New Games To Watch For - The Return Of Rapture!

I was in town today and picked up a copy of the new Xbox 360 magazine. I usually don't read it, but I haven't seen a new game I've liked in quite a while now, and the ones I have bought have been promptly returned to the shop (you know who you are Gears Of War 2). While Prototype looks interesting, it's not one I'd spend over $100 for, so reading up on what will hopefully be an exciting gaming season ahead is the next best thing. Although I saw several upcoming games this year which I'll place my thoughts on, such as Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and Mass Effect 2, there was one game which I could not wait another day to write about.

As you can tell from the title, the under water city of Rapture is making its' return back to the Xbox 360, PS3 and computer in the next installment of BioShock! The original BioShock was ground-breaking and easily one of the best titles of all time, but BioShock 2: Sea Of Dreams seems set to break the mold once again and bring yet another great game to the next generation. Set several years after the events in the first game, BioShock 2 takes place in a now crumbling Rapture. Same splicers and mayhem, but the big difference is that you now play as a Big Daddy. Of course this changes gameplay a tad - being stronger than splicers, battles will now need to include multiple enemies to make them challenging. However, the greatest threat in the game will come from a new enemy, the Big Sister, a mysterious, stealthy and devastating version of what could be called a girl Big Daddy.

My main concern is how the new take on Rapture is going to pan out; playing as a Big Daddy changes things a lot, and it might not be the best thing. If there's anything I pray for, it's that BioShock 2 does not suffer from the sequel curse. As long as the graphics are fresh, the play is new and the story has that old BioShock feel, then I'm pretty sure, we won't have to worry. I'll let the new gameplay video I've included talk for itself (after all, it is narrated by one of BioShock's game designers), but suffice to say I will be buying the next addition to the BioShock series almost as soon as it arrives in shops. If you haven't played the first game, go and do it now! Strangely, the graphics are still pretty nice despite the game now being a few years old, so you've got no excuse.