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Video: BioShock open-ended gameplay
So, are you getting sick of BioShock footage yet? We hope not, because GameVideos has posted a video with Irrational Games' Ken Levine, who walks us through a gameplay scenario. In order to display the many options available to the player, the video runs us through the same scenario three times. On the first try, it's played as a straight up FPS with guns blazing (hint: this won't get you very far). The second time through, the player uses forethought and all the Plasmid skills available. The third time, he takes on the Big Daddy. Unfortunately, the battle with the Big Daddy is cut short, so we don't get to witness the whole thing (you may recall that it takes a lot of firepower to bring these guys down).Also, we noticed what appear to be enemy health bars in the video too. Hopefully that's a feature that can be turned off. Kind of ruins the suspense, you know?
Big Daddy's final look for BioShock limited edition
As we prepare to enter BioShock's city of Rapture on Aug. 21, we now get to view the final version of the Big Daddy figurine which will be bundled with the limited edition version of the game. The figurine looks pretty cool and the limited edition is only $10 more ($69.99) than the normal game -- seems totally worth it for the six-inch hand-painted resin statue.It's neat to see the evolution of the figurine. The prototype looked good, but this looks like something we'd really like to have keeping watch over our Xbox 360. Now we just need a little sister hugging his leg. [Thanks Jubby]%Gallery-3418%
Video: The Darkness? More like Teh Hawtness!!1
The new trailer for The Darkness is sweeping the interwebs, and it's totally awesome. It's got a nice narrative by the Darkness itself. It shows off aspects of the game not yet seen, in a more underworld-type setting. It's making the 25th of June all the more painful a wait. Which is somewhat of a good thing, as the anticipation only makes us more excited. Are you going to devour some hearts later this month?
2K football rises again, 2K8 debut trailer
It's been a long time coming, but 2K football is back. GameTrailers has posted the debut trailer of All-Pro Football 2K8. The trailer is heavy on the hip-hop, which is to be expected based on the game's previously announced soundtrack (not to mention other 2K sports soundtracks). The All-Pro engine looks nice, with plenty of jukes, spins, and tackles on which to feast your eyes. We have to wonder though, can any non-licensed football title stand up next to the Electronic Arts Madden juggernaut? How about you? Assuming All-Pro delivers where it counts, will you pick it up over Madden?
BioShock: Equal parts Ayn Rand, kick-ass shooter
We have a confession to make. As much as we try to remain impartial in our coverage of unreleased games, occasionally a game will penetrate our cynical, jaded defenses like ... well, like a giant needle being plunged into our rotting, turgid corpse by a ghoulish Little Sister. BioShock is just such a game so, when we get the opportunity to read a thoughtful feature on the game devoid of the mechanical checklists we're used to, we feel that giant needle piercing our ribcage again. Ahhhhh ...Julian Murdoch at Gamers With Jobs takes us on a tour of Quincy, MA's Irrational Games, the developers behind this underwater, art-deco opus. But it's not the usual tour of a game in development, but a tour of the motivation behind creating a intellectually sophisticated game inside the framework of a "kick-ass shooter." With hefty dollops of Objectivism, Ayn Rand's political ideology, on display not only in the game's story but in it's construction, BioShock roughly mirrors the plot of Rand's polemical Atlas Shrugged. Knowing that may not interest some of you, they're of course eager to remind everyone that it's also a "kick-ass shooter."%Gallery-3725%
Civilization III mod teaches Canadian history
Ten years in the making, a million-dollar project funded by Telefilm Canada and supported by Canada's National History Society has finally come to fruition. HistoriCanada: The New World is a Civilization III mod designed to help students learn about Canadian history. Gamers take control of the English, French, or one of over half a dozen native peoples and play through the years of 1525 and 1762, shaping the country as the game plays out in Civ III-style.The chair of the Queen's University Centre for the Study of Democracy says Canadian history is sometimes portrayed as "dull as dishwater", but when experienced through Civ III players can see the "complex interaction of economic, religious, social and military choices" that have shaped the country's past. The mod is available for download on the HistoriCanada website (you must have Civ III and the Conquests expansion) and will be packaged with copies of Civ III and donated to over 100,000 Canadian high school students.Edutainment can go horribly wrong, but sprinkling a little history lesson in with Civilization is a great idea in our book. Just one question: why Civ III and not Civ IV?[Thanks, Bryon S.]
New BioShock footage, massive gallery
We just can't wait for BioShock. If you listen to the Fancast, you probably already know that, but it remains noteworthy. The game simply looks gorgeous and it has some promising gameplay to boot. The footage above is basically a mishmash of gameplay footage, assembled in no particular order. Give it a look and tell us what you think. Be warned though, watching all of these clips out of context may begin to make you feel a little ... insane.Also, we've uploaded a huge BioShock gallery, which you are free to peruse at your leisure. Find it below.[Via youNEWB]%Gallery-3532%
A closer look at BioShock's Little Sisters
Despite the many menacing characters found in BioShock, not the least of which is the Big Daddy, the creepiest character revealed so far is undoubtedly the Little Sister. These little "girls" run around the underwater world of Rapture collecting something called Adam from the dead (note the large syringe in the image at right. The player can decide to save these "children" or to harvest them, as the Adam they carry is useful to the player. In the latest BioShock podcast, Ken Levine, creative director of Irrational Games, discusses the moral conflict that the developers have created in the Little Sister character.The whole podcast is just shy of 20 minutes, and is exclusively about the Little Sister. Given the appearance and demeanor of the Little Sister character, the moral choice presented by her is likely to become a touchy subject, and the podcast attempts to clear the air about it. Levine discusses the challenges of creating such a character (originally designed as an insect) and forcing the player to make a moral choice about it. Among the juicier bits of info revealed in the podcast is the fact that players cannot physically harm the Little Sister. Little Sisters can be "harvested," but cannot be harmed by weapons or powers that the player possesses. It is made clear that harvesting will result in the death of a Little Sister, though Levine doesn't discuss specific details. The podcast is definitely worth a listen. If you've got the time to spare, we suggest you check it out.
The Darkness demo slated for early June
A bulletin recently posted by the official MySpace page of the upcoming 2K title, The Darkness, has clarified several details about the new release. The juiciest of these tidbits is the revelation that a demo is slated to be released before the game hits store shelves. The bulletin notes that the demo won't be finished in time to make any magazine covers, so it will download only. Currently, the demo is scheduled to arrive approximately 3 weeks before the title debuts on June 25th, so it should be on Marketplace in the first week of June or so.Also mentioned in the bulletin, a new video has been created, though it has yet to escape the evil clutches of the "certain voluntarily regulatory agencies." We can't imagine what sort of agency would prevent the distribution of horrifyingly violent material, but then again we're to desensitized to judge anymore. The bulletin also reveals that those who pre-order the title from EB or GameStop get an exclusive 2K Sports Darkling that wields a baseball bat. Nice.Here's hoping the demo comes out sooner rather than later.[Thanks, Ben Furneaux]
Rockstar: 360 hindering GTAIV development
Speaking to the Official Playstation Magazine, Rockstar's creative vice president, Dan Houser, noted that the Xbox 360's lack of a guaranteed hard drive poses a challenge for the development of Grand Theft Auto IV. When asked directly about the issue, Houser agreed that the hard drive issue presented limitations. It should be noted, however, that Houser elaborated that both the Playstation 3 and Xbox 360 have their share of challenges. As Houser put it, "both have their own particular pleasures and pains." What exactly these pleasures and pains are is anyone's guess.For what it's worth, the version of Grand Theft Auto IV being shown to the press is running on an Xbox 360. Do with that what you will. [Via Digg]
2K Sports announces classic All-Pro Football roster
Licenses? Who needs licenses? Not 2K Sports, who today announced a massive lineup of classic football stars would grace All-Pro Football 2K8. While EA holds the exclusive rights to use NFL trademarks and current player likenesses, 2K has lined up practically every retired player you've ever heard of, and probably a few you haven't, for the roster of their re-entry into the football simulation market.The list of players is presented on the game page is in a super-annoying Flash format, but intrepid Joystiq tipster Mugginns has compiled them all in an easy to scan text list, organized by position and alphabetical order. Check it out after the jump.
Flying is still in GTAIV (just not in planes)
Among the details revealed about GTAIV a couple weeks back was this little tidbit: "No planes." Many readers were understandably miffed, as flying is one of the more entertaining things to do in Grand Theft Auto. Fear not, fanboys, for we have discovered that flight has not been removed from the series. Game Informer's Andrew Reiner recently spilled the beans whilst speaking to GTANet. According to Reiner, the city is really too small for a plane to make sense, but other craft -- like helicopters -- will definitely make it into the game. That, obviously, is the big news, but Reiner revealed a few other details as well. The camera has been adjusted while driving, making the game feel more like Midnight Club according to Reiner. Also, Reiner was very impressed by the game's visuals (no pop up or loading screens), and notes that retail will look even better than what he saw. He also hints that characters from previous games may make an appearance.Hit the "read" link for the full interview.[Via IGN. Thanks, Rodney]
The Big Daddy lurks on Marketplace
Not too long ago, we featured a video that showcased just how difficult it is to take down a Big Daddy in BioShock. To put it bluntly, it's really effing hard. Seriously, the Big Daddy is set on fire, shot multiple times with a variety of guns, and hit with several grenades. All in all, killing the damned thing takes over 5 minutes. The video is now available on Marketplace, so you can watch it from the comfort of your couch on an HD display. Seeing it on a larger screen shows off lots of details that are harder to make out in a streaming video. Go download it and tell us what you think.In particular, do you think you have it in you to take out a Little Sister?
GTA IV scans hit the internet (and run)
Our buddies at Xboxygen nabbed over a dozen scans of Grand Theft Auto IV (GTAIV to the kids) from the latest Game Informer. The screens give a nice idea of the level of detail in the game, as touched upon by the recently released trailer. The shot above in particular is a great example of how alive the game seems to be. In this shot, you can see reflections on the car, realistic shadows, and of course, lots of pedestrians. It's unfortunate that this shot shows off two identical NPCs (the women in white shirts and jeans), but the level of detail is still very impressive. There are also some nice shots of GTAIV's locations, cars, and characters (including some character art). Hit the "read" link to check 'em out. Be sure to head back here and tell us what you think.
GTAIV trailer reimagined in real life
Video games have a way of creating dedicated fans. With the advent of YouTube and viral videos, many video game fans are turning to user created movies. Some films, like the ones produced by Mega64, poke fun at video game conventions. Other films take existing game engines to create new stories, something that has become very popular with Halo and Halo 2. This video, however, brings something different to the table. The video is a recreation of the recently released trailer for Grand Theft Auto IV. The entire video is done in live action. That in itself is worth a look, but what makes it even more interesting is that the video is composed entirely of clips found on YouTube. Has society come so far that we now make YouTube videos from pieces of other YouTube videos? Simply astounding. Give it a watch, check out the original, and tell us what you think.[Via GamePolitics. Thanks, Pedro Monscooch ]
Video: Shivering Isles gameplay
Shivering Isles, the official expansion for The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion is now available, but what is it all about? Perhaps this video will help explain that. Apparently, Shivering Isles is about monsters, giants, and unrelenting madness. To be honest, that sounds great, doesn't it? You bet your bag of holding it does! The video showcases some of the expansion's psychotic themes as well as some seriously ferocious beasts, including the giant gatekeeper at the end. If you prefer nothing to be spoiled, you'd best skip this video, because it pretty much lays down the entire beginning to the expansion. As for everyone else, enjoy! Don't forget to tell us what you think in the comments.
BioShock medical pavillion open for business
GameTrailers has posted a new BioShock trailer. The trailer showcases Rapture's Medical Pavillion. Let's put it this way, you'd best hope you never get sick during your travels in BioShock. The Medical Pavillion is dark, dank, wet, and full of creatures that are not of sound mind.Every glimpse of BioShock gets us more excited to play it. August 21st can't come soon enough. Oh, and we completely missed that the Cult of Rapture announced the winner of its screenshot contest. For those who don't remember, the object of the contest was to come up with a solution for a deadly scenario in BioShock. You may view the video of the solution by following this link. Enjoy.
The Darkness has a birth date ... June 25 US, June 29 Europe
Reader Ben tipped us off to the the official MySpace page for The Darkness -- the upcoming comic-book adaptation by Starbreeze Studios -- which announces "The Darkness has a birth date" of June 25th for the good, old US of A, and June 29th for Europe. Two birthdays is a tad unusual, so we decided to accept June 25th as the game's real birthday.June 25th? That means The Darkness shares a birthday with The Office's Ricky Gervais, Planet's Funniest Animals' Matt Gallant, singer Carly Simon, writer George Orwell, British admiral Lord Mountbatten and, of course, Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí. It will be a Cancer, known to be both imaginative and intuitive, but also hypersensitive and moody. Ruh roh, better not piss it off. [Thanks, Ben]%Gallery-2283%
BioShock's Big Daddy as a work of art
BioShock's Big Daddies: awe inspiring, terrifying, and tough to take down, but what about art? A fan art thread has been created over at the Cult of Rapture, hosting some very impressive pieces of art. The above work was created by GH Illustrations and portrays a particularly mean looking Big Daddy trudging through the sea soaked halls of Rapture. Of course, if you prefer something a little more modern, they've got that covered, too. Head over to the Cult of Rapture for some more images and don't forget to visit the actual fan art thread. If you've got the skills, maybe you could submit something yourself. Be sure to let us know if you do.
The Darkness trailer creeps out XBLM
The Darkness trailer that was released on the interweb last week is now available on Xbox Live Marketplace. So, if screen-door-quality internet streaming video isn't your cup of tea, you can now download it in glorious High Definition. It's definitely worth checking out in HD, too, as the graphical fidelity is top notch in The Darkness. What we're getting at here is that the game looks nice. Well, nice may not be the proper word. Let's see ... gruesome, that's the word! It looks gruesome. Of course, if you're stuck at work and can't download it now, you can always check out the streaming version we posted earlier. Enjoy.Who's planning on picking up The Darkness?
