In 2007, a sleeping giant awoke.  The game’s name was Bioshock who opened it’s eyes, stretched out it’s arms, picked us up and threw us into the beautiful, yet eerie underwater world of Rapture.What could have been yet another fps style adventure had been a masterclass in videogame design as it plucked away at your emotional and moral senses to deliver one of the stand out games of the decade.  The announcement of a follow up was met both with excitement and trepidation.  After all, a game that was original and refreshing to the core would not be able to hold up a second time and add the wow factor of its predecessor, could it?

Taking place 10 years after the first game, “BioShock 2″ returns players to the underwater city of Rapture, where they play as a new hero — a prototype Big Daddy code-named Delta. For those unfamiliar to the franchise, these armored guardians escort creepy girls named Little Sisters who harvest and essentially recycle genetic material in this ruined utopia. Both are essential parts of its monstrous ecosystem, where mutated residents have thrived under the cultlike supervision of Sophia Lamb, the city’s new leader.

There have been improvements on the original here and the tight scripted storyline offers a fluidity that the original Bioshock fell slightly short of.  Journals can be picked up along the way to present a more detailed back story of the main protagonists if you wish to delve deeper into the story, which I am sure you will.  The introduction of you as a Big Daddy opens up a wealth of depth also as you aim to find your little sister and along the way, fight other Big Daddies to either adopt their little sisters for harvesting or adopting to collect more Adam.  This presents a real moral dilemma and perhaps stronger than the original as your main feeling towards Little Sisters become apparent.  Do you harvest to grow stronger or do you adopt and keep her running in line with how your feelings should allow.

With any fps, the combat system needs to be tight and Bioshock 2 has improved on the original in perhaps the biggest overhaul of the game.  Armed initially with your drill, you soon realise that you have a dual wield system in place and is most welcome.  Players are now able to throw plasmids as well as attack with weapons at the same time.  The wealth of weaponry and plasmid power ups are vast and all have their place in the game too.  Each weapon and plasmid will have their own effects on enemies and you are challenged to explore all possibilities to find the best combination for your foes.  Even setting down your Little Sister to harvest Adam from a Splicer requires a bit of thought on where to set mines and other weaponry up to stop a hoarde from attacking her and therefore make your job that little bit simpler.

Graphically, things haven’t improved that much but when you have a game that is as well paced as this you tend not to want to nick pick too much.  It is very similar to the original and hasn’t advanced too much but the feel of Rapture is still there and you immerse yourself into the world as if it had never gone away.  The sound adds the most depth to the experience though and in surround sound can make you feel jumpy as you tackle new and old creatures.  One big development comes with the harvesting of Little Sisters and the reaction that triggers.  I won’t say what’s to come but the sound effects alone will have you running your character around like a crazed maniac.

One thing that did concern me was the addition of a multiplayer option for this game.  I always thought that the original Bioshock game benefitted from just being single player to really enhance the story and gameplay and was a little nervous that a multiplayer element may detract from what the game was trying to achieve.  Fortunately, the multiplayer works well and has not distracted the single player at all.  It has adapted the elements of the single-player campaign beautifully. Taking place before the events of “BioShock,” players take on the roles of testers for Fontaine Futuristics, and they’ll be set up in their own apartment. From there, they’ll be able to customize their character, level up and alter their weapons and powers so they can compete in seven modes of play.

The online action shows the potential of the gameplay as players mix and match their own powers and weapons and come up with new strategies. It’s exhilarating to play, broadening a rich universe, and that’s where BioShock 2 succeeds despite its flaws. It pulls back the curtain on Rapture even more and shows players a new chapter that blends convincingly into the first.

Overall, Bioshock 2 is a must buy for the owners of the original and also new comers to the series.  Bioshock 2 may delve into the original environment again which does take away the mystery that we felt being thrust into Rapture for the very first time in the original but the tweaks and improvements that have been developed coupled with a fresh look at a storyline that could have destroyed the sequel means that you should be grabbing your wallet and heading for the nearest games shop at the first possible availability.