Bioshock

BioShock is a first-person shooter that incorporates elements found in role-playing and survival horror games. The player takes the role of Jack, a passenger on a plane that crashes over the Atlantic Ocean near the entrance to a large, underwater metropolis named Rapture in 1960. He soon discovers the city has fallen into chaos.

The player collects weapons, health packs, and Plasmids that give Jack special powers such as telekinesis or electro-shock, while fighting off the deranged population of the underwater city of Rapture. The player at times will need to use stealth to slip by security cameras and foes, and can also hack into security stations to turn automated drones to his side. The main resources in the game are ADAM, EVE, and Money. ADAM is used for character growth, EVE (which is similar to "mana" or "MP" in fantasy RPGs) allows the use of Active Plasmids, and Money allows the purchase of special items and ammunition as well as "buying out" (effectively bribing) security bots and turrets.

To adapt and advance their character, the player can spend ADAM to gain Plasmids to modify themselves and give themselves new or enhanced abilities and weapons. These are grouped under the Combat, Engineering, Active, and Physical trees. The "Active" Plasmids are essentially alternate weapons, activated by the player in order to be used. The other classes of Plasmids (referred to as Tonics) are passive ability-boosters. One Tonic (Camouflage) causes the character to become invisible when they are not moving.

Plasmids are versatile, and the player can use them in concert with each other and the environment to great effect. For example, one of the first bosses the player will face is a crazed surgeon. The player can use Incinerate to set him on fire, then as he tries to put himself out in a pool of water the player can use ElectroBolt to electrocute the water. While he is stunned and convulsing, the player can hack a nearby medical station so that it will poison the surgeon when he tries to heal himself. Telekinesis can be used on all physically simulated objects; not only can the player catch grenades or rockets and throw them back at an enemy, he can also pick up a burning object or corpses and throw it to set an enemy on fire, or even defuse and re-set traps. The player has a limited number of slots to use on different types of Plasmids, so they have to decide which ones to arm themselves with and which to put into storage.

BioShock has received "universal acclaim" from critics and has been reviewed very highly. The game has been cited as having an "inescapable atmosphere", "inconceivably great plot" and "stunning soundtrack and audio effects". The gameplay and combat system have been praised for being smooth and open-ended. Overall, reviewers have noted that the combination of the game's elements "straddles so many entertainment art forms so expertly that it's the best demonstration yet how flexible this medium can be. It's no longer just another shooter wrapped up in a pretty game engine, but a story that exists and unfolds inside the most convincing and elaborate and artistic game world ever conceived."