BioShock 2 Special Edition

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List Price: $99.99
Sale Price: $67.75
Today's Bonus: 32% Off

Well, this is the review for the items that come with special edition, and not for the game itself. I'll post the game review in the standard edition page.

In short, the BioShock 2 Special Edition is stunning and basically screams "quality" all over.

All the items are packed in a beautiful sturdy black box. The box art is printed on what I believe to be top grade matte paper which has a really good feel on touch.

The Vinyl record contains the score for BioShock 1 with a total of 24 songs on both sides. It's housed inside a glossy slipcase which has some words from the score composer Garry Schyman. Unfortunately for me, I don't have a record player which means I can't play it, and sadly it doesn't come with an audio CD version -how can that even happen?

The audio CD is the soundtrack for BioShock 2. I love violins and there are lots of that on the score. Music style ranges from the incredibly scary to deeply beautiful and sad. Well worth listening over again to relive the moment.

The hardcover art book "Deco Devolution" is filled to the brim with concept art on the characters, environments and weapons. There are even the ads you see plastered on the walls in the game. The art is great and every piece is accompanied by staff commentary giving tremendous insight into the art direction. I'm an art book collector and this is certainly one of the best art books out there, one that can't be bought separately.

I've prepared a video of me flipping through the art book. I've also uploaded some pictures onto Amazon -hopefully they will appear soon.

The 3 deco art style posters are nice. They are rolled but flattens out easily.

Overall, the Special Edition is really well worth the money. Highly recommended for all collectors.

(More pictures are available on my blog. Just visit my Amazon profile for the link.)

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The following review is specifically for the Special Edition content and will not deal with the actual game.

As someone who currently owns a few Special/Collector Editions (including the Fallout 3, Doom 3, Halo 2, Lost Planet, Resistance 2 and so on), I have to say that this BioShock 2 Special Edition is truly one amazing package.

The first thing I should mention is the case or box everything is housed in. The box itself is about 13" by 13" in size. It is also a very sturdy and thick box unlike some Collector sets where all you really get is a cheap cardboard/paper box to store the items in (like in the Resistance 2 set). This box will truly keep your items safe and will not be damaged easily since it is quite strong.

The first item in the box is the vinyl album that contains the score for the original BioShock. This has to be one the most original items to include with a Special Edition that I have seen in years. If your like me and own a record player then you will truly enjoy the vinyl album (it is still cool to have even if you don't). Side A of the vinyl has 14 tracks on it, and Side B has the remaining 10 tracks. A nice extra is the notes written by composer Garry Schyman on the back of the vinyl jacket.

The next item within the box is the art book for BioShock 2. This is by far the best art book that I have seen for a video game so far. The hardcover book is just over 160 pages long and covers every aspect of the game. It is broken into 10 chapters which include Big Daddies, Big Sisters, Environments, Weapons, and so on. The best part about the book is how detailed it is and how just about every page has notes by the artist who worked on the game. The artists reveal quite a bit about the process of making the game and even mention some things that did not make it into the final version of BioShock 2. This is without a doubt the best item within the Special Edition.

The official BioShock 2 score CD is also contained within the Special Edition. It includes 26 tracks and is about 47 minutes in length. Just like the vinyl, it also contains notes by composer Gary Schyman.

The last items included in the Special Edition are the 3 posters, and honestly they are the weakest part of collection. Don't get me wrong it is not because of bad printing or color quality, it is just the size of the posters. They are just slightly bigger than the art book which measures 8 and a half by 11" in size. Honestly, they feel more like vintage reproductions of posters then actual posters. However, the paper as well as the ink used is of great quality.

I can not say enough good things about the BioShock 2 Special Edition. Everything about this set is top of the line, even the posters despite being rather small. At the current price Amazon is asking for it (which is what I paid) you can not go wrong. So go ahead and buy it, you will not regret it.

Buy BioShock 2 Special Edition Now

Just got my Special Edition from Amazon this morning. I am reviewing the Special Edition content more than the game. It arrived on the release date ahead of the estimated delivery date. Everything in this special edition is top quality and really stands out. The box is very sturdy and is printed very nicely. Upon opening everything up it all was in perfect condition. This was all put together and handled with care.

I am Rapture and Rapture is Me Bioshock Score 12" LP

Slick gloss paper sleeve and a protective paper sleeve around the record also. This has the score to the first Bioshock game. My only complaint comes with the LP. I wish there was an mp3 download code for it. Small gripe but not everyone has record players.

Sounds From the LightHouse Bioshock 2 Score CD

A very nice extension and evolution of the original score. CD come in a flat paper sleeve very similar to the sleeve for the 12" LP

Deco Devolution Art Book

This was my main desire for getting the special edition. I was not disappointed. This thing is full of very cool stuff. It covers a pretty wide spectrum of art. Character Designs, environment designs, storyboards, Rapture posters and a bunch more. This book rocks. So much better than the little 5 inch books some games have put out.

3 Posters from Rapture

Printed on a very nice quality paper. They all looked great. I just need to flatten them all out from being rolled up and frame them.

Bioshock 2 The game

To this I wont speak much. Others will review the game content far better than I could. But so far I have enjoyed the sequel.

Considering this is only $30 more than the regular edition, it feels like a steal.

Read Best Reviews of BioShock 2 Special Edition Here

When I first played BIOSHOCK. I fell in love. It is my favorite video game ever hands down. The 2K team payed attention to everything, the lighting the score, the art. Top notch all the way around. So when they finally opened up the Bioshock 2 pre -orders i made mine. The SE edition is necessary for anyone who loves Rapture and the world of Bioshock. They did something similar with Bioshock one's SE and I kick my self for not getting the Upgrade for that title. So I didnt skimp this time when I saw what I was getting. It got here on time and it is amazing. From the moment you open the hard bound case to protect your SE of Bioshock 2. To the stunning score and art book. The posters are nice and will be hanging on my wall before to long. Any true bioshock fan will love this. Recommend purchasing before they disappear. They only made so many just like Bioshock 1.

The game is amazing. No its not as pretty as Uncharted, but then again Bioshock ht the shelves in 2006/2007. You cant overhaul the whole game for 2 with out losing what people loved so much in the first. 2k polished the 2nd installment and it is just as good as one. You will be hooked in rapture again in no time. I am going on 16 hours of play and havent finished yet because i am continuously searching and taking in the environment looking out the portholes to the wold outside.

Great game. Get yours now.

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Anyone who is a hardcore Bioshock fan will go wild for the beautiful special edition. For this price you might expect something cheap, but everything is very high quality. Even the packaging is gorgeous and sturdy. My favorite of the included treasures is the beautiful hardcover art book. The soundtrack record is playing on my turntable right now. What a collection! Everything is very vintage inspired, as if it came from Rapture itself. Definitely the best game purchase I've ever made.