I'll admit that the second game maintained the beautiful atmosphere from the first and significantly improved many of the gameplay mechanics, but it wasn't game play that made Bioshock a stand out success. Bioshock was great because of its story, which was far more clever and involving than pretty much anything we had seen in games in a long time. Unfortunately, the sequel doesn't quite live up to the first in terms of plot, so fails where it matters the most.
Plus the sequel had far more annoying voice actors. Eleanor in particular got up my nose. And it also never made sense that the big sisters went after you when you were, after all, a big daddy they would have previously idolized. If they made it so that they only attacked if you were cruel, that would have been okay.
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1) I don't know if the story behind the first game was all that great. Now, the backstory was BRILLIANT, but for 75% of the original game you were a personality-free blank with no real goal besides killing baddies. After The Reveal, things do get seriously good again though. What I enjoy about BS 2 is
2) The Big Sisters attack Delta because (either through harvesting or rescuing) he is removing the Little Sisters from Lamb's ADAM collection chain. (In the new state religion Rapture is a body and "Big Sister is the hand" of Sophia Lamb.)
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In Defense of Bio Shock 2
Bio Shock 2 didn't garner the type of critical acclaim that the original did when it was released, with some people dismissing it as a soulless cash grab. But the original game was not perfect and the sequel wisely improves upon its faults to end up as a worthy game in own right.
First off, nobody will be giving Bio Shock 2 any awards for originality. It plays out like a remake or reboot of its predecessor (though the pacing feels a bit tighter this time around). So a lot of credit for the success of Bioshock 2 is due to the creative team behind the first game. If you can forgive all that, Bio Shock 2 excels in some very particular ways. Combat is much more satisfying playing as a powerful big daddy. Though it may seem paradoxical that the now less challenging battles are more rewarding than the difficult encounters in the first game, not having to rely as much on the terribly cheap vita-chambers to bring down Rosies and Bouncers makes for a sense of greater triumph. Enemy variety is better too, bolstered by cool opponents like the Big Sister and Brute splicers.
Yes, Big Bad Sophia Lamb is an (Opposite Day) Andrew Ryan clone but arguably outdoes him as a credibly evil threat. Whereas Ryan was ultimately a danger to no one but himself, Lamb's menace, directed at the player's strongest emotional connection, daughter Eleanor, keeps things centered and propels the story forward.
If you liked the first one the game may feel familiar but its mostly good thing. Its a worthy sequel.