This is one of the best classic and immersive sim experiences that I've ever had; amazing story, hilarious faces, complex but fun gameplay, an inventory system like Resident Evil 4 before Resident Evil 4, cool horror moments, great atmosphere. Pretty excited for the enhanced edition, 9/10

i ♥♥♥♥ myself

I remember trying this game when I was young, and not really getting it. But it always fascinated me, so recently I decided to revisit in. And I was genuinely surprised by it.

System Shock 2 is a masterpiece, its atmosphere, sound design, world, and gameplay all mesh together to a product that holds up surprisingly well today.

SS2's gameplay is incredibly unique. it really did it's own thing, not following other game trends at the time, and while this could lead to catastrophe, it really pays off here. While it could broadly be classified as an immersive sim, it honestly feels like its own genre in a lot of ways, with a very unique gameplay loop. Also at times a very unforgiving one. There will be moments in every playthough where you're strapped for currency, ammo, health, or all of the above, which will force you to get creative. And I feel like these difficulty spikes are where a lot of negative reviews come from. Speaking from personal experience, I softlocked myself in a previous playthough that lead to me dropping the game. But once you get past the cruelty it's still an amazing product.

Now, with all of that being said, the game isn't perfect. There are certainly a few moments that date the game, like the inconsistent respawn points, and non-refundable skill point allocations. And the final leg of the game can be very backtrack heavy, and rely a lot on combat, which isn't this games strong suit. Not to mention the final boss having too much RNG for me to consider it enjoyable. But none of this ruins the game, although it does mess up the landing some. But if you've stuck around this long into the game, it won't ruin the experience for you.

Big picture, System Shock 2 is an intense, engaging, fun experience. It's very easy to lose both time and yourself in this game. Despite its aged graphics, the game ends up being very immersive and terrifying at times. I remember just looking out a window into the big empty void of space, and for just a moment feeling very helpless about my situation. Or jumping out of my skin when a yelling "hybrid" jumped me while I was trying to hack a terminal. Its all just a one-of-a-kind experience I can't reccomend more.