This game is unique. It falls loosely in the immersive sim genre, but unlike almost every other game that falls into that category, this one feels wholly original. It gave me some of that magical feeling I had in the early days of 3D games when people were more commonly building their games and engines from the ground up rather than leaning heavily on existing design and technology. It has a cohesive style and a singular vision. It looks and plays like a labor of love that may not have had huge resources behind its development, but the vision to excel within its limitations. The character and feel of this game is enhanced, for example, by clever and immersive use of shaders which draw you into the game's setting, not just add a shiny coat of paint to something generic. Everything feels bespoke. The gameplay itself is unique and interesting, with unique freedoms and limitations that yield interesting puzzle solving that is wholly integrated into the gameplay rather than being something tacked on. I'll leave explaining the gameplay to other reviews and sources of information as I'd just be repeating things. Suffice to say that I found the experience it offers engrossing and memorable. I hope the developers have enough success with this to unleash their creativity on another project.
After completing the game, I can enthusiastically report that this remake delivered on what I was looking for - a modernized way to enjoy the ORIGINAL game. This is what the developers have delivered here - It's not a reboot or reinterpretation, this is System Shock as if it were made today from the original design document. It's clear that this is a labor of love. It's faithful in all the right ways, including level design. The game doesn't hold your hand. It puts you into this scenario and lets you figure things out for yourself. Unlike most modern games, it risks giving you the freedom to potentially get yourself into an unenjoyable situation. From my point of view, that freedom is what this genre is all about. Before I played, the art style felt off-putting to me from screenshots (the high contrast, the rich neon colors, etc) but in motion I instantly accepted it and immersed into the world. It works well. It's been a while since I lost myself in a virtual world like this, with my notepad next to me to note down codes and important numbers and remind myself where I stashed a weapon or surplus items. I loved that the game can be unrelenting at times, pushing me to be resourceful and try different things. If you love immersive sims but haven't tried any of the System Shock games, this is a great way to experience the birth of the genre. Don't expect the most sophisticated imsim out there - this is the first, but it holds up well enough to notice how slowly the genre has evolved in 30 years. Games are still made in System Shock's image today (Prey). The game is well polished and feels like it was crafted by people who care about doing justice to this IP. My gratitude to the team.
I played this, and completed it, for the first time just now. That's in September 2022, after the release of the Edgerunners update. If you managed to ignore the hype and not get around to playing this for a while, as I did, now is a good time to play it. It's probably in the shape now that it should have been at launch. There are still rough edges and bugs, but on the whole, it's solid and performed well on my ageing PC. In terms of gameplay and overall experience, it's basically Deus Ex (first person RPG with cybernetic augmentations) meets GTAV (open world, driving, cinematic plot with set pieces and cutscenes, satirical advertising \ worldbuilding), which offers quite a nice combination of elements. The production value is high, the visuals and acting are great, the story is decently compelling, the art direction is on-point. I don't think it quite reached its potential. RPG elements are not amazing, but the depth they do bring is welcome. Perks could have been more interesting for instance. Controls are not bad but have some issues that are occasionally annoying. The open world is not as alive as GTA's, in terms of AI and random encounters, but it's still a beautifully crafted environment that's enjoyable to explore. None of the gameplay elements are really "best ever", but all bundled together the result is a pretty strong gameplay experience which I enjoyed a lot. If you managed to avoid it until now and ignore the hype as I did, and you're interested in these kinds of games, it's well worth your time.
Disclaimer: Firstly, I'm 20 hours in, but haven't finished yet. I haven't had any technical issues in spite running on a 6 year old PC on Windows 7. I multi-boot so I will also try on Win10 later. The game as a sequel: Double Fine knocked it out of the park. It satisfies everything a fan of the original could have wanted, while bringing the gameplay and visual polish to modern standards. You know how sometimes your memory idealizes old games? This easily lives up to an idealized memory of the original, and then surpasses and expands upon it in very satisfying ways. I can't think of a single aspect which is not a faithful improvement and expansion of the original. It's not just another adventure for the same characters, it brings more depth and richness to the story and characters of the original. The soundtrack achieves this as well, extrapolating on the original's themes, bringing in new elements, and elevating the production value to new heights (live orchestra, anyone?) Bravo. The game as a game: This is a masterpiece of the genre. It is a rare and wonderful thing for a game to so well integrate its story and concepts with gameplay and level design. The premise of exploring mental worlds offers a creative license which Double Fine have taken full advantage of. It is a vibrant, rich, interesting, funny, heartfelt and delightful experience. The art direction and graphics are gorgeous, cohesive and full of quirky character. The gameplay is varied and interesting without becoming confusing or over-complicated. It is forgiving when it needs to be to prevent frustration. The sound design and music seamlessly integrate with the worlds and bring them to life. The level design is wonderous and thoughtfully crafted. Nobody who likes narrative-driven platformers should miss this. Cream of the crop. Easy GOTY contender. Perhaps there are some people out there with a distaste for this kind of potent style, but I pity them for missing out on this magical experience.
It's not that it is simply providing effective nostalgia, rather it is genuinely achieving all the things that made me love those classic adventures in the first place. It is also, to my sensibilities, beautiful and moody in a very satisfying way, and it feels mature... created with love and a wink of self-awareness by people who know this kind of game very, very well.
