There’s No Hand Holding Here
The phrase “this is the Dark Souls of such and such genre” has always felt like an inappropriate descriptor. It’s true that the franchise, as well as its developer, FromSoftware, has gained a reputation for being notoriously difficult and never holding the player’s hand. Considering how many modern games can be overwhelming with the amount of tutorials thrown in the first five minutes, a game like Dark Souls would feel like a breath of fresh air. This idea, however, of leaving the player to their own devices, is nothing new. In fact, many of gaming’s older classics were made with this philosophy in mind.
From this particular era of gaming came one particular game that would leave a huge mark on gaming as a whole: System Shock. The original game was developed by Looking Glass Technologies (they were behind other legendary games such as the original Thief games) and released in 1994. Imagine the surprise of fans around the world hearing that the original System Shock would be receiving a remake. This particular franchise (in particular, its sequel) was the building block of the immersive sim genre. While studios like Arkane Studios have pushed the genre to its limits, Looking Glass Technologies were the ones to ignite the fire. So, naturally, the developers behind the remake, Nightdive Studios, would have plenty of pressure on their shoulders. Having prior experience with remasters of other classics, such as Turok and The Thing: Remastered, this particular project is beyond any of their previous projects in terms of scope alone.
Not Just a Fresh Coat of Paint
Developing a remake for a game is no easy feat. Unlike remasters, which at most bring older games to modern systems (they don’t necessarily have to function well), remakes are more of a balancing act. Not only is the game being modernized in terms of graphics and gameplay standards, but remakes must also maintain a certain level of the original game’s soul; otherwise, players will end up with a haphazardly made game that feels more like a quick cash grab with a dose of nostalgia. Considering the original came out over thirty years ago, Nightdive Studios had a lot of work to do. Using Unreal Engine 4, the studio definitely managed to bring a new shine to this classic game. The Citadel, the source of the nightmares players will be facing, has never felt colder. Keeping the original game’s core layout, players can expect exploration to feel familiar as the areas’ remake still retains their original styles but has a modern shine to them. Unreal Engine 4’s lighting is definitely a big player in the remake, with reflections being impressive. The soundtrack retains its charm, albeit with modern sensibility, which still does an incredible job creating an amazing atmosphere worthy of a high-tech spaceship run by a psychotic superpowered AI.
While the game stays faithful to the original’s atmosphere and style, the developers certainly took some liberties regarding the color palette. There is definitely a focus on neon colors and lights for the remake, which may throw some fans off. Considering this game falls into the cyberpunk genre and borrows heavily from themes and ideas associated with the genre (dystopian future where the gap between rich and poor is immeasurable, the flesh is overwhelmed by metal, megacorporations replace recognized governments), its use of neon colors isn’t entirely ludicrous. Also, many of the puzzles from the original game, which involved players tinkering with circuit boards and fighting dangerous code in cyberspace, have also received updates. While the puzzles can be a nice change of pace (and typically optional), the cyberspace sections are less optional and can typically get old fast. Luckily, this feature, as well as other features like combat difficulty, can be customized at the start of every new game.
Who’s Breathtaking?
As previously mentioned, the System Shock franchise takes strong inspiration from the Cyberpunk genre. One of the biggest components of cyberpunk is the mixing of technology with flesh. Plenty of other games follow this idea, such as Cyberpunk 2077, with the worst case scenario of too much cybernetics being cyberpsychosis, where individuals go into a murderous frenzy. This ties into one of the best parts of this remake, which is that players will get to enjoy a variety of twisted and disturbing enemy designs that have received an incredible facelift. Of course, the introductory enemies, humanoid mutants, are still hanging around, but things quickly get out of hand with the likes of the cyborg mutant. Imagine the biggest piece of meat covered from head to toes in wires and gnarly cybernetics, and this abomination is the end result. While obviously based on designs from the original, the design team for the remake definitely decided to take things to a whole new level. There are a slew of other monstrosities that wonderfully illustrate the body horrors players are forced to witness. Even more horrifying is the fact that most of the enemies players will be facing were once humans who are now forced to suffer their cruel existence.
Similar to the headcrab zombies from Half-Life 2, certain enemies can be heard speaking. While some enemies will thank the player for ending their suffering, others can be heard conversing with Shodan like a child in trouble with their mother.
Aside from the enemy designs, the game’s gore system is also incredible, with players being able to disassemble enemies into meaty little gibblets. Naturally, different weapons will vary in terms of overall destruction. Something as basic as a monkey wrench or pipe might make an enemy enter ragdoll mode with a hit to the back of the head. On the other side of the spectrum, there are high-tech energy weapons like the pulse rifle, with the end result being akin to a Jackson Pollock painting.
It’s Ok to be Different
There’s no question that Nightdive Studios took on this project with absolute admiration and love for the original. This love can be seen in every little detail in the game. While this is admirable, it is also the game’s biggest issue: the original game was made in the nineties. Video games have existed in some form or another for around half a decade. Like every other industry, it has gone through its own trends. Part of the reason why games from that era were so difficult was to ensure that players would spend more time playing said game. While gaming is now a widely accepted pastime by most people around the world, back then, most people treated it as a niche hobby. Not only was the hardware expensive, but so were the games. If a family or individual was lucky enough to have a computer capable of playing games or even a gaming console, they typically didn’t have a selection nearly as big as some people do today. Some people could only play one new game a year, so naturally, games were allowed and expected to take up more time. For as many positive features kept, enhanced, or added to the remake, there are an equal number of annoying features kept in the game as well. One big point of contention is the level layout. It is no exaggeration to say that players will likely spend half of their time lost. No joke, there is even a lore-friendly reason for the level layout being so confusing, but that doesn’t excuse the amount of time players end up wasting trying to find out where the next goal is.
This leads to another issue the game suffers from, which is the lack of an objective log/keeper. While modern games like the Assassin’s Creed franchise spoil players by constantly reminding them of what to do next, System Shock does the complete opposite. The game instead relies on audio logs (think Bioshock) to guide players to their next objective. There are a multitude of issues with this approach, as these logs aren’t always clear as to what the player needs to do. For example, at one point in the game, the player is tasked with jettisoning a portion of the ship that has been contaminated with a virus. The audio log that gives this objective, however, doesn’t make clear that fact that players will also have to visit other parts of the ship in order to enable a number of switches. Thankfully, there’s a separate log describing the exact process players need to follow in order to accomplish this. The problem is that these instructions can only be found if the players ignore their objective and instead explore other areas of the ship first. Even worse than that is the fact that if players make some progress on a particular task but end up forgetting what to do next or what they did last, they’re out of luck. All of these issues become significantly worse later on when players have to backtrack for certain missions. The in-game map is borderline useless as it is just a jumbled mess of lines that make traveling ten times more tedious than it has to be. All of these issues were tolerable when the original System Shock was released, as those were considered the norm at the time. Now, however, these archaic design choices detract from the overall experience.
If ChatGPT were a Psychopath
The desire to preserve certain elements and aspects of a game is admirable, but more thought could’ve been put into this remake’s design. Preserving a game’s identity is important, but a remake is just that: the remaking of a game via modern sensibilities, which typically align with whatever industry norms are currently in place. As heartwarming as it is to see a remake so respectful of its legacy, it’s important to remain considerate of how such games should differentiate themselves as well.
Already played the System Shock Remake and hungry for more sentient AI power struggles? Check out the 25th Anniversary Edition of System Shock 2, which was, coincidentally, also made possible by Nightdive Studios.
System Shock (2022) Official IGN Trailer
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| A lover of gore and over the top violence, no movie can make my stomach squirm. The only thing better than a bloody death scene is a well choreographed stunt. Whether it be action or horror, if it has blood in it, then I've likely already seen it. |
Elke Simmons' writing portfolio includes contributions to The Laredo Morning Times, Walt Disney World Eyes and Ears, Extinction Rebellion (XR) News/Blog, and Dead Talk News.