BioShock

 Xbox 360
User Score
9.0

Universal acclaim- based on 3152 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2,813 out of 3152
  2. Mixed: 178 out of 3152
  3. Negative: 161 out of 3152
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  1. TJH
    Sep 27, 2007
    4
    I thought this game was extremely wierd and couldnt get along with it. Although i thought the visuals were very nice indeed the game was just too odd for me.
  2. ApocalypseB.
    Mar 13, 2008
    4
    How in the world did this game get such great recognition is truly beyond me! I never played System Shock 2, but surely that must of been better than this. Why don't I like it? Because after such a good and intense start, the game grinds to a halt after two hours. The pacing then is slow/dead slow, and that what upset me. The potential for greatness is all there: Plasmids, Big How in the world did this game get such great recognition is truly beyond me! I never played System Shock 2, but surely that must of been better than this. Why don't I like it? Because after such a good and intense start, the game grinds to a halt after two hours. The pacing then is slow/dead slow, and that what upset me. The potential for greatness is all there: Plasmids, Big Daddies, Saving or harvesting the little sisters. Yet all of them have no spark to them after you experience them time and time again. The aiming system and weapons are really sub-standard, from being too simplistic as opposed to being over the top. And the damage they cause, even the buck shot, is limited. Finally the constant dark and uninspired scenery with even more uninspired enemies were the last straw. Nowadays I haven't the time to grind through games like this, I want instant pleasure or I'll more on. Not that I am not a hardcore gamer, just that I know what I want, and rapture isn't the place I want to be!… Expand
  3. DanG.
    Nov 30, 2007
    4
    I just couldnt bring myself to finish it. It wasnt that bad, it just wasnt anything special and I had better games to play (Halo 3). Although the story was interesting and the atmosphere was incedibly deep, the gameplay was meh. Killing the splicers and Big Daddies just felt like a chore and the . I dont understand why the reviewers cant stop raving about it; its just not that special.
  4. MatthewS.
    Sep 5, 2007
    4
    A lot of time went into the the polishing the environment (sound and visuals), not enough in all the other areas that make a game worth playing more than once.
  5. ThatGuy
    Nov 20, 2008
    4
    This was a terrible game for me, boring, repetative, difficult, strange, but not that normal for a game like this strange. This is over the top stupid and creepy strange. This is like, you expect a nice underwater land populated by at least ghosts or something, but no. Its disgusting rotten zombie people who can run and jump and shoot at the speed of light. Then these unexpected twistsThis was a terrible game for me, boring, repetative, difficult, strange, but not that normal for a game like this strange. This is over the top stupid and creepy strange. This is like, you expect a nice underwater land populated by at least ghosts or something, but no. Its disgusting rotten zombie people who can run and jump and shoot at the speed of light. Then these unexpected twists that just annoy you like big daddies and little sisters. This game was a failure, im going back to Nintendo 64 because of this. (The graphics are the same)… Expand
  6. GazFlint
    Sep 1, 2009
    4
    I don't get why so many people like this game, its really repetitive, the crontrols are clunky and at times it's so stupidly hard, I died about five times in a minute once. It was just weird, it didn't know whether it wanted to be an RPG or a shooter, and didn't have the finesse of either. Most over rated game ever.
  7. CitizenWolf
    Aug 18, 2009
    4
    This game bored the pants off me. I really don't see what all the hype was about. So it was set underwater. So what. The only aspect that amused me were the accents. They reminded me of home. Other than that I thought it was dull.
  8. Wackelpudding
    Dec 28, 2007
    4
    The hype for Bioshock only confuses me. Gets on my nerves actually. The only truly impressive element of the graphics compared to other new releases is the water (and blood), the weaponry and models remind me far too much of something like Time Splitters, cartoony and flimsy. The 'atmosphere' becomes dull, and the gameplay is repetitive. I found it a quickly tedious The hype for Bioshock only confuses me. Gets on my nerves actually. The only truly impressive element of the graphics compared to other new releases is the water (and blood), the weaponry and models remind me far too much of something like Time Splitters, cartoony and flimsy. The 'atmosphere' becomes dull, and the gameplay is repetitive. I found it a quickly tedious bodge-together of older ideas: not much more than Deus Ex plus timesplitters with backdrops like the rendered locations from point and click adventure games of Yore. The 'style' is uninspiring. I cannot understand it's popularity. On PC, I found this game Seriously Disappointing.… Expand
  9. BabS.
    Dec 4, 2007
    4
    An ok shooter. The story is not catching at all, and the RPG elements are practically non existent. The big daddies are neither scary, and you meet them all the time. You can always predict what is to happen, and the enemies are neither variated. The "moral" choice is only to kill the evil small girls or let them go, big choice.
  10. tylwrdem
    Aug 1, 2011
    4
    Over hyped, this game is not good. Vast ammo games are a buzz kill. I want to be able to make it through a level with enough ammo in my gun, and not have to beat someone with a wrench. Stupid idea, non modern old fashion games don't cut it for me. Yes if we look at the story it is clean and the graphics are nice, but that doesn't dismiss the fact that there is no appeal to this game.Over hyped, this game is not good. Vast ammo games are a buzz kill. I want to be able to make it through a level with enough ammo in my gun, and not have to beat someone with a wrench. Stupid idea, non modern old fashion games don't cut it for me. Yes if we look at the story it is clean and the graphics are nice, but that doesn't dismiss the fact that there is no appeal to this game. Nothing really attracted me to is and it has 0 replay value something that even people who like this can not deny.… Expand
  11. RayH.
    Aug 20, 2007
    3
    Great graphics, implausible storyline...Hard to play (difficulty wise).. The reviewers may be enamored with this title, but if the first thing I do upon entering a strange facility I know nothing about, and I find a hypo needle on the ground...well, I would just shove this needle into my arm? Uh..realism...NOT! And the difficulty ramps up...casual players need not apply!
  12. AlexB.
    Aug 30, 2007
    3
    It has graphics. When you shoot someone they scream bloody murder like you're actually killing a real person. I found it a little too dark, too "evil" to play. What the hell is with the 7 year old little girls drinking and throwing up blood, that is just sick. This game would probably be fun if i could get past so much evil in it.
  13. MattR.
    Sep 24, 2007
    3
    Impressive visuals and a pretty good storyline, but the gameplay is repeditive, linear, and just pretty boring. At times, even with brightness at or above the recommended level, you just can't see anything. It hasn't done anything other games haven't. Although it is pretty satisfying to smack enemies with the wrench. 3 for the graphics and voices, -7 for the gameplay and sounds.
  14. KurtC.
    Dec 28, 2007
    3
    Boring and not very good. Amazing production values (graphics/sound) and an average story, although it was presented well. The problem is the gameplay. It is just so lacking, and it is very sad to hear this compared with the System Shock games. They are in a completely different league to this game. Also, anyone who gives a game 100 out of 100, should not be in the business of reviewing anything.
  15. biosux
    Nov 19, 2007
    3
    3? Yes a 3 for the occasionally pretty graphics and an attempt at a different story from most drab shooters.

    After that there's nothing left to talk about in a positive light as it's all downhill, controls, widescreen, pacing, rewards, enemy variety, respawns, BUGS, BUGS, crashes, BUGS, 2k's attitude to customers... basically a very poor game masquerading as the best    3? Yes a 3 for the occasionally pretty graphics and an attempt at a different story from most drab shooters.

    After that there's nothing left to talk about in a positive light as it's all downhill, controls, widescreen, pacing, rewards, enemy variety, respawns, BUGS, BUGS, crashes, BUGS, 2k's attitude to customers... basically a very poor game masquerading as the best thing since sliced bread.

    I'm sure on the 360 this game feels a lot better but on PC it's a pale imitation of it's spiritual predecessor (system shock 2). It doesn't even work ergonomically, it's got useless controls and when it's not crashing the gameplay is actually very poor. See edges or gamecritics review for the real skinny on this 'game'.

    Avoid like the plague or at least try on rental,.. oh hey that's exactly what you do when you BUY the PC version because the DRM means you get a few installs and that's it, even with it's revoke tool, it doesn't work so you basically won't get to install it much every time you reformat, which thankfully you won't want to anyway because the game is that dull.

    A damp squib in the firework box of PC gaming and one best killed off before it's legacy comes to represent the 'best' of what gaming has to offer.    … Expand
  16. MarkS
    Oct 17, 2007
    3
    Certainly not worth the scores it has received. The graphics and storytelling are about all that's good - or rather, medicre - in this water-clogged interactive story. Gameplay (shoot once, run out of ammo, then pull out the wrench) and fun (have I been here yet? Where am I? What am I doing? Is that thing good or bad? This is boring.. ) were clearly sacraficed in place of graphics.
  17. TraceA.
    Aug 28, 2007
    3
    This game is tremendously over-rated. What were the reviews smoking? All you do is search and collect.
  18. RickS
    Jun 12, 2009
    3
    96 my @ss, this game was boring, simple as that, why do we play countless hours of Cod 4 death match over and over? Cuz it's fun. BioShock was just tedious, do you like stupid mini games,searching in cabinets, or reloading your gun?. If yes this game is for you. For those who claim to love Bioshock, play it for an hour lets see how far you get, in that hour you would have walked 96 my @ss, this game was boring, simple as that, why do we play countless hours of Cod 4 death match over and over? Cuz it's fun. BioShock was just tedious, do you like stupid mini games,searching in cabinets, or reloading your gun?. If yes this game is for you. For those who claim to love Bioshock, play it for an hour lets see how far you get, in that hour you would have walked around and prob killed 4 enemies while hacking vending machines, AGAIN NOT FUN. What about the guns, ok why freeze a guy when i can just shoot him, the powers in this game is use less, because your guns do the exact amount of damage or more, switching from powers to guns was terrible, all while getting shot in your face over and over. After a while i just stopped dodging. Thats right you walk up to an enemy and just shoot, go to a vending machine and buy health. Repeat over and over. I believe the downfall of this game was the enemies, there just not engaging to kill, when i'm fighting locust(GOW) or gunning down marines(cod 4) its way more thrilling. By the time i finished the game i really didn't care, i just wanted to be done with it, this game was a huge let down. I'M NOT GONNA PLAY BIOSHOCK 2 LET ALONE BUY IT. Keiko C is moron, write a review idot, all you did was bash.… Expand
  19. Kaprawiec
    Sep 14, 2016
    3
    I just hate this game. Dont know what exactly, but its not fun. Its dark, ugly and the way the story is told (by picking notes is bad. So overrated...
  20. Faxthtax
    Sep 22, 2018
    3
    This game have not stood the test of time well, even with the remaster. It is pretty dull to say at least. Bioshock Infinite was a great step up to the original but the first one lacks so much in terms of impression. The enemies are quite annoying, hard to dodge, and impossible to kill with a wrench alone without taking damage. Health, ammo and money is darn scarce so eventually you willThis game have not stood the test of time well, even with the remaster. It is pretty dull to say at least. Bioshock Infinite was a great step up to the original but the first one lacks so much in terms of impression. The enemies are quite annoying, hard to dodge, and impossible to kill with a wrench alone without taking damage. Health, ammo and money is darn scarce so eventually you will run out and die several times.
    I did not bother to play far in to it be fed up and just put it away. So i just did not understand the praise this game has really    … Expand
  21. TonyG.
    Oct 11, 2007
    2
    I'm shocked this game has received such acclaim. The graphics are nice and the story charming, but that's all. Gameplay is pathetically awful. Shoot, run out of ammo, & swing wrench. How this even got past playtesting is a mystery to me. Framerate begins to glitch and freeze when things get busy. Ammunition is stupidly scarce, requiring you to search every bit of garbage on the I'm shocked this game has received such acclaim. The graphics are nice and the story charming, but that's all. Gameplay is pathetically awful. Shoot, run out of ammo, & swing wrench. How this even got past playtesting is a mystery to me. Framerate begins to glitch and freeze when things get busy. Ammunition is stupidly scarce, requiring you to search every bit of garbage on the floor. Your primary weapons are zapping somebody with electricity and then clubbing them. You can't even access all the power menus from the standard game interface, these only unlock when you pick up an item. Skip this overhyped nonsense an d buy a real game like Halo 3.… Expand
  22. BillyE.
    Oct 1, 2007
    2
    Bioshock has a lot of potential. Starting off with the good, the storyline is one of the best ever, and the audio tapes are a very nice touch. THE BAD. As promised, there are many ways of killing your enemies. Unfortunately, the game's difficulty is too easy. The developer told people that ammo would be scarce and it ISN'T. A brief search through the trash cans and tables of Bioshock has a lot of potential. Starting off with the good, the storyline is one of the best ever, and the audio tapes are a very nice touch. THE BAD. As promised, there are many ways of killing your enemies. Unfortunately, the game's difficulty is too easy. The developer told people that ammo would be scarce and it ISN'T. A brief search through the trash cans and tables of rapture will yield more than enough ammo. Also, the one-two punch introduced in the beginning of the game (shock+wrench) is useful throughout the entire game. Why use telekinesis on your enemies when you can just shock and whack them. Why use advanced tactics when you can just shock and whack your way to victory. Hacking? Its useful but too easy. Big daddys can be taken down by using a shotgun with electric bullets. Simple. Bioshock has many innovative features but it does not PROVIDE enough circumstances of which they can be utilized. Translation: Its too easy… Expand
  23. JeremyL.
    Dec 7, 2007
    2
    Great graphics, good storyline, pretty good thriller. Nothing like I expected, no RPG element. Basic horror FPS. Would have been much better on PC, Xbox 360 isn't for FPS', I bought it for the RPG element it was advertised as having, and was disappointed to find that it was nothing like that.
  24. Ryencoke
    Sep 25, 2007
    2
    Did I play the same game as the rest of you? I was expecting this game to blow me away. It didn't do that at all. It's basically 'Condemned: Criminal Origins', with a little magic & minor graphical updates. I'm still in awe at all these reviews. Seriously, this game was not good. You get to kill the same creatures over and over, in the same enviornments. All this Did I play the same game as the rest of you? I was expecting this game to blow me away. It didn't do that at all. It's basically 'Condemned: Criminal Origins', with a little magic & minor graphical updates. I'm still in awe at all these reviews. Seriously, this game was not good. You get to kill the same creatures over and over, in the same enviornments. All this game is, 'hack this', 'hack that'.. Kill this... Lame. Avoid it, and fix these reviews.… Expand
  25. JakeH.
    Nov 18, 2007
    2
    This game was great at 1st but after an hour the game gets repetative e.g there are only so many enemy types and most of the time the games objectives are go there collect that. The gameplay isnt that good either and enemies dont react the way you think they should when they are shot. For an FPS it is quite a long game but that just means more time wasted because it has to be one of the This game was great at 1st but after an hour the game gets repetative e.g there are only so many enemy types and most of the time the games objectives are go there collect that. The gameplay isnt that good either and enemies dont react the way you think they should when they are shot. For an FPS it is quite a long game but that just means more time wasted because it has to be one of the most dissapointing endings i have ever seen.… Expand
  26. HunterDooley
    Nov 14, 2007
    2
    Bioshock is one of those games where the first couple of days you have it, u think its like the best game you've ever played.
    You get a little deeper into the story and you realize its nothing more than a polished up game thats extremely overrated.
    Game play is fun to begin with, but the sparkle fades away when you find yourself killing monsters the same way over and over again.    Bioshock is one of those games where the first couple of days you have it, u think its like the best game you've ever played.
    You get a little deeper into the story and you realize its nothing more than a polished up game thats extremely overrated.
    Game play is fun to begin with, but the sparkle fades away when you find yourself killing monsters the same way over and over again. Graphics are mind-bendingly stunning but the luster fades off after awhile. If you want long lasting fun get COD4,Gears,Halo 3, or the Orange Box.    … Expand
  27. SighMN
    Feb 17, 2013
    2
    I found the combat of Bioshock (and Bioshock 2) just really uninteresting and boring. I loved the atmosphere of this game and the story (when there were bits of it), but I could never find myself interested in it enough to finish the game. Repetitive enemies and having to scrounge through every single piece of debris to get small amounts of ammo and clunky combat design makes is a realI found the combat of Bioshock (and Bioshock 2) just really uninteresting and boring. I loved the atmosphere of this game and the story (when there were bits of it), but I could never find myself interested in it enough to finish the game. Repetitive enemies and having to scrounge through every single piece of debris to get small amounts of ammo and clunky combat design makes is a real turn off. Why did everyone love this game?… Expand
  28. dudebarry
    Oct 14, 2012
    2
    The good: Good graphics. Water looks great and the Unreal engine is really good.

    The bad: This game is drivel. It's a zombie shooter where enemies have no sense of self-preservation and require no skill to kill. They range from tedious to highly armoured which means if you don't have any ammo, expect to have to respawn over and over again to kill them. They also reappear, so if    The good: Good graphics. Water looks great and the Unreal engine is really good.

    The bad:

    This game is drivel. It's a zombie shooter where enemies have no sense of self-preservation and require no skill to kill. They range from tedious to highly armoured which means if you don't have any ammo, expect to have to respawn over and over again to kill them. They also reappear, so if you've cleared a room. leave and re-enter, half the time new enemies come back.

    The map is difficult to use. Why isn't my head the tip of the arrow on the map? As a result, navigation is confusing and almost impossible. The game's too complicated. Not content with one monetary system, they've introduced a second. Also, all of the different tonics, potions and lotions are just too much. I lose track of which category of power-ups are useful and which ones I don't care about. I keep getting mixed up between physical and combat tonics, and keep buying more slots for the wrong one. It's just really annoying.

    It's just totally repetitive. I am SO BORED of playing the rubbish little pipeline game to hack robots, security cameras, etc. I'm SO BORED of killing the same zombies over and again, and hunting for objects. I'm just bored of the entire game.

    The story is pointless and the main character just accepts everything unquestioningly (who is Atlas and why is my character doing what he says?). Apparently this'll all be explained in the end with a great twist, but I probably won't bother ever completing this game so won't see it. I'm SO bored of this game after playing it for 9 hours (and not enjoying it for that time, waiting until I have a glimmer of fun) that I think I'll just cheat my way through the rest of it. The part where I actually start liking this game doesn't appear to be happening any time soon, and apparently I'm 1/3 of the way through.

    Ever heard that you need 3 things to make you feel good: Mastery, autonomy and purpose? This game gives you autonomy. I'm currently boring my way through having to collect 21 little potions. Pointless repetition combined with only half knowing where to go (for once the little arrow at the top has stopped giving me directions).

    The story is TOO SLOW so I feel like there's NO PURPOSE. It's not mysterious it's just slow.

    And I can keep on dying and respawning as much as I like which means that my choices have NO CONSEQUENCES and are completely meaningless. I can shoot Big Daddies from my respawn point (because if you run out of money and decent weapons you can barely kill them). The other enemies are basically zombies that run at you mindlessly. No tactics at all. So there's no need to master anything in this game. It's just a tedious walk through the levels.

    I am completely baffled why this game has scored so highly. I'm only glad I bought it 5 years after its release instead of paying full price for it.

    So in short if you like games like Batman where you enjoy having to outsmart your enemies (ones with a sense of self-preservation) and enjoy variety while making meaningful choices that have actual consequences, you probably won't enjoy this game. But for some reason 1,305 people rated it highly...    … Expand
  29. neomoonsevin
    Jan 3, 2023
    2
    First time playing this and it looks horrible I hate the look of the graphics and I'm not much likeing anything else on this either
  30. NickB.
    Aug 16, 2007
    1
    The cartoony user models and the complicated and confusing gameplay makes the game way over hyped and really only a rent due to the lack of multiplayer.
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Awards & Rankings

1
#1 Best Xbox 360 Game of 2007
2
#2 Most Discussed Xbox 360 Game of 2007
1
#1 Most Shared Xbox 360 Game of 2007

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
96

Universal acclaim - based on 88 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 88 out of 88
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 88
  3. Negative: 0 out of 88
  1. ActionTrip
    92
    In a nutshell, beyond any shadow of doubt, BioShock is an excellent single-player shooter experience. The undeniable quality of this title and its emphasis on true and not pseudo-mature storytelling and character development make it a must-have for every self-respecting gamer.
    Read full review
  2. GameSpot
    90
    Its weak link is its unsatisfying no-skill-required combat, which might aim this one just over the head of the average Halo fan. But if you want to get a little fancy, there's a lot of fun to be had with some of the game's more indirect fighting methods. It builds an amazing atmosphere by using terrific graphics and sound to set a creepy mood. But BioShock's real strengths are as a compelling work of interactive fiction, and as a unique ride through a warped world with some great payoff built into its mysterious plot. If that description has you even the least bit interested, you won't be disappointed one bit.
    Read full review
  3. GameDaily
    100
    The first-person shooter's great looking, has an engrossing storyline, a perfect balance of action and exploration and a totally customizable combat system that can be described as nothing less than video game rapture.
    Read full review
See all critic reviews »