Back in the early 90s, this was necessary to render as many assets as possible without overloading the very limited amount of computing power available for PCs. The original System Shock is similar to Doom in its graphical styling - environments rendered in pixelated 3D with NPCs and multiple player assets rendered instead as 2D pixelated sprites. The graphics have gotten a massive overhaul as well. It’s wonderfully cyberpunk and anti-corporation, working well within the dismal universe of System Shock. Agents that come to the hacker’s apartment to apprehend them are suitably intimidating, and the hacker even throws in a cheeky middle finger before being subdued. The voice work and animation are top-notch, carefully toeing the line between something cheesy, like the masterpiece that is 1995’s Hackers, and something to be taken seriously, like Bladerunner.

The story remains largely unchanged, with the iconic opening cutscene slightly tweaked to become more in line with modern storytelling modalities. I was able to experience 30 minutes of this new System Shock at PAX West 2022, and it’s gearing up to be one of the best remakes ever made. It’s been nearly 30 years since the original System Shock hit store shelves, and the good people down at Nightdive Studios have been working diligently on a remake. Many consider System Shock and its sequel to be legendary staples of gaming, and for good reason. What follows is a horrific tale of human greed, the consequences of an unshackled and unregulated AI, and a wonderfully dingy view of the future. Brought before the executive of the TriOptimum Corporation (the mega-corporation that owns Citadel Station), the hacker is told that all charges would be dropped if they can get into SHODAN - the Citadel’s AI - and hand control of the station over to the executive. Set in the year 2072, System Shock follows a nameless hacker after they’re caught illegally attempting to access files to a massive privately owned space station known as the Citadel Station. System Shock introduced several concepts that weren’t exactly novel by 1994 but were yet to be done as well as they were here. Screenshots from System Shock: Enhanced Edition (2015).

System shock 1 textures