Enraptured

Game: BioShock
System: Xbox 360
Release date: August 21, 2007
Developed by: Irrational Games
Published by: 2K Games

It's difficult to pinpoint exactly where to begin a review of BioShock; there is so much going on in the game and yet so many things, places and people which should be experienced first-hand and not merely recapitulated in a critique. The game is filled with revelations, small and large, along with tiny, throwaway moments and unexpected bombshells. BioShock is one of those rare video games which is as much a piece of software as an experience, one which is unique to each individual who plays it.

Set in 1960, BioShock follows Jack, the lone survivor of a plane crash in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. Players immediately gain control of Jack as he surfaces amid burning wreckage and swims aimlessly in the darkness. Then it appears: a monolith in the moonlight. Jack swims toward the structure, jutting inexplicably from the ocean, and finds inside a derelict submarine. Whether by curiosity or by simple survival instinct, Jack boards the sub, which follows a preset course to Rapture, a fully-realized city built beneath the waves. From that moment on Jack enters into a fight for his life with what's left of the city of Rapture.


BioShock is a first-person shooter (FPS), but it is unlike any FPS yet released. Designed with elements of survival horror games, even role-playing games (RPGs), BioShock is a game which transcends its genre. Not only can Jack upgrade his weapons at specially designed upgrade stations and create custom ammunition from household items scattered across Rapture, he can alter his very genetic code and infuse superhuman powers into his body.

When Jack arrives in Rapture, the city has seen better days. Information about the fate of Rapture is gathered in several ways. Radio transmissions, from friends and enemies, inform Jack where he is and where he should be going; audio journals, hidden throughout the city, give Jack clues to mission objectives and to the major personalities who once lived and thrived in the underwater metropolis. Along the way, he encounters some very haunting and fearsome enemies, including "Big Daddies," walking, armored diving suits.

BioShock should be played to be believed. No review, however glowing, can do it the justice it deserves. Rapture is a marvel of engineering, even without the brilliant backstory, gruesome enemies and incredible customization. A sequel, BioShock 2, is scheduled for release on February 9.

Score: 98/100