Various types of plasmids may directly hurt enemies, sabotage their movements, or enhance the player character's defense. The protagonist has an arsenal of firearms to combat them but is also able to use plasmids, which act similarly to magic and deplete a special energy called EVE.

Most of the enemies in the game are Splicers, the deformed and insane citizens of Rapture. Limited usage of stealth, the possibility to hack security cameras and other devices, and character customization are the gameplay elements that further tie BioShock to its spiritual predecessors.Īt its core, however, the game is more action-oriented, restricting the role-playing mechanics of System Shock 2 to abilities and upgrades that can be acquired and equipped by the main character. Much of the plot development is therefore dedicated to reconstructing the events of the past, similarly to System Shock games.

The game's plot is largely revealed through recorded messages left by Rapture's inhabitants before they were killed or mutated. The retro-futuristic setting incorporates elements of sci-fi with art deco and steampunk influences, featuring interior design and propaganda posters reminiscent of 1950s. Rapture, the once-proud social experiment inspired by the real-world objectivist philosophy of Ayn Rand, has been nearly destroyed, its inhabitants either dead or fallen victims to bizarre scientific experiments. Learning about the destiny of Rapture will be now Jack's main motivation while he tries to survive the horrors that free will can create.īioShock is a first-person shooter with gameplay elements and storytelling technique reminiscent of System Shock games. However, even before he assimilates all this new information, the descent to this supposed paradise ends and he can only see ruins and chaos. Without hesitating, Jack enters the door and is greeted by slogans that praise the city of Rapture, a paradise of free will built in the 1940s by a business magnate named Andrew Ryan. He has the apparent luck of resurfacing in front of what looks like a door to an underwater complex. In the year 1960, a plane crashes in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean with a man named Jack as the only survivor.

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