ok I'm taking the time after my first death to tell you my first impression of the title....
first of all the water is amazing...
the atmosphere of the late fifties early sixties is awesome....
the sound localization for 5.1 is really well done
the intro is great for the game you basicaly crashed in the middle of the atlantic and into rapture (I don't say more on what is said about the situation in rapture and the story so far to keep some interest for you)
that game is freaking me out you never know when a nut job is going to jump on you, kind of silent hill effect/doom 3 (the creature spawning) or alone in the dark for the oldest one
the sound is disturbing always a background sound coming from somewhere or voices of a crazy guy/girl in the area....
the decor is fantastic.... the underwater view is bluffing, it looks like Vegas/time square under water
the soundtrack so far is perfectly fitting to the decor 50's/60's
the combat style is really easy to use between the weapon on the right trigger/button and the plasmid on the left ones
the animation of your hands are great
I didn't get the chance yet to really explore their application, but the possibility to use them seems interesting (electrifying the water to kill the guys walking in a puddle instead of a direct shoot at them etc...)
great cut scenes so far....

conclusion I understand why it got so good reviews... the overall experience is great, it's easy to handle and you are really plunged (no pun intended lol ;))in the world of rapture right away... great graphics, great sound effects, great soundtrack, great game play, and physics motion seems good as well.... trying it is buying it :)

I hope you'll have the same excellent experience with that demo as I did

ENJOY!!!!!

I have to run home for lunch and start this download so I can play it when I leave work.

brilliant game i tell you ppl

I played it late last night. Obviously it was great and the game is a must buy.

Beyond that I'll wait to post my impressions in a "Bioshock demo spoilers" thread if one is created because I'm sure a lot of people who haven't played the demo yet will be reading this one.

Ok I just got done playing part of the demo and here're my thoughts :)

Presentation: 10.0

Graphics:
The graphics are very good but what truly stands out is the level of detail and the atmosphere is in the game. From the very first moment you enter Rapture you're welcome by a scene of horror as one of it's denizens brutally kills another. It also becomes quickly apparent how much detail is in the game as it seems every room and area has been lovingly handcrafted with and made to feel real, as if there truly was some disaster that destroyed a living breathing society. I can only wonder at the amount of time and effort put into that detail as it blows away everything from Gears of War to Resident Evil 4.

The atmosphere itself reminds me of the start of Resident Evil 4 when you enter the house and try to talk to the old man, the feeling of dread you get as you're wonder when he's going to attack, well that feeling is everywhere in this game. I literally hid the first time I saw a Big Daddy attack and kill a man, I was behind glass and a pillar but I still felt the need to hide and wach. This game completely sucks a person in, in fact after I got killed in the game and got up to post here I paced around for a bit trying to get back into the reality of being in my livingroom on a sunny day.

Sound:
Not much to say here except that the voice acting, music, and everything else related to sound is simply perfect. An old record played in the game really does indeed sound like an old record. Insane people really do sound insane. And the music and atmosphere sounds are dead on and help the atmosphere of the game tremedously.

Gameplay 9.5

It probably deserves a 10 and I'm giving it a 9.5 not because of a flaw in the game, but because it's not what I completely expected. I thought it would be about 50/50 adventure/shooter but it appears to be more shooter than that. Don't get me wrong it takes nothing away from the game as the combat in the game is very well thought out and is extremely well done.

Also the enemies in the game seem more real than in other games, from their unique voices and dialog to their animation, it's just like the areas in the game in that it's all lovingly handcrafted. I've always wondered what an artist must feel like to spend so much time on a character's animation or areas of the game in which people might only spend a few seconds or minutes and not even notice the amazing work he/she has done.  There are many times like that in this game.

Also the controls in the game seem very well laid out. It's extremely easy to switch through many weapons and abilities quickly and everything in the game is very responsive. It's hard to imagine anyone coming up with a better control scheme for the game.

ps. Well that's all I can think of, except to mention as others have that the water indeed is pretty amazing and the decor is fantastic (endimion's description which nails it). Also if you go into this game expecting an adventure game you might be a little disappointed but as an action game it'll make you extremely happy.  Games like this are very rare and hopefully it gets the attention and sales it deserves.

yeah thank you for the compliment :)

I'll add that the hacking mini game is fun and help to laid back....

and about the action RPG part... we need to test the real game... all the part of weapon creation.... enemies observation, the 70 plasmids and else you can have etc.... are not displayed in the demo.... I think you'll probably have some puzzle like stuff to do like.... or at least smarter things to do than just run and shoot... that's a guess and I could be wrong but the environment is asking for it :P

I just hope the encounters with the enemies, ect are kept fresh throughout. Otherwise, one of the best demos I've ever played.

yeap but it seems well scripted, i loved the girl with the crib idea.. and I think we'll see a lot like that... with all the scientist went nutz.. researching crazy stuff... with all the plasmid.. I guess we'll have a large pannel of ennemies.. or at least with different attacks and/or behavior

I love the fact they have New years eve masks too.. it's like everything stoped that day and that makes me even more curious

All I can say after playing the demo is OMG.  Once I finally got my jaw off the floor and got into the game, I found it disturbing, creepy, and made the hair on the back of my neck stand up.  The graphics, in my opinion, well match or exceed gears in pretty much every way. I think I enjoyed looking at scenery and such as much as I did killing stuff. I hacked a camera -- that was interesting.

I'm afraid to say it, but I didn't find a single flaw and I've always got a complaint or two.

I don't care how you do it -- find a 360 and play this demo. All fanboyism aside, I hope they eventually put this on the PS3 because those of you that don't have a 360 are missing out in a big, big way.

I've played a lot of games on a lot of consoles.  This game stands on it's own with no equal I've ever seen or played. 

no you could have said OMFG :)

and after a while playing I found a flaw... we don't see his feet (i hate when they do that is it that hard to add 2 feet lol).... and we don't see his hands when he is swimming at the beginning.... but hell I would give away all the feet in the world of VG to have games of that quality all the time :)