Truly a Timeless Classic!
As someone who never experienced System Shock 2 until its recent release on GOG I was quite excited. I absolutely loved BioShock when it came out in 2007 and people would always mention it was the spiritual successor to this game. I knew I was going to play a classic, still even with all the positive reception I had no idea how it would hold up today. After all this game was released in 1999 and couldn't possibly provide such an engrossing story and atmosphere on the same level as BioShock right? Wrong.
They weren't kidding about the similarities. System Shock 2's story is told through audio logs and by observing the decaying environment all around you. The Starship Von Braun makes for a provocative and visually striking setting. Each deck of the ship has its own unique style which helps make exploring more enjoyable and engaging. Dead crew mates litter the ship with the player occasionally experiencing ghostly visions of their final moments. Also constantly roaming the halls are The Many. Without giving too much away they are the main antagonist in all respects and will stop at nothing to merge you into their so called "collective." They are grotesque, unnerving, constantly keeping you on edge.
Fortunately as a trained solider you can stop them by almost any means necessary. There is a very RPG-lite feature attached to the gameplay. As you progress through the story and scout the ship you earn Nanites. These can be used to upgrade a number of things such as your Stats, Firepower, Technical Skill and Psi Power. I found the later to be a bit too expensive and stuck with a Soldier/Hacker archetype. Nearly everything is useful down to hacking security cameras, repairing weapons or increasing inventory space. Be sure to spend nanites carefully though as they are rather scarce in the early goings. I really enjoyed this extra layer of depth and plan to play again with another build in the future.
Returning to the story, even though I had known about the big PLOT TWIST in the game it was still a treat to watch. I have never felt so unnerved and alone in a game.
All said there were some rare moments that seemed to drag on over the 12 or so hours it took me to complete the game. There's a segment on the Recreation Deck where you have to search for a code hidden in digital paintings, being one of the larger decks it took me nearly 30 minutes to find all 4.
In the end it doesn't matter how much time has passed since its release, I still found System Shock 2 to be a well crafted, deeply engaging, rich experience. I believe that to be the definition of a timeless classic!