the average player could hope to accomplish, just like in Deus Ex how choosing the wrong augs could make the game considerably easier/harder. System Shock 2 is no different.

Standard Weapons, Hacking, Maintenance. Those are the three most useful ones and you can easily beat the game with just those.

 

[Tomaius]

If you know what you're doing and are willing to be patient and put some time into it, System Shock 2 can be beaten with just the wrench. Doesn't make it fun however and it's definitely not something the average player could hope to accomplish, just like in Deus Ex how choosing the wrong augs could make the game considerably easier/harder. System Shock 2 is no different.

Standard Weapons, Hacking, Maintenance. Those are the three most useful ones and you can easily beat the game with just those.

Cheers man, I'll bear that in mind.

 

[Jimmy T. Malice]

Not having a quest arrow isn't really a problem, since you're clearly told where to go, and the maps are labelled with the various locations (not to mention the big arrows on the walls that help with navigation).

 

[DrunkOnEstus]

It's a masterpiece in game design and theory. Plain and simple. I've been doing a Shock 1-Infinite run (still working out whether to LP that...), and it strikes the perfect balance between the hardcore Ultima Underworld inspired RPG of the first and the action/tension in Bioshock.

Doing the run caused me to re-evaluate Infinite. Compared to Bioshock, it is heavily streamlined. Compared to System Shock 2, it was fucking lobotomized with the claw end of a hammer. I believe that if the story wasn't compelling and Elizabeth was poorly characterized, the 100s and 98s would be given under the influence of hallucinogenics.

Sorry, went off-track there a bit. Yeah, just make sure you have points for the weapon(s) you want, and that you can do some basic PSI like alarm management. Add a little hacking and you can play around with everything else. That's the beauty of it, you can play 2 completely different games in a row that way. Even getting to Bioshock is kind of jarring when it's supposed to be that "no two gamers will play the same way!". Picking up a shotgun and using it perfectly without needing any skill is both liberating and frustrating.

Damn, went off-track again. #goodolddays #getoffmylawn

 

[NoMercy Rider]

I keep meaning to pick up System Shock 2 and giving it a whirl, too bad I have such an epic backlog I just don't know when I will get to it. How long is an average playthrough for those that have played the game before?

 

[Colt47]

My only gripe with that game is when you build your character wrong and end up getting stuck near the end when there are more fleshy enemies than robot ones. Otherwise I loved the game, even when I played it coop with my brother over LAN the game was scary. Also, that game did Coop right: no increased supply amounts. People have to legitimately decide who is going to be the wrench wielding distraction while the other is packing the heat.

 

[Werewolfkid]

I love System Shock 2, BioShock, BioShock 2, and BioShock Infinite equally. However, I noticed something interesting about these games. As the narratives get more ambitious and thought provoking the more "streamlined" the gameplay becomes. System Shock 2 had a all around excellent narrative with complex gameplay that was satisfying, but suffered from some balance issues and was a bit too difficult at times. BioShock has the best overall narrative I have ever seen in a game, but it's gameplay suffers from overpowered weapons and powers and being a little too easy. BioShock 2 has the best overall gameplay in the series and just a little tweaking with the upgrade system would have done near perfect, but suffers from retreading the same environment as the first BioShock. BioShock Infinite has a narritive that is equal, if not better then the original BioShock, but suffers from massively "streamlined" gameplay that may even ruin the game for some people. I hope that the next BioShock game returns to it's System Shock 2 roots and delivers us a world as realized as Rapture, as story as personal as Booker and Elizabeth's, and gameplay that takes the best of BioShock 2 and System Shock 2. Till then I am content with my games, but I will always ask for better.

 

[Norrdicus]

Also, that game did Coop right: no increased supply amounts. People have to legitimately decide who is going to be the wrench wielding distraction while the other is packing the heat.

Very true, but the cybermodules stayed the same per person, so absolute specialization is far more viable (and fooling around with your build is less risky too with someone backing you up). I wreck shit with my high condition firearms while my friend's a master hacker and robot-killer (energy weapons). So we're individually a bit weaker than a solo character, but ultimately much more efficient together than one can be

 

[Tomaius]

There hasn't been any good FPS's with a good amount of depth the last few years (I might be wrong about that). There was EYE Divine Cybermancy, but that was just impenetrable. The closest thats come to true multiple play styles was Human Revolution, and that was undone by the fact you levelled up so much.

 

[The Madman]

There hasn't been any good FPS's with a good amount of depth the last few years (I might be wrong about that). There was EYE Divine Cybermancy, but that was just impenetrable. The closest thats come to true multiple play styles was Human Revolution, and that was undone by the fact you levelled up so much.

The STALKER games aren't exactly considered new anymore, but despite not actually being rpg they're some of the most in depth and satisfying fps out there, not to mention some of the most atmospheric. Definitely worth looking into if you haven't already.

 

[CrashertheSmasher]

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