Bioshock 2 is better than the first in pretty much every aspect, even down to the story in my opinion.

Starting with the story, in the first game the main(ish) antagonist was Andrew Ryan, the man behind Rapture. Without doing an entire recap, Ryan is essentially a king gone mad which you witness in throughout the game, and his ideals are less convincing and more outwardly controlling and power hungry. In the end, it turns out you've been being played by Ryan's rival Frank Fontaine, who wants full control of Rapture - no idealistic angle involved, just greed and power. I found 2's story to be far more interesting as the main antagonist is once again, someone with very strong ideals by the name of Sophia Lamb. She stands in direct contrast to Ryan, and interacts with/comments on him in multiple audio logs, which already makes her a more interesting rival to Ryan as rather than just wanting control of Rapture, she also has ideals to back it up instead of just being 'greedy bad guy'. There are multiple audio logs of debates between Lamb and Ryan, and plenty of times in audio logs and direct contact where Lamb will bring Ryan's ideals up to break them down and explain her own. Having this battle of ideals is infinitely more interesting than one person having the extreme ideals and the other just wanting power. The story this time around is a lot less confusing and doesn't have any (highly overrated) twists, making for what I found to be a more consistent and enjoyable narrative. The only real downside is similar to what I thought of Ryan in the first game, the antagonist, in this case Lamb, once again touts her ideals in the most on the nose and comically evil way possible. Nothing will have you thinking about her side of things, just like in the first game, which is as disappointing as last time.

As far as story moments go, I thought this one had some more interesting ones as well. Having the choice to spare or kill each follower of Lamb was very interesting, and seeing what became of Gil Alexander is pretty grotesque (though the kill/spare option with him is the one time it feels unfitting). There is also a small audio log based subplot with a guy named Mark Meltzer which has a pretty impactful ending. The moment toward the end where you get to control a Little Sister for a small section also manages to me more interesting than you'd imagine it being as you get to see the world through their eyes for the first time, and Sinclair, your likable ally throughout the game, has a very unfortunate fate which also makes for a sad moment.

Gameplay-wise everything has been improved across the board. Plasmids are held in the left had constantly, so no awkward switching to and from Plasmids/Weapons, and upgrading them has cooler effects. Changing ammo types no longer results in a full reload having to be done. Passive tonics are no longer categorized and the tonics here feel a bit more useful. Hacking is simpler, less clunky and more enjoyable as mini-games compared to the first game. The Circus of Values clown doesn't laugh at you anymore. Seriously everything has been upgraded here and its really nice especially after having just played the first game. Combat in general just feels meatier and more visceral, even while maintain pretty much the same lineup of weapons as the first, just visually changed, and the three years between this game and the first means Rapture is now even nicer looking, and more fun to explore as a result. The new Big Sister enemies are the most notable enemy addition, with fights against them always being more frantic than those with Big Daddies. They come after you rescue/harvest a Little Sister, who have also been changed in this game, as you can now 'adopt' them to have them collect additional Adam for you, which results in you having to fend Splicers off as she collects. Alternatively, you can rescue/harvest them immediately, forfeiting the extra Adam but avoiding the fighting that comes with gathering more. The only way this game really falters a bit is in continuing the linearity of the first game. While I don't mind single player FPS games like Half-Life, the BioShock games are offspring of the immersive sims of System Shock 1 and 2, and the looting, plasmid choosing and weapon upgrading all felt like teasing us with how the game could have played were it more open like its inspirations, but regardless this is a personal thing for me.

All in all this is a very solid game, and one that does its job better than the first. While I believe BioShock 1's twist and introduction to the city of Rapture to be the reason its still so heralded, its really disappointing to see this sequel which is superior in many ways get pushed off to the wayside a bit by comparison.

Max Payne 2 is one of those games for me where I feel crazy for having such a different opinion on it compared to others who seem to really enjoy it, with some considering it the best in the series, when for me it is very easily the worst.

As far as gameplay is concerned - its Max Payne with some added flair and ragdoll physics. While the improvements to the gameplay are evident, they are far from vast like everyone likes to claim - they're marginal at best. The largest change to the gameplay is how the gun spread is handled, and this change is a detriment to the game in my eyes. The spread on every weapon has been tightened up a bit, making long range shooting easier, and taking away from some of the John Woo bombasity of the first game, feeling more like a standard action flick. This coupled with Max having a noticeable boost in health this time around, makes you feel less vulnerable and makes the entire game much easier. Combat encounters are pretty trivial especially when you use bullet time and shootdodging as well, making combat even easier. The game really can't afford the combat encounters being as easy and at times unengaging as they are either considering its length. I have played this game twice, once on Detective (Normal) and the second and most recent time on Hard-Boiled (Hard), and both times around I beat the game in three and a half hours. Within that time span, the gameplay on offer here only serves to leave the impression of having played a less challenging, inferior Max Payne 1. The length of this game also damages...

The story. Max Payne 2's plot revolves around a love that forms between Max and femme fatal Mona Sax, who was introduced as a side character in the first game. A love that forms over the course of three and a half hours, which is being generous as it isn't exactly being displayed the entire time you play. It goes without saying it makes this romance between the two feel inauthentic and shoehorned - a seemingly patched together plot for the sequel to a successful title. In my eyes, the first Max Payne is very self contained and ends with most everything wrapped up, and the small fling of a love plot which plays out in this game at worst feels like a slap in the face to Max's character, having lost his wife and child no more than 3 years prior, yet still falling for this stranger and even killing for her. It just feels inorganic and out of place, despite the games writing itself still being decent, even if it doesn't quite live up to the first game for me.

In the end, the gameplay is made far too easy to be memorable with less enjoyable encounters (and even a godforsaken escort mission), and the story doesn't help it with its hamfisted romance that one finds very difficult to care for. With all of this taking place within a 3-4 hour timespan, it makes for a very forgettable game, sitting very awkwardly in the shadow of the game that came before it.