Some thoughts: System Shock 2

"L-l-l-l-l-look at you, hacker. A pa-pa-pathetic creature of meat and bone. (Panting and) Panting and sweating as you r-r-run through my corridors. (How, how) How can you challenge a perfect, immortal machine?" - SHODAN

Considering the influence System Shock has exerted since its release more than a decade ago, SHODAN's dissonant voice seems almost prophetic. The game has claimed a form of immortality and lives on in overt and more subtle reincarnations. I have only now gotten around to playing Looking Glass's cult classic, which was released back in 1999, and what I have found has made me revel in shame. Of the many, you need look no further than the Dues Ex, Bioshock and Dead Space series to grasp the profound impact System Shock has made on the gaming landscape.

 
Even today it still provides a compelling experience. The angular horrors produced by its dated graphics engine might deter some, yet give the game a chance and you will find an experience as atmospheric, and surprisingly as contemporary in design, as some of the more popular titles in recent release. Granted, its revival through the Bioshock series lends to it an air of familiarity. I realise how backwards that sounds, and it adds to my shame for not playing System Shock when it was released. Being a fan of Looking Glass, which I know through the Thief series, I am still staggered by how this game could have eluded me.

So in short, System Shock 2 sees the player take control of a grunt aboard the Von Braun, a faster than light spaceship, woken from cryo-sleep amidst the chaos and confusion that accompanies a computer malfunction. Something has gone terribly wrong aboard the ship and the player is left at the mercy of a voice blaring imperatives through the radio. The grunt's three year tour of duty, consisting of lobbies and loading screens, and the cybernetic enhancements that riddle his flesh, the only weapons against the infestation running rampant within the bowls of the ship.

An amalgamation of FPS and RPG, System Shock 2 presents the player with an extensive upgrade system which directly impacts how the game is played. Upgrades are purchased with cybernetic modules gifted and discovered throughout the game and are especially scarce on higher difficulties. Consequently, some deliberation should be made when purchasing upgrades, for the cybernetic gifts are not equally useful and a wrong choice can impede progress later on. In addition, weapons have a modification system through which they can be upgraded and a more than frustrating repair system that ensures they are maintained. A plethora of items are picked up or purchased along the way that allows progress, enables research and aids the player.

The game excels at producing an immersive atmosphere and the voice talent delivered through the, sometimes oddly placed, audio logs and radio communication convincingly weave the fiction of the game world, albeit with a few false notes. I have found that sometimes games actually benefit from their graphical deficiencies, and with System Shock that seems to be the case. Much is left to the imagination, in comparison to the fidelity of more recent titles, and somehow the experience is more gripping for it.

System Shock 2 is available from Good Old Games and Steam, and has been patched to work on most modern computers without any hassles.