I just beat Bioshock! It was amazing. I loved everything, between the gameplay, the level design, the sound, the graphics (old, I know, but clever), and most of all, the story. It's so well planned, with every detail laid out, whether it's the clever names of ADAM and EVE, or the crossing in the face of Mr. Bubbles. The shocking and clever storyline has a lot of twists, and left my with my mouth open the whole time -- possibly because I was reciting "Oh, f**k" cyclically. The level design is great -- dark, and really, really, scary. Also, though, it gave a feeling of openness. That if I turned left here, that would be another path, but instead I turned right, when in fact the left path was blocked off anyway. The look of colorful water just outside was tantalizing. I loved all the themes of libertarianism -- it got me thinking about my beliefs. It mostly supported my views, as I've never been fond of libertarianism, being a communist myself, so a dystopian society based around an idea I dislike is pretty validating. It's perfectly capable of being enjoyed as a simple shooter, though I'm not sure why you'd want to ignore such rich storyline. I loved the style of Bioshock, too. The retro 60s look was really great, and added a lot to the atmosphere. Bioshock is now my favorite game. Woah.
Here are some twists I thought were crazy. When Atlas turned out to be Fontaine, I was shocked. I was just, like, "WHAT?" And when there were alternative endings -- wow, man, this game is detailed.
I liked the sense of choice in Bioshock. While everything you did was according to story and linear, you did have some choice -- whether to save or harvest the Little Sisters. Whenever I play a game, no matter how story based, I think about my character. I think about what the game has told me, and what I would do if I were in that situation (or sometimes, I do something different to spice it up). Then whenever I make a decision, I think of my character. In Bioshock, I was confused and desperate. Though I had strong moral beliefs, I chose that more important was just to get out of here and see my family. When Atlas told me that harvesting the Little Sisters would help me do my job faster, I was game. I did save a few Little Sisters, though, when I didn't feel I needed them, because I felt it was the right thing to do. When I discovered the reward package that Tenenbaum, I harvested only about one in five. When I discovered about Fontaine, I never harvested one. Yet, I had done my sins, and clearly the power got to me. In the end, I went out to rule the world, and basically blew it up. When I play with Giant Squid and PIneaPplez13, I'll encourage them to be nicer. It was so cute when the little sisters stabbed Fontaine for me!