The Atlantic is an American magazine founded (as The Atlantic Monthly) in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1857. It was created as a literary and cultural commentary magazine. It quickly achieved a national reputation, which it held for more than a century. It was important for recognizing and publishing new writers and poets, and encouraging major careers. It published leading writers' commentary on abolition, education, and other major issues in contemporary political affairs.

After financial hardship and a series of ownership changes, the format changed to a general editorial magazine. Focusing on "foreign affairs, politics, and the economy [as well as] cultural trends," it is primarily aimed at a target audience of "thought leaders."^[2][3]

The magazine's founders were a group of prominent writers of national reputation, who included Harriet Beecher Stowe, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr., John Greenleaf Whittier and James Russell Lowell. Lowell was its first editor. James Bennet was named the fourteenth editor-in-chief in 2006. Jay Lauf joined the organization as publisher and vice president in 2008.^[4]

In 2010, The Atlantic posted its first profit in the last decade.^[5] In profiling the publication at the time, The New York Times noted the accomplishment was the result of "a cultural transfusion, a dose of counterintuition and a lot of digital advertising revenue."^[6]

Format and frequency[link]

Originally a monthly publication, the magazine, subscribed to by 400,000 readers, now publishes ten times a year.^[7] It features articles in the fields of political science, foreign affairs, the economy, technology, and the arts, as well as a book review and cultural trends section. Literary and national editor Benjamin Schwarz oversees that section and has recruited numerous writers, including Christopher Hitchens, Caitlin Flanagan, Sandra Tsing Loh, Clive James, Joseph O'Neill, B.R. Myers, Mona Simpson, Sally Singer, Terry Castle, and Natasha Vargas-Cooper. Other regular contributors include James Fallows, Jeffrey Goldberg, Ta-Nehisi Coates, and Megan McArdle.^[8]

In April 2005, the editors of The Atlantic decided to cease publishing fiction in regular issues in favor of a newsstand-only annual fiction issue edited by longtime staffer C. Michael Curtis, but have since re-instituted the practice.

On January 22, 2008, TheAtlantic.com dropped its subscriber wall and allowed users to freely browse its site, including all past archives.^[9] In addition to TheAtlantic.com, The Atlantic's web properties have expanded to include TheAtlanticWire.com, a news- and opinion-tracking site launched in 2009,^[10] and in 2011, TheAtlanticCities.com, a stand-alone site devoted to global cities and trends.^[11] According to a Mashable profile in December 2011, "traffic to the three web properties recently surpassed 11 million uniques per month, up a staggering 2500% since The Atlantic brought down its paywall in early 2008."^[12]

TheAtlantic.com covers politics, business, entertainment, technology, health, international affairs, and more. In March 2009, the site added a food channel edited by Corby Kummer and with contributions from chef Grant Achatz, Tim and Nina Zagat and Ezekiel "Zeke" Emanuel, among others. In December 2011, a new Health Channel launched on TheAtlantic.com, incorporating coverage of food, as well as topics related to the mind, body, sex, family, and public health.^[13] TheAtlantic.com has also expanded to visual storytelling with the addition of the In Focus photo blog, curated by Alan Taylor,^[14] and the Video Channel.^[15]

Literary history[link]

First publication of "Battle Hymn of the Republic"

A leading literary magazine, The Atlantic published many significant works and authors. It was the first to publish pieces by the abolitionists Julia Ward Howe ("Battle Hymn of the Republic" on February 1, 1862), and William Parker's slave narrative, "The Freedman's Story" (in February and March 1866). It published Charles W. Eliot's "The New Education", a call for practical reform that led to his appointment to presidency of Harvard University in 1869. It published works by Charles Chesnutt before he collected them in The Conjure Woman. It published poetry and short stories, helping launch many national literary careers. Emily Dickinson, after reading an article in The Atlantic by Thomas Wentworth Higginson, asked him to become her mentor. In 2005, the magazine won a National Magazine Award for fiction.

Atlantic Monthly office, Ticknor & Fields, 124 Tremont Street, Boston, ca.1868^[16]

The magazine published many of the works of Mark Twain, including one that was lost until 2001. Editors recognized major cultural changes and movements. The magazine published Martin Luther King, Jr.'s defense of civil disobedience in "Letter from Birmingham Jail" in August 1963.

The magazine has also published speculative articles that inspired the development of new technologies. The classic example is Vannevar Bush's July 1945 essay "As We May Think", which inspired Douglas Engelbart and later Ted Nelson to develop the modern workstation and hypertext technology.

In addition to its fiction and poetry, the magazine publishes writing on society and politics. "A three-part series by William Langewiesche in 2002 on the rebuilding of the World Trade Center generated headlines, as have articles by James Fallows on planning for the Iraq war and reconstruction."^[17]

The cover of the original issue of The Atlantic, November 1, 1857

As of 2012, its writers included James Fallows, Mark Bowden, Jeffrey Goldberg, Megan McArdle, Jeffrey Tayler, Robert D. Kaplan and Ta-Nehisi Coates.

Ownership[link]

For all but recent decades, The Atlantic was known as a distinctively New England literary magazine (as opposed to Harper's and later The New Yorker, both from New York City). It achieved a national reputation and was important to the careers of many American writers and poets. By its third year, it was published by the famous Boston publishing house of Ticknor and Fields (later to become part of Houghton Mifflin). The magazine was purchased by its then editor, Ellery Sedgwick, during World War I, but remained in Boston.

In 1980, the magazine was acquired by Mortimer Zuckerman, property magnate and founder of Boston Properties, who became its Chairman. On September 27, 1999, ownership of the magazine was transferred from Zuckerman to David G. Bradley, owner of the Beltway news-focused National Journal Group. Bradley had promised that the magazine would stay in Boston for the foreseeable future, as it did for the next five and a half years.

In April 2005, however, the publishers announced that the editorial offices would be moved from its long-time home at 77 North Washington St. in Boston to join the company's advertising and circulation divisions in Washington, D.C.^[17] Later in August, Bradley told the New York Observer, cost cutting from the move would amount to a minor $200,000–$300,000 and those savings would be swallowed by severance-related spending. The reason was to create a hub in Washington where the top minds from all of Bradley's publications could collaborate under the Atlantic Media Company umbrella. Few of the Boston staff agreed to relocate. Bradley embarked on an open search for a new editorial staff.^[18]

Bradley, who has described himself as "a neocon guy" who came to regret his support for the Iraq invasion,^[19] hired James Bennet as editor, who had been the Jerusalem bureau chief for The New York Times. He also hired writers including Jeffrey Goldberg and Andrew Sullivan.^[19]

[edit] The Atlantic Wire

The Atlantic Wire is a sister site^[20] of TheAtlantic.com that aggregates news^[21] and opinions^[22] from print, online, television, and radio outlets. When The Atlantic Wire first launched in 2009, it curated op-eds from across the media spectrum and summarized significant positions in each debate.^[23] Expanded to encompass news and original reporting, regular features include "What I Read," showcasing the media diets of individuals from the worlds of politics, journalism, and entertainment, and "Trimming the Times,"^[24] a summary of the best content in The New York Times. The site previously featured The Atlantic 50,^[25] a ranked list of the top opinion makers in the media, created using an algorithm based on influence, reach and web engagement.

[edit] The Atlantic Cities

Launched in September 2011, TheAtlanticCities.com is the latest expansion of The Atlantic's digital properties. The stand-alone site explores and explains the most innovative ideas and pressing issues facing today’s global cities and neighborhoods.^[26] Featuring the work of Richard Florida, economist, professor, and Atlantic senior editor, TheAtlanticCities.com also showcases leading voices in the urban planning and community building arenas.^[27].

List of editors[link]

• James Russell Lowell, 1857–1861
• James Thomas Fields, 1861–1871
• William Dean Howells, 1871–1881
• Thomas Bailey Aldrich, 1881–1890
• Horace Elisha Scudder, 1890–1898
• Walter Hines Page, 1898–1899
• Bliss Perry, 1899–1909
• Ellery Sedgwick, 1909–1938
• Edward A. Weeks, 1938–1966
• Robert Manning, 1966–1980
• William Whitworth, 1980–1999
• Michael Kelly, 1999–2003
• Cullen Murphy, 2003–2006 (interim editor, never named editor-in-chief)
• James Bennet, 2006–present

Contributors[link]

• Marjorie Pickthall – During the 1900s and 1910s, the Anglo-Canadian poet, story writer and essayist was a regular contributor.^[28]

See also[link]

	Boston portal
	Media portal
	District of Columbia portal

• List of literary magazines

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Atlantic Monthly

Official website

• The Atlantic Wire
• A History of The Atlantic
• The Atlantic archival writings by topic
• The Atlantic on twitter
• Online archive of The Atlantic (earliest issues up to December 1901)
• The American Idea: The Best of The Atlantic Monthly
• The Atlantic issues at Project Gutenberg

BioShock 2 is a survival horror first-person shooter video game developed by 2K Marin for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.^[10][11] The sequel to the 2007 video game BioShock, it was released worldwide on February 9, 2010. The Mac OS X version of the game was released by Feral Interactive on 30th March, 2012.^[1]

The game is set in the fictional underwater dystopia of Rapture, in a biopunk/dieselpunk 1968, eight years after the events of BioShock. The protagonist and player-controlled character is a Big Daddy, a being that has had its organs and skin grafted into an atmospheric diving suit. Among the first of its kind, the player-controlled Big Daddy, named Subject Delta, reactivates with no recollection of the past decade's events, and scours the city in an attempt to relocate the Little Sister that he was paired with. Fearing this reunion will ruin her plans for the city, Sofia Lamb sends out her spliced up followers that she calls "The Rapture Family" and new Big Sisters in an attempt to deter Delta.

In 2010, the game was included as one of the titles in the book 1001 Video Games You Must Play Before You Die.^[12]

Gameplay[link]

BioShock 2 is presented as a survival horror first-person shooter, with the player taking on the role of Subject Delta, a prototype for the Big Daddies approximately 8 years after the events of the first game. As with BioShock, the player explores Rapture and fights off Splicers, the remaining psychotic human population of the city, using a combination of the environment, weapons, Plasmids and Tonics. Plasmids and Tonics are special genetic-reencoding liquids that grant the user active or passive abilities, respectively, and include both those introduced in BioShock and new ones for this game. For example, Plasmids can give the player the ability to use telekinesis or evoke fire, while Tonics can improve the player's movement speed, attack damage, or damage resistance. Several of the weapons in BioShock 2 are those that were previously seen carried by Big Daddies from the first game, including a powerful drill and a rivet gun. The player can use each weapon in a close-range melee attack. Unlike in the first game, the player is able to equip both one weapon and one Plasmid at the same time, which they can use in quick succession to destroy foes. For example, by first freezing a foe, then shattering into pieces using a spear gun. If the player is killed, they are revived in the nearest "Vita-Chamber".^[13]

As the player explores Rapture, they will collect ammo, health and EVE (a liquid used to power Plasmid use), recovery items, and money. Money can be used to purchase more items at vending machines across the city. The player will also encounter security systems which can be hacked through a mini-game. This requires the player to stop a quickly-moving needle one or more times in the correctly-colored marked area of a gauge. Stopping it within the green area progresses the sequence and or potentially ends it while stopping in the blue area may grant a bonus to the hacking attempt; landing in a white area shocks the player (dealing a small amount of damage) while landing in red-colored areas can lead to the start of a security alert. The player also gains access to a research video camera; in BioShock 2, once the player begins recording an enemy, the player has a short time to damage that enemy in creative ways in order to score a number of points, which are then added towards the total research of that enemy type. At various levels of research, the player is then rewarded with new abilities in general or towards that specific type of foe. Certain areas of the game take place entirely underwater, limiting the actions the player can perform.^[14]

As a Big Daddy, the player can attempt to defeat other Big Daddies escorting Little Sisters. Should the player succeed, they can then either choose to Harvest or Adopt the Little Sister, gaining appreciable ADAM to be used for buying new Plasmids, gene tonics, slots or the option to Adopt them. While adopted, the Little Sister will lead the player to corpses where she can extract more ADAM. While she does this, the player must defend her from Splicer attacks. Once the Little Sister has collected enough ADAM, the player can then return her to an escape vent, again allowing the player to choose to Rescue the Little Sister, receiving a modest amount of ADAM but with the possibility of beneficial gifts later, or harvest her for a large ADAM boost. ADAM can then be spent at Gatherer's Garden machines throughout Rapture. Once the player has either Rescued or Harvested each of the Little Sisters on the level, the player will be attacked by a Big Sister. The Big Sister's agility and resourcefulness will task the players with a difficult fight before they can proceed with the game.^[14]

Multiplayer[link]

BioShock 2 features a story driven multiplayer mode where the player takes on the role of a citizen of Rapture. Set in 1959, just before the events of BioShock, the player chooses to take on the role of a splicer fighting in Rapture's civil war. The player is being sponsored by Plasmid manufacturer, Sinclair Solutions, to test out their weapons, Plasmids, and Tonics in a consumer reward program. As the player progresses through the multiplayer experience, new weapons, Tonics, and Plasmids will be unlocked (provided by Sinclair), in addition to the story of the Rapture civil war being told.^[15]

The player can choose among 6 characters to be their in-game avatar. The characters are: a welder named Jacob Norris, a housewife named Barbara Johnson, a football star named Danny Wilkins, a businessman named Buck Raleigh, a pilot named Naledi Atkins, and an Indian mystic named Suresh Sheti. Two additional characters were available as a pre-order bonus from 12game, GameStop, EB Games or Game, or through the purchase of a DLC pack: a fisherman named Zigo d'Acosta and an actress named Mlle Blanche de Glace.^[16] Another two characters were made available by downloading the Sinclair Solutions Tester pack: a criminal named Louie McGraff and a smooth-talking playboy named Oscar Calraca.

Multiplayer comes in 7 different modes, two of which have a single and team based mode.^[17] The modes are:

Survival of the Fittest 

A 'free-for-all' mode where each player gets points for killing each of the other players. Whichever player has the most kills or 20 kills at the end of the match wins.

Civil War 

Similar to 'Survival of the Fittest,' but in this mode players are divided into two teams and the team with the most collective kills at the end of the match wins.

Last Splicer Standing 

A variation of 'Civil War' in which players do not respawn after being killed. Each match consists of several rounds in which players attempt to outlive the players on the enemy team.

Capture the Sister 

A 'Capture the Flag' style mode where players are divided into two teams. One team has to protect a Little Sister while the other team tries to steal her and place her in a vent on the other side of the map. The team protecting the little sister will have a randomly chosen player be a Big Daddy. After a pre-determined amount of time, the teams switch roles. Whichever team has the most captures at the end of the match wins.

ADAM Grab 

In this mode there is one Little Sister on the map and the player must seek her out and maintain possession of her as long as possible. The first person to hold onto the Little Sister for 3 minutes wins.

Team ADAM Grab 

A variant of 'ADAM Grab' where players are divided into two teams. The objective is the same, but victory is determined by a collective score rather than individual scores, and the first team to hold the little sister for 3 minutes wins.

Turf War 

Players are split into two teams and each team must reach pre-determined points on the map to capture that point. The team with the most control points over the longest time wins.

In 'Survival of the Fittest', 'Civil War' and 'Turf War', a Big Daddy suit will spawn at a random location in the level. If a player can find the suit, the choice is given to become the Big Daddy, which will give the player greater strength and endurance, but prohibits the use of plasmids and hacking and expels any previously held damage bonuses against other players. The Big Daddy can stomp, shoot a rivet gun, melee attack and throw proximity mines. All damage dealt to the Big Daddy is permanent, and can't be replenished. Once the Big Daddy is defeated, the suit disappears, spawning in another location on the map two minutes later. In 'Capture the Sister' one member of the defending team is chosen at random to be the Big Daddy. After the player's death, the Big Daddy suit disappears for the rest of the round.^[18]

Plot[link]

BioShock 2 takes place in Rapture in 1968, 8 years after the events of the first game. Tenenbaum has briefly returned to Rapture once she realizes that someone is continuing her work by enslaving new Little Sisters. It is shown through flashbacks and audio recordings that the player character, Subject Delta (the fourth Big Daddy created), is forced to commit suicide in 1958 by Sofia Lamb, through the use of a mind-controlling plasmid. This was done in part because Delta's Little Sister, Eleanor, is actually Lamb's daughter. Lamb, originally brought to Rapture to help psychologically-stressed citizens of the underwater city cope with the lack of sunlight, used persuasion to entice her patients into a cult called "The Rapture Family", and attempted to spread her altruistic ideals throughout Rapture. Andrew Ryan discovered this through a mole, Stanley Poole, and had Lamb thrown in prison, leaving Eleanor in the care of Grace Holloway. Eleanor eventually confronted Poole about his betrayal of her mother, and Poole panicked, kidnapping Eleanor and leaving her in a Little Sister's Orphanage, eventually leading to her conversion into a Little Sister. Lamb later returned to the city, reclaimed her daughter from Delta, and gained control of Rapture after Ryan's death. Lamb guided the development of the aging Little Sisters into more dangerous Big Sisters, and sent them out to the Atlantic coastline to kidnap little girls for conversion into new Little Sisters in Rapture.

In 1968, Eleanor, now a teenager, has gained control over many of the Little Sisters, and uses them to revive Subject Delta at a Vita Chamber. Delta is drawn towards Eleanor by their past Daddy/Sister connection. Brigid Tenenbaum encounters Delta, and explains that unless Delta reunites with Eleanor, a fail-safe device will trigger that will put him into a coma. With the help of the Little Sisters under Eleanor's control and Tenenbaum's ally, Augustus Sinclair, Delta makes his way towards Lamb's stronghold, encountering both Poole and Holloway en route. As Delta progresses, it becomes clear that Lamb is seeking to use ADAM to transform Eleanor into a perfect embodiment of her altruistic ideals. Lamb's ultimate goal is to have all the collected minds and memories of everyone in Rapture become a part of Eleanor, through the use of the genetic memory in ADAM, thus making her an "Embodiment of the Family", which Lamb believes will put an end to "The Self".

Delta arrives at a containment chamber where Eleanor is held, but Lamb captures him and severs his bond with Eleanor by temporarily stopping her heart. Though Eleanor survives, Delta is now slowly dying, as the bond cannot be re-established. Eleanor uses a Little Sister to bring Delta a plasmid which allows him to control the Sisters, thus enabling him to bring Eleanor a complete Big Sister suit, and allowing Eleanor to become a Big Sister. Eleanor escapes with it, rescues Delta, and together they head for an escape pod that Sinclair has arranged to leave Rapture. The two find that Lamb has converted Sinclair into a Big Daddy, and Delta is forced to finish him off. After a final climactic showdown with the remnants of The Rapture Family, Eleanor and Delta make it to the escape pod, but a final trap set by Lamb mortally wounds Delta and starts to send the entire building into the deep ocean rift. Eleanor teleports out of the explosion to the rising escape craft, but Delta is trapped on the outside. Using the last of his strength, he manages to grab onto the side of the escape pod and climb to its top as it rises. Trapped in the flooded escape pod with her mother, Eleanor makes the choice to either kill or save Sofia Lamb based on what she has learned from the player's actions.

There are several possible endings depending on how the player has performed during the game; these are based on whether the player has rescued all the Little Sisters or harvested them, and if they have spared the lives of certain non-player characters (like Holloway and Poole) within the game. If a certain number of these non-player characters have been spared, Eleanor will save Lamb. If the player killed all, or not saved enough, of these non-player characters, she will allow Lamb to drown. When the pod reaches the surface, Eleanor finds a dying Delta barely hanging onto the pod. Depending on how the player has chosen to deal with the little sisters, the ending will change. If the player has rescued all of the Little Sisters, Eleanor will absorb the ADAM from Delta, taking his mind and memories into herself, and leaving Rapture behind forever, accompanied by a group of rescued Little Sisters. If the player has chosen to harvest all of the Little Sisters, Eleanor will absorb Delta's power and use it to make herself even stronger to dominate the world alone. A mix of harvesting and rescuing of the Little Sisters will leave Eleanor to opt against absorbing Delta's ADAM and mourn Delta's passing.

Development[link]

Initially, media reports suggested that the subtitle, "Sea Of Dreams", would accompany the second entry in the series. However, this subtitle was supposedly dropped,^[19] before 2K withdrew the statement, stating that the "Sea Of Dreams" subtitle would still be part of the full title.^[20] However, a later statement from 2K spokesman Charlie Sinhaseni clarified that the "Sea Of Dreams" title was for the trailer, and not for the game itself.^[21] The first appearance for BioShock 2 came in the form of a teaser trailer that was available in the PlayStation 3 version of the game. The first major details on the gameplay and plot of the game were revealed in the April 2009 issue of Game Informer magazine,^[22] around the same time that the "viral" site "There's Something in the Sea" was revealed. This site documents a man named Mark Meltzer's investigation into the disappearances of girls from coastline areas around the Atlantic, along with a mysterious red light that accompanies each kidnapping. On April 9, 2009 on the Spike TV show GameTrailers TV with Geoff Keighley the first BioShock 2 gameplay video was shown featuring the Big Sister. This demo showed many features including the ability to walk under water.

The story received major changes over the course of development, with two of the most important relating to the player's character and the Big Sister. Initially there was only going to be one Big Sister who would continually hunt the player down throughout the course of the game and then retreat once she was defeated. This Big Sister was written as a Little Sister who, as she grew up on the surface, could not leave the memory of Rapture behind and eventually returned. The reason for the change, as explained by Zak McClendon, lead designer for 2K Marin, "If you have a single character that the player knows they can't kill because they're so important to the story you're completely removing the triumph of overcoming that encounter with them." ^[23] Jordan Thomas explains however, "The soul of the original Big Sister character still exists, but in the form of somebody you get to know over the course of the game." ^[24] The other major change is that the player's character, Subject Delta, is no longer the first Big Daddy, but rather the fourth prototype. He is, however, the first to be successfully 'pair-bonded' to a single Little Sister.^[24]

Digital Extremes produced the multiplayer component of the game.^[25] In the multiplayer portion, players are put in a separate story where civil war has broken out in Rapture prior to the events of the first game. In the multiplayer mode the player acts as a plasmid test subject for a company called Sinclair Solutions.^[26] As the player progresses through the multiplayer maps like Mercury Suites and Kashmir Restaurant they will either have the ability to hack turrets and vending machines or search for the Big Daddy suit.^[27]

Music[link]

The score to BioShock 2 was composed by Garry Schyman, who recorded his score with a 60-piece ensemble of the Hollywood Studio Symphony at Capitol Studios.^[28] Additionally, the Special Edition of Bioshock 2 included the orchestral score from the game on a CD, as well as the orchestral score from the original BioShock on a vinyl 180g LP. ^[29]

Track listings[link]

• Disc length 47:58

• Disc length 35:10 - Regular
• Disc length 52:08 - Special Edition

• Disc length 37:47

Retail versions[link]

A Special Edition of the game was announced on November 19, 2009. This edition, which was limited to a single production run, contains the game along with three posters featuring fictional advertisements from Rapture (all of which, when looked under a black light, reveal hidden messages),^[35] the orchestral score from the game on CD, the orchestral score from the original BioShock on a vinyl 180g LP, and a hardbound, 164-page art book. It is packaged in a 13"×13" premium case with special art on both the slipcase and the box cover.^[36]

A smaller limited edition, titled BioShock 2 Rapture Edition, was officially announced on December 2, 2009. Its contents are the game and a smaller, 96-page art book, which are packaged together in a special slipcover. As with the Special Edition, the Rapture Edition was limited to a single production run.^[37] The BioShock 2 Rapture Edition is available in Europe, New Zealand and Australia, in addition to the BioShock 2 Special Edition.^[38]

Expansion packs[link]

Sinclair Solutions Test Pack[link]

"Sinclair Solutions Test Pack" is the first installment of downloadable content (DLC) for BioShock 2. The pack focuses on the multiplayer element of the game, increasing the leveling rank to 50 as well as unlocking 2 new playable characters, 20 new trials, 5 new masks, the 2 new players' special melee weapons and a third upgrade for each weapon. The DLC was released on March 11, 2010 for 400 Microsoft points, and was also available for purchase on the PS3 entertainment system for $4.99.^[39][40]

Shortly after the release of the DLC it was discovered that the "downloadable" content was already stored on the retail disc, and players were actually paying for a small file that unlocked content they already owned. This was later confirmed to be the case by 2K Games, who also claimed that this was so that all players would have the same files on the disc and so that the DLC would not split the playerbase.^[41]

Rapture Metro Map Pack[link]

The Rapture Metro Map Pack launched on May 11, 2010, for $9.99 (800 Microsoft Points) and on May 25, 2010 for PC. The DLC includes 6 new maps, an increased level cap (up to level 50 for those who did not purchase the Sinclair Solutions DLC), 2 new characters, 2 new masks, a new "rebirth" gene tonic, and a new "Kill 'Em Kindly" game mode. This DLC also adds 3 more achievements for the Xbox 360 and PC versions and 3 more trophies for the PlayStation 3 version.

Since its release, many players of the new DLC have complained to 2K, saying that the odds of playing the new maps from the Metro Pack are extremely low, with many players commenting that since purchasing the pack, they haven't played a single new map. 2K responded and said the design decision was made in order to stop "base-splitting"; where the player lobbies are split up, so that all players can still play together, regardless of whether they have purchased the DLC or not. However, players still voiced further complaints, citing that the odds of 10 people in one match all having the DLC, and then still having a 10 in 16 chance of striking an old map, means that overall, one is unlikely to be able play the new maps in a non-private match (which is required for 2 out of 3 of the new achievements/trophies). Some players suggested adding a "playlist" to feature only the new maps, so that players with the DLC could play together, rather than having to set up private matches. However, 2K Games later stated that they had no plans to add playlist functionality to the multiplayer.^[42]

Another complaint surfaced shortly after, regarding the DLC new "Rebirth!" feature. Players reported that once activating the feature at Rank 50, all leaderboard stats and ADAM scores are reset too, effectively sending the player to the bottom of the rank globally.^[43] 2K Community Manager, Elizabeth Tobey responded with the following statement:

"I don't have much to tell you currently, but whenever I do, I'll update here. For now, I want you to know that the dev team is looking in to solutions for both the DLC map playlist request and the leaderboard reset issue. I hope to have more information for you early next week, but that depends on the devs and when they can provide us some good info. For now, please know that the team is aware and they are looking in to what they can do to make you happy — and all your requests have been forwarded to them." ^[44]

Kill 'Em Kindly[link]

Kill 'Em Kindly is a new game mode for BioShock 2 multiplayer, free for download for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC. In this game mode, players can only use golf clubs to melee attack enemies, a reference back to the first game where Andrew Ryan forces the player-character Jack to kill him with a golf club. This pack is also included in the "Rapture Metro Pack".

Character pack[link]

The character pack adds two characters that were exclusive to the pre-order version of BioShock 2, Zigo d'Acosta and Mlle Blanche de Glace. This pack is also available alongside the "Rapture Metro Pack" on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 for 160 MS Points ($1.99).

The Protector Trials Pack[link]

Released on August 3, the Protector Trials pack is a single-player downloadable content which has the player defend Little Sisters against swarms of enemies in a variety of challenge rooms. The content contains six maps based on locations from the main game, alongside three difficulty levels, seven Achievements/Trophies, and new concept art and videos to unlock. The pack is available on Xbox 360 for 400 Microsoft Points (£3.40) and PlayStation 3 for $4.99^[45] (£3.19).^[46] This downloadable content was released for free on the PC on March 14, 2011.^[47] As of March 15, the DLC is playable after a patch to the main game.

Minerva's Den[link]

Minerva's Den is a downloadable single-player campaign with a plot completely separate from that of the main campaign. The player assumes the role of Subject Sigma, another Alpha Series Big Daddy, as he travels through Minerva's Den, home to Rapture's Central Computing. The campaign adds three new levels (with around four hours of gameplay) and provides deeper insight into Rapture's inner workings.

The story introduces the characters of Charles Milton Porter, who guides the player (with Brigid Tenenbaum), and Reed Wahl, who acts as the antagonist. Porter and Wahl were once partners working on a computer with advanced artificial intelligence dubbed "The Thinker", but Wahl framed Porter for treason and stole the machine. Porter, realizing that he would be taken away and that Rapture was crumbling, left instructions on how to replicate the machine on the surface, in order to ensure that his creation would benefit mankind. Sigma, under the orders of Porter and Brigid Tenenbaum, seeks to obtain the Thinker's machine code, hoping that its processing power combined with surface technology will allow for the development of a cure for the Splicers.

Unfortunately, Wahl has holed up in Minerva's Den and he's adamant to not let the Thinker be taken away since he believes due to splicing induced madness that the computer is key to a "predictive equation" that allows him to predict the future. Sigma makes his way through Minerva's Den battling Splicers, the area's experimental security bots and finally Wahl himself. Once Sigma reaches the Thinker, the latter recognizes Sigma as Charles Milton Porter: the "Porter" that contacted Sigma is the Thinker itself, simulating Porter's personality (a feature originally created by Porter to simulate the personality of his deceased wife) to provide a familiar guiding voice. Sigma obtains the codes and heads to the surface on a bathysphere with Tenenbaum, so it can be rebuilt.

The add-on also features new weapons, a new plasmid as well as a new Big Daddy type. It was released August 31 for PS3 and Xbox360. It costs $10/ 800 Microsoft Points.^[48] Work on the PC version of this downloadable content was resumed on 28 October 2010.^[47] The DLC was released on PC on 31 May 2011.

Windows version DLC[link]

Though the Windows version of BioShock 2 had received some patches and downloadable content shortly after release,^[49] 2K Games announced in October 2010 that they would not provide a final patch to fix remaining issues with the game.^[50] Furthermore, 2K Games announced they would not offer the "Protector Trials" or "Minerva's Den" content on the platform, citing "Timing and technical issues" that they had encountered but could not work around.^[51] 2K apologized to the players, as they had promised that this content would be forthcoming to the Windows platform, and that if the situation changed, they would offer it in the future.^[50] 2K later explained that in trying to prepare additional patches with support for the additional content, they encountered bugs under specific circumstances that they felt would not be acceptable to the Microsoft certification process, and while they had tried to correct those bugs, they were unable to do so in a timely manner, leading to their decision to abandon the attempt.^[52] The announcement was met with heavy criticism from some players, having felt that 2K Games took advantage of their "goodwill" in the promised game and DLC updates.^[50] In late October, 2K Games reversed their decision based on the players' responses, and have recommitted resources to complete the game patch and support for both content packs on the Windows version; the patch and "Protector Trials" would likely be available in Spring 2011, while more work is necessary to complete the "Minerva's Den" content.^[52] Protector Trials DLC for the PC version of BioShock 2 was made available pre-maturely via Games for Windows Live on February 20, 2011. Users find that the download pack, which was yet to officially arrive on PC, was available for the price of 400 MS Points. But when users paid for and downloaded the 964mb update, they were completely unable to access it.^[53] On March 12, 2011 it was announced that Protector Trials would be released for PC on March 14, 2011.^[54] The patch to the main game which enabled the DLC to run was released after the DLC itself, though the new content was playable by March 15, 2011. Though 2K was originally reluctant to confirm a release date for the Minerva's Den DLC, eventually they confirmed that it would be released at the end of May 2011.

Reception[link]

BioShock 2
Aggregate scores
Aggregator	Score
GameRankings	87.89% (X360)[55] 87.00% (PS3)[56] 87.64% (PC)[57]
Metacritic	88/100 (X360)[58] 88/100 (PS3)[59] 88/100 (PC)[60]
Review scores
Publication	Score
1UP.com	B+ (X360, PS3)[61]
Computer and Video Games	9.1/10[62]
Edge	8/10[63]
Eurogamer	8/10[64]
Famitsu	35/40[65]
Game Informer	8.25/10[66]
GamePro	[67]
GameSpot	8.5/10 (X360)[68] 8.5/10 (PS3)[69]
GameSpy	[70]
GamesRadar	10/10[71]
GameTrailers	8.8/10[72]
IGN	9.1/10[73]
Official Xbox Magazine (UK)	9/10 (X360)[74]
TeamXbox	9.2 (X360)[75]

BioShock 2 received positive reviews. Currently, it holds an 88 on Metacritic for the Xbox 360,^[58] PlayStation 3^[59] and PC^[60] versions. On GameRankings, Bioshock 2 has overall scores of 87.89%, 87.00% and 87.64% for the Xbox 360,^[55] PlayStation 3^[56] and PC^[57] versions.

GamesRadar's Charlie Barratt awarded the game with a perfect score stating that "The weapons are better. The plasmids are better. The enemies are better. At some points, even the storytelling is better. What’s most amazing and surprising about BioShock 2, however, is that by diving deeper into Rapture’s tortured history and exploring more of Rapture’s haunted world, it actually manages to make the original BioShock better, too."^[71]

Game Informer's Andrew Reiner scored the game a 8.25. He criticised the game saying that "For roughly 10 hours, BioShock 2 follows directly in its forefather’s footsteps, too fearful to inject anything new into this twisted world." However, he praised the game's ending stating that "Eventually this disappointing adventure does turn a corner. It takes 10 hours to get there, but the final two acts (lasting approximately three hours) are brilliant." He concluded with "BioShock 2 eventually becomes the sequel I hoped for, but spends too much time getting there."^[66]

IGN scored the game a 9.1/10 and said that "anyone looking for a first-person shooter that offers more than flat, stereotypical characters and copy-and-paste supersoldier plots, one that attempts to establish a sense of right and wrong and loops you into the decision making process, and one that's set in one of the most vividly realized settings around should pick up BioShock 2. It's a game in which story, setting, and gameplay are expertly blended to create an experience that's as thought-provoking as it is entertaining."^[73]IGN's review also stated that the game does not look as visually impressive as its predecessor, but it is still one of the best-looking games around because of its unique art style. In a round-table style video chat, IGN editors said that Rapture was less mysterious because players have seen it before, and that was a major strike against the game. Since the original had such an eerie mysterious feel to it, the twists and turns seen in the sequel seemed less surprising.^[76]

Tom Price of TeamXbox gave the game an overall score of 9.2/10 saying that "BioShock 2 remains one of the most original, exciting, subversive and intriguing shooters out there for you to play, and you shouldn’t miss the experience of doing that."^[75]

Eurogamer's Tom Bramwell was more critical of BioShock 2. Though he scored the game a very positive 8/10 overall, he noted that "The single-player campaign... will and should be damned for its long, slow start, during which the game struggles to make its intentions clear, but once past that the developers find a new tempo that wrings just enough extra quality out of the existing framework to justify your patience, even if the game still feels flat in the context of more daring and elaborate sequels like Mass Effect 2 and last year's Assassin's Creed follow-up."^[64]

Sales[link]

Prior to the game's release, the chairman of Take-Two, Strauss Zelnick stated that he expected the game to sell 5 million copies across all platforms.^[77]

In its first week of release, BioShock 2 was the best-selling Xbox 360 game in the UK and North America.^[78] In the U.S., NPD recorded it as the top selling game of February with 562,900 units sold on the Xbox 360, and 190,500 on the PS3. Gamasutra state a possible reason for the Xbox 360's greater sales was the original BioShock's 14 month exclusivity on the platform.^[79] It also managed to hold both the first and second positions on the Steam release charts.^[80]

In its first month of release, BioShock 2 was number 1 in sales for the Xbox 360 and number 12 for the PlayStation 3. PC sales are not tracked by NPD for top 20 results, and is therefore unknown.^[81]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• Teaser site: There's Something in the Sea
• The Cult of Rapture official community website
• BioShock 2 at Feral Interactive
• BioShock Wiki, an external wiki