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Originally Posted by Hellboy
Again I think you're applying the logic most of us would apply to feature film sequels to this game bruhaha69. Just because Bioshock was a self contained game doesn't make a return to Rapture in a sequel, whether it was planned or not, unnecessary or inferior. The story is not going to be as fresh and we've been here before but there was room for improvement in the gameplay department and the simple fact remains that people wanted more. I, like most others here, are just happy to return to this world even with the minor enhancements and play some more. Its a game not a movie.
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Well firstly, gaming has gotten to the point where those movie comparisons aren't actually too far off. They have much more mass appeal than they did when I started playing 24 or so years ago. Much like movies are passed from writer to writer and director to director, so have games begun to follow that same kind of sellout path. If the publisher can make a buck, they'll run an idea rotten until even the dumbest consumer says "enough is enough" (see the Tomb Raider series before Crystal Dynamics saved it from the brink of destruction). I can see why you'd say it, but no, I wasn't thinking about it like a movie, I was thinking about it like a game.
Being a self contained game DOES make it a good reason to not return. As I just said, games have changed. Gone are the days of the story being "save the princess" or "defeat the evil king" with minimal back story behind them. In those days, I would agree with you completely. You didn't need a compelling story, just improve the gameplay and let us go at it. Improve the graphics, give us more moves, more special effects and bam, we're loving it. This is not (or SHOULD not be) the case for story and atmosphere driven games of today.
Bioshock showed us a unique and awesome world, presented us with some things worth thinking about within that world and then gave us all the answers to those questions if we took the time to complete it. The driving force behind the game was a story of a man's idea for a city, how it was built, how it fell and what was left of it all presented to us in an insanely atmospheric way. It covered everything, soup to nuts and left no room for anything else but a sellout return. This was not a FPS that relied on a minimalistic story. Why shouldn't a creator of a game get at least the respect of his ideas not getting wh0red out because people demand more where more is not needed? Other than 2K games wanting to make an ass-load more money, why do you think we needed a sequel based on what they originally gave us? Saying "I wanted to play more rapture" is not a good answer. That's the selfish consumer answer and is the driving force behind these cash-in sequels. Answer me this: Do you think this game would have been made if the first only sold 100k copies? I can guarantee you this, they wouldn't have green lighted and assigned a team to do the sequel so quickly if that was the case.
Now that I say all this, I guess I can see it from a slightly different perspective, too. If you play games today and don't care about how immersive they are or how the story is presented, I can see someone not caring about a game like this getting a forced out sequel and even thinking it's awesome (I think it's a well made game, but it isn't amazing by any stretch of the word). If the gameplay was all that mattered to you, an improved version would be plenty good enough. On the other hand, it isn't like Bioshock does things that other FPS' don't do. If the immersion and well told story/awesomely presented world aren't why you liked the first, wouldn't any old FPS be fine? If the improved gameplay was all that mattered, would you care if Bioshock 2 took place in Las Vegas instead of Rapture?
Side note, I was able to finish the game tonight, too. My "little sister" (teehee) let me use her 360 since mine is out for repair. I think the last 2 levels were some of the stronger parts of the game. I'm assuming we get at least 2 endings, so I'll probably play through again harvesting my balls off.
