Happy 25th anniversary to System Shock 2 (I’m actually a day late, oops!). One of the original Immersive Sims, and precursor to the BioShock series. This has much more RPG elements than BioShock does, and an inventory grid.

Wikipeda Synopsis

System Shock 2 is a 1999 action role-playing survival horror video game designed by Ken Levine and co-developed by Irrational Games and Looking Glass Studios. Originally intended to be a standalone title, its story was changed during production into a sequel to the 1994 game System Shock. The alterations were made when Electronic Arts—who owned the System Shock franchise rights—signed on as publisher.

The game takes place on board a starship in a cyberpunk depiction of 2114. The player assumes the role of a soldier trying to stem the outbreak of a genetic infection that has devastated the ship. Like System Shock, gameplay consists of first-person combat and exploration. It incorporates role-playing elements, in which the player can develop skills and traits, such as hacking and psionic abilities.

System Shock 2 was originally released in August 1999 for Microsoft Windows. The game received critical acclaim but failed to meet commercial sales expectations. Many critics later determined that the game was highly influential in subsequent game design, particularly on first-person shooters, and considered it far ahead of its time. It has been included in several “greatest games of all time” lists. In 2007, Irrational Games released a spiritual successor to the System Shock series, titled BioShock, to critical acclaim and strong sales.

System Shock 2 had been in intellectual property limbo following the closure of Looking Glass Studios. Nightdive Studios were able to secure the rights to the game and the System Shock franchise in 2013 to release an updated version of System Shock 2 for modern operating systems, including for OS X and Linux, and announced plans to release an Enhanced Edition of the game. OtherSide Entertainment announced in 2015 that they had acquired the rights from Nightdive Studios to produce a sequel, System Shock 3, but as of 2020 the rights have since been transferred to Tencent.

Videos

MandaloreGaming - System Shock 2 Review

Finntrovert - System Shock 2 - Retrospective / Review

Ramsker - System Shock 2 is Still A Masterpiece

Boulder Punch - System Shock 2 Review | An Immersive Sim Classic

Links

IGDB Page

MobyGames Page

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This community is for big milestone anniversaries of retro games (15 years or older, every multiple of 5 years). See our sidebar for more info and resources for making your own posts here.

Post #1: [Retro Platinum] King’s Quest: Quest for the Crown (1984-05-10)

Post #2: [Retro Platinum] Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1989-05-12)

Post #3: [Retro Silver] Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike (1999-05-12)

Post #4: [Retro] Doom 3 (2004-08-03)