Hopefully most of you enjoyed my experience of the first Bioshock game a couple of weeks back. Truth is, I’m still playing the first Bioshock, it is getting regular rotation with NBA 2k11 and Lego Rock Band. But, in an attempt to completely confuse myself, I decided to go ahead and tackle the sequel with only paper knowledge of the ending. This should go over as well as my first marriage. With only slightly less bloodshed.
Let’s see, where does this one start? It has been roughly ten years since Andrew Ryan died and Rapture has become corrupt and in complete disrepair. This place used to be a Utopia before they became addicted to ADAM. They also took the teachings of one Sophia Lamb to the level of gospel. Since she was no longer under arrest, she was free to resume her teachings and grow her followers. But what part does the player play in this game? You happen to be a Big Daddy of course.
A what? Those big metal monsters with a drill for a hand and a giant fish bowl for a head? Yep, that would be the one. Apparently, we were one of the first Big Daddies in production. We were tasked with protecting the life of Eleanor Lamb. Eleanor was never meant to become a Little Sister and there was one person who wished to reclaim her. That would be Sophia Lamb, her mother.
In fact, Sophia tracked us down and forced us to put a gun to our own heads and pull the trigger. We wake up ten years later and find out we are still alive thanks partially to Eleanor who is now a teenager and still looking for love and attention. Young girls are being kidnapped for the Little Sister program and Sophia has become an extremist. We must find and protect Eleanor as only somebody with a fish bowl and a drill can.
We wake up in a remote part of Rapture. Apparently, we have some sense of free will, something that is usually missing from this type of machinery. But at the same time, you still have some sort of attachment to Eleanor and a need to find her. All we have is a drill in place of a hand. A drill? Heck yeah, find me some fleshy bodies, we are going to have some fun in this place called Adonis Luxury Resort.
We don’t get any fleshy bodies just yet, but how about some coral that needs to be drilled through. Apparently, this drill needs fuel which we start finding around the Baths and other spa fixtures. A creature appears and disappears as soon as we enter the Baths which is a cold and dark place indeed. There is a locked door nearby and then we start to see some audio diaries which give us clues on what to do about this generator that seems to be on the fritz.
Apparently, we need to go to Plasmid Therapies which is just up the way. But before we get there, we see a locked sauna room with the number 1540 drawn into the window with the condensation. We enter the number and collect the goods inside which include our first taste of money. Once we get out of the sauna, we come upon our first victim, errr splicer. Take that drill, oh the splatter is so satisfying. We get to the Gatherer’s Garden vending machine and there is an Electro Bolt plasmid waiting for us inside. Like somebody left it there.
Wait a minute, do we remember the last time we took this Electro Bolt? We lapsed into a coma for many hours where we saw everything from Splicers inspecting our body for nourishment to the second coming of Elvis. There is no way I’m touching that. Wait, I’m a Big Daddy now. A fish bowl on our head and a wave of electricity in our left hand are perfect conductors. What’s the worst that could happen?
Apparently, I missed the seminar about repeating your previous mistakes because I grab it and everything becomes a little woozy. Wait, is that Elvis…errr Eleanor? As soon as I try to figure if that is Eleanor, something comes out of the darkness and grabs her before speeding back the way we came in. What is going on? Why do all the sudden I wish to purchase blue suede shoes? Do they sell those in 19EEE bolt-on?
Before heading back, we check out the rooms behind the vending machine to find a few miscellaneous items. Then back to that ole generator in the previous room, I have a feeling we can get it working again. As soon as we hit that room, we see more splicers. Now that we have a little electro-shock, the old zap and drill combo seems to be the way to go. I’m really starting to enjoy drilling these squishy bodies.
It looks like the generator needs a little shock too. As soon as it starts up, the whole area becomes way livelier. We get a message from somebody named Brigid Tenenbaum who knows who we are and needs our help. But first we need to go to the train station. On our way, we come to a courtyard with a large bridge overhead and two splicers standing oh so innocently in the water. *ZAP*, Fried splicers. Perhaps we could serve those with some chittlins and a 40 of Mad Dog 20-20. Now that would be good eats (or a nasty case of heartburn).
Anyway, we finally found another piece of weaponry in the gun simply known as the Rivet Gun (sound familiar?). We quickly use our new toy on several splicers to shred their body into satisfying bits. All of the sudden we come into a room where we can see a Little Sister harvesting a body. Is that Eleanor? We move closer to inspect her. She notices us and she gives us a friendly gesture but mentions that her Big Sister wouldn’t appreciate us playing with her.
Oh come on, the Little Sister is like two feet tall, so Big Sister must be all of what 4 feet tall? We’re a Big Daddy, guardian of Rapture, no problem. Maybe Big Sis would like to share some motor oil at the ole watering hole? All of the sudden, a giant creature shaped much like us but taller and more slender jumps out and rages at us. This must be Big Sister, so I guess foreplay is out of the question.
Suddenly, I don’t feel so good about our chances. Shocking only works so well and rivets are producing so much damage either. Luckily, we do knock off some health and she scatters which is probably a good thing. Big Daddy doesn’t take too well to being a bitch. We really need some better hardware. We pause a minute to loot some corpses and proceed to walk gingerly after the Big Sister. (We really aren’t trying to catch her, just advance the story).
We get to the Banquet Hall and leap down into the dining room. All of the sudden, Big Sister jumps out, shatters the windows and floods the entire location. Guess she didn’t want to snuggle either? We are now fully immersed in water, but somehow we can actually swim at a decent speed. We see a twisting path before us and we do our best to navigate. The water only lasts for a little while and it isn’t before long that we reach the Atlantic Express Depot.
We get out of the water and into the airlock. Apparently, somebody doesn’t want us inside this train station because a splicer up ahead flees and locks a gate behind him. Hrmm, so how exactly are we supposed to get to Brigid? Looking around, we do find a hacking gun of some sort and some busted glass we can shoot the dart at the security lock. Hacking has certainly changed ten years later, now we just follow a line and look for a green or blue marking. I miss the pipes.
The door swings open and we enter one of the train area’s many workshops. We soon find another thing to hack, this time a security bot who will help to fend off nearby splicers. We also realize that if we stop the marker in the blue region for something such as a health station or vending machine, we get a free item. Bonus! Eventually, we get to the Gate Control Room and flip the switch. Sofia Lamb knows we are here and she is none too happy about it. Suddenly several splicers move in for the attack and before you know it.
However, before they can get in any good shots, the floor underneath us shatters and we find ourselves again submerged in water. Perhaps we need to invest in a pair of flippers, we might be better off. We eventually end up in the Pumping Station before finding our way through a bunch of storage rooms. There is a jet postal room here with yet another plasmid sitting in a wheelbarrow for the taking.
Suddenly we have another vision of Eleanor asking us for help. The plasmid inside the wheelbarrow is Telekinesis, or the ability to use your mind to throw objects across the room and into a happy victim. An opportunity soon announces itself when you see three splicers huddled over a fire and there are some conveniently laid gas cylinders nearby. TOASTY! (Obligatory Mortal Kombat Reference). Where the heck is that ticket office with Tenenbaum and those children anyway?
Up ahead is a bay door with a splicer who has conveniently placed a lead pipe into the gears preventing it from opening. After working hard to find the right angle, we are able to use our new plasmid to free it open. Once we get beyond the door, we see another old friend, the vending machine. Thankfully, there has been a good assortment of dollars scattered through these areas and we are able to afford some well timed first aid kits.
Switching Hub up ahead. All of the sudden we see a Big Sister flee through a shaft in the ceiling. Hey baby, come back, I’ve had three Pep Colas and I’m ready to go! We soon see there is no time to wonder what happened to her and we are surrounded by splicers. We do our best to avoid the security camera stationed nearby and at Brigid’s urging over the radio, we are able to make the elevators. She tells us a few things as we make it to the top.
We have finally made it to the train station. There are some interesting rivets here that seem to create traps for unsuspecting miscreants. The better thing is that ones left on the floor un-triggered can be picked back up for future use. As par the course for life in Rapture, we are soon given the opportunity to use our new finds with devastating results. All we need now is one more security camera hack and we are finally on the platform and next to the intercom switch in front of the ticket window.
The ticket window cover rises and Brigid Tenenbaum appears before our eyes. She is grateful to see us. She has been able to stay here with the children in the ticket area of the train station for sometime away from the eyes of Sofia Lamb. All of the sudden, there is an alarm and announcement over the public announce system. It appears that Sofia Lamb has found Brigid and is sending splicers to finish the both of you off once and for all.
As we start to wonder if there isn’t some homing device on us, Brigid is gathering the kids together to make a hasty getaway. We decide to ready ourselves for the incoming horde of splicers by setting up a field of trap rivets on both sides of the platform. Oh crap, here they come. The first few are caught by the traps but gaps start opening up in the defense. A few make it through and are immediately introduced to our rivet gun and some electro-shock therapy.
However, there is a second wave of splicers right behind the first. They are coming hard and heavy now as we struggle to keep up with the action. Just as we think we can’t take anymore of these henchmen, the last one falls. Luckily, Tenenbaum was able to escape with the children and urges you to leave as well. We rummage through the fallen bodies for odds and ends and get to the train.
Another person contacts you on your radio. His name is Sinclair and it seems like he is friends with Brigid and also wants to help. He’s certainly a smooth talker and asks you to pull the switch and take the train to Ryan Amusements. It looks like we have another adventure to go to, hopefully another step closer to finding Eleanor. We no sooner take the train to the Amusement area and see our way is blocked by a sheet of ice.
Sinclair tells us there is a plasmid here at the amusement park called Incinerate that should do the job. I think we all know what that means, and before I make yet another reference to the famous fighting game, we will close this experience of Rapture and hope you enjoyed stepping inside the shoes of a Big Daddy. Hopefully, your Halloween this Sunday will be one to remember. Enjoy.
