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voltron · Aug 13, 2007

Trying to work through that other thread was getting a little messy. I figured a thread for impressions of the demo might be appreciated(or locked

).

Anyway my impressions so far are this:

1. that its taking waaaaay too long to download.
2. Microsoft really need to assess the gold/silver tier structure. What do we pay for with gold now? Times like this they should insist on a staggered gold-->silver release.

I know many people have played the demo now so look forward to your impressions.

sprsk · Aug 13, 2007

It's rad.

Wario64 · Aug 13, 2007

This thread fails, more like let's bitch about Xbox Live.

voltron · Aug 13, 2007

Wario64 said:
This thread fails, more like let's bitch about Xbox Live.

That fully wasnt my intention. Its just all I can really comment on right now. I genuinely want people to post their impressions after playing the demo in here!

shuri · Aug 13, 2007

Wii Fit

gljvd · Aug 13, 2007

voltron said:
That fully wasnt my intention. Its just all I can really comment on right now. I genuinely want people to post their impressions after playing the demo in here!

Your downloading something in the first few hours its avalible what did u expect ? its also a 1.2 gig file which on any connection would take time to download .

Also gold gets us online play . Demo downloads is a part of both xbox live versions .

Speevy · Aug 13, 2007

Thanks for the impressions.

The demo is awesome btw.

Testicular Sound Express · Aug 13, 2007

Speevy said:
Thanks for the impressions.

The demo is awesome btw.

:lol

BeEatNU · Aug 13, 2007

shuri said:
Wii Fit

blackadde · Aug 13, 2007

voltron said:
2. Microsoft really need to assess the gold/silver tier structure. What do we pay for with gold now?

i thought we already had that thread, and the conclusion was something like 'community features'.

StriKeVillain · Aug 13, 2007

Best Demo On Live.

(Obviously.)

voltron · Aug 13, 2007

gljvd said:
Your downloading something in the first few hours its avalible what did u expect ? its also a 1.2 gig file which on any connection would take time to download .

Also gold gets us online play . Demo downloads is a part of both xbox live versions .

There has been times in the past where gold gets marketplace content before silver. I thought that content was a demo too, but I could have been wrong in that.

Eric WK · Aug 13, 2007

It's good.

Wario64 · Aug 13, 2007

I thought the reason for having Gold members get the demos first in the past before was to prevent people from other regions from downloading it

Thoren · Aug 13, 2007

wheres the advice on how to play it?!

VALIS · Aug 13, 2007

sp0rsk said:
It's rad.

More

watership · Aug 13, 2007

Thoren said:
wheres the advice on how to play it?!

Yes yes. This thread is nothing without lots of bolded text telling us how to get the most out of demo experience. I would also like key points of interest stories about various staircases and lighting tricks.

89 percent and climbing.

lollerskates · Aug 13, 2007

ok this thread sux

everyones talking in the other thread anyways

voltron · Aug 13, 2007

Wario64 said:
I thought the reason for having Gold members get the demos first in the past before was to prevent people from other regions from downloading it

Possibly. With the prevention of out of region downloads by Microsoft now I guess there would be no need to have gold before silver demo downloads. Who knows. And thread name change works.

Choabac · Aug 13, 2007

The demo features much shocks, in a biological environment.

Ok, you got me, I havent downloaded it yet. Im waiting for off-peak.

Wario64 said:
I thought the reason for having Gold members get the demos first in the past before was to prevent people from other regions from downloading it

Isn't the IP tracer effective enough for that?

I thought Microsoft was genuinely rewarding Gold members by staggered releases in their favour.

sprsk · Aug 13, 2007

VALIS said:
More

It's a non-stop thrill-ride.

Slacker · Aug 13, 2007

Is it some kind of grand honor to start threads here? This is the third thread that I've seen lately where the starter had nothing to say, but wanted to start the thread anyway because he'll eventually have something to say.

sprsk · Aug 13, 2007

Slacker said:
Is it some kind of grand honor to start threads here? This is the third thread that I've seen lately where the starter had nothing to say, but wanted to start the thread anyway because he'll eventually have something to say.

Sometimes people get really excited.

marvelharvey · Aug 13, 2007

Bioshock: Free Pipemania game included!

Impressions: Best 30 mins of my life

Slacker · Aug 13, 2007

sp0rsk said:
Sometimes people get really excited.

I suppose I can dig that.

Now if you'll excuse me, I need to get back to crafting my The Sims 2: Even More Shit For Your House Expansion Pack official thread (pictures and information coming "soon").

Nameless · Aug 13, 2007

At this rate, the demo will be done at around noon. Been downloading for almost 2 hours and I'm not even at 20% yet.:lol I can imagine why, pretty much EVERYONE on my friends list is either on the dashboard or playing an offline gaming(presumably downloading Bioshock while they play). Hopefully it will be done by morning(background downloading FTW!?)

May even have to take my 360 to my parents' house to play it on the big screen HD.

Router · Aug 13, 2007

g35twinturbo said:

HugBasket · Aug 13, 2007

The whole first appearance of the Big Daddy on the theater stage was classy.

Good god, can you say intense ending?

thetrin · Aug 13, 2007

just finished playing the demo.

The atmosphere is AMAZING. Lighting is well done, and all of Rapture's neon signs and flashing light sources set the mood so well. It doesn't suffer from the same "darkness and monster closets" that Doom 3 did. You don't feel like you're missing half the game because of a lack of lighting.

Objects that you can interact with glow yellow, which helps when looking for a switch.

The game is far more FPS based than SS2, with little item management, and a more streamlined action experience. Not necessarily a bad thing, as the game does an excellent job of keeping the game frightening. The MINUTE I arrived in Rapture after the awesome underwater tour, my heart sank. The first scene after Ryan's big speech is really really scary. In fact, the whole introduction to Rapture might be better done and better paced than Half Life or Half Life 2. It's certainly up there.

The integration of plasmids and weapons in the game is well done. Both weapons and plasmids are useful, and using them in tandem actually makes for good strategy (and in the fact, the game reminds you to do just that).

The sound design is incredible. Dialogue is great, and crazed denizens yell at each other and have their own lives...that is until they see you. The moment they see you, and start circling around to get you from behind, you know something bad is going to happen.

If a demo's single job is to get the player to pick up the full game, then this demo did just that. I haven't been more sure about picking up Bioshock than right now. I'm terrible with scary games, but that never stopped me from playing all the RE games, and it won't stop me from playing Bioshock.

Simply put, this game rocks...HARD.

CharminUltra · Aug 13, 2007

OMFG WHAT AN AWESOME GAME :O

MP3 just got BIOSHOCKED!

Awntawn · Aug 13, 2007

Too scary for me, I've never been good with handling this genre ;'( It's a shame that I'll be missing out for a reason like this because the game looks absolutely amazing. Hope everyone else enjoys it.

nubbe · Aug 13, 2007

It's like a bucket of yoghurt.

marvelharvey · Aug 13, 2007

I needed to use subtitles as some of the speech wasn't that clear, but messing around with the volumes of the various channels sorted that out. I know it's not a huge issue, but most of the subtitles are WHAYYYY off the actual timing of the dialogue; at one point, the text was 3 sentences ahead.

ANYWAY, this demo + last week's System Shock 2 adventure has propelled my Bioshock excitementometer all the way up to 599 US exciteothons. BUY BUY BUY

thetrin · Aug 13, 2007

marvelharvey said:
I needed to use subtitles as some of the speech wasn't that clear, but messing around with the volumes of the various channels sorted that out. I know it's not a huge issue, but most of the subtitles are WHAYYYY off the actual timing of the dialogue; at one point, the text was 3 sentences ahead.

ANYWAY, this demo + last week's System Shock 2 adventure has propelled my Bioshock excitementometer all the way up to 599 US exciteothons. BUY BUY BUY

Yeah, I found the radio dialogue a little too low sometimes, but adjusting helped.

sprsk · Aug 13, 2007

Things I liked about this game:

1. It didn't make me dizzy.
2. It took the things I liked about Doom 3 and made them not bad
3. Art design and graphics in general well thought out (even though they are pretty much borrowing from Brazil, but hey, if there's a movie to borrow from, it's Brazil)
4. Framerate isn't all over the place.
5. It's a shooter, but firefights don't seem like regular shooter encounters.
6. Interesting application of abilities, short circuiting machines and stuff is cool.

Things I'm a little skeptical about:

1. Plane crashing into a place where a bunch of mysterious things happen, and the use of the song "beyond the sea" kind of make me think of Lost.
2. It's a really intense roller coaster ride, I wonder how long they can keep it up.
3. I am a fan of linear games, but I don't like the feeling of being pushed from event to event. It's the beginning of the game though so I'm not too worried.

Beef · Aug 13, 2007

Other than whats been said above,

I really like the hacking minigame, it looks like it gets good and hard later on with different pieces and increasing speed.

Great demo overall, will play again.

TheGreatDave · Aug 13, 2007

I just said goodbye to my preorder.

Pretty game and all but I know I could never enjoy playing it. I can't be doing with things jumping out at me in enviroments that are super dark. And it's reminded me how much I hate first person, to the point I may not bother with Prime 3.

voltron · Aug 13, 2007

sp0rsk said:
3. I am a fan of linear games, but I don't like the feeling of being pushed from event to event. It's the beginning of the game though so I'm not too worried.

Thats surprising, I got the impression from the Ken Levine interview that its quite a non-linear experience. Like you can explore(or not) the whole area at your will.

And Slacker -- this game gets me all hot and wet and I just couldnt help myself. So sue me!

65536 · Aug 13, 2007

TheGreatDave said:
Iretty game and all but I know I could never enjoy playing it. I can't be doing with things jumping out at me in enviroments that are super dark. And it's reminded me how much I hate first person, to the point I may not bother with Prime 3.

Did you not use the brightness calibration that pops up at the start of the demo?

And as they got posted over various pages in the massive topic, here are my pictures again in one place:

(I didn't realise I had taken so many)

I absolutely loved the demo, it just does everything so well. It's a bit premature perhaps, but I reckon it's going to be Game of the Year. I really don't see how anyone wouldn't love it. (unless you don't like horror, I guess)

Costanza · Aug 13, 2007

Okay, so HOLY FUCKING SHIT @ this demo. This is going to be the best goddamn game ever.

voltron · Aug 13, 2007

andrewfee said:
I absolutely loved the demo, it just does everything so well. It's a bit premature perhaps, but I reckon it's going to be Game of the Year. I really don't see how anyone wouldn't love it. (unless you don't like horror, I guess)

Bioshock Vs Mass Effect: The Title Bout!

TheGreatDave · Aug 13, 2007

andrewfee said:
Did you not use the brightness calibration that pops up at the start of the demo?

Yeah. This isn't a game design issue, it's a me being shit ssue.

thetrin · Aug 13, 2007

It's such a small thing, but shooting someone in the head kills them instantly! I know tons of FPS games do this, but a ton others don't.

Pastry · Aug 13, 2007

Something that hasn't really been mentioned yet is the feel of the weapons. Lately it seems like a lot of games have been messing this up, and it looks perfect with Bioshock. The machine gun and revolver both felt perfect, it's hard to verbalize but you guys will see once everyone has the demo.

Alex · Aug 13, 2007

Demo was fucking incredible.

Demigod Mac · Aug 13, 2007

In short, it's a brilliant demo. I'm ravenously hungry for more. Tutorial is subtle and well-done. The game sucks you in like none other.

The good:

Graphics are simply insane. It almost feels like you're controlling a CGI movie, not a game. Rock-solid 30 fps with no slowdown, stuttering or screen tearing. Best-looking game ever, easily.

Water effects are gorgeous, the best I've seen. Superb reflections, and it looks REAL.

So much detail in the environments. Every room seemingly begs you to explore it and look at all the little touches.

The atmosphere is like System Shock 2 on crack. Scary, convincing, immersive, intriguing.

Inventory system is much more streamlined than SS2's.

Lastly, all things considered, it's just FUN to play.

Drawbacks:

Aiming is difficult. There's no reticle-target slowdown like in Halo. Expect to waste many bullets and EVE while trying to hit enemies. I'm sure it gets easier with practice, but if you're used to Halo-style aiming, expect to miss a LOT in a fire-fight. Other than the aiming, the controls are excellent. One note of interest: even if you initially miss with the electrobolt attack, you can twitch to the side and still hit the enemy. Nice!

The water is still very much static. You can see it flowing into places (like the jet crashing into the tunnel, leaks onto the floor) but it keeps flowing without filling up the space. The puddles never expand outward. It looks like the only times water actually fills areas up is during scripted events. Also, it doesn't really react to objects moving through it; it just shows a flat bitmap "splash" effect on the surface. Kinda disappointing considering they hired people to work just on the water, but it still looks great.

purg3 · Aug 13, 2007

thetrin said:
It's such a small thing, but shooting someone in the head kills them instantly! I know tons of FPS games do this, but a ton others don't.

Yeah I was surprised by that, and in a good way. The one area you go into and there is a guy banging on a door yelling at some woman was funny. I shot him in the head from atop the stairs and she started screaming "NOOOO!"

GSG Flash · Aug 13, 2007

Ugh, stupid Irrational, why couldn't they release the PC demo today instead of later?

Killer · Aug 13, 2007

Bioshock is SEX

Demigod Mac · Aug 13, 2007

Pastry said:
Something that hasn't really been mentioned yet is the feel of the weapons. Lately it seems like a lot of games have been messing this up, and it looks perfect with Bioshock. The machine gun and revolver both felt perfect, it's hard to verbalize but you guys will see once everyone has the demo.

Yeah, the weapons and spells have a tangible "kick" to them. Very satisfying.

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