E3 - Games I'm looking forward to seeing

#4

Overview.
You play as a plane-crash survivor who stumbles across a once utopia but now forgotten community named Rapture. This ruined community is inhabited by things you once believed lived under your bed - but this isn't a kill or be killed society, at least not unless you want it to be. Many of the inhabitants such as the Big Daddy will not attack you unless you threaten it or its Little Sister - and if their names are creepy enough, Little Sister use syringes to extract a substance - known as Adam - from corpses. This substance, to which you are also partial to, is an addiction to those who consume it and allow of a variety of physical and mental enhancements - for instance, biotic implants or psychic abilities.

What's so great?
It's not a mindless first-person shooter (yes, I'm looking at you Halo 3). There is substance to this game that goes beyond it's shoot'em up roots. Primarily, this game is an Action/Adventure which focuses heavily on puzzle solving and player choices. These choices can seem rather daunting at first but it's more to do with flexibility than deciding which shoes go with which pants. For instance, if you've decided or have no choice in engaging an enemy you may wish to just shoot him to bits; set an object on fire and hurl it at him with your telekinesis powers; hack into a medical machine and make it hurt instead of heal your enemy; unleash a plague of insects on him; brainwash him or his bodyguard and make him your puppet - or any combination of those, to name but a few. Some of these abilities are powered by a diverse range of plasmids (used to enhance oneself in the world of BioShock). The following (obtained from the official BioShock website) is a list of the different types of plasmids available in the game:

• Electrobolt. This projectile can be used to stun both man and machine-like enemies as well as being, naturally, dangerous when combined with water!


• Telekinesis. Can be used to move and manipulate object if they are out of reach, too heavy or on fire! useful for creating shields, returning enemy grenades and creating obstacles.


• Incinerate. Sets objects and creatures on fire


• Winter Blast. Freeze your foes in place and then shatter them into a thousand pieces!


• Security Bullseye. Turns security devices and machines to your advantage as you tag enemies with this plasmid - causing security devices to act aggressively with your enemy.
  

What's not so great? (This section should be short.)
One of my main concerns is how far the supposed freedom will go with respect to the environments and exploration - and what this will mean for the story. Will the story get lost within all the exploration? Will the player lose his bearings while he's exploring the environment? Inside chatter hints toward optional objectives and little extras that don't need to be explored to complete the game. Although that sounds like great news, does that mean we'll be privy to yet another linear first-person shooter with some interesting RPG elements?
That said, I'm not worried. With my ear to the floor I have heard that not only is the story excellent, the way it is told is innovative too.

BioShock - Trailer (This is such an awesome trailer)

What to expect at E3?
I do not expect the information overload from this title as I do some of the others. With a release date already penciled in (August 21st and 24th for USA and Europe respectively) I think this E3 will be about generating as much buzz as possible. Maybe we'll get a date for a playable demo or such, other than that I predict some hands on playing and maybe some new features/enemies/interactions/plasmids or such like.