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Many people will be disappointed that Bioshock 2 is so similar to the original. I’m certainly one of those people. But if there is something in which I can take solace, it’s that Bioshock 2 has made me realize the importance of a Creative Director.

Both Bioshocks simply drip atmosphere - in every sense of the word. The environments, particularly in Bioshock 2, feel rundown and sickly as life drips away from Rapture; You can feel the city dying. And to make matters worse, you feel damp.

Ignoring the full blown underwater ‘exploration’ sequences of the game, staying relatively dry and standing nearby a leak will find you immersed… or is it submerged? With a proper sound setup, you’ll hear water droplets pelting away at your tin dome. It’s like Chinese water torture.

A brilliant use of shadows and silhouettes help play with your sense of security in any given area, and the music is some of the best ol’ timey tuning this side of post-apocalyptia. It’s not so much the lounge-night jazz, but more the sad and heartwrenching weep of the violin in the theme music. The opus that’s played as you explore this pitiful and painful collapsed civilization writes its own past, and you really understand how great Rapture rose.

You don’t get these kinds of experiences often. Only in those games of legend does a title make you realize something outside of the gameworld itself. I don’t know if Bioshock 2 will have that lasting appeal the way System Shock 2 did, and I’m vaguely underwhelmed as the familiar gameplay, but regardless, I am truly impressed. An ambience directed with polish, thought, and detail really do make a difference. And a Creative Director is someone who makes that happen.

Wow. I’ve finished Uncharted 2 in about 10 hours of gameplay, I am completely floored. Among all the things games try to be these days, film is most prominently emulated. The problem with this this emulation though, is that the game forfeits interactivity, a key element that makes a game what it is in the first place.

Naughty Dog did a great job with Uncharted [One]: Drake’s Fortune. Voice acting and motion capture were beautifully done - I’d say Hollywood worthy (I mean, c’mon if Megan Fox can be called an ‘actress,’ then these folks are well up there). But they were also guilty of giving up player control. That is something that has improved dramatically (no pun intended) in Among Thieves.

What I loved:

• In-Cinematic Gameplay. We’ve all heard of in-game cinematics, where a cut scene is played out and rendered in real-time using the game engine. These are completely scripted and every characters’ action is predetermined; the player has little choice but to disconnect from the controller and watch, or get up and pee. While Uncharted 2 doesn’t completely do away with these scenes, there are some incredible moments where the player is allowed to take control of Drake as he navigates through some of most intense moments ever seen or played in film and gaming combined. With a little clever camera work, great control mapping, and a polished engine, Uncharted 2 does a brilliant job of creating intense cinematic action experiences without removing user interaction. These moments were so immersive, that I found myself pressing the X button to help Drake climb successfully, even during cut-scenes.
• Diverse environment settings without the feeling of being forced. A lot of games claim to have a wide variety of environments, like mountain-top levels, or swimming levels; sandy deserts and freezing ice fields. But they usually feel tacked on. There’s always some kind of disconnect between them (”We’re going to the Ice Planet! … Now we’re going to the Fire Planet!!”) And somehow - Uncharted 2 has this variety, and none of it feels forced at all. It all flows together so well that you can follow along with the game’s progression.There were, however, moments throughout these levels where the player’s intended path seemed unclear, but I think this is more a testament to how well the maneuverable elements (rocks, vines, bricks, signs, etc) were blended with the rest of the aesthetic environment.
• Chloe’s ass. I think there was subtle, but persistent, emphasis on Chloe’s ass. Not in an untasteful way - but in terms of Chloe as a character. Chloe played, in many forms, the bad girl. Her smokey eyes, dark brunette hair and her sexy English accent made her a a mysterious femme fatale. But above all else, Chloe’s body was modeled to have (excuse the chauvinism,) the ideal ass. There are 3 key moments that draw attention to Chloe’s behind. In one of the early cinematics, there is a scene where Chloe pulls Nate’s hands to her bum - it’s blatant, but is significant in how they want to portray this character. Later on, while boosting Chloe up onto a ladder, Drake remarks in-game, “It’s a shame you have to sit on something so pretty” (or something along those lines). I won’t spoil the third in case there’s actually someone reading this. But suffice to say, I’ve never seen such personality and attention to detail in an ass

At GDC 09, Ubisoft held several talks about the various design concepts that were considered and implemented into Far Cry 2. Jonathan Morin, Ubi MTL’s lead level designer went into all sorts of detail about how the open-world was designed and how they had planned to allow three primary types of players (Planning, ‘Rambo’, and Evasive) to express themselves in the game.

I noticed though, that playing the game in a fashion that I wanted (what I suppose would be ‘expressing myself’) was not entirely inline with Ubisoft’s ideals of player-expression. Here’s what I noticed about each style of player expression:

• Planning meant little more than being able to watch from afar. I was unable to get any kind of reconnaissance feedback that would allow me better comprehend my surroundings and situation. An explosive barrel or tank might be identified on my map, but that hardly lets me get my hands dirty as a player. I can hardly express myself if I can’t make changes to the combat situation.

• Rambo-style running and gunning was intense, keeping me on my toes for the duration of firefights; but I also found that a lot of this intensity could be attributed to clunky controls and navigation. Little things like not being able to step over a low-lying rock and sluggish aiming sensitivity/acceleration really added to the struggle and, in some sense, panic induced by front-facing combat.

• Evasive stealth maneuvering was useful in advancing toward combat, but not entirely useful in avoiding it. Stealth was associated with bush/foliage density, which is an obvious association, but gunplay was unavoidable in many instances. I also found that evading enemies was easier than expected. By flooring my vehicle directly away from any enemy, I was able to distance myself well enough from my enemy. Hell, I don’t even know if they just turned around and gave up.

So I did learn a lot from Jon Morin’s level design lecture, but I realized that all that brilliant thought and design was marred, if only slightly, by shallow player interaction, controls that just feel off, and illogical AI/detection mechanics.