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Video: BioShock plasmids aplenty
It's true. We loves BioShock. Loves it. With the impending release only months away, we were pleased to see a mountain of video coverage on GameTrailers. We had meant to post it earlier, but we were distracted by lolcats. The series of videos covers the many plasmids available in BioShock. Some are fairly simple, like the Winter Blast plasmid, which freezes your enemies. Others are a little more complicated, like the Security Bullseye plasmid, which automatically makes your enemy the target of nearby security bots. All in all, the plasmids look to add a considerable degree of strategy and fun to BioShock. Check out the videos after the break.
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%
Video: EGM previews BioShock
EGM recently got a chance to take a long look at BioShock and have been kind enough to share their impressions with the rest of the internet (how thoughtful). The video preview discusses the many aspects of BioShock, from its cinematic qualities to its accurate simulations of environmental effects. Irrational's Ken Levine notes that it was important for BioShock to perform according to a gamer's expectations. For instance, an enemy who is caught on fire should seek water to put it out. Similarly, shocking a pool of water with electricity should electrocute any enemies standing in the pool. Other topics discussed include BioShock's viability as an FPS, enemy AI, and the game's overall structure. Check out the preview after the break.
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%
Drill instructor! Meet BioShock's Big Daddy figurine
Potential purchasers of the limited edition BioShock box can look forward to more than just an award-winning design on the cover! Included in that release is a Big Daddy figurine, replete with oversized mitts, creepy diving suit and, oh yeah, A GIANT DRILL ARM!The above image is just a prototype -- they're still working on the final colors -- but already we're flashing back to that video of the epic struggle required to take one of these things down. Pick yours up August 21st, and proceed to hurl all manner of ammunition at it until it stops moving.%Gallery-3418%
Joystiq interviews BioShock LE cover artist Adam Meyer
Impressed by the winning entry in 2K Games' BioShock Limited Edition cover art contest, we had a chat via online messenger with the winning artist Adam Meyer about his design and the process he took to get there, as well as a bit on his background.First of all, thanks again for doing those. Tell us a little bit about yourself.Well, I'm 27 I think, I live in the Orlando area with my beautiful wife. And I own my own freelance design business called Crystal Clear Art.How did you get involved with graphic design?I've always been interested in art. And once I graduated high school it became clear that if I wanted to make a career out of art, it was best to get into graphic design over the more traditional stuff. I went to community college but dropped out in favor of just getting right into the field. I got my first design job doing layout work for a small little print company and basically learned what I could from it and the left. I kept repeating this pattern for about 8 years. I'd work someplace, learn everything I could, then quit and find someplace that could teach me new things.After I worked my way up to art director at a local design company I decided it was time to get out on my own. And here I am.%Gallery-3343%
Bioshock contest picks coolest t-shirt in Rapture
Web 2.0 t-shirt darling, Threadless, sponsored a contest to design a shirt based on Irrational's upcoming underwater creep-out fest, Bioshock. Pictured above is "The Leftover," the winning design by Budi Satria Kwan, which was selected from over over 155 designs.Big Daddys: for $15 the shirt can be yours in a variety of sizes; Little Sisters: you need to pay extra for the girly tee. Don't like the winning submission? Really hoping "Drilled!" would have won? Cool down, you can work off that frustration come August.[Via X3F]
Who's your Big Daddy? BioShock Limited Edition deets
You wanted it, you asked for it, and even though they said you wouldn't get it, now you can: a BioShock Limited Edition for only ten bucks more than the regular version. What does that extra ten-spot score you? Well, we're glad you asked. Inside your embossed BioShock game case, featuring artwork from their cover art contest, will be: the requisite "making of" DVD the soundtrack CD a Big Daddy figurine Not bad for ten bucks. Although does anyone actually watch those "making of" DVDs for games? It's hard to remember if we ever watched the Halo 2 videos in our collector's edition tin. Hmm. The BioShock LE will be available in August, unless it gets pushed again, and will sell for $69.99 only at Gamestop and EB Games locations.[Via Xbox 360 Fanboy]
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?
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.
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.
BioShock slips past June, dated August 21
BioShock has been delayed beyond its unspecified, but previously confirmed June release date. According to the game's community site 'The Cult of Rapture' (operated by publisher 2K Games) BioShock has now been tagged with an August 21 street date.The short notice does not include further details. We have reached out to 2K Games for confirmation of the European release date and to verify that the PC and Xbox 360 versions of BioShock will be released simultaneously; we will update this post accordingly.Update: European release date is August 24; simultaneous PC & Xbox 360 release in both Europe and North America.
BioShock screen shot contest revealed
Irrational is holding a very interesting contest involving BioShock. Here's the premise, users are presented with a series of screen shots that outline a sequence of events inside BioShock. In this particular instance, you (the player) find yourself face to face with a grenadier. He has a box full of homemade grenades. You have one shell left in your shotgun, a telekinesis plasmid, and an electro bolt plasmid. The questions is: how do you take him out? Participants are asked to write out a solution in 1000 words or less. The best solution will be filmed in the game and posted in two weeks. Naturally, Irrational is looking for the most creative and interesting solution. All in all, the contest is a pretty cool way to get the community involved and show off video of the game in progress.Hit the "read" link for the full scenario and instructions for entry. If any of our readers make it into the top entries, we'll feature them here. Be sure and tell us if you make it.[Via Evil Avatar]
New BioShock media from the deep
Our friends at Xboxygen have posted some new screen shots and concept art from Irrational's upcoming BioShock -- truly one of the Xbox 360's great exclusive titles for 2007. The screen shots in particular look fantastic. Just for that special group of people that demand that a flamethrower should be in every FPS, we picked the shot above. The other shots released evoke a more grisly and deranged feeling, but in a good way. There are also some interesting concept sketches that show off some of the early designs of the Protectors (the big guys with drills for hands). Hit the "read" link to check out more screens.
Trash talk: Bioshock designer scolds uncultured peers
Speaking with MTV's Stephen Totilo, Bioshock designer Ken Levine, a self-proclaimed "Vassar-educated twit," took a jab at his fellow developers. "Most video game people have read one book and seen one movie in their life, which is Lord of the Rings and Aliens or variations of that," said Levine, adding, "There's great things in that, but you need some variety." While no doubt a gross generalization, Levine's criticism sparks a worthwhile question, as put to us by Totilo:Do culturally illiterate developers bear any of the blame for the creative conservatism that usually gets pinned on corporate game publishers? Marinate on that for a minute.Original source: GameFile [Warning: 'MTV assault' awaits]
Bioshock: no multiplayer, demo, or special edition
Answering questions via the 'Cult of Rapture' (Bioshock's community site), a 2K Games representative has confirmed that Irrational's under-sea epic will not feature a multiplayer component. The developers felt that multiplayer "would have compromised the story." Whether that compromise would have been the result of insufficient resources or simply (a fear of) disparate playing experiences is unclear; it could have been both. Despite plans to offer downloadable content, it seems as if Irrational has no intention of adding a post-release multiplayer update (à la Valve's Half-Life 2: Deathmatch release).2K Games also revealed that there are currently no plans for a Bioshock 'Special Edition' box set or pre-release demo.[Via Xbox 360 Fanboy]
BioShock: no multiplayer, no demo planned
In a recent question and answer session on the Cult of Rapture, BioShock's community site, several details about the game are confirmed. Chief among these details is that BioShock will not contain a multiplayer component. The reason for its omission is that the developers are focused on a single player story and that multiplayer would not mesh with the story. While many will no doubt point out that multiplayer doesn't really have to mesh with the story (Halo 2 for example), we're willing to cut Irrational a break, seeing as they're creating a game more along the lines of Deus Ex than Unreal Tournament. Worth noting, there are plans for downloadable content. The other tidbit revealed in the Q&A session is that there is currently no demo planned for BioShock. So, if you're not sure about BioShock, it looks like you may have to rent before you buy.[Thanks, PacoDG]
Bioshock invades the web, scares children
There's no question that BioShock is one of the most highly anticipated Xbox 360 games, and what highly anticipated game would be complete without a Flash-filled promotional website? None, that's what. The official BioShock website has now gone live and it fulfills the requisite Flash requirement quite nicely. The site offers game info, screenshots, the trailers released so far, and mini fly-throughs of some of the environments. There are two forthcoming sections that will focus on weapons and player upgrades, too. The website drips with the creepy 1940's radio show creepiness that we've all come to know and love. And maybe it's just us, but the soundtrack reminds us vaguely of Lord of the Rings. Go check it out.This game just can't come out fast enough.[Via Joystiq]
Splinter Cell, BioShock, GTA IV episodes exclusive for Xbox 360
Both BioShock and Splinter Cell Conviction (the suspected title for the post-Double Agent iteration) will be console-exclusive to the Xbox 360; BioShock will still be coming to the PC, while Splinter Cell can still be released for the PC and various portable console (DS, PSP). BioShock publisher Take-Two will also be providing "exclusive access to two downloadable, epic episodes of Grand Theft Auto IV via Xbox Live, each with hours of entirely new gameplay ." Ubisoft's Splinter Cell Conviction is the title found during their "accidental" leak earlier this month. The exclusivity of BioShock was predicted by GameSpot back in January after developer Irrational was bought by Take Two. The GTA IV episodes are a "complete exclusive," according to Scott Henson, Director of the Game Development Group at Microsoft, and will not showing up on the PlayStation 3 download service. The episodes will be available a few months after the release of Grand Theft Auto IV on October 17 and 19 in US and Europe, respectively. Microsoft hinted at exclusive GTA IV content as early as July. While BioShock may not affect the mass audience, the loss of Splinter Cell and some exclusive GTA IV content could hurt the PlayStation 3's image in North America and Europe. Then again, Sony does have Metal Gear Solid 4 to satiate its consumers, but what are the long-term ramifications of Microsoft's exclusive deals?
A Shock to the sytem: BioShock on the 360
Tiscali Games has posted scans from the latest issue of Game Informer magazine of BioShock, Irrational Games' much anticipated "spiritual successor" to gaming classic, System Shock 2. The game isn't just a run and gun FPS; your decisions will effect how the game progresses. The game is using the Vengeance engine--"the highly modified version of Unreal technology it used for the recently completed Tribes: Vengeance." The game is scheduled for 2007--which is certainly subject to change--although we're officially adding it as the first entry on the list of highly anticipated "third wave" titles expected to hit next year... or is that "second wave"? Let's call it "second and a half wave" until we know a little bit more.Be sure to check out Gamespot's "First Look" of the game.[Via Joystiq]
