BioShock 2 Preview

The potential for bedlam is enormous.

It’s a neat idea, one that should hopefully create a sense of character between the frantic bouts of trapping and shooting. All the changeable settings are accessed through items in your watery abode. Your wardrobe, for example, opens up the options for changing your appearance. From what I’ve seen so far, the character skins retain the gruesome 1940s-gone-wrong vibe that made the original splicers so distinctive. The suited nutters and crazy housewives of the E3 demo were classic BioShock, while their creepy battle cries reminded me of the frayed nerves I had while crawling through Rapture the first time around.

Elsewhere in your flat, you’ll be able to change your combat kit. Each player is allowed to carry two weapons, a pair of plasmids and three support tonics - a relatively limited selection that will force players to consider their tactics prior to each mission. New weapons and bio-mods are unlocked as you gain XP and climb through 20 progressive ranks. On top of that, you’ll also gain new answer phone messages that help to unfurl the story of your spliced-up killer.

To be honest, while the narrative element of BioShock 2’s multiplayer remains something of a mystery, I can’t imagine that it will be a large part of the appeal here. The key draw is the chance to experience the one thing that was missing from the first game: the chance to electrocute your mates before emptying a shell’s worth of buckshot into their confused gob. 2K is clearly aware of this, because if you can’t be naffed with the whole apartment shtick, you can quickly sort all your options through a standard set of menus and then jump straight into the fighting.

On the other hand, the developers are clearly trying hard to adapt the single-player elements of BioShock mythology. Turrets and vending machines are both to be found on maps, for instance, but they’re changed for the sake of the multiplayer experience. The machines offer a free source of ammo and Eve, but are clearly an obvious spot for players to place traps. Turrets, meanwhile, can be hacked to fight on your side - but rather than the old Pipemania-style mini-game, there’s simply a progress bar that takes time to fill.

Locations from the first game will appear in deathmatches.

As for the best in-level feature… well, towards the end of the E3 demo one match is interrupted by a gurgling groan. It turns out that someone’s found a Big Daddy suit. Grab one of these, and you’ll turn into a stompy mountain of death - known to her friends as Rosie. If you find yourself in this position, expect to rack up the kills swiftly - although naturally, every player in the match will be gunning to take you down. Once again, it seems like a smart inclusion, but we won’t know for sure until we play it for ourselves.

And let’s not forget that there will be an entire single-player campaign to play through. The multiplayer side of things is showing several signs of promise, but it’ll be the main course that determines the game’s true success. After all, BioShock 2 has some pretty massive, Big Daddy-sized shoes to fill. Few people doubt that this will be a good game, but it’ll take a Herculean effort for this sequel to match the impact of its predecessor. Keep those fingers crossed, would you kindly?

BioShock 2 is due for release on Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC on October 30.