What are the most influential PC games in history? Civilization has to be up there. Doom. Half-Life. I’d definitely throw Baldur’s Gate into the hat these days, likewise Fallout and The Elder Scrolls. And you know, it’s hard to overstate the significance of The Sims. World of Warcraft definitely deserves a mention, too. But if I’m thinking of a specific type of game – an FPS and immersive sim where you discover the entire story through exploration and interaction, and tweak the way you play based on different stats and abilities – one game stands above all. Inspired by Thief The Dark Project, and launching close to Deus Ex, without this epochal PC shooter, we’d have no BioShock, and maybe no Dishonored. And now it’s all yours for $2.
System Shock 2 is one of the most important ancestors to modern FPS games and hybrid RPGs. Before BioShock (or Metal Gear Solid 2, or the oft-forgotten Haze) had us questioning our role as a player, and before the likes of the original Deus Ex and Arkane’s Dishonored let us twist and shape our approach through myriad different builds, there was System Shock 2 from Looking Glass.
The same studio that created Thief The Dark Project and Thief The Metal Age, Looking Glass used its seminal immersive sim as a springboard for an improved kind of sci-fi shooter, where brains were just as important as brawn. Set aboard the iconic Von Braun, after it’s been overrun by the malevolent AI Shodan, System Shock 2 is also the perfect primer for some of gaming’s freshman philosophic problems.
Especially if you played 2023’s System Shock Remake from Nightdive, this is the perfect time to try System Shock 2. Down 75%, all you need to do is hit the button below and you can get one of the most significant games in PC history for $2.21 / £1.79 right now.
Alternatively, you might want to relive the PC heyday with some of the best old games, or maybe spread your wings in the absolute best RPG games available right now.
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