Thursday 6 March, 2008

Gameplay:
In this gameplay session, I realized that the game won't get any less creepy the longer you play. But, on the other hand, it will get a lot more fun. right near the end of my session I picked up the ability to use fire as a weapon at the snap of my fingers. This made for very interesting and rather humorous fighting technique.
In this second session I was able to get a much better hold of the controls, which is good because it is vital that you be able to switch back and forth between your special powers and your regular weapons quickly and constantly, which can be tricky at first. I actually surprised myself with how quickly i got used to switching back and forth, but was glad to have picked it up.
As I played through the game and my friend, who had already beaten it, watched me play, we talked about the impressive use of morals and symbolism in the game. And it is quite impressive how a game that, on the surface, seems so blatantly violent and one-dimensional can actually have a lot of depth. this made me happy and helped me enjoy the game that much more.
As much fun as I was having lighting people on fire and beating them with a wrench, I did find that near the end of my session, I seemed to be stuck. I could not find which way to go to progress in the game and there were no indicators as to whether I was going the right way or just backtracking. I believe that when you went in the right direction, more baddies would show up and get in your way, but even after a while of walking around, I couldn't find them either! So that did bother me a bit.

Game Design:
One of the biggest innovations in this game and one of my favorite reasons for playing this game are the "plasmids". Plasmids are special abilities that you can use by injecting some kind of shot into your arm and letting it reconfigure your DNA. Of course, that's all done automatically in the game. But after the first time you inject yourself, you gain abilites that include pyrokinesis, telekinesis, thunderbolts, and swarms of insects. those are just a few of the huge number of plasmids you can find in the game. I really enjoy this aspect of the game because it adds a whole new level of strategy and excitement. Rather then just shooting a gun wildly at anything that moves, not taking a second though to consider ammo because it's so common, you have to conserve your ammo and decide how and when to use a gun or a plasmid. ammo for each is scarce, so you really have to think about every move you make.
The plasmids add a sort of difficulty in using the controller to play the game because you have to constantly be switching between plasmids and weapons in mid-battle. But I think that once you get really good at it, it just adds to the fun of the game. since you're using the shoulder buttons to switch between your offensive attacks, it makes you feel like you're actually doing something fancy with your fingers.
The level design is incredible in BioShock. They are all very detailed and interactive, including movable dead bodies, shootable trash cans, and it even throws in a half-decayed wall that you have to break down in order to move forward every once in a while. Every level is also very creepy in its own way and that is partly due to the incredible lighting in every room. Some rooms are tinted blood-red (no pun intended) and others are pitch black. Both make for very menacing and intimidating settings.
I really enjoy playing this game and can't wait to go finish it.

This is acceptable, though the design section is weak. Going more into how the game deals with morals and symbolism would've added a lot of depth. While plasmids are an interesting aspect of the game, they would've been better served by introducing them in the gameplay section first, then discussing issues like the conservation of ammo in the design section. Still, it's an all right GameLog.

Amy Leek (grader)