this was a gift from a friend, he was so happy with it he hug and kissed me!

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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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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.

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Its everything you could want, and more.

Definitely a must buy for any fan of the franchise.

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What a game this is. I hired it out a week ago and during that week bought this Special Edition box set. It arrived today (bought it 5 days ago...btw I live in Australia, so it was pretty damn fast!) and the package was in perfect condition. The box looks amazing and all the goodies inside are to be praised highly. Can't wait to listen to the LP.

This game just rocks! Can't wait for number 3....if there is gonna be one.

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First impression of this is of course the box it comes in. The box is extremely sturdy and a really nice thing to own and have displayed, inside is the vinyl, the cd, the artbook, some great posters and of course the game. Spending an extra ~$40 for all the extras you get is more than a bargain considering the quality of it all, especially if you're a huge fan of bioshock or just love collecting such things.

The artbook is a great piece to have as well, it is beautifully printed and designed to show concepts and many designs that were not even in the game, but did influence what showed up in it.

And finally the game lives up to all the hype about it. I loved the first bioshock game and this game lived up to it's name. The story sucked you in from the beginning and you learn more and more about your own character as you play through and meet some new characters as well as see some from the first game, only 10 years later. The new enemies, new weapons and altered plasmids keep the game fresh and bring up new challenges. The hacking system has also been completely redone and I like it a lot better than the first games. The story also incorporates 2k's huge online advertising campaign for the game (theres something in the sea) which is pretty interesting in itself.

The multiplayer is also a nice add on, it takes a little adjusting to, considering that everyone is running around with a gun and some kinda genetic power, but it is entertaining and a nice new challenge to the game.

To sum up: buy this game, and make sure you grab the special edition

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Bioshock was one of the greatest games of the past ten years. Bioshock 2, therefore, had a lot to live up to. In all honesty, Bioshock 2 is not as great as Bioshock 1. The combat has been improved substantially, but everything else is either the same or slightly worse. That being said, they are all still of the highest caliber and far exceed the general average of games today. The multiplayer is meh, but the single player is a lot of fun, and despite not being as great as Bioshock, still an intense, interesting experience.

As far as the collector's edition goes, it's a very nice product. Maybe not worth +30 dollars, but that's a personal judgement call.

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I have only just started to play Bioshock 2 but from what little I have played, I can tell it's going to rock my socks off! What I really want to write about is the Special Edition box set. I reserved the SE several months prior to the release. At the time I thought this was just an unnecessary splurge and it probably would not be worth the extra money. In fact, I almost canceled my reserve several times. Boy, am I glad I didn't! This SE is the most quality special edition I have ever seen and it makes me want to display it proudly. As an artist and an art teacher, the large hardbound art book was worth the price alone. Other reviews will give you further details of what actually comes in the SE but I'm just here to say...if you get the chance, scoop one of these up right away. You won't be sorry.

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I really have enjoyed the afternoons at my house dealing with those brute splicers and being terrified each time the big sister showed up, it's extremely good when you adopt a little sister and make her gather adam for you, while you drill all the spider splicers who are messing around, and the special edition that includes the fantastic art, the incredible posters and the terrific score, everything just completes a perfect package that everybody would love

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Since many others have articulated the aspects of this game much better than I can, let me just say I am very happy with this purchase. The Special Edition is well worth what you pay for it. The packaging feels great and the in-depth guidebook was an especially nice touch, letting you inside the developers' heads a little. I'd recommend this for anyone.

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I really think that the sequel improved on the story. I felt so emotionally attached. More than last time because I was connected to one sister but saving the others was great because they really relied on me. The hacking was hard at first because I wasn't good at stopping on the right time but when I got used to it I could open a safe with no hassle.

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I really enjoyed part 1 so i know i will enjoy part 2 i recommend this title for anyone of age of cource. I got this game threw amazon real fast I ordered it feb 8th and got it on the 9th in excellent condition.

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Watch Video Here: http://www.amazon.com/review/R2SI8BQUQKSGWD 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.

(There are more pictures of the art book on my blog. Just check the comments section for the link.)

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Bioshock 2 is a great game. Not as powerful of a story like in Bioshock, but gameplay makes up for that with ease. Great graphics, interesting & intriguing setting, very fun gameplay, and a lot of exploration. This game has its scary moments, but nothing a 9 year old doesnt see in a pg-13 horror movie. The multiplayer is average. Fun for sometime but most will return to others

Short and to the point:

Pros: Very fun gameplay, Beautiful graphics, Good storyline, multiplayer is entertaining

Cons: Story isnt as strong as Bioshock, we've seen Rapture all before so few new atmospheres introduced

Thats about it. If you enjoyed the first Bioshock then you will enjoy this one

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Watch Video Here: http://www.amazon.com/review/R133C8BFXDRE0L 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.

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