One thing I failed to mention was inventory management. I liked having limited space for weapons but the recycling system was a bit tedious. Some junk items net you more credits if you recycle them outright but I eventually just vaporized everything into scrap and recycled that to save inventory space.
Great video! System Shock Remake was one of my favorite games of the last few years (got it on release day), as I'm a huge fan of the series and immersive sims in general. While I do prefer the OG version of System Shock for a number of reasons, Nightdive did an excellent job with this remake, and I'm glad they stayed faithful to the original, rather than water it down like many devs would. Why do I still prefer the original? One of the things I missed the most was the OG's amazing soundtrack. It had a lot of banger themes in the OST that managed to create a great Sci-Fi vibe, while still feeling mysterious and intense. The remake's ambient OST is fine but doesn't compare. A cool bit of trivia is that the original OST was composed by Greg LoPiccolo, who was a former bandmate of Terri Brosius (Shodan's VA). Her husband, Eric Brosius (who was another bandmate), composed the OST for System Shock 2. I also wasn't a fan of the recycling mechanic they added for the remake. In the OG, there was plenty of ammo and weapons to be found around the station, so you didn't need to recycle junk to get extra ammo. All the junk in the remake also adds to the clutter, which can make it much more difficult to find important items. I get the feeling Nightdive decided to implement this mechanic because it was used in Prey (2017), which is a spiritual successor to System Shock. I also have nitpicks related to things like the implementation of surgical units (which was instantaneous in the OG but which forces you to sit through a cutscene in the remake). One thing the remake did better than the original, though, was the cyberspace segments. I agree that they're still the worst aspect of the game, but they were far worse in the OG. All of the walls were wire-frame, making it difficult to see where you were going, and it didn't help that you could see through all the walls (which meant it was hard to distinguish tunnel openings). An interesting thing to note is that the OG actually allowed you to write notes on the map. You could click on a spot and type something there to help you remember why a certain location was important. Looking Glass did this in their other immersive sims, too (including System Shock 2, both Ultima Underworld games, and the original Thief duology). I'm not sure why that was changed for the remake because it was a very helpful mechanic. Anyway, I'm glad you enjoyed the game, and I liked your in-depth analysis of it. You've earned a sub from me!
Thanks! Maybe I'll see about modding in the OG soundtrack next time I play. Also agree on the recycling, I think I forgot to mention that in the video but I felt it just added tedium more than anything. Still a relatively small blemish on an otherwise great game.
@@CobraCodex Yeah, I agree with you there. Ultimately, most of my complaints are nothing more than gripes. I loved what Nightdive did with this game and hope they will remake more of Looking Glass' classics in the future. Unfortunately, Ultima Underworld (and the Ultima franchise in general) is in the hands of EA, so a remake of those games isn't likely to happen. Similarly, Thief is still in the hands of Eidos-Montreal, who haven't done anything with it since their disastrous reboot in 2014, so I'm not very optimistic about that, either. System Shock 2 might still get the remake treatment, though, which would be most welcome.
One thing I failed to mention was inventory management. I liked having limited space for weapons but the recycling system was a bit tedious. Some junk items net you more credits if you recycle them outright but I eventually just vaporized everything into scrap and recycled that to save inventory space.
Great video! System Shock Remake was one of my favorite games of the last few years (got it on release day), as I'm a huge fan of the series and immersive sims in general. While I do prefer the OG version of System Shock for a number of reasons, Nightdive did an excellent job with this remake, and I'm glad they stayed faithful to the original, rather than water it down like many devs would.
Why do I still prefer the original? One of the things I missed the most was the OG's amazing soundtrack. It had a lot of banger themes in the OST that managed to create a great Sci-Fi vibe, while still feeling mysterious and intense. The remake's ambient OST is fine but doesn't compare. A cool bit of trivia is that the original OST was composed by Greg LoPiccolo, who was a former bandmate of Terri Brosius (Shodan's VA). Her husband, Eric Brosius (who was another bandmate), composed the OST for System Shock 2.
I also wasn't a fan of the recycling mechanic they added for the remake. In the OG, there was plenty of ammo and weapons to be found around the station, so you didn't need to recycle junk to get extra ammo. All the junk in the remake also adds to the clutter, which can make it much more difficult to find important items. I get the feeling Nightdive decided to implement this mechanic because it was used in Prey (2017), which is a spiritual successor to System Shock. I also have nitpicks related to things like the implementation of surgical units (which was instantaneous in the OG but which forces you to sit through a cutscene in the remake).
One thing the remake did better than the original, though, was the cyberspace segments. I agree that they're still the worst aspect of the game, but they were far worse in the OG. All of the walls were wire-frame, making it difficult to see where you were going, and it didn't help that you could see through all the walls (which meant it was hard to distinguish tunnel openings). An interesting thing to note is that the OG actually allowed you to write notes on the map. You could click on a spot and type something there to help you remember why a certain location was important. Looking Glass did this in their other immersive sims, too (including System Shock 2, both Ultima Underworld games, and the original Thief duology). I'm not sure why that was changed for the remake because it was a very helpful mechanic.
Anyway, I'm glad you enjoyed the game, and I liked your in-depth analysis of it. You've earned a sub from me!
Thanks! Maybe I'll see about modding in the OG soundtrack next time I play. Also agree on the recycling, I think I forgot to mention that in the video but I felt it just added tedium more than anything. Still a relatively small blemish on an otherwise great game.
@@CobraCodex Yeah, I agree with you there. Ultimately, most of my complaints are nothing more than gripes. I loved what Nightdive did with this game and hope they will remake more of Looking Glass' classics in the future. Unfortunately, Ultima Underworld (and the Ultima franchise in general) is in the hands of EA, so a remake of those games isn't likely to happen. Similarly, Thief is still in the hands of Eidos-Montreal, who haven't done anything with it since their disastrous reboot in 2014, so I'm not very optimistic about that, either. System Shock 2 might still get the remake treatment, though, which would be most welcome.
I may check this out in the future, and since u mentioned it I gotta go back on Deus EX Mankind Divided
"shoDAN'. shoDAN'.shoDAN'. Ugh.
Thanks for commenting!