I have to say that the narrator took the words right out of my mouth at the end of the X-Play BioShock Preview. The developer makes some satisfying comments as well, regarding weapons and self-modification of the character, but I think I speak for every FPS fan when
I say that in-game footage does the trick alone.
Just like in the 15 minute gameplay demonstration video at E3, where Ken Levine stated that weapons could be modified to shoot different kinds of bullets, to hold bigger magazines and to shoot more powerfully, the gameplay footage below is the only one I've seen living up to those words
- the game does a tremendously good job at keeping the player alert; - there are so many items and self-modifying options that it'll take gamers months to get used to them; - fast paced action is at its peak; - never knowing what lurks in the dark - always a winner; - electrical arch stunning multiple enemies when on water, inflicting even more damage.
The game combines three game genres at once, and does an extremely good job at it too. BioShock is half first-person-shooter and two quarters of RPG and horror respectively. It was originally going to run on an enhanced version of the Tribes Vengeance engine (Unreal Engine 2.5 modified), but in an interview at E3 in May 2006, Levine stated: "...we've moved to Unreal Engine 3.0, we've done a lot of modifications on top of it." So now you know why the game looks and moves so damned good.
All it has to do now is feel good when you play it, but that's only going to happen after its release on August 21-24, 2007.