Available for PC, PlayStation3, and Xbox 360, Skyrim’s plot tasks the player with creating a character and defeating Alduin, a Dragon god who is prophesied to destroy the world. Set two hundred years after Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, the game takes place in the province of Skyrim, located on the planet Nirn. The trademark open world gameplay of the Elder Scrolls series is back in Skyrim, with the player given the option to explore the world at their own pace — and even ignoring the main quests and goals entirely if they choose to do so. The quests built into the game also allow for many hours of gameplay, with some players completing the game but still enjoying it for many hours as they loop back and discover new quests and items.

The deep gameplay and attention to detail sets Skyrim apart, especially with the larger trend among game developers to make things simple and straightforward (and accessible via Facebook) such as casino online games or clones or knock-offs of existing games. Much of the appeal of the Elder Scrolls franchise is that it offers a very different experience for gamers, as far as slower-paced more thoughtful action that lets the gamer control the experience and adventures that unfold instead of being forced to follow a rigid plot or spend most of their time blazing away and blasting opponents to bits.

It’s hard to find much to complain about in Skyrim, with the only real complaints coming from PC gamers struggling with game controls that were more designed with game controllers in mind, as the keyboard-mouse combination can be difficult to use for some fairly common in-game tasks and commands. Other technical issues that cropped up after release — including slow frame rate speeds, crashes, and texture display issues — have largely been addressed in patches released in November 2011 and December 2011.

After about a hundred hours and some four play-throughs with Dragon Age II it’s fairly easy to see what all of the commotion is about. Not the stinging hype that’s been around since the game was first announced, but the incredibly mixed user reviewers that have plagued the last month. For what it’s worth, Dragon Age II is a decent RPG and a worthy time sink if you’re the type that absolutely loves anything that Bioware has managed to crank out over the course of its existence. However, even with the improvements in virtually every technical aspect the game ultimately feels like its missing something.

Bioware made no effort to cover up the fact that the vast majority of the quests are fairly mundane fetch quests that usually plague MMORPGs. You’ll find random items lying about and you’ll direct your Hawke to drop it off somewhere for a bit of XP and some coin. When you’re not doing that, you’re killing someone then telling someone that you’ve killed someone. It’s in this that the leading narrative just isn’t very strong. You’ll always have something to do, there’s no doubt about that, it’s just that sometimes you’ll end up questioning why you’re doing it in the first place. The actual main plot quests are a bit more complex and complimented by the spectacular voice acting, but they don’t make up the majority of the game.

The biggest complaint to be found in Origins, the games predecessor, is that the combat was painstakingly slow. Characters would hunker over and lumber towards their destination in a weird combat stance before finally taking action in slow, methodic animations. Sure, swinging a huge sword almost as big as your body isn’t an easy task but this is a video game. If you’re going to be shooting fire balls out of your fingertips swinging a big sword with some style isn’t a bad thing. Dragon Age 2 accomplishes this and more: the swagger a mage wields their staff with is entertaining and the long forgotten melee rogue traverses the combat field with stunning precision (granted the AI might have you leaping into a wall since stairs are so 2010).

Much of the game has been streamlined by comparison to the slower-paced Origins. You’re not going to be scouring every shopkeeper’s inventory or every corner in a dungeon to get an ingredient for an explosive. Instead, you find the actual piece of the formula lying around the world along with different formulas and recipes. Items can only be created at a specific shop or in your home, but with no longer being occupied on finding specific shards or springs, using grenades and poison is actually much more affordable than it was before. Likewise, you no longer need to actually know the poison skill to be able to use the poison, so you can give all of your heavy damage classes a damaging poison, your tank a poison that lowers enemy damage and a poison that slows down enemy attack speed on your mage.

Further on the technical aspects, Dragon Age II is a better looking game than Origins, which to be completely honest isn’t saying all that much. The majority of the game is filled with varying degrees of brown, gray and green. Hawke’s class-specific Champion sets are fantastic to look at and the Grey Warden armor is to die for, incorporating the long lost blue to the drab palette. If you’ve got the hardware to support it, the texture patch is definitely worthwhile and helps bring the game to life the way it should be.

Odds are if you’re a fan of the series or Bioware you’ve likely already purchased the game. If you’re on the fence about Dragon Age II it’s a 30-40 hour affair with excellent characters, improved combat and a streamlined experience (read: dumbed down in many regards). Here’s to seeing how the downloadable content fills out the rest of the experience. Dragon Age II gets a 7. Not bad score, but not a great one either — still worth a playthrough, but not about to go down in gaming history as a landmark title.

Everybody’s favorite woven wonder, Sackboy, returns and its up to him, with the help of “The Alliance”, to put an end to the Negativatron; a hulking purple vacuum-like beast that’s destroying the world. The story mode is more in-depth this time around and includes some hilarious characters such as Avalon Centrifuge, a would-be superhero with a flair for the dramatic and a penchant for hands-free microphones. The structure is mostly unchanged from the first game. Media Molecule levels serve as great examples of what’s possible with the tools at hand. Players collect prize bubbles and other objects which can later be used in the creation of their own levels.

LittleBigPlanet 2 has some new tricks up its sleeve. With an improved toolset, the ladies and gents of Media Molecule have created levels which range from bounce pad-laden platformers, cart racers, Galaga-style shoot-em-ups, and nearly everything in-between. The addition of new toys such as Sackboy’s grappling hook make for some interesting new gameplay concepts as well.

Along with all the new in-game objects and abilities, the game has an improved online experience. I usually play these games on my own and completed the first LittleBigPlanet flying solo. However, after being prompted by random players to join my game I gave in and accepted the request. It was then I realized, all this time, I was playing LittleBigPlanet the wrong way. Playing cooperatively with other players was a revelation. There’s a genuine sense of camaraderie and satisfaction as my fellow Sackfolk and I bested some of the game’s more-challenging levels. For LBP veterans this isn’t exactly news but I found the fun-factor grew exponentially with every person added. Pure and simple, LittleBigPlanet 2 is a great game when played cooperatively and the pre-level prompts to join random players put co-op front and center. Sadly, during the game’s initial launch, a nasty bug often prevented online play possible as an infinite loading glitch brought the fun to a standstill.

While the story levels of LittleBigPlanet 2 are spectacular on their own, players who only play them are missing half the point. The other half of LBP2 is online, in an ever-growing community of user-generated content where creativity, variety, and ingenuity are seemingly endless. Admittedly, any pool of user-generated content is going to have its share of duds, spam levels, and things that are just plain broken. What sets LittleBigPlanet 2 apart from the others is its use of community resources both in-game as well as out.

A new website, LBP.me offers a browser-based repository for players looking to find the latest and greatest community levels. It’s one of the best portals to support user-generated content and makes things like level discovery, reviewing, and search far easier. Players wishing Media Molecule had gone further when designing the sequel should note that LBP.me represents a seachange in the way community content will be handled from here on out and is a stunning achievement in its own right.

Create mode is still a daunting task to anybody without a few weeks to burn. Learning the complexities of the toolset is difficult despite Media Molecule’s best efforts to simplify matters. To their credit, they have actually done quite a bit to make things more stream-lined and given level makers plenty of new options such as the Creatinator and other AI additions which broaden the creators’ canvas. Still, the steep learning curve will put off many players leaving the creation mode feeling somewhat exclusionary. Thankfully, the people who can make sense of it all are doing some incredible work and the best is yet to come. Unlike many games, LittleBigPlanet 2 is a title that only gets better with age as users dig through the tools and find new uses for them.

While I still found myself occasionally falling victim to the game’s unforgiving physics and awkward sense of depth, it happened much less than ever before. Despite a random bout of clunkiness, LittleBigPlanet 2 is a great experience. Everything in the game whether its Stephen Fry’s narration or the names of levels (“Currant Affairs”? Come on, that’s great.) is designed to reenforce the cute, cuddly, quirky, and witty aesthetic that Media Molecule seems happy to foster indefinitely. Even the loading screens which pop up with phrases like “Tying up loose ends” aren’t a big deal on their own but work towards that goal. It’s the sum of countless details like this which make LittleBigPlanet 2 one of the most lovingly and expertly crafted games of recent memory.

Set in the not-too-distant but typically dismal future, Vanquish pits the game’s chain-smoking, cybernetic suit-wearing protagonist, Sam Gideon, against an army of robotic soldiers on an Earth-orbiting space station. Gideon is sent to the colony after Russian terrorists have seized control and used the station’s power to destroy San Francisco. That’s right. Those robots are evil and they’re dirty commies! For most of my time with Vanquish I didn’t have a clue what was going on story-wise but I kept my mouth shut, followed orders, and left a trail of sizzling robots in my wake. The story-telling needs work, to say the least. But Vanquish isn’t here to be the next 2001. Its goal is to put you in the high-tech boots of a kick-ass robot slayer, delight your retinas with its insane sense of speed, and blow you away like an old Maxell ad.

Mechanically, Vanquish takes influence from games like Gears of War but, stylistically, it is a beast all its own. Its chaotic and kinetic nature combined with Eastern design sensibilities give the game its own identity. Sam’s Augmented Reaction Suit comes equipped with all manner of boosters, rockets, and jet propulsion doodads that allow him to knee-slide around enemies, slow down time, and glide toward cover. It’s a mechanic that simply never gets old and is a joy to use. Such a heightened sense of speed can be difficult to achieve outside of a racing game but Vanquish pulls it off spectacularly. Despite any of its short-comings, Sam’s frenetic agility is the game’s crowning achievement.

Along the way, players will find an arsenal of weapons, some of which are more fun to use than others. Upgrading their effectiveness and capacity is a must for any player wishing to bump up their scores, especially on higher difficulties. While some enemies are more susceptible to certain weapons, casual players will be able to get through with the trusty default assault rifle.

For the most part, the Red Army robots are a cinch to dispatch but in higher numbers they can quickly flank a position and take you down. The game manages to introduce a few unique enemies along the way but generally there isn’t much variety. Boss battles are epic set-piece moments which manage to turn up the already-intense action even higher. Unfortunately, several bosses make repeat appearances giving a frustrated feeling of déjà vu while their multiple forms and phases are a carryover of Japanese game design I’d hoped had been left behind long ago. Still, from a moment-to-moment perspective, the action is incredibly well done, making Vanquish one of the most satisfying shooters to come around in a long time.

The game is a bit on the shorter side. Most players will be able to blast through to the credit sequence in about six hours. However, a twenty-hour campaign isn’t necessarily the goal as levels are meant to be replayed. A score is tallied as you go, encouraging players to revisit stages again and again, reaching for a higher number. This arcade-style approach works for the most point-earning obsessives out there but the game fails to give players enough incentive for retreading old ground.

Vanquish suffers from a plot that not only makes characters’ motives unclear but the story gets muddled and bogged down with unnecessary melodrama. What the game lacks in charm it more than makes up for with incredibly tight gameplay. Vanquish is fast. Mind-numbingly fast. Sam moves at speeds so fast the visuals swirl in your brain and push your eyes back into their sockets. It’s kinetic motion at its very best and that’s really kind of the point. The shooting is satisfying and the action is downright jaw-dropping. It’s not meant to reinvent storytelling in games as we know it. Vanquish wants you to hold on for dear life and enjoy the ride. It’s just a shame the gameplay didn’t exist in a story that, at the very least, didn’t cause you to roll your eyes every few minutes.

As you journey through the neighborhood, you’ll encounter fellow trick-or-treaters to join your cause as you rid the town of enemies and liberate homes of their sugary morsels. Knocking on a door will bring either a costumed adult with a witty line and a bowl full of candy (the game’s all-too appropriate currency) or a battle-ready monster.

Battles are a mix of turn-based combat with an active twist. Similar to the combat of the Paper Mario series, Costume Quest’s battles are handled by selecting between normal and special attacks, the latter needing to be charged up before use, and applying it to your enemy. Time-sensitive prompts increase the damage you can inflict as well as increase your defense.

Costumes play a large role in combat as the outfit you’re wearing changes your abilities. What may appear as nothing more than a cardboard robot costume becomes a gigantic mech that towers over the city, delivering missile blasts to any Grubbin foolish enough to stand in your way. Other costumes include a knight, perfect for shielding you from attacks, the Statue of Liberty, a healing class, and many more which you discover over the course of the adventure. In addition, Battle Stamps increase the options available to players creating a little more variety and depth.

Along your travels, you’ll come across Sadie, an enterprising grade-schooler. (Think Lucy’s psychiatry stand in Peanuts.) In exchange for candy, she’ll give you Battle Stamps which alter abilities such as inflicting poison and put a few new tricks up your sleeve during combat like hitting an enemy after a successful dodge.

The combat is a lot of fun although it can get very easy. As an RPG-novice I was surprised by what little challenge the combat presented. It would have been nice to see a higher difficulty curve but, as it stands, Costume Quest doesn’t offer much. If you’re looking for a game with punishing difficulty, go elsewhere, that’s clearly not the intention here. Still, what’s there is good and encourages experimentation. It’s not the most complex system ever devised but its fun while it lasts and at six hours the game ends before fighting feels repetitive.

Side quests and exploring make up the time between battles as you trick-or-treat your way to the top. Bobbing for apples, card collecting, and playing hide & seek with the neighborhood kids are a fun addition to the overall experience however I was disappointed to see a lack of variety in these missions. In each of the three main areas to explore, you’ll find yourself doing the same thing in each level: bob for apples, find rare cards, find hiding children, repeat. The side quests seem to lack the same imagination that powers the game’s style and story.

As the game nears its conclusion, certain problems arise. For starters, the game feels short and not because of some arbitrary limit on dollars spent versus hours played. What makes the game feel short is the rapid pace at which things wrap up. With only the three main areas to explore, you and your costumed cohorts reach the end just when things are starting to pick up. It would have been nice to see at least one more level. Still, in a way it’s a testament to the game that I was left wanting more. That feeling isn’t something you reserve for a game you dislike.

Before the final credits, one of the characters declares, “We should do this every year!” and I have to agree. I can honestly see myself making Costume Quest an annual tradition this time of year. It’s not the longest nor the most-challenging game but what’s there is a fun, charming, and worthwhile adventure. The battle system is engaging and the game carries an imaginative spark that, simply put, makes me want to keep coming back.

As I said, the story is quite epic, spanning various locations with incredible vistas, characters, and monsters. Gabriel is not alone in his quest as Zobek, fellow member of the Brotherhood, accompanies him for much of his journey though he only takes part in the action for a very short time. Zobek is voiced by none other than everybody’s favorite follically-challenged Trekkie, Patrick Stewart, who does his best with the source material. Problems arise with the storytelling as every chapter begins with a lengthy narration by Stewart which borders on the melodramatic. As the game can last up to twenty hours, players will find themselves constantly pulled out of the experience as the next chapter loads and another narration begins. It’s not all-bad but it made the experience feel somewhat disjointed. Despite the heavy-handed approach to some of the storytelling, the tale can be riveting. It’s what kept me coming back to the game. The lengthy story is coupled with gameplay that is mostly satisfying making the journey toward the stunning conclusion all the more enjoyable.

Lords of Shadow is an action game in the same vein as God of War, taking much of its inspiration from the likes of Sony’s Spartan series, platforming reminiscent of Uncharted, and the occasional boss battle ripped straight out of Shadow of the Colossus. While elements of the gameplay might feel somewhat derivative, Lords of Shadow still feels incredibly rewarding, offering complexity, tactility, and weight to its combat. As players progress through each level, they gain experience points which can be traded for additional combos and other upgrades. Added depth comes by way of Light & Shadow magic. Gabriel can harness magical abilities, allowing players to regain health with Light magic and increase damage with Shadow magic active. It’s an extra layer that increases the complexity just enough to reward players looking for more depth in the combat. Meanwhile, players hoping to hammer on the square and triangle buttons will be challenged but can probably manage on lower difficulties just fine.

The game deviates from the “Metroidvania” design of recent Castlevania titles in favor of a more linear, stream-lined experience. It isn’t a bad thing, it’s simply a different direction which could turn off some hardcore fans. I didn’t find myself missing any of the back-tracking. The game isn’t trying to tell the same story or give the same experience as a game like Symphony of the Night. The closest thing to back-tracking is the game’s repayable design. As each level is completed it’s made available to go back, find all of the upgrades, complete on higher difficulties, and attempt various challenges such as beating a boss without using Light magic. Lords of Shadow wears its influences on its sleeve and while the gameplay is enjoyable, for the most part, it does stumble when the fighting subsides.

Occasional puzzles break up the action offering brief moments of lever-pulling, dial-turning, and color matching. The puzzle aren’t going to offer much in the way of head-scratching but at the very least they help to mix up the pace, avoiding the monotony of having the action constantly turned up to 11. However, Castlevania’s weakest points are the moments of exploration and platforming. Gabriel’s movement lacks the fine-tuned feeling we’ve come to expect from games like Uncharted, making certain sections of the game (yeah Music Box level, I’m calling you out) feel extremely frustrating. The problem comes from a lack of weight to Gabriel’s character. His model never feels as weighted as he could and problems abound when standing on moving surfaces. I often encountered an issue with moving platforms as Gabriel would inexplicably walk of the edge without any input from me. A tiny but annoying problem that, to me, illustrated some of the frustration and lack of polish present in the platforming.

I would be remiss if I didn’t take time to mention how beautiful the game looks. From a technical standpoint, the graphics are top-rate. But more importantly the environments and other design elements are, simply put, amazing. There was a moment in particular, as Gabriel stormed across the landscape, a huge gothic castle loomed in the distance, snow whipped at the screen, that I stood back for a long time and stared in awe. The design of Lords of Shadow could be arguably its strongest asset. I remember thinking several times that I hope everybody who plays the game makes it to the end so they can enjoy the views.

The game would have benefited from some editing. It can take a few hours for it to really hit its stride which could turn some gamers off. When an action game of this ilk takes so long to get down to business, more time could have been spent examining what’s absolutely essential. It may seem strange to complain that a game is too long but several levels in Lords of Shadow clutter up an otherwise great game. I would have much preferred a slightly shorter but more concise experience.

Castlevania: Lords of Shadow takes inspiration from many great games. Is the combat better than God of War? Debatable. Are some of the boss battles greater than Shadow of the Colossus? No. Is the platforming as finely-tuned as Uncharted? Not really. But that doesn’t mean it’s a bad game- far from it. It might not step out from the shadow of its influences, but Castlevnia is a good game that’s absolutely worth seeing through to the end and stands on its own accomplishments of design and story. In fact, in many regards it surpasses a game like God of War. Kratos would be wise to take an acting lesson or two from Gabriel. It’s a slow-burn, offering players an experience that takes more than 20 hours to see the first time through. The game is far more than a miserable little pile of influences, managing to bring a charm all its own offering themes, characters, and locations unique to the franchise. I hadn’t heard of developer MercurySteam before this game and throughout my time with Lords of Shadow I kept asking myself where on Earth they’d been hiding all this time.

Kane arrives in Shanghai where he’s greeted by Lynch who, since we last saw him, has moved to China, met a girl, and made some connections with various crime bosses of the underworld. The deal is all set but things quickly turn to hell and the duo have to shoot their way through a seemingly endless stream of thugs.

The gameplay of Dog Days is a typical third-person shooter with cover mechanics. Cover points are graciously thrown throughout environments and the mechanic works well enough. The problem with the gameplay is that, in 2010, it’s nothing we haven’t already seen many times before. As a result, the shooting feels mediocre, almost aggressively so. Kane and Lynch make their way through city streets, parking garages, nondescript high-rises, and more, taking cover behind all-too conveniently placed columns, pillars, crates, and boxes. The setting, however, is one of the game’s strongest elements. The streets of Shanghai are gritty and, through the game’s bold visual style, give the world a unique authenticity. In fact, the look of Kane & Lynch 2 is perhaps the game’s most pronounced saving grace.

Dog Days does striking things with visual design. The whole game looks as though it’s being filmed by a cheap hand-held camera. Think: YouTube. There’s digital artifacts on the video, bright lights cause lens flares, large explosions cause a buffering/stuttering to occur. The designers intentionally made something less-than beautiful and it works wonders for the overall experience. It’s a smart use of contemporary influences that never feels forced or out of place. In fact, I can’t imagine playing the game without it. The hand-held motif does include a shaky camera effect which follows the game’s protagonists. During my time with the game, I did note some pretty bad motion sickness, a problem I’ve never had before with games. There is, thankfully, a setting which turns on a steady-cam option so the shakiness goes away without sacrificing the game’s other visual elements.

There’s nothing about Kane & Lynch 2 that’s downright terrible but I often found myself wishing the visual style existed in a better game. It just refuses to evolve from a gameplay perspective. The reliance on cover-based shooting even takes a negative toll on the level design. The environments really begin to show their seems when you’ve entered yet another warehouse filled with a surprising amount of crates. It telegraphs the upcoming actions. If you enter a room with lots of cover, prepare for a fight. It’s indicative of the larger problem with Dog Days, it all feels like a huge waste of potential. Despite the visuals, the world feels vapid and empty. For instance, at one point the duo are shooting their way through an old train yard. But the level is static. How great it would have been to take cover behind moving trains, timing your progress forward to the movement of the incoming train-cars. I don’t want to stray too far into backseat game development but I would like to say, to me, it isn’t enough to simply be shooting in a train yard when, in terms of the level’s geometry, it’s exactly like the warehouse from before.

There is a short sequence later in the game where players shoot from a helicopter into the windows of a skyscraper but the gameplay is essentially the same thing as before: take cover, pop out when you can, shoot, repeat. Still, it was an attempt at changing the pace. That being said, the game barely has a chance of over-staying its welcome. The main campaign can be finished in under four hours. That’s right, four hours. Playing through the game with a buddy in co-op mode could offer some replay value but the levels don’t really offer anything that seems designed specifically for co-op. In many of the best co-op experiences, the game features elements built into the level to take direct advantage of the two-player feature. In Dog Days, a co-op buddy is just another gun. Again, I felt this was a missed opportunity. I was hoping to see some more parts of the game take advantage of co-op but mostly we just opened doors together at various checkpoints.

Multiplayer mode really shines with some clever twists on common game-types. The two most notable include “Fragile Alliance” where a team of criminals must work together to complete a heist and escape from the AI-controlled police force. The catch being that, at any time, your online buddies can turn on you, attempting to take more of the cash for themselves. There’s a risk vs. reward behind your decision to turn on your teammates and makes for some pretty tense sessions. The most fun I had online was with the “Undercover Cop” mode which is not unlike “Fragile Alliance” but with the added touch of one of the players being the titular rat. When the round begins, one of the criminals on your team is told they are the undercover cop and it’s up to them to eliminate the criminal team one-by-one without being detected. I enjoyed these modes but, again, couldn’t help feeling somewhat disappointed they were in a game that, often, felt so average.

That’s not to say I didn’t enjoy my time with the game, far from it. Despite offering gameplay we’ve seen before, Kane & Lynch 2 still manages to be a fun experience, most of the time. It isn’t anything revolutionary but it’s simple brainless shooting fun and that could be enough for a lot of people.  The game does significant things in terms of  visual design which is why I think people should at least play through the game once. Just rent it, set it to easy, and blast through it over the weekend.

Bioshock 2 is set ten years after the events of the original. Much has happened since the fall of Rapture and the end of Andrew Ryan. In his place, Sofia Lamb, Ryan’s philosophical opposite, has taken over. Rather than supporting Ryan’s belief of complete independence from the system, Lamb embraces a more socialist view of uniting as one for the greater good. Her daughter Eleanor has been bound to you. As a prototype Delta unit Big Daddy that’s been separated from his Little Sister, the quest to reunite with her takes him through some of the oldest parts of Rapture. Returning to the underwater dystopia feels good and familiar, like a song you used to love or your Mom’s home cooking. My early concerns that this would somehow feel like a cheap cash-in on the Bioshock name were gone within the first few minutes once I realized the world is interesting enough to keep players content with exploring through another ten-hour experience.

Bioshock 2 addresses many of the issues contained in the first. The original was great, don’t get me wrong, but it wasn’t perfect. Everything in the sequel feels much more streamlined. Shooting is vastly improved. Players can now duel-wield between plasmids and firearms, making the combat far more efficient, fun, and open to experimentation. But the shooting overall, the sheer mechanics of aiming and firing, is much sharper. It feels more like a competent shooter which is, I assume, one of the reasons they added the multiplayer component— but more on that later.

As the Delta unit makes his way through Rapture, he’ll come across Little Sisters with their respective Big Daddies gathering Adam, the city’s all-powerful substance that drove people to madness. Players must defeat these “Mr. B” bodyguards and determine how to deal with the Little Sisters. The first Bioshock dabbled with the same morality structure of killing and harvesting them for a lot of Adam or saving the girls for slightly less. Depending on the player’s decision, the outcome this time around is much more than a different movie at the end of the game. In fact, Bioshock 2 encourages the adoption of the Little Sisters as the game’s best mechanic of gathering Adam was easily my favorite part of the experience.

Occasionally, Delta unit is tasked with protecting his adoptive Little Sisters as they gather Adam. During this time, Splicers, the crazed citizens of Rapture, will be attracted to the location, gunning for the girls. Fending them off, setting traps, and utilizing the game’s enhanced weaponry was addictive and, simply put, a blast to play. These horde-esque moments punctuated the action and were a fun diversion from the Bioshock formula. A strategy begins to emerge as Delta unit preps for the next Splicer onslaught, it’s great.

The game shies away from actual boss battles and with good reason. I imagine many would be hard-pressed to find people who absolutely loved the final encounter in the original Bioshock. The closest players will find to a boss in this game are the numerous run-ins with the Big Sisters. If a Big Daddy was the thing to fear in the first game, the Big Sisters are the equivalent. While not as tough as the Big Daddy seemed in the original, Big Sisters are grown up versions of Little Sisters who have taken to wearing a similar set of armor as their former bodyguards.

On the subject of difficulty, I found Bioshock 2 to be a wholly easier game than the first. Playing both games on Normal difficulty was a vastly different experience. I consider myself a moderately good player, nothing spectacular. I was surprised to see the Playstation trophy icon pop up for never using a Vitachamber (the game’s respawn system) as the credits began to roll. Meaning I never died during Bioshock 2. Whether or not other players have the same experience isn’t certain but it needs to be said that perhaps this is a more mass-market design. The game has its difficult moments, that’s for sure, but I was often so overpowered that, by the end of the game, I could take on pretty much any situation without fear of losing my progress.

Exploration has also been given a more streamlined approach. Gone is the ability to travel back to previous areas and while many will see this as a negative, at the very least it keeps the narrative moving forward. One word of advice— be sure to explore all possible areas within a level before moving on as the game moves along a train-track that only goes one way. While it feels inflexible, I myself didn’t have a need to back-track in the original Bioshock unless the game required it. The structure in Bioshock 2 is just as enjoyable. I still found myself obsessively searching every filing cabinet, every corner, and every Splicer for goodies before moving on.

Unfortunately, the environments of the game aren’t as varied to the same degree with which Bioshock fans are accustomed. The first took players to gardens, frozen fisheries, and everywhere in between. The sequel tends to exist within a lot of similar-looking offices, hotels, and apartment buildings. That’s not to say these levels look bad or were lazily conceived, it just didn’t have the same sense of variety. This could be a result of simply being a sequel and some of the magic of discovery is gone.

There are a few issues that went untouched. For the life of me, I don’t understand the need to make me tap right if I want to use a health pack. In a way, I see the strategy involved of waiting until my health gets lower before using a pack and risking death or playing it safe. But the system allows for Eve to be refilled automatically once it reaches zero if the player has a hypo available. It just seemed like an anachronistic design decision I wish had been rectified when crafting the sequel. In addition, the story of Bioshock 2 isn’t quite as strong as it could be and often feels shoe-horned into the experience.

Not only were fans hesitant to accept a sequel could be a good thing, but online multiplayer also didn’t seem to jive with some of the Bioshock diehards. But yet again Bioshock 2 surprises.

Set years before the original Bioshock timeline, the multiplayer has its own narrative, piecing together the civil war that erupted during the Ryan-Fontaine rivalry. Players can enter into a variety of multiplayer staples such as Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, a Little Sister-centric version of Capture the Flag, etc. In addition, the game takes cues from online heavyweights and incorporates a leveling-up system with perks and better weapons.The online is a fun distraction worthy of a long weekend. It isn’t going to replace player’s online standbys like Battlefield Bad Company or Modern Warfare but once players are dropped into a game throwing plasmids and shooting at fellow Rapturians, it can be a lot of fun.

Overall, Bioshock 2 is full of surprises. In many ways, the streamlined structure, improved gameplay mechanics, and faithful double-dip into Rapture paid off. The pacing is pitch-perfect, allowing me to even consider it to be the superior game over the original. While I wish some moments had been retooled to allow for greater difficulty, the game is not without some challenge and the harder modes only encourage the brave to play through it again. I realize I’m probably in the minority when I say that I prefer Bioshock 2 to the original but, story aside, it’s a better game in terms of mechanics and on the whole a far more enjoyable experience.