Should I purchase Bioshock 2?....

[Talikar]

Don't get me wrong, the first game is good. Not the best game, in my opinion, but it's good and I don't have too many regrets getting it (although I do have some).

The real question is:
Should I get Bioshock 2? OR should I wait a year or two first?

Honestly, when I obtained the PC version of Bioshock, I didn't expect that I'd be purchasing an almost unsupported, semi-buggy, hit-and-miss type of game that was poorly ported and doesn't allow normal PC gamepads. I also didn't know that a year later, a PS3 version would come out with more content, or that the X360 AND the PS3 versions would get these bizarre trophy things and the PC version remains left out.

I feel like I obtained software that was in beta or pre-release stages, that was only meant as a teaser or trailer for the other versions of the game. Granted, I do get the full game and can play from start to finish, but is that all the game has to offer? No. Am I ever going to get everything the game has to offer? No. I have one simple notion; only get a game once. I will not buy a game, buy the game again, and then buy the game yet again just to get the full package. I'm not the type to have more money than brains.

Marketing and my frustration with companies being complete goofs aside; should I obtain Bioshock 2 when it's released? Or should I wait a couple years in case they bring out another one with more/or exclusive content?

I mean, sure, it's great marketing and can get the company's pockets lined with cash. But there is a flip side to it making it a gamble. If Bioshock 2 does the same thing and brings out another version of itself a year after it's released with more content on it, then that's just paving the door way for people like me to stop purchasing from the company. Why? Simply to try and give a message: "Stop treating your fan-base as money machines, and treat them more like human beings".

Hopefully Bioshock 2 doesn't do the same thing. If it does I may just wait years for any game from "2K Games" and purchase them for 10 bucks in a bargain bin. I don't see any reason to dish out so much cash if that's all a company seems to care about.

P.S. I do not mean to sound offensive with any of the above, I just want to know if I should hold off purchasing Bioshock 2 when it comes out some time next year or not..

[BioShock Freak]

It's all up to you. I'm sure you know that PC gaming doesn't come with trophies or achievements, that's a 360/PS3 thing. If you're interested in trophy/achievements and a better experience, then I suggest you try playing the game on a PS3 or an Xbox 360 and see how you like it.

~Mari.

[japester]

How can you not sound offensive when you completely insult the PC version of the game (which, by the way, worked flawlessly for a great many of us) and then ask a ridiculous question about waiting to buy BioShock 2? How can anyone answer that kind of question? I can see no reason for your post other than a really odd rant.

Every version of BioShock has something to be envious of compared to every other version. PC version has the best graphics and the ability to ghost and take awesome screenshots. 360 has trophies. And both of them had the ability to play the game 13 months before the PS3 crowd. PS3 has the ability to purchase additional content and Survivor Mode. If you are looking for something to complain about, you will find it with any version of the game. (Trust me, I've spent a year watching every type of gamer--PC, 360, and PS3--complain about how the other two formats have it so much better.)

Let's say you wait 2 years to buy BioShock 2. Will you complain 5 years after that if they release some sort of BioShock Diamond Edition that includes BioShock 1-3, with updated graphics and some extra levels? Progress doesn't sit still. And heaven help you if you ever buy DVD's. How many movies get released multiple times with extra features? And then box sets later on with even more features and lower prices??

No company is going to lay out every future release for you. That is the way the world works. If a product has been out a while, you lower prices or add something extra to get people to repurchase it or to attract new customers. As far as BioShock 2 is concerned, they have already confirmed that all 3 platforms will get it. I assume that means a simultaneous release, but I can't say for sure. Even if it is simultaneous, does that completely rule out a better edition down the road? Who knows? But my guess is that this delay on the PS3 version and the addition of exclusive content was not 2K's ideal choice, and they will avoid repeating it in the future if they can. Plus, with a major motion picture in the works, they will want to release future games all at once to capitalize on any movie publicity that is out there.

[BioShock Freak]

Very well said, Japester. To me it seems more of a rant than asking for someone's opinion if they should buy it anyway. It's ridiculous that you come here, talking down on the game then wanting our unbiased opinion, when you clearly are biased to the game.
~Mari.

[Talikar]

First person who doesn't try to provoke me further will get a response.

[BioShock Freak]

First person who doesn't try to provoke me further will get a response.

No one's provoking you. And for you to come in here, insulting the game and expecting people to reply nicely or give you positive feedback, well that's just kinda dumb.

~Mari.

[Talikar]

I have yet to insult the game, if you would like I could go and do so with a revised post. I did say it was semi-buggy, if that is what you were referring to. My gripe is with the incomplete version I have, over the fact that the ps3 has extra content, despite the fact it should have been released the same time as the PC and X360 versions. My gripe is with the marketing and the poor release decision of their software. They rushed the game, and it shows. I'm sure they didn't want this, as no one wants it. I was merely giving them a message regarding how it can be harmful to their business. They did, however, make a solid game with a solid story, despite some bugs here and there. I too do not have many bugs with my DVD copy of Bioshock, the game runs flawlessly on my PC. It didn't always, but it does now, and has for quite some time. That is not the point of this topic.

I have nothing against the game itself, in fact I like it, which I mentioned in my first post. No one is fully insulting the game here, if you'd like to think I am, that's your call. But I assure you, if I wanted to insult the game, my original post would have had a much heavier tone, and would have been more situated to that end without saying my question 2 or 3 times.

[Zorro]

I think you should wait at least a year or two first.

[Talikar]

To the moderators:
Upon re-reading my original message, I feel I owe the moderators an apology. I did miss-word much of my original message that may have been seen as an attack on Bioshock itself. That was not my intention. I had to reword it several times before I even posted it to try and avoid that from happening.

I was just using the rest to emphasize the question, and try to clarify my message, but apparently I had the opposite effect if I had two moderators disliking what I said.

If you'd like I'll reword it to something like:
"What does everyone think? Should I purchase the game on release, or wait a year or two to see if a newer - greater version of the game is released? Or is it pointless to wait, and should I just dive for the new game?"

As I said, I do like Bioshock. I think it's one of the better games on the market, and I do want Bioshock 2, I just want to enjoy every aspect of the game without missing out due to weird marketing decisions (which may have been weird contracts, and not actually the company's fault).

P.S. As for diamond/box sets in the future, that's to be expected, and wouldn't bother me. That's a little different. This Bioshock case is a special one as it shouldn't have happened - but did anyway.

I think you should wait at least a year or two first.

Thanks for answering.

[rootbeertapper]

Not trying to be rude here but you can't come in a forum where hardcore BS fans hang out and start dissing their game. They will all gang up on you quicker than you can say Atlas. You need to ask the question to a casual group of gamers who do not frequent this forum at all, preferably ones that understand BS flaws in terms of what it does right and what it does wrong, based on a long established list of do's and dont's in video games.

As mentioned in a previous thread 2K is not the only gaming company that releases the same game on different platforms with a few new features stuck in here and there to entice completists to buy the game all over again.

Game companies love to use the word Exclusive its like a magical catch all for any features despite how big or how small. Exclusive is right up there with the words 'and more!'. When the box says 'and more!' thats a red flag right away telling you that the producer of the content has run out of ideas to pitch the sale to the consumer.

DVD movies love to use exclusive, and more! as well. 6-12 months down the road that exclusive content is on a widescreen double deluxe super ultra mega christmas pack with the same features from the previous version of the DVD plus one or two additional never before scenes blah blah blah.

This is the reason I do not buy dvd's anymore I just rent them and then see which one has the most features and compare and contrast then I make a purchase, but I always buy used.

If you are going to make a game for 3 different platforms it should be the same game for each one, otherwise its clear that the company prefers one consumer market over the other.

I feel bad for the PS3 people because that version was still top dollar for a game already in circulation a year later and then they had to pay again for the DLC. Yes, I undestand that nobody forced them to buy it at that price but I am just saying it was pretty high imo.

The motion picture companies and gaming companies can only blame themselves for consumers not buying their products new on store shelfs due to variations in the supplemental material etc. Why do I want to buy a game where in one version I get an entire new level but in the other version I get the standard experience?

The motion picture companies are learning though. They are releasing Full screen and Widescreen versions with the same supplemental material on the DVD's and in some cases they are putting FS and WS on the same disk be it DVD or Blueray and the same supplemental material so regardless what version you purchase DVD or blueray you still get the same supplemental material but the movie is not HD on dvd. The movies have to be on a dual sided double layer DVD to fit FS and WS versions plus supplemental but the experience is the same except no HD.

Games have not learned this yet but once PC games shift over to Blueray as a storage medium over DVD then I think they will finally understand what consumers want.

When Bioshock 2 comes out I am just going to rent it. If all the hype over it turns out to be true and it decends in a golden chariot and brings me to the promised land then I will buy it. I definately will not be trusting the ratings and reviews that game magazines give it.

Don't start flaming people because you think BioShock is the greatest thing since sliced bread we all have opinions and should respect them. If we did not have opinions there wouldn't be a forum to begin with.

[marco888]

Wait a year or two so we don't have to listen to your relentless whinging and "high-horse" retorts.

[Talikar]

Sorry, had a mean moment; just trying to make it clear that:

I did NOT diss the game ITSELF.

[rootbeertapper]

Honestly, when I obtained the PC version of Bioshock, I didn't expect that I'd be purchasing an almost unsupported, semi-buggy, hit-and-miss type of game that was poorly ported and doesn't allow normal PC gamepads. I also didn't know that a year later, a PS3 version would come out with more content, or that the X360 AND the PS3 versions would get these bizarre trophy things and the PC version remains left out.

I feel like I obtained software that was in beta or pre-release stages, that was only meant as a teaser or trailer for the other versions of the game...

This is not dissing?

Then perhaps you dissed the BioShock Franchise is that being more clear?

[japester]

Thanks for the apology. Yes, your first post came across as very insulting to the game (semi-buggy, poorly ported, hit or miss, like a beta, etc). You've since clarified your position, which helps.

But again, there is no answer for you. And no company, 2K or any other, is going to let you know everything they have planned for the future. That simply isn't how business is done. And did you read my final paragraph? I laid out some reasons why this isn't likely to happen again.

This wasn't a "weird" marketing situation, either. Microsoft apparently wanted a timed exclusive. That happens every day with lots of games. And standard wording on an exclusive contract usually includes a gag order about later releases (ie, the PS3). It defeats the purpose when people know they can simply wait and get it on another system. Again, this is very common, especially for Microsoft.

Because they had to wait over a year for the game, 2K offered them exclusive content. I don't know if you've researched it at all, but the bulk of the extra content, the Challenge Rooms, exist completely outside of the main storyline. They are nothing more than puzzle rooms accessed from the main menu. Which is why I take offense at your repeated claims that your version of BioShock is somehow incomplete or lacking. The fact that the Challenge Rooms are so isolated proves that the main storyline is perfect just the way it is.

As for trophy support, that is not a PC shortcoming. Very, very few PC games have trophy support. While almost every 360 and PS3 game has it. That is not unique to BioShock at all. Maybe if the trophies unlocked additional content in the console versions you'd have a legitimate complaint. But they do not, so you do not.

Wait if you want, but that is your choice. At least if you play on PC, you are guaranteed to see the price go down if you wait, and that's always a good thing.

[marco888]

Sorry, had a mean moment; just trying to make it clear that:

I did NOT diss the game ITSELF.

I apologise too for my ridiculously tongue in cheek comment.

[Talikar]

Thanks, Japester. You actually did give me the answer I was looking for. Although I apparently missed it on my first skim through of that one post. I'll get the game when I get it, probably early on.

This topic is here out of my ignorance and stupidity. I realize I shouldn't have posted it at all, but if nothing else, at least it gave some extra life to the forums, even if short lived. I don't mind if it's closed or anything. Also, even if they do it again, I won't complain about it. I don't make it a habit of bringing up the same thing too many times, and once is too many times in this case.

P.S. And despite the fact I'm not Mr. Popular, I'm happy. Just to have more information. Thanks again.

@marco
nah, it's cool. I deserved that.

[BioShock Freak]

To the moderators:
Upon re-reading my original message, I feel I owe the moderators an apology. I did miss-word much of my original message that may have been seen as an attack on Bioshock itself. That was not my intention. I had to reword it several times before I even posted it to try and avoid that from happening.

Thanks for the apology. It was not our intention to attack you in any way. You came here as if you were armed to the teeth with what it seemed to be an angry rant and that's exactly what we interpreted it as.
With that being said, I'd say get the game when it comes out. It's hard to predict if you're gonna like it or not because we don't know anything about it yet. I'm pretty excited about it and I'm pretty sure it's gonna be as good as the first one, but there's always a possibility that it might not. At this moment, it's hard to say whether we'll like it or not. I'd wait til there's more info on what the story's gonna be about, new trailers or gameplay videos. You know? It'd be easier to judge then if you're gonna like it or not.

~Mari.

[Cohen's Masterpiece]

i think it depends on how long it is until BioShock 2 comes out.

Your avatar is awesome, by the way