BioShock Preview

By Kristan Reed Published 18 May, 2006

Rapturous.

If you were one of the 60,000 frazzled souls that traipsed around the vast halls of E3 last week, you might wonder why you never stumbled across Bioshock on your extensive travels. If you've checked any of the coverage of Irrational's spiritual successor to System Shock 2, just about everyone is excitedly screaming 'Game of the Show' in the faces of anyone who'll listen.

Even a well-respected game developer pulled me to one side at Heathrow to enthuse wide-eyed about Bioshock. It's that sort of game. People want you to know about it, and how exciting it looks. How different it is from virtually anything else you've seen. They want you to know about one of the only games shown off at E3 with interesting concepts, an intriguing storyline - a game that's not simply another tech demo with 13 year-old play mechanics creaking underneath. They might even mention the stylish art deco environments, and the unhinged character design, or mutter about freeform game design that gives the player a huge degree of freedom. But, in reality, most actually find it pretty difficult to neatly summarise what we were shown without just trawling out a long list of events that make it sound like any number of geeky gaming experiments that the masses will totally miss the point about.

The main difficulty in talking about Bioshock without coming across like a frothing fanboy is that it does things differently, and almost every moment of the 20 minute demo needs careful explanation to frame it in the kind of context that does the spellbinding demo the justice it so richly deserves. On the surface it's an extremely gorgeous Unreal Engine 3-powered first-person shooter, but that's a bit like saying Ronaldinho's pretty handy with a football.

Lost - at sea

'BioShock' Screenshot 1

Big Daddy's not looking too impressed with our gun.

Although it wasn't really touched upon in the demo session, the background to the game is that the central protagonist is the sole survivor of a plane crash who chances upon a nearby lighthouse that just happens to be in the middle of the sea (for reasons we presume we'll discover later). When he reaches the lighthouse he discovers the remains of some sort of underwater utopia called Rapture - an idyllic 1940s vision of capitalism built in an ornate art deco style.

The inhabitants of this aquatic nirvana were chasing some sort of genetic enhancement dream, but somewhere along the line it all went horribly and tragically wrong - a fact that becomes immediately apparent once the demo session gets underway and we're given a tour of this crumbling, leaking, but still-beautiful environment where a society once lived out their dreams.

The unfortunate humans that have managed to survive are utterly addicted to genetic enhancements that they once took merely to improve their looks and so on. But in playing around with genetics and trying to improve their physical abilities as well, it's all backfired rather badly - so much so that they've mutated to the extent that they now merely exist to roam the desperate remains of Rapture in search of genetically enhanced material known as ADAM. With killing others and extracting ADAM the only option available to these junkie mutants (like the swift moving Splicers), Rapture is a pretty dangerous, sinister and harrowing place to be - and the perfect setting for a remarkable looking title that you don't mind attributing the wooly next-gen tag to.

The ADAM family

'BioShock' Screenshot 2

At least the drinks are free now.

Despite the fresh streaks of blood on the tiled floors, not everyone's hell-bent on murder, as the demo proves early on. Introduced to a curious, lumbering aquatic suit-wearing character referred to as 'Big Daddy', we're informed that these gentle giants serve as the protector of the 'Little Sister', a bug-eyed frail-looking long-haired young girl who only wishes to extract ADAM from the corpses of those already dead (with a huge hypodermic needle, no less). Neither have any desire to attack you, but if you're foolish enough to show aggression to either you'll have to deal with the consequences. Should you approach the little sister, the big daddy immediately grunts his disapproval and gives an unmistakable 'back off' gesture to you. Take it any further and he'll give you a huge shove - but whether he'll actually attack beyond that wasn't shown.

What we do know, though, is that the ADAM that little sisters store will also be your source of the stuff, with the genetic material apparently required for you to adapt to this strange new environment. Looking after these odd looking, cowering, skinny girls will also help you out later in the game - though quite how wasn't up for discussion.

In terms of how you apply the 'plasmid' upgrades, the remnants of the carefree genetic-altering age that caused this mess is still evident, with jolly 'Plasmi-Quik' vending machines dotted around (rarely, we're told) that allow you to effectively swap out abilities as and when you need them. The promise is of experimentation, but how this will play out in practice we can only cheerfully speculate about at this stage. The chances are the choices you make at the Plasmi-Quik stations will have a crucial bearing on the options available to you when you tackle any give situation.

An eye for detail

'BioShock' Screenshot 3

Whatever it's for, it's probably not going to do us any good.

Wandering through this creepy, leaky environment, it's immediately apparent just how much effort has gone into creating a believable world. Full of typically moody next-gen lighting, the dimmed ambience sets the tone for what's to come, but it's by no means a grubby, unpleasant place to explore. It doesn't look like it's been long since all the trouble started, and it's easy to see how salubrious it once was, with ornate furniture all around, but with streaks of fresh blood around and puddles of (incredibly realistic) water forming all over the place, you're left in no doubt that this isn't the best place you could have washed up. Frankly, it looks like the place could collapse before long - perhaps it will.

In fact, whoever's left seems to want to make it their business to make sure your stay will be a brief one, with makeshift gun turrets tied to the backs of chairs being one of the early obstacles to negotiate, while flying security drones patrol other areas. But with use of the 'plasmid' upgrades you'll be able to augment your abilities in a pseudo RPG manner and work your way around such hazards. In this instance, we're shown how you can dodge the gunfire of the turret by fixing yourself up with a speed boost implant and dashing past it. Later you'll find some armour piercing shells and take it down - but was it the only solution? Probably not.

The spirit of open-ended gameplay (which fans of System Shock 2 will remember with great fondness) within Bioshock promises allows the player to discover different solutions to the same problems on a regular basis. For example, you might actually prefer to shell out cash to disable a security system rather than waste precious ammo destroying it. In other situations you might be able to hack the hover drones (which, curiously, appear to be outboard motors with pistols strapped to them) so that they fight on your side - it's all there for you to work out for yourself.

Diversionary tactics

'BioShock' Screenshot 4

Smiths fans get awfully upset when you get into other bands.

Later in this all-too-brief demo, we're shown a section where the big daddy and a little sister are digging ADAM out of another corpse, while a lurking Splicer blocked our passage into an adjoining room. In order to slip past them, the demonstrator administered some Splicer irritant in the direction of the big daddy to get a lurking Splicer (crazy looking agile female Jester things that crawl on ceilings) to become fooled into thinking it has an enemy to attack. Of course, the contest wasn't exactly a fair fight, but it ensured that the two were otherwise engaged while we slipped right past them unnoticed.

This same "AI ecology" principle (as Irrational's calling it) means that once you know what rules the characters adhere to, you can pervert their behaviour in other interesting ways, such as fooling a big daddy into thinking you're a little sister - thus protecting you to the death - while another example showed how you could remove a guarding Splicer by using a security beacon ability to draw the security bots into attacking it. Almost every minute of the demo had something truly impressive about it, and left you in no doubt that Bioshock will be something special.

With a fantastic attention to detail, the game also leaves clues for the determined player, such as audio logs from dead citizens of Rapture. In the final section of the demo we're shown a record store with the knowledge that a particular musician we need to flush out of hiding has an obsessive hatred for a rival. Once in possession of that recording, viola - one crazed composer literally faces the music.

And with that, the demo session ended, leaving attendees slack-jawed and wanting more. Whether Irrational can deliver on the obvious promise on show here is something we'll find out in time, but for now what we've seen so far has ensured we'll be paying full attention from now on.

Bioshock is due for release on Xbox 360 and PC from 2K Games in 2007.

Picture of Kristan.

About Kristan Reed

Kristan is a former editor of Eurogamer, dad, Stone Roses bore and Norwich City supporter who sometimes mutters optimistically about Team Silent getting back together.

Read more articles from Kristan by visiting the Kristan Reed archive page.

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Comments (72) Latest comment 5 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • JediMasterMalik #1 6 years ago

    This sounds cool. PC FTW!

    Edit - EG says 360 and PC but I read in OPS2M it's confirmed for the PS3 aswell. :?
    Edited by 1 at 18/05/06 @ 12:37

  • WicKeD #2 6 years ago

    PC and console exclusive to the 360.

    Sounds, to me, like this could be another 10 outta 10 for the 360!

  • freedumb #3 6 years ago

    This is a PC game first and foremost, the spiritual successor to System Shock 2, not just for the X360.

  • Blerk #4 6 years ago

    Blimey! Sounds rather good, doesn't it?

  • UncleLou #5 6 years ago

    If only it wasn't such a long time away.

    Easily the most exciting game in development.

  • JHuxley #6 6 years ago

    Does sound very interesting indeed.

    "PC and console exclusive to the 360."

    Could you back that one up? All the sources I could find seem to suggest this will be appearing on 'next-gen' consoles, which is pretty vague.

  • morriss #7 6 years ago

    Sensational stuff!

    If GoW lives up to it's promise also, I've got lots to look forward too!

    Keep it coming chaps!

  • statix101 #8 6 years ago

    Yet another Pc game ruined for the console kiddies........just like Deus Ex 2 and Thief 3....



  • w00t #9 6 years ago

    Looking forward to this. System Shock 2 was aces, here's hoping this is too.

  • login_name #10 6 years ago

    Enough of the game, what was the que like?

  • PlugMonkey #11 6 years ago

    Yet another Pc game ruined for the console kiddies........just like Deus Ex 2 and Thief 3....

    What a very stupid thing to say. Is that " ruined for the console kiddies" or "desperately hoping to hit a bit of a mainstream audience so the developers don't go bust like Looking Glass and Ion Storm"?

    Obviously what they should be doing is staying true to the PC gamer hardcore and releasing more critically acclaimed commercial failures like Deus Ex and Thief so they can get a nice early place in the dole queue.

    These games are always 'ruined by the consoles'. They're never ruined by the PC gaming audience that ignored them wholesale.

  • Eighthours #12 6 years ago

    It sounds good and all, but the hype in the text of all the previews I've read about this game doesn't bear too much resemblance to the descriptions of what goes on. I guess this is something that has to be seen to get truly excited about.

    One to put on the radar, anyway. Folk can't all be getting so excited about a game for nothing.

  • reality_cheque #13 6 years ago

    If this was a lass I'd be buying her drinks already :D

  • Yossarian #14 6 years ago

    SINGLE MOST WANTED GAME

  • WicKeD #15 6 years ago

    Maybe I jumped the gun, maybe Take 2 haven't said definitively?

    However, the March edition of Game Informer Magazine said it was PC and 360 only. They're the biggest gaming magazine in circulation in the US, so I guess they're not likely to get it wrong. See More, here!

    And our EG seems to think the same too.

    EDIT: What statix101 should be wondering, is had it not been for console kiddies, as he puts it, would this game have even been made at all. Undoubtedly the 360 version will shift the most copies which had to play a part is whether or not the game got the greenlight.
    Edited by 1 at 18/05/06 @ 13:13

  • BremXJones #16 6 years ago

    For the record, the game that I'm most looking forward to in the next 12 months.

    KG

  • reality_cheque #17 6 years ago

    "These games are always 'ruined by the consoles'. They're never ruined by the PC gaming audience that ignored them wholesale."

    Well said! Maybe he'd prefer it didn't come out on the PC at all... bloody idiots!

  • Eighthours #18 6 years ago

    For the record, the game that I'm most looking forward to in the next 12 months.

    KG

    Why is that, KG? Is it the atmosphere? The non-linear gameplay? Sell it to me!

  • Yossarian #19 6 years ago

    me and KG agree on just about everything. although I can't remember if he did the original sub-par Planescape Torment review all those years ago, in which case he should be shot for not recognising the best game ever.

  • crozon #20 6 years ago

    ah i doubt this game will be dumbed down because of a release on the xbox360..................i mean look at oblivion is brilliant on the 360 and the PC..........

  • TurdBreaker #21 6 years ago

    Hmm not till 2007..

    Xbox360 was out when, late part of 2005?

    It's almost mid 2006 and the only two worth-while games I own for it are PGR3 and Burnout..

    /sigh

    Hurry up guys - make my Xbox360 purchase worth while...

    (no comparisons to the PC being made as a PC is always above and beyond a console, IMO)

  • Yossarian #22 6 years ago

    the thing people are missing here is that Ion Storm pretty much sabotaged DE2/Thief3 for the console audience out of their own foolishness/low expectations of a console audience. I seriously doubt Ken Levine and Irrational will do the same. the most PC players will be able to complain about will be unwieldy, console-oriented UI, as with Oblivion.

  • JHuxley #23 6 years ago

    "However, the March edition of Game Informer Magazine said it was PC and 360 only. They're the biggest gaming magazine in circulation in the US, so I guess they're not likely to get it wrong. See More, here!"

    Fair enough, it's only been confirmed for the PC and 360. But it is an Unreal engine game published by 2K, so it doesn't take a genius to figure out that a port wouldn't be out of the question.

  • Yossarian #24 6 years ago

    top ten most wanted 360 games:

    10. The Darkness
    9. Lost Planet
    8. Splinter Cell: Double Agent
    7. Lost Odyssey
    6. Next-Gen Pro Evo
    5. Gears of War
    4. Mass Effect
    3. Alan Wake
    2. Halo 3
    1. BioShock

  • WicKeD #25 6 years ago

    A port of Oblivion, Amped 3 or Top Spin 2, three other Take 2 games, wouldn't be out of the question either, but they're old, and still nothing has been said. So I wouldn't set my hopes too high. :/

  • Dr.Haggard #26 6 years ago

    For the record, the game that I'm most looking forward to in the next 12 months.

    KG

    I'll be looking forward to the 'Journey into Rapture' article :)

    Definitely my most wanted game right now, and it just sounds better and better with every post-E3 preview I read. I just wish I'd been there to see it - some video footage would be nice Irrational! :)

    If anyone wants me I'll be over here replaying Looking Glass games for the next year.

  • pauleyc #27 6 years ago

    More than 6 (9?) months to release and I start to feel the hype. Chances are I'll be bored by Oblivion by that time.

    And it's good to see the PC is still strong as a platform, even in these interesting "360 vs. PS3!!1!" times.

  • Dr.Haggard #28 6 years ago

    the thing people are missing here is that Ion Storm pretty much sabotaged DE2/Thief3 for the console audience

    DE2 was abysmal yes, but I doubt that was entirely due to the multi-platform development. Thief 3 is a superb game despite its flaws, and again I don't think the mistakes Ion made were entirely a result of developing for the XBox audience. Some of Thief 3's flaws were nothing to do with any perceived 'dumbing down' of the game.

    Besides, one would hope those lessons have been learned, and as you say yourself this is Irrational not Ion Storm (and nothing to do with Eidos thankfully).
    Edited by 1 at 18/05/06 @ 13:33

  • Yossarian #29 6 years ago

    Thief 3 was a hell of a lot better than DE2, which I gave up on a few hours in because I was afraid it was going to make me cry.

    P.S. EG staff, thank you for previewing this 360 title over any other. Gears of War next please.

  • thegamesthething #30 6 years ago

    "Similarly, UT2007 is PC/PS3 only. "

    Damn, is it? Play.com have it down for a March '07 release on the 360.

  • JHuxley #31 6 years ago

    @LeDilettante

    Gears of War is published by Microsoft, of course it won't be coming to PS3.

    Personally I just don't like to see 'exlusive to X platform' banded around before it's even been confirmed. But WicKeD has already said he jumped the gun on that one, so no harm done. It's just a case of wait and see...

  • Svecke #32 6 years ago

    Wait, wait... Hang on a second. So you come to this ruined Utopia, learn that the population went the way they did due to their genetic tinkering, and then you happily wander around the place using the genetics-altering vending machines of doom? 0_o I think our hero hit his head pretty hard when his plane crashed....
    Edited by 1 at 18/05/06 @ 13:44

  • krudster #33 6 years ago

    You won't be getting a Gears of War preview because Microsoft didn't show it off to us (apart from the video you all saw). Whether it was being shown behind closed doors at E3 I'm not sure, but we weren't aware of it if it was. Shame, I'd have loved to have seen it properly.

  • login_name #34 6 years ago

    "Damn, is it? Play.com have it down for a March '07 release on the 360."

    They also had it down for September '05 on PC at one point. I was surprised to hear they wouldn't be converting it to 360 though. Why not? It didn't sound like Sony had an exclusive deal or anything, just the devs have no plans to convert it at this time (which usually means they'll be waiting to see how good/bad the PS3 sells before they commit).

  • Yossarian #35 6 years ago

    wait, krudster, you didn't get to play the 4v4 multiplayer all the American sites are creaming over? I would have a word with some MS reps about this if I were you.

  • tiddles #36 6 years ago

    Yet another Pc game ruined for the console kiddies........just like Deus Ex 2 and Thief 3....

    Or like Oblivion, where exactly the same game works brilliantly on PC and console (barring the easily moddable large text on the PC version)?

  • JHuxley #37 6 years ago

    @Svecke

    I was wondering about that. Could lead to a multiple ending scenario in which you either become a horribly mutaded mess or manage to escape with your four limbs intact, depending on how much of the crap you take.

    Could encourage you to replay the game using as little of the stuff as possible...
    Edited by 1 at 18/05/06 @ 13:49

  • Dr.Haggard #38 6 years ago

    Wait, wait... Hang on a second. So you come to this ruined Utopia, learn that the population went the way they did due to their genetic tinkering, and then you happily wander around the place using the genetics-altering vending machines of doom?

    There's a lot we don't know yet though, and the central character's motivation - besides trying to escape - is one of those things.

    Remember Polito in SS2? I'm not ruling out something along those lines in Bioshock, either malevolent or otherwise. There could be all sorts of ways in which the player is encouraged, or duped, or forced into a 'when in Rome' situation in Rapture. I expect nothing less than a fantastic story from Irrational.

  • BremXJones #39 6 years ago

    Yossarian: No, the original Planescape review wasn't me. In fact, I was actually reviewing System Shock 2 the week when Planescape was being reviewed. It was a very RPG heavy month - Ross did FFVIII, I did Shock 2 and neither had time to do Planescape, so it was freelanced out. Which is, in hindsight, a shame.

    Eighthours: "System Shock's spiritual successor". Will that do?

    Dr Haggard: Funnily enough, I've just written something for Gamer about System Shock 2 of a similar size to Journey Into The Cradle. 4500 words on SHODAN: "The Girl Who Wanted To Be God".

    KG

  • Chtulie #40 6 years ago

    "The unfortunate humans that have managed to survive are utterly addicted to genetic enhancements that they once took merely to improve their looks and so on. But in playing around with genetics and trying to improve their physical abilities as well, it's all backfired rather badly - so much so that they've mutated to the extent that they now merely exist to roam the desperate remains of Rapture in search of genetically enhanced material known as ADAM. With killing others and extracting ADAM the only option available to these junkie mutants "

    Hey, someone else liked the Red Dwarf novel 'Backwards'.

  • Xerx3s #41 6 years ago

    "Edit - EG says 360 and PC but I read in OPS2M it's confirmed for the PS3 aswell. :?"

    Just like those other 'exclusives' you named?

    Its confirmed as an (console) exclusive to the 360 with the pc version following not long after. Call it speculation, but MS might want to make it a key franchise as it would certainly attract even more pc gamers.

    SS2 was one of the best games ever made, if this only matches that gameplay, its GOTY for me.

    "Similarly, UT2007 is PC/PS3 only."

    Really.

    Anyway, ill be buying this on the first platform that its going to be released on. I hope they include the coop that SS2 had with the patch. It was brilliant.

  • Frogger #42 6 years ago

    Did I already suggested Eurogamer to display their screenshots in native resolution ? Yes, I did, you're right. I'm not sure that a 640X480 resolution can give any HD next-gen game justice...

  • WicKeD #43 6 years ago

    I'm not so sure 360 will see a UT2007. However an Unreal Championship 3 exclusive, that I'm sure we can count on!

  • Laserbream #44 6 years ago

    If I try really hard, I can almost, almost believe that developing this for the 360 as well won't make it a poorer experience. Almost.

  • jozz #45 6 years ago

    "Wait, wait... Hang on a second. So you come to this ruined Utopia, learn that the population went the way they did due to their genetic tinkering, and then you happily wander around the place using the genetics-altering vending machines of doom? 0_o I think our hero hit his head pretty hard when his plane crashed...."

    Honestly, I would give it a little dabble if I found myself in that position. semi-super powers would be just too much of an incentive :)

    The game sounds amazing. Waiting till early 2007 will be a bitch if I start getting excited about it now mind :(

    Btw- UT2007 is supposed to be ported over to 360 sometime after the PS3 release or is at least expected to be. Who knows though,=.

  • Artemus #46 6 years ago

    This had been in development on PC for a couple of years before the 360 version was announced. And It's now one of the 360's 'premier' upcoming titles. There's a suprise.

  • neuroniky #47 6 years ago

    I'm already in tears just by reading the preview. This is easily the game I'm most awaiting right now... and it has been like that since I've finished SShock2. Let's just hope they release it fully completed without any rushed ending added on in two weeks (KOTOR2 anyone?).

    About DE2 and Thief 3... now, I didn't find DE2 so terrible as everybody seems to imply it was. It had a great story, that actually worked whatever path you choosed to pursue, it allowed you to tackle the problems you faced in a flexible way, and was technically not bad, expecially on the graphic department. It had some flaws, the combat mechanics weren't that good to begin with, sniping was too often the best course of action while close combat was too weak to allow you to build a blade wielding ninja to play the game with... but no flaws were actually gamebreaking, and the only real flaw it had was that it wasn't as good as the first one (the character add ons were less interesting, and the confined environment were a letdown). But I still rate it as a much better game than many recently released games.

    T3 on the other hand is brilliant. And even better than its predecessors, IMHO. The sense of freedom it has is something rarely found in any game of any time. And the stealth mechanics actually work in a smart way, much more than the puzzle-stealth approach of the Splinter Cell series (another series that has got better on its third incarnation... yes, it is easier, but it flows so much better...).

    I love both, however. But SShock 2 was better. And this... arf arf... I want it NOOOOWWWW!!!

    Btw... am I the only one thinking that probably the next gen platform having the best lineup at this E3... is the PC? The 360 is somewhere near , I have to admit (even if I'm not a fan of the 360), but the PC has really a lot of spectacular games coming.

  • kangarootoo #48 6 years ago

    Ooh, I was just about to write System Shock 2 meets Myst, when I realised I had missed the mention of SS2 in the very first paragraph. Purely from the description and screens I had come to the same conclusion, so they are defenitely going in the right direction if my tastes are any kind of guide.

    Definitely one to wath for me. SS2 is one of my favourite games of all time (and I never say that lightly).


    @Artemus
    "This had been in development on PC for a couple of years before the 360 version was announced. And It's now one of the 360's 'premier' upcoming titles. There's a surprise."

    I'm sure there is a point in there trying to get out, but I'm not sure what it is yet.

  • kangarootoo #49 6 years ago

    @neuroniky

    I'm with you on DE2 and T3. I thought DE2 was a bit disappointing (infuriating in a couple of minor ways), but I thought T3 was a perfectly respectable successor. This whole "dumbed down for consoles" thing is based on the same tired old platform fanboyism as ever. A game is a game is a game.

    Badly ported is one thing, adjusted to suit the market is another, but "dumbed down" is just the creation of angry minds.

  • absolutezero #50 6 years ago

    Ok I loved System Shock 2 but the RPG elements just ruined the game for me, all the shocks started to take second place as I tried to find more nanites to try and make my character non-useless.

    I'd have loved SShock2 far more if all the RPG elements were completely removed and it was set up as a proper FP action Horror game.

  • kangarootoo #51 6 years ago

    There were a few things in that regard that were broken in my opinion (weapon degradation and enemy respawn rates being a main ones), but you could fix plenty of those by tweaking the config file.

  • Feanor #52 6 years ago

    Game informer had a 10 page aticle about this game back in its March 2006 issue, and they were calling them 'Protector' and 'Gatherer' rather than 'Big Daddy' and 'Little Sister'. Here's a quote about a possible PS3 port:

    "When we asked about PS3, however, the team skirted the issue in a way that sounded suspiciously like they hadn't received official approval from Sony of America, though they did express an interest in working with the upcoming console."

  • absolutezero #53 6 years ago

    They were calling them Protector and Gatherer in the latest issue of PC Zone aswell, it also goes into more depth about the purpose of those 2 types of NPC.

    Its just made me slightly grumpy that ADAM = Nanites by any other name. I was it was going to be more exciting than that. Like the ADAM changes specific modifications, not just adds numbers to your already exsisting numbers.

  • Yossarian #54 6 years ago

    'Funnily enough, I've just written something for Gamer about System Shock 2 of a similar size to Journey Into The Cradle. 4500 words on SHODAN: "The Girl Who Wanted To Be God".'

    issue number? or will it surface on the Internet at some point?

  • Artemus #55 6 years ago

    @ LeDil

    Of course I've heard of them. But the fact remains, this started out as a PC project. 360 development did not start until very late on.

  • Garibaldi #56 6 years ago

    Why is there no footage of this whatsoever 'out there'?

    I mean Journos have been blathering excitedly over its many features, and it doesn't appear to have been shown behind closed doors, so nobody thought to even get some shoddy hand-held cam footage?

    Bah.

  • krudster #57 6 years ago

    It was heavily policed - we wanted to do an EGTV thing on it, but no dice...

  • Teeth #58 6 years ago

    For Christ's sake, why is there a full page of people arguing about whether or not this is being developed on/coming to the 360? Such a pointless argument.

  • foxy2006 #59 6 years ago

    wohoo this sounds like my cup of tea.

    Ive been worrying about enjoying any other games after oblivion. Just have to stretch it out til 2007 then. :p

  • Carrybagma #60 6 years ago

    You've done it again!

    Another whinge about how awful it is to *have* to go to E3! Like - it wasn't a jolly at all; you were beaten with shitty sticks and forced onto the plane! Huuuullo?!?!?!!

    How about an article that mentions all the fabby parties you went too, and all the free booze and grub, and all the fun you had? Go on - we won't think badly of you. We'll just wish we were young games journalist Gods too, scouring the planet in search of the juiciest fruit from the trees of gaming joy!

    Err. I mean, you *did* actually go to the parties, didn't you? I mean, there were parties and stuff to go to, right? Hmm?...

    EDIT:
    BTW - BioShock eh? Phwwoooaar! Would ya? I would!
    Edited by 1 at 18/05/06 @ 16:50

  • kangarootoo #61 6 years ago

    "For Christ's sake, why is there a full page of people arguing about whether or not this is being developed on/coming to the 360? Such a pointless argument."

    Seconded.

  • freedumb #62 6 years ago

    @neuroniky
    'I didn't find DE2 so terrible as everybody seems to imply it was. It had a great story, that actually worked whatever path you choosed to pursue, it allowed you to tackle the problems you faced in a flexible way, and was technically not bad, expecially on the graphic department. It had some flaws, the combat mechanics weren't that good to begin with, sniping was too often the best course of action while close combat was too weak to allow you to build a blade wielding ninja to play the game with... but no flaws were actually gamebreaking, and the only real flaw it had was that it wasn't as good as the first one (the character add ons were less interesting, and the confined environment were a letdown). But I still rate it as a much better game than many recently released games.'

    I agree completely. The main problem with DE2 was that yes it was dumbed down and defintely not as the good as the first, but it was still a pretty good game, especialy compared to most of the tat released nowadays. I still enjoyed it hugely, and it was alot of fun despite some flaws. It shouldn't be dismissed as a bad game simply beacuse it's a poor sequel, but not a poor game.

  • Bezzy #63 6 years ago

    "If I try really hard, I can almost, almost believe that developing this for the 360 as well won't make it a poorer experience. Almost. "

    In the first place, picking a closed off environment is going to set them in good stead - the example that Levine game in an interview was that DE2 tried to model a city, in places, but that it still came off as boxed off rooms.

    But if you ARE modelling a boxed off room, then there's no mismatch of your perception with the reality of the game world. The claustrophobia is intentional, working with the limitations of the engine, rather than against it.

    ..Not that I know it'll be claustrophobic or anything.

    I'm just saying, to be a successful creative, you have to accept and work with your limitations. From what I've seen, these are damn intelligent guys who really get design from head to tail. They shoulder a lot of people's hopes, but as far as I can tell, they have the talent to hold it up.

  • Ryuken #64 6 years ago

    "Or like Oblivion, where exactly the same game works brilliantly on PC and console (barring the easily moddable large text on the PC version)? "

    Ha! The console influence is pretty clear in Oblivion and that's a pity. I don't want mods, I want a developer who actually sees what kind of UI is most suitable for each platform. I hope Irrational can pull it off.

  • Carlo #65 6 years ago

    2007? Fuck sake! At a minimum (!), it's 6 months away!

  • Scimarad #66 6 years ago

    I really can't wait for this. Pre E3 I hadn't heard anything about it but now this is very near the top of my 'must have' list.

    /can't get enough 'retro SF'

  • daedalus2 #67 6 years ago

    Look at you, hacker - a pathetic creature of meat and bone, panting and sweating as you run through my corridors. How can you challenge a perfect, immortal machine?

  • NthSimulachum #68 6 years ago

    Hope the dialogue is as creepy as in System Shock 2. That game still scares me. Those spiders...and that noise they make....

    "What is a drop of rain..compared to a storm? What is a thought...compared to a mind? Our unity, is full of wonder that your tiny individualism cannot hope to conceive"

    Has trouble running on XP though:(

  • morriss #69 6 years ago

    @Artemus, so a game reaching a wider audience thus increasing sales for the developer and allowing console owners not to have to spend loads of cash upgrading their PC's is a bad thing?

  • Les #70 6 years ago

    According to Gamespot.com it wil also be released on PS3. Can't find other sources confirming this though

  • Crashmasters #71 6 years ago

    I don't get the hype. Graphically it's not very innovative. It even looks a bit too clean.
    Maybe it's fun to play, but I get a distinctive 'halo 2 hype' vibe with the previews of this game. Also not a bad game, but not shockingly briljant...

  • silver-jon #72 5 years ago

    Amazing that this preview was written a full 16 months before the game's release, and yet little of what was described has changed. The AI and environments may have been tweaked (to make it the sublimely balanced FOS that it is) but it seems as though the plot, the specific plasmids, and scenaria all existed a couple of years ago.

    What have they been doing in all that time ?

    Presumably playing it.