I had seen a small portion of "BioShock 2" at various press events and at E3. I was not impressed. Granted it was only a small sliver, but the impression I got was that the developers at 2K Marin had taken the franchise from 2K Boston and turned it into a ham-fisted, action-packed first person shooter. It was a far cry from the quiet, subtle, thought-provoking experience of the first game and I had basically written off the release as an unnecessary (from an artistic standpoint, at least) cash in.

I was wrong.

The Basics

In "BioShock 2" you'll take on the role of Subject Delta, the first successful Big Daddy prototype. Seems you've been out of commission and 10 years have passed since Andrew Ryan and Atlas battled for control of Rapture. You awake to find Rapture in pretty rough shape, but a new ruler is trying to put the pieces back together. You main objective is to reunite with your paired Little Sister and make it out of there alive.

What's Working

Same Old Rapture
Although 10 years have passed, the creepy 50s vibe of Rapture remains, with its sparking neon signs, leaking portholes and crazed residents. My fears that the game had turned into a run-and-gun shooter were dashed within the first few minutes of play, as the slow, thoughtful pacing remains. You'll still find audio recordings which help you to understand some of the missing backstory, and there's even a series of recordings which almost act as a Rapture 101 if you missed the first game. That said, if you missed the first game and you're considering playing the second, don't. Do yourself a favor and pick it up on the cheap.

New Options For Big Daddies and Little Sisters
The gameplay of "BioShock 2" doesn't stray very far from the first game at all. The one major difference is your need to shepherd lost Little Sisters as they go about their business collecting Adam. There are a few options on this front, so I'll try to lay out how it all breaks down.

1) Find a Big Daddy, who is guarding a Little Sister. Kill the Big Daddy. There are a handful of new types to worry about.

2) At this point you can do one of two things:
-a) Harvest the Little Sister for her Adam, thus killing her.
-b) Adopt the Little Sister and take her to a nearby corpse so she can harvest more Adam for herself.

3) Assuming you adopted her, she'll then ride around on your shoulders until you arrive at a glowing corpse. Once you set her down you'll need to defend her as splicers come in from all sides. Think of this like a King of the Hill minigame. These sequences are probably the most action packed in the game and will keep the challenge nice and high for those that thought the first game was too easy.

4) If you successfully protect her, you can then pick her up and take her to a new corpse. Little Sisters max out after 3 corpses, at which point you can choose one of the following:
-a) Harvest instantly, killing the Little Sister but getting a boost in Adam.
-b) Rescue the Little Sister by placing her in one of the pipes scattered throughout Rapture. You'll net some Adam and, if you save enough, the Little Sisters will reward you with plasmids, tonics and more Adam.

5) Rescue or harvest all the Little Sisters in the level and you'll get the attention of the Big Sister. These boss fights play out like fights against Big Daddies, but the Big Sister is much faster and has plasmids. Common misnomer: There's more than one Big Sister. You'll encounter one on just about ever level.

New Nemesis

You can hear all about the new ruler of Rapture, Sophia Lamb, in my interview with one of the developers. Suffice it to say that she's the philosophical opposite of Andrew Ryan, but that doesn't make her any less insane. She's an interesting foe and one you'll be hearing from throughout your adventure.

What Needs Work

Weapon Variety
Even though you're a Big Daddy, your weapons basically act just like the ones in the first game. Apart from the drill, every weapon I've seen so far has a direct correlation. The minigun acts just like the sub-machine gun, the rivet gun acts just like the pistol, and the shotgun acts just like the, well, shotgun. They all have different art, and some new upgrades, but for the most part you're going to be in familiar territory here.

The Intro
2K intentionally cut the intro cutscene from this preview build, so I don't know exactly how the game will start. The opening to the first "BioShock" was one of the best openings in video game history (the plane, the bathysphere, the underwater cityscape), and starting "BioShock 2" off on the right foot is hugely important. Here's hoping they're able to come close.

Closing Thoughts

I can't speak to how well the story stacks up with the incredible twists and turns of the first game, but, strictly from a gameplay and presentation point of view, "BioShock 2" is definitely going to be as good, if not better, than the first game. I came into this preview build as a cynical bastard and I've emerged a convert. Trust me, your return to Rapture is definitely something to look forward to.