I've been playing Bioshock, the game developed by Irrational Games, which was scooped up by Take Two Interactive shortly before the game was released. I've other posts on the game, but don't take my action nerd perspective for gospel: sales of this game have been phenomenal. It's a good thing that they released this sucker prior to the Halo 3 launch, as this final chapter in the Master Chief's saga is the reason why you should own the Xbox360. I don't have one, but I'm fortunate enough to work at a place where they have gaming rooms with the consoles with visuals served upon on sexy 60" LCDs. My lunch hours are consumed with battle royales and perfecting my head shot. Once we get Halo 3 I don't know what I'll do with the mid-day meeting...prepare for meeting or let Master Chief wreak havoc on the Covenant and Flood...hmmm...
I digress...Bioshock. It's...it's a game where...I'm at a loss for words. It's unbelievable. I read an article saying that it's a 20 hour game, meaning that if you sat down and didn't poo or pee (or just sat in your own filth) or eat or interact with outside world and forgot to eat or sleep you could finish the game. I don't see how it's possible. It's one of the first games in a long time in which your choices determine serious alterations in how non-playable characters (NPCs, as they say) interface with you and how game elements reveal themselves. Exploration is a must and there doesn't appear to be a time limit associated with a player's level of effectiveness in negotiating the obstacles. Oh. Did I mention that the visuals are astounding?
Astounding. The environment, which is an underwater city called Rapture, is a character in the game. The pressure of the fathoms presses on the decaying city and the relentless fingers of the deep are winning the battle to elicit implosion in the various structures. Throw waves of fire from your hand (the wonders of genetic manipulation) at an opponent, and he or she will run to water to put out the flames. Send bolts of electricity into water when an opponent is standing in it, and put them out of commission.
All these graphics come at a cost. My machine's graphic card heats up, and even with 3 fans, this sucker would cook an egg. The resolution? Why the Asymmetrical Cooling System on the EVGA 8800GTX 768MB KO ACS3, of course!
It's only about $745. From the picture above, it seems that some bloke spent that amount twice to sport these cards in SLI (Scalable Link Interface) mode, which effectively doubles the computing power done in high-end graphics processing, which allows graphics to be rendered at a better performance rate, AND it's geared for optimal heat dissipation.
I'm weighing the pros and cons of selling a kidney to get one.
As for politics, I've reached a point where I'm going to need less partisan bickering from the candidates, and more focus on rejuvenating American patriotism...and I don't mean more stickers of yellow ribbons on SUVs driven in communities where less than 1% of the populace enlist...and constructing an economic playing field that will allow this great country to utilize its passion and brains by getting all its citizens involved and participating in their democracy and the global community. It's a tall order, but things of value are seldom easily achieved.
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