System Shock 2 - PC *Masterpiece*

Ranking amongst the very finest games ever made, System Shock 2 is still heralding the future of computer gaming almost ten years after its initial release. Alone and in constant danger, on board a vast starship billions of miles from Earth, you alone must thwart the sinister machinations of both a maniacal rogue artificial intelligence and an unknown alien consciousness; starting out with nothing more that a wrench. You wake to find the ship empty of human life and in a disturbing series of pre-recorded messages, journals and psychokinetic emanations (ghosts), slowly the dismal fate of your crew is revealed. Never in any other game has fear been made so palpable, never has the desire to survive transcended into virtual reality so distinctly. Played on the hardest difficulty setting (highly recommended) every bullet, every skill point and every ounce of cunning must be used to navigate the tortuous corridors of your interstellar prison. The groans, ominous mantras and the cold whirr of defence turrets keeps you transfixed to the edge of your seat; the use of sound in a game has never been used to such powerful effect. This game is deep and involving on a level that almost no other can match; employing the full use of an extensive range of weaponry, abundant psychic powers, skills, research trees, exotic cybernetic upgrades and gadgets. Ultimately System Shock 2 combines the depth and involvement of the best computer RPG's with the instant immersiveness typical of games from other genres. Merely describing the game mechanics do not do this game justice; the complete experience is one that will live on in video game legend.

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System Shock 2 Fansite
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It requires a little bit of patching and tweaking to get flawless performance on XP. There are various level editors, graphic updates and bug fixes which are all available from the aforementioned fansite. System Shock 2 gives a taste of what computer games could be. There can be no greater accolade.