BioShock’s critical reception continues to impress, and while this latest piece of self-congratulation spewed forth by publisher 2K Games is unlikely to surprise anyone who’s come into contact with the watery world of Rapture, it’s always nice to know that the accolades are still flooding in for 2007’s ‘Game of the Year’- in waiting.

More pointedly, everyone’s favourite home of quick-fix aggregated review scores and single paragraph summations, Metacritic, has revealed that BioShock has successfully secured the enviable position of "all-time top ranked Xbox 360 game" on the site as well as nabbing the honour of being the year’s highest ranked videogame across all console platforms.

Additionally, as if more plaudits were even necessary, BioShock has also set a new record on the Xbox Live Marketplace, becoming the fastest downloaded playable demo to ever surpass the 1 million downloads marker. It took BioShock a mere nine days to outperform every other release to have hit the service, clearly illustrating the public anticipation for 2K’s pseudo-RPG first-person shooter.

"We are really pleased that Microsoft's Xbox LIVE Marketplace has managed to attract a record number of gamers to its site to download and check out BioShock," trumpeted Christoph Hartmann, President of 2K Games. "The overwhelmingly positive response is not only reflected in the traffic to Xbox LIVE, but the record breaking score reported by Metacritic. We're excited about the reception the fans have given BioShock and are honoured that the game has been recognized as 'Game of the Year' material."

BioShock’s current Metacritic score, amassed across more than 50 reviews from the very cream of the gathered critical throng, sits at an amazing 96/100, deservedly earning the game "Universal Acclaim" status on the site.