System Shock 2: 25th Anniversary Remaster is free on the Epic Games Store
It’s fair to say that if it wasn’t for System Shock and its sequel, sci-fi survival horror would be a sparser genre. The original Dead Space, for example, began life as a notional System Shock 3, and Tacoma, too, was inspired by the series. Now, you can claim System Shock 2: 25th Anniversary Remaster absolutely free on the Epic Games Store and you’ll regret it if you miss out.
It’s not been rebuilt from the ground up as the System Shock remake has, but System Shock 2: 25th Anniversary Remaster is prettier than it’s ever been. And, whether you played the original or not, it’s sure to give you the chills as you hear The Many taunting you, confused as to why you don’t want to join their horrifying hive mind.
The who? Unlike System Shock, where you’re battling rogue AI SHODAN on a space station, System Shock 2 takes place aboard a massive spaceship. Your primary foe is a gruesome annelid entity known as The Many which has taken over the vessel, corrupting its crew and turning them into fleshy drones, massive amorphous bruisers and other foes.
Some may find that System Shock 2 is a tad dated by today’s standards, but it absolutely deserves to be experienced. Jokes about the audio log fairy aside, each crew member’s micro-stories only help drive home the horror, and the whole body horror aspect is wonderfully done, especially when you reach The Many’s ‘hive’ and discover… well, you’ll have to wait and see. There’s full multiplayer support, too.
You can claim System Shock 2: 25th Anniversary Remaster from the Epic Games Store now. It’s yours to keep, too, and should run on any half-decent PC; you can also claim murder-mystery adventure Buried Stars. Both games are available from now until 4:00PM BST on Thursday 8th October, when they’re replaced by next week’s freebies, Out of Sight and TerraScape.
