re-reviewing 6/10/23, old review: "it's a cool game that's physically painful to play"

system shock 2 isnt a horror game, it's a game about running around shooting monkeys to blasting techno and it's fucking sick

i gave this game another shot finally, really really enjoyed it and felt like i was unfair my first run. it does have problems and can be really tedious (recreation deck in particular drags on for waaay too long) but the game's systems are so tightly wound together that it's hard not to enjoy it.

one thing i love about older pc games is how they create worlds that feel lived in and believable, and system shock 2 is that for me. getting to explore the ship and see the experiences of its inhabitants is what created the horror for me. while i didnt find the game itself that scary, my empathy for the residents of the von braun, even those who were turned by the many, carried my appreciation for the game and its story.

ironically, i feel like shodan is the weakest part of the game. her reveal is spoiled pretty early on (if you dont know already), and i dont think it's as effective. what the game does great with her though, is making her your only companion when all else fails. the von braun is cripplingly lonely, you find no other sane humans and the many are both trying to kill you and call out to you in agony. this sense of isolation is crushing, but shodan, despite your fear of her, provides some sense of company and keeps you going. i felt bad killing her even, because she just feels similar to the many where she's just grown beyond her own control and right to. while i think what the game wants her to be - a sinister overboding figure who manipulates all of these events - doesnt work for me, her position as an unreliable and scary companion works very well.

in spite of the clunk, this games systems are so sick. i love the different stats and weapons, i love the stress of managing your inventory and resources. this game feels like some of the best inventory juggling besides resident evil, and its level design is reminiscient of metroidvania (which makes sense, since this is one of the first games to be considered an 'immersive sim', where player freedom and game keys are important elements). the shooting could be better, but it's good enough. the level design and resource management makes it work. only thing id say felt unfair were the cyborg assassins because holy shit they are so fast for how slow you fire

good game. really enjoyed revisiting it and it will definitely set some expectations for me for the genre as a whole.