2K Games released a new BioShock 2 trailer full of bolts, bullets, blood, and gallons of upon gallons of water. The hands-on preview embargo lifts Thursday so look for more in-depth opinions then. Sleep now … your day is done.

In perhaps one of the strangest videogame bundles since Beyond Good and Evil was packed in with some cheese, 2K and Behtesda have joined force to create the BioShock & The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Bundle. the deal will be released July 7 in the US, at $39.99 on Xbox 360 and $29.99 on PC. Considering that I got Bioshock on Steam for $5 and Oblivion is currently around $18 on Steam right now, this isn’t the best deal I’ve ever seen. My advice: buy the Orange Box instead.

Still, if you don’t already own these two games, I can’t recommend them enough. Oblivion holds my attention years after its release (in fact, I played it just yesterday for hours on end) and Bioshock’s heavy narrative was an industry wake up call (since they seemed to ignore that of Half-Life 2). Both are must-buys, but with a little sleuth you can get them for much better prices individually.

The big screen adaptation of Bioshock, which has been in pre-production with Pirates of the Caribbean director Gore Verbinski at the helm, has been put on hold by Universal due to a rising budget.
A Universal rep has said that the film is still very much alive and in “extended pre-production.” Let’s hope that isn’t a fancy way of saying development hell. The studio is currently looking into things that could lower the cost of the film, such as tax credits and possible shooting locations outside of the United States.

Might I suggest the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean?

Although we’ve known about the existence of “Big Sisters” in Bioshock 2 for a little less than a week, (thanks to Bioshock 2’s teaser site) seeing the Big Sister now is still a sight to behold, thanks to the April issue of Game Informer. Who says print is dead?

The April issue of GI, while also chock full of Dead Space: Extraction and RE5 details, has a 10-page cover story on Bioshock 2: Sea of Dreams details, including new information, new screenshots, and the first glimpse at the game’s Big Sister, who appears to be more slender and more threatening than the Big Daddies. (even with the cute wittle cage for the cute wittle sisters)

You can be sure that we’ll hear more about this game at GDC later this month. Click the image above for the full resolution cover.

Bioshock was one of 2007’s best games and best in my opinion, but the only thing it lacked was an online multiplayer of any kind, unlike Shaun White Snowboarding: Road Trip. But 2K Boston’s next game won’t have this pitfall, as it seems that the project 2K Boston is currently working on is a multiplayer first-person shooter.

In a resume posting for Lead Designers and Lead Engineers for 2K Boston, they detailed a few key points of their next project, which you can find after the jump. While it’s not completely out of the question that this listing is for Bioshock 2: Sea of Dreams, I’m thinking it’s not likely. However, we do know that the FPS in question runs on the Unreal 3.0 Engine, and will most likely be released on the PS3, PC, and Xbox 360… whenever it appears.

Leading multiple engineers within a proven team to design and build a network frontend and backend support for an action-packed AAA multiplayer title

• Advising engineers on how to properly architect their systems for optimal multiplayer support

• Extending and enhancing Unreal Engine 3 with proprietary networking tech to address gameplay, performance, platform, production, tools, and QA needs

• Interfacing with Microsoft, Sony, and other providers for matching-making and other services

• Working with the Technical Director, Lead Programmer, and IT Director to plan and execute major changes to core technology or backend services

• Responsible for delivering a robust, scalable, and responsive multiplayer gameplay code and backend services for the PC, PS3, and Xbox 360 platforms

The BioShock team is betting big on multiplayer and plans to stay at the top of the charts– we’re careful about the problems we tackle, innovative in our approach, solid in our implementation, and we polish the heck out of everything we do. Right now we’re looking for an exceptional individual to direct the development of this multiplayer experience through a combination of leadership, design, coding, and daily problem solving on the gameplay networking and backend server components.

Source: V4VG.com

Ah, rumors. They are the fuel that keeps gaming journalists buzzing, and though I’ve said many times that they tend to be crazy, this one seems a bit more realistic. According to Macworld (which, in this article, refers to the eponymous expo that was held this past week, though they have no affiliation) there was a booth at the Macworld Conference and Expo this past week for Feral Interactive. Apparently, the t-shirts Feral was handing out featured the iconic Big Daddy of Bioshock on the back. When Macworld questioned the booth holders about the shirt, they confirmed that Bioshock was coming to the Mac in the first half of 2009.

If you own a Mac (of a certain spec- unfortunately, my Macbook probably can’t handle it) and haven’t yet played Bioshock, this could be good news for you, as the highly-rated game is definitely something I believe everyone should get a chance to play. Of course, this is just a rumor, since it’s from Feral Interactive and not  2K. Of course, they could just be doing the port (akin to what Aspyr does for Infinity Ward in the COD series) but until we know more, it’s just a rumor.

Man, I hope the port is called iOshock.

Call me sick, but in my time with Fable 2, I’ve tried to kill kids. Multiple times. You see, my character’s evil. He’d do that. He seduces men and women and takes them under the bridge and puts a flintlock rifle in their faces and pulls the trigger without remorse. He soaks up the upgrades to evil and corruption stats like they’re candy.

But kids, no matter what you do, seem to have an invisible forcefield around them. Just like GTA IV, just like in Fallout 3. Games that are about moral choices, that seem to say – we won’t go this far.

In the case of Fallout 3, lead designer Emil Pagliarulo had this to say on the topic:

We began to think, really what benefit would there be in killing the kids in the game? It just seems gratuitous, unnecessary and cruel.

Some people would say it is necessary, though.

Simon Parkin over at GameSetWatch specifically. For him, the moral depth of making the decision to kill or not kill a child is something from which games shouldn’t shy away or bar themselves from. In putting up a big “we’re not going there” sign, developers who would make a game that, on the one hand, lets you blow up an entire suburb (and probably kill some kids in the process) but doesn’t let you kill a child face to face, are failing the potential of their artistic medium:

In removing the opportunity to kill children in their anarchic game, Bethesda has admitted videogames’ ineffectiveness in providing meaningful disincentives and negative repercussions for in-game atrocities. That the team chose to carve the issue out of their game rather than attempt to engage it head on, speaks volumes.

I side with Parkin on this. Though I understand the pressure on Bethesda to avoid as much potential controversy with their game as possible, I do wish more games (like the first two Fallouts) would allow these kinds of moral choices – and if they do deliver them, to be mature, realistic and brave about it.

What do you guys think?

You may have been following our coverage of Bioshock PS3’s texture problems, in which case you will know that 2K have been doing everything they can to resolve the issue, including releasing a post-release patch to fix the texture problems.

Well, now that the game and patch are out, we can finally see what the fuss was about. Hit the jump to see the updated Big Daddy texture.

Before

After

So what do you think? Was it worth the effort on 2K’s part? Did it even make much of a difference to you? Let us know in the comments!

Source: VGTilt

If you have been following our coverage of fan reaction to 2K’s PS3 Bioshock demo, then you are well aware of some gamers voicing complaints about a pixelated Daddy and unsatisfactory graphics (although I frankly find it a bit much), and you are also aware that 2K has responded to the collective cries for help.

Well, a few hours ago they responded again. This time, the post by 2K community manager, Elizabeth Tobey, promises a patch for the game. Anticipating that the public would want to know the exact release date of the patch, Tobey proactively stated:

I do know this will not be until after the game’s launch, and I will update you with details on that date as I receive them.

Tobey adds that a complete list of fixes has yet to be finalized, but assures the community that the texture/pixelation and white bar issues are definitely on the list.

Hit the jump to read her full statement.

UPDATE (October 14):

Hey guys,

I have good news from the dev team about a patch for BioShock PS3! They have been working on a patch to address the concerns some of you on the forum have talked about. As work is in progress I do not have a definite date for when this patch will be released as it needs to be tested and clear certification with Sony before it is scheduled and released. I do know this will not be until after the game’s launch, and I will update you with details on that date as I receive them.

I’ll be releasing the entire patch list when it’s all finalized, but for now I’m sure you’ll be happy to see that these two fixes are included:

Big Daddy Bouncer and Elite Bouncer Textures Appeared Pixelated
Fix for an issue where large blocky pixels would show up whenever viewing the Bouncer and Elite Bouncer variants of the Big Daddy.

White Bars
Fix for an issue where white/discolored bars would show up at the right and bottom sides of the screen during the plane crash / water scene at the beginning of the game.

I’m sure many of you are eager to see what Big Daddy looks like after this fix, so here are two screenshots of him in his patched glory!

Source: forums.2kgames.com

From the dark recesses of my mailbox surfaced a copy of the recently released EA game, Dead Space. Readily equipped with poo-retardant pants, I prepared myself to be survivally-horrified. Read on to find out just how many turds I dropped.

After logging a multitude of hours on the dimly lit space vessel as the game’s lead character, Isaac Clarke, I was repeatedly reminded of similar survival horror titles that preceded it.

Dead Space somewhat unabashedly borrows from previous games that have already been successful, tossing aside the need to build something new. While it does have a bit of innovation thrown in there, Dead Space isn’t really treading much new ground. How this makes you feel about the game is entirely dependent upon how you feel about previous survival-horror games.

After a mere five minutes in, I couldn’t stop calling Dead Space “Resident Evil 4: Space”. It has all the trappings of Resident Evil 4: over-the-shoulder camera, controls, scarce supplies, and zombie-esque beings to shoot. After a while, “Resident Evil 4: Space” became “BioShock Presents: Resident Evil 4: Space”.

After realizing that I was going to be stuck in an alien-infested, self-contained spaceship for quite a bit of time to come, my mind instantly thought back to BioShock’s underwater failed utopia, Rapture. I was further reminded of Rapture when I happened upon my first audio log detailing a situation that had played out sometime before or during the alien-zombie takeover.

Getting information about the world across is something Dead Space excels at — there were very few instances that took control away from the player. In addition to audio/video/text logs, the main way Dead Space informs the player is through interactivity. Interactions that don’t involve literally tearing opponents apart limb from limb are those that involve the crew that boarded the ship with you. Your communications with them make one thing clear: they’re trying just as hard as you to get off the damn ship safely.

The things that Dead Space does that aren’t by-the-book copied formulas are the only things that help rescue the game from a mediocre score. Six hours in, I was ready for it to be over, and my interest in the narrative began to wane — it’s not exactly a work of literary genius.

Dead Space starts with protagonist Isaac Clarke and company approaching the Ishimura (which I eventually lovingly dubbed “Hell Ship”). Upon arrival everyone realizes all is not well, and off you go to shoot your way to potential safety with Dead Space’s combat system, titled “Strategic Dismemberment.”

“Strategic Dismemberment” is what picked up the slack and acted as motivation for me to keep on keepin’ on. You’ll learn very early on that neither body blows nor even headshots will get you through even the earliest waves of baddies. The point of Strategic Dismemberment is to pick off opponents’ limbs by using whatever means you have available to yourself, many of which match up with the world you’re inhibiting.

Complementing strategy with superb control is always a plus, and Dead Space has some pretty sweet controls. This can only be describable as the perfect middle ground between Resident Evil 4 and Gears of War, and I suspect it’s a nice preview as to what we’ll get when Resident Evil 5 releases, but I digress.

Dead Space goes to great lengths to make sure you stay immersed, extending from integrating the entirety of the interface naturally (for example: the inventory, although no different from any other standard interface, is displayed as a projection from Isaac’s suit) all the way to providing back-stories for weapons so they’d integrate cohesively with the world.

Before I continue, I have a confession to make: I’m a total pansy and am easily coaxed into a fit of paranoia-induced fear. That said, having been posed as a survival-horror game, Dead Space failed to make me scream like my inner-schoolgirl knows I should. I’ve come to the conclusion that I’ve either finally become a man, or Dead Space isn’t very frightening.

As much as I’d like to lean towards the former, I’m afraid it’s the latter. The only thing that almost brought me into a state of fright was its sound design. I’m not exactly rocking a 5.1 state-of-the-art Dolby Digital system in my Batcave of Nerdery, but I still feel Dead Space’s sound design, and the utilization of said sound design deserves special mention.

Although Dead Space is most analogous to the friend you’ve nicknamed “Mooch” because he/she takes your clothes without intent of return, you just can’t help but love him/her. Like Mooch, Dead Space’s high points far outshine it’s minuscule flaws, of which there are relatively few.

As stated before, Dead Space relies on tried-and-true formulas, but it manages to foster them into something even more awesome, and then finally polishes the crap out of them. The end result, while not truly innovative, makes for one hell of a ride, though it remains disappointingly not very frightening for a survival-horror title.

A few days ago we reported that 2K Community Manager, Elizabeth Tobey, had responded to complaints voiced by gamers on their forum regarding the visual quality of the company’s PS3 Bioshock demo. Specifically, there were concerns that the textures in the PS3 version were not on par with that of the 360 version.

Last night, Elizabeth issued an update to her initial post, following up with readers and giving them some additional insight into what was being done to resolve the issues.

Her full statement, complete with in-game screens presented to help better illustrate the final state of the game, is available after the jump.

A message from the team about the visuals in BioShock PS3

Hi there,

Last Friday some of you expressed some concerns and asked me some questions about the BioShock demo, and how BioShock would look on the PS3. I promised that the team was looking into all the issues brought up on Friday, and now I am reporting back with the latest news. Everything below is directly from the team – they took the comparison screenshots for me and we talked at length about all of these issues, and those conversations are exactly what I am reporting to you now.

Many of you wondered about BioShock’s graphical performance on the PS3, and whether it was comparable to the 360 version. The team wanted BioShock to be the same experience on the PS3 as on the 360. Of course, the PS3 is a very different machine to code a game on, and so the team used a combination of optimization and filtering to maximize the overall visual experience of the game. These optimizations improved frame rate and added the slight “blur filter” that some of you have pointed out in comparison screenshots. This solution offered the best performance benefit with minimum visual cost or change from the 360 version.

When making the decision on how to balance game performance and visual quality, the team did a lot of research, which included looking at implementation strategies and gamer reactions for other games that had brought a title to the PS3. One of the major goals for the team in creating the PS3 version of BioShock was to match the visual experience of the 360.

Below are a few comparison screenshots of BioShock on both the 360 and PS3, taken by the team. I have included the Big Daddy texture that concerned so many of you on Friday. However, the Big Daddy texture is not a good measure for the entire PS3 experience, and so I have a handful of other comparison shots of the 360 and PS3 version of BioShock.

Another issue people asked about was the appearance of “white bars” when using certain settings on certain TV configurations. This is a legitimate bug, and we are currently working to fix this issue and plan on distributing that fix along with the Additional Content game update. For the short-term, some have recommended changing the TV’s overscan setting as a workaround.

Also, some of you asked about the resolution of BioShock PS3. The team decided to include 1080 support for the game specifically for the benefit of some older-model HDTVs that don’t correctly respond to 720 and force the user to play on 480 instead. Our 1080 implementation is a scaled version of what you see in 720p, so therefore, the discerning gamer may notice the visuals are a bit less sharp when compared to the 720 mode. We did investigate rendering to true 1080 mode, but were not able to support it given the game’s memory demands.

We believe the BioShock PS3 demo fairly represents the performance and user experience of the full BioShock PS3 game, and is an accurate representation of the final product. We will continue reading and looking into any new comments that come up on this forum. I hope this post and the following screenshots help clarify some of the questions asked last week. Again, thank you for your diligence and devotion to the game.

The images shown above also came with the following note:

Note: These images were taken from the final game. There is a slight discrepancy in some shots because for the 360 version the images were taken before the patch was applied, which means they are using the original widescreen format, but the PS3 version ships with the 360 patch’s widescreen change.

Another user on the forum then asked for clarification regarding the “blur” overlay that many have noticed on the PS3 version, to which Tobey responded:

i’m sorry if i didn’t explain this well enough in the original post, but it’s not just a blur “filter” applied to the graphics. based on how this game works with the PS3 hardware, and our desire to make the best graphics without sacrificing gameplay or framerate, these graphics are what resulted. when compared to the 360, you will notice it looks slightly “blurred” but this is not a simple blur “filter” that we overlayed on the graphics. it is just a result of how we developed the game on this new and unique piece of hardware, trying to keep framerate, gameplay, and graphics optimal and true to the game’s vision.

Personally, I think the game looks great, and as a PS3 owner myself, I would have no problem picking up the title when it hits stores. That said, it’s refreshing to see 2K taking the time to respond to the concerns of their community with such a high level of detail.

Afterthought: What say you? Was this a non issue in your opinion, or where you grateful for the response?

You may have read recently that there are some… issues with the PS3 version of BioShock, which at first seemed to only apply to textures on the Big Daddies (if not, it’s the very next story). 2K officially responded and owned up to the error, which is cool of them, but it now seems that the PS3 version’s overall graphical quality doesn’t quite match up to the 360 version, as evidenced by the included screenshots.

Click images for a larger view:

At first glance, the images above don’t appear to be all that different. There wouldn’t be a problem at all if people played their PS3 games on a 10-inch television. Unfortunately, clicking the images and viewing them a little closer makes it obvious that graphics whores with their 50-inch HDTV’s will not be happy.

The PS3’s visuals overall appear to be a bit blurry when compared to the 360 counterpart. This, of course, doesn’t mean BioShock is going to be any less of a compelling game on the PS3, it will just be a not-quite-as-good-looking-as-it-could-be-but-still-compelling game on the PS3.

These screengrabs were taken from a Japanese site, and while the fact that it’s Japanese has no bearing on my opinion, the person that posted the images may very well be a 360 fanboy and is only trying to sabotage the game. Honestly, though, I don’t think that’s very likely considering there’s only 3 people in Japan that own an Xbox 360.

We also must take into account that this was only the demo. The visuals may have been compressed to make a smaller download file, and it also may not be the final build of the game. Then again, just to play devil’s advocate, maybe it’s just because the PS3 sucks.

Some screen grabs from the recently released demo of the PlayStation 3 version of BioShock show some rather pixelated textures when compared to the Xbox 360 version. While this is just a demo, the retail release is just over two weeks away. Is that enough time to fix this issue?

Screen comparisons and 2K’s response follow.

Xbox 360

PlayStation 3

These screens (blatantly stolen from the BioShock forum on Giant Bomb) clearly show a slight difference in quality, which apparently is leading some people to cancel their pre-orders of the game. Elizabeth Tobey, 2K Community Manager, had the following to say about it:

“When we saw a post asking about issues found in the demo, we jumped on it immediately. And you know what, you’re right. The texture in the PS3 demo of the downed Big Daddy does not match our level of quality either. This slipped by. We admit it. However, I want to assure you that this is an exception, and not a rule, and while I regret this oversight, we put a lot of love into making this game look amazing for the PS3 and I’m sure that when you play the rest of the demo you will agree that the textures are not all like this one instance.

As for the other issues and concerns, we are currently diligently working to replicate any bugs, and will report back to you with what we find. Thank you for your vigilance here and moving forward.”

I’m fairly confident that 2K doesn’t want to put out a turd, but we’ll just have to wait and see what (if anything) slips by when it releases on October 21st.

*UPDATE: Contrary to the vocal PS3 defenders, new screenshots have surfaced that show a blurry PS3 BioShock when compared to the Xbox 360 version. Head here to see the images.

Can’t decide on what video game character to dress up as this Halloween? Sick of wearing the same blue suspenders and red hat every year? Have you ever wanted to have a large, Styrofoam drill for an arm? Do you live in the New Jersey area?

If you answered yes to these questions, this man has a suit to sell you. This fancy, homemade Big Daddy costume can be yours for only $250. The drill arm does work, provided you stick a power drill in there, and you can string some Christmas lights up in the face mask for that extra “friendly” or “your death is imminent” effect. Make it a family affair and bring your little sister along for an added bonus. Just hand her a giant syringe and a dirty, 50s throw-back dress and you finally found a good use for the little brat!

While it is a refuge from last year’s festivities, don’t worry about appearing out-of-date. Just tell people you’re the PS3 version of the Big Daddy, and this costume’s relevancy gets an extra year, and you don’t have to worry about gluing on that fake, Italian mustache ever again.

Until 2009. Video of the suit in action after the jump.

Source: Nintendoll via Destructoid

Spoiler Alert: Your plane crashes.

After only having to wait a year and some change, PlayStation 3 owners will soon be able to experience the Rapture that is BioShock (see what I did there?).  Featuring all-new content and all of the DLC from the Xbox 360 version, BioShock is set to sweep PS3 owners up in its cheery narrative about the joys of life in only a few short weeks.

The game is officially pressed and packaged for an October 17th release worldwide, with the exception being North America who has to wait until the 21st (not enough waiting already, right?).  This Thursday also sees the release of the demo on the PlayStation Network, which hopefully helps tide over anyone with an insatiable need to fuck with genetics and beat people with a wrench.

Been in prison or a coma for the last few years and don’t know what BioShock is? Well, here’s a little PS3 trailer… and the date at the end is a total lie so just pretend you didn’t see it.

And here I thought the best of what I was going to get from PAX had passed. Ken Levine, the man largely credited for the success of last year’s BioShock hosted a panel about adolescent nerdery, Hollywood screenwriting exploits, and finding himself as a game designer.

Definitely my favorite panel of them all, and it’s not entirely because of my irrational love for the mind of Ken Levine. Having been born in an entirely different generation than Ken, I can still relate to many of his stories. Specifically the whole piece about growing up a total nerd and striving to find a tribe of like-minded individuals.

Source: GameVideos

October 21st will be the day BioShock for Playstation 3 and Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia (Nintendo DS) will be up for sale in North America; other countries, not so much. Thankfully, the wait they’ll have to endure will only be three and two days, respectively.

That leaves international launches for BioShock on October 24th and Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia on October 23rd. Oddly enough, 2K has not announced any plans to launch BioShock in Japan, and conversely Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia has yet to announce a date for the inevitable European release.

Just to be clear, there is never enough BioShock related news. And with that we offer you more. At the Develop Conference & Expo, being held this week in the UK, Ken Levine gave a talk entitled “BioShock and Awe: Immersing the Gamer in an Alternate World Without Drowning Out the Gameplay” in which he aired some very interesting thoughts. Not least “I’m kind of a pretentious twat.”

During his talk, Ken talked about a lot of aspects in the designing of Rapture and its inhabitants. So much detail was added to the game that even every corpse has a back story and a reason for being wherever they ended up.

He also gave a small insight into himself and his methods for designing a game, explaining that “there was no shortage of pretentious crap I could come up with at any point” and that although he may be hard to work with, he can still make damn good games, adding that BioShock will “be one of those games that change gamers’ lives.”

Ken, you may be a pretentious twat, but I don’t half have a secret man-crush on agree with you.

Via: VideoGamer, RPS, VG247

BioShock was a game of the year for a lot of people last year, but a common criticism (and praise, in some circles) was its focus on the single player story, with the game having no multiplayer options. All that could change for BioShock 2. 2K Boston (the makers of BioShock) have started looking for a “Lead Multiplayer Designer”.

The last piece of BioShock 2 info we found out about confirmed that 2K Marin not 2K Boston were working on the sequel, taking a few of the 2K Boston people with them. But don’t forget, the original BioShock was produced as a collaboration between two 2K studios, Boston and Australia (two halves of the former Irrational Games). Could 2K Boston be making BioShock 2 multiplayer?

The job description goes on to drop a few hints about the game (possibly red-herrings, but we can hope) mentioning that “BioShock had no multi-player mode. We don’t believe in throwing in something that can’t go head to head with the big boys.”

The description continues to say that “[w]e expect you to be familiar with BioShock and other 2K Boston/Irrational products and be able to speak critically about them.”

Am I reading too hard between the lines here? Or could this be the first evidence to emerge of BioShock 2 multiplayer? Perhaps the multiplayer is being created by 2K Boston, with the single player game being produced by 2K Marin?

The full job description posted to Gamasutra reads:

Summary of Position:

2K Boston, the team that brought you BioShock, is looking for a talented, experienced game designer to lead a multiplayer design team on our next big project.

You will be responsible for creating, documenting and communicating multiplayer design concepts and mechanics. Additionally, you will be required to work with our design tools to implement game mechanics or parameters and test and tune those. You will probably be required to do a certain amount of level building or design as well, though this is not the major focus of the role.

BioShock had no multi-player mode. We don’t believe in throwing in something that can’t go head to head with the big boys. No applicants will be considered who aren’t able to demonstrate they’ve got the skills to build an industry-changing multiplayer design.

Responsibilities:

You must be familiar with the current state of the art in multiplayer game design across a wide range of genres on both PC and console. You must be capable of analyzing and critiquing game designs and using that analysis to inform your own design sensibilities. We expect you to be familiar with BioShock and other 2K Boston/Irrational products and be able to speak critically about them.

Finally, there are a wide variety of miscellaneous other tasks associated with this position such as speaking at conferences, working on game documentation and manuals and occasional PR duties.

Required Experience and Skills:

This position requires a high degree of creativity. You will be required to work with the single player team to form a “vision” of the multiplayer experience and use that vision to inform your design decisions. From there, you will help build a multiplayer design team and be responsible to guide your team through the entire production cycle.

An important part of the role is then communicating that vision clearly and concisely to the rest of the team and ensuring that they have a clear and specific mandate for their work. You must also provide a receptive ear so that other team members can provide input on the game design and feel that it is paid attention to.

Above all we are looking for somebody with enthusiasm, passion and the desire to create a multiplayer experience that is on par with the industry-leading single player experiences created at 2K Boston.

When Applying for this Position:

Please remember to include: game design documents, writing samples, video or screenshot samples of some of your work and/or game analysis as appropriate.

Additional Requirements:

This position requires a high degree of creativity. You will be required to work with the single player team to form a “vision” of the multiplayer experience and use that vision to inform your design decisions. From there, you will help build a multiplayer design team and be responsible to guide your team through the entire production cycle.

An important part of the role is then communicating that vision clearly and concisely to the rest of the team and ensuring that they have a clear and specific mandate for their work. You must also provide a receptive ear so that other team members can provide input on the game design and feel that it is paid attention to.

Source: Gamasutra Jobs

HEY. You there. Reader. Fancy yourself an artist? Do you like BioShock? If so, 2K Games has got a deal for you.

Now is your chance to win some sweet customized BioShock swag in honor of the release of the PS3 version of the deep sea dystopian adventure. Hit the jump for details on this awesome contest.

2K is looking for gamers to design an image that represents BioShock, Rapture and the Cult. Use any imagery from the game you want, but make sure its an original work. No screen caps, you lazy surface dwellers!

Submit your design to BioShockContest@2KGames.com with the subject line “Cult of Rapture T-Shirt Design Contest” before July 25th to get your name and your design in the running. One grand prize and two three runner-ups will be announced at the end of July.

Of course, any contest is only as good as the shit you can win, and this one is a doozy.

Here it is, straight from the Big Daddy’s mouth. (Do they have mouths? I’m going to assume for the sake of this they do.)

GRAND PRIZE: Winning design displayed on the Cult and shirts made for devoted members, two exclusive BioShock figurines, 10 of the winning shirts (you choose the sizes), a BioShock artbook, and a limited edition BioShock poster signed by 2K Marin.

THREE RUNNER-UPS: Designs made into wallpapers and downloadable on the Cult of Rapture, a winning shirt in the size of your choice, and a BioShock artbook.

In case you’re having trouble coming up with ideas, here are a couple designs from a previous contest to get those creative juices flowing.

Also, official contest rules. To make sure you do this legit.

Now, equip that artistry plasmid and get cracking!

Source: Cult of Rapture

On Monday, SpikeTV are set to reveal BioShock PS3 goodness, making us unconventionally excited about what most would call a “port.” But hey, one of last year’s most critically acclaimed games is meeting an entirely new audience. A glance at the box art reveals another reason for PS3 owners to get excited.

On his very own blog, Geoff Keighly hints at what will be in store for BioShock fans this Monday;

Another game set to debut on the show is BioShock PLAYSTATION 3. Now I know what you’re thinking….’why are you guys making a big deal out of a port?’ Well I can’t spoil the surprise just yet, but let me tell you there is way more to this game than you might think. There have been hints about some “exclusive features” in the game and on Monday night I’ll finally reveal the details on Spike – and of course show you the first real gameplay footage from the PS3 version.

So what could this exclusive content be?  For a start we know the game will support trophies, since 2k Games were one of the first developers to add the feature into their game.  You can read all about the process over at their official website.

However, when we visit the website of UK retailer Game we can spy BioShock’s supposed official box art:

What’s wrong with this picture?  Apart from the Ripten watermark, you should notice the Home logo, suggesting BioShock has even more tricks up its sleeve.

The first PS3 box to sport this logo could be a sign of something special, or it could just suggest that BioShock will suport game launching from within Sony’s virtual world.  Speculate away.

*Update* - The Official Website of Digital Extremes, better known as the developer who brought us Dark Sector but who are also helping in the BioShock port, displays the very same box art.  This must at least be confirmation that Home will be out before BioShock releases in October…

Mobile gaming to hold its own in the handheld market?

Nokia have announced that they will buy the mobile software firm Symbian for $410 million. They already own the largest percentage of the company, but will now buy the remaining shares from Sony Ericsson, Ericsson, Panasonic, and Siemens. Could this be big news for mobile gaming? Read on for a brief discussion and mild speculation.

A Quick History Lesson
Symbian was formed in 1998 when Ericsson, Nokia, Motorola and Psion agreed to work together to help bridge the gap between mobile phones and PDAs. Over the coming 10 years companies were bought, sold, merged and dropped out, but Symbian remained as the partnership between several different companies.

One of the main goals of Symbian was, and still is to an extent, to provide a common operating system to span across many mobile devices, across several different manufacturers. Symbian OS was created and allowed for the first time advanced applications to be created and easily put on a large number of different mobile devices. Similar to Java applications, only running on the operating system as oppose to an emulator or virtual machine.

In 2003 Nokia finally launched the N-Gage, a gaming platform based on Nokia’s S60 platform, which uses Symbian OS at it’s core. The service was limited to a few specific N-Gage phones and never took off. The ambitious plan was to try to pull gamers away from the Game Boy Advance, but the clunky design and uninspiring game collection left the device falling far short.

The second attempt to launch the N-Gage began in 2005 when Nokia announced at E3 that they were planning on putting the N-Gage platform inside other, newer, smart phones.

Finally, after several delays, on February 4th 2008, the new N-Gage service was launched. The service now comes installed on a number of new Nokia hand sets and is also available for download to be used on other compatible phones.

Once you have the N-Gage platform, you can buy and download games for around the price of an Xbox Live game. In an interview with Pocket Gamer, Jaakko Kaidesoja, the head of New Experience at Nokia Play, said in reference to the number of games available on the platform that “[i]deally it would be 50 to 60 games released by the end of the year”.

What Does this Have to do With Nokia Buying Symbian?
As N-Gage is based on Symbian OS, the way the two interact is key to the power N-Gage based games have. Huge strides by Symbian recently have meant hardware acceleration on a mobile device is not only possible but now a practical to utilise.

With the hardware in mobile devices ever increasing in speed and efficiency, we could soon start to see games on mobile phones rivalling, at least in presentation, those found on the DS or possibly even the PSP.

Mobile games have long thought to be nothing more than passing, casual games, designed for those few minuets on the bus. Again, this could soon be changing in the mobile world. With games like BioShock getting put on mobile devices, it seems that ground typically ignored by the mobile gaming scene is, all be it slowly, being moved into.

Symbian also has the advantage of numbers. They recently celebrated the 100 millionth phone shipping with Symbian OS on it. To put that in context, the DS and PSP combined have sold just over 100 million units, with the vast majority being the DS.

Combine the rapid pace of mobile phone development with an in-house operating system and already huge install base world wide and we could, very soon, be seeing a 3rd contender in the mobile gaming race.

PC gamers who bought BioShock may have taken issue with the constraints put in place by the game’s publisher 2K. The good news is that the activation limits, which previously prevented the game from being installed on more than 5 PCs, have been removed.

Posting on the 2K forums, 2K’s community manager Elizabeth Tobey announced;

As promised, all activation restrictions, including install limits, have been removed from BioShock PC as of today. You don’t have to patch or install anything for this to go into effect for your copy of BioShock – it’s already done!

Up until now, whenever you wanted to install BioShock you had to register your copy online. Their servers would then limit the number of PCs you could install the game on. This limit has now been completely removed.

Tobey further clarified the situation, saying that;

You will still have to activate your copy, and you will still need to keep the disc in the drive. SecuROM has not been removed — just the activation limits on number of installs and number of computers you can install BioShock on simultaneously.

Source: 2k forums

We reported that BioShock would be coming to the PS3 back on May 22nd, however what we did not know at that time was that it would be “genetically enhanced”. The official press release (also genetically enhanced with extra vitamins, minerals, and marketing mumbo jumbo) can be found below.

PS: We apologize for not knowing that the game was going to be genetically enhanced initially, we have taken steps to assure this won’t happen again. As we speak, Dylan is being shackled down to a radioactive conductor “thing” against his will. The new and improved “genetically enhanced” version of Dylan will not make the same mistake twice.

2K Games Injects PLAYSTATION 3 System Owners with Genetically Enhanced Version of BioShock
2K Games Injects PLAYSTATION®3 System Owners with Genetically Enhanced Version of BioShock®

New York, NY – May 28, 2008 – 2K Games, a publishing label of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (NASDAQ: TTWO), announced today that BioShock®, the “genetically enhanced” story-driven action game, is in development for the PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system at 2K Marin. The PLAYSTATION 3 system title will be released in October 2008 with new features and content that heighten the award-winning experience.

BioShock for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft and Games for Windows® was released in 2007 and received numerous Game of the Year honors from prestigious organizations including Associated Press, the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA), Game Informer, Spike TV’s VGAs and Paste Magazine. BioShock’s extension to the PLAYSTATION 3 system will bring exciting new content to this amazing title and reach many new players, while giving the title the opportunity to once again be named Game of the Year.

“Since BioShock for Xbox 360 and Games for Windows won countless 2007 Game of the Year awards, we are excited to see the impact of this stellar title for the PLAYSTATION 3 system when it debuts this fall,” said Christoph Hartmann, president of 2K. “Over the coming months we look forward to revealing the new features and content that will make this a must-have game for its new audience, as well as for those who enjoyed it on the other platforms.”

BioShock is a narrative-driven action experience that allows players to do the impossible as they journey through an amazing, immersive and terrifying world. Caught between powerful forces and hunted down by genetically mutated citizens, the player will come to grips with the mysterious and fascinating world of Rapture, a distinct Art Deco underwater utopia gone mad. BioShock not only challenges the players’ capacity to adapt and survive, but brings to question their values and commitment to the inhabitants of Rapture. With smart and adaptive AI, no encounter ever plays out the same, while numerous customization options provide gamers with an experience that adapts to their playing style.

As one of the highest-rated titles of 2007, BioShock was unanimously praised by the editorial industry’s top critics:

“While delivering a level of intrigue you rarely see in games, its most captivating element is its gameplay – which I can easily say delivers the most rewarding and adrenaline-filled experience I have ever had with an FPS.” – Game Informer Magazine, 10 out of 10, Game of the Year

“There’s ample flexibility in the game’s linear storyline that makes a second run through Rapture’s unique brand of madness an exciting prospect.” – Associated Press, 4 stars out of 4

“Why settle for watching the hero in a film have a thrilling adventure when you can all but live a narrative this masterfully woven.” – Paste Magazine, Game of the Year

“BioShock stands as a monolithic example of the convergence of entertaining gameplay and an irresistibly sinister, engrossing storyline that encompasses a host of multifaceted characters. This is an essential gaming experience.” – IGN.com, 9.7 out of 10, Editor’s Choice Award

“More so than any other game in recent memory, BioShock is dripping with atmosphere and intrigue, and it’s one of those rare titles where story, dialogue and character development are just as important as the action sequences.” – USA Today, 9 stars out of 10

BioShock for the PLAYSTATION 3 system will be available in October 2008 and is not yet rated by the ESRB. For more information on BioShock, visit www.bioshockgame.com.

Playstation 3 owners who felt left in the dust after 360 and PC users got their hands on Bioshock will be happy to hear that Big Daddy will be stomping his way onto the Playstation 3 for the 2008 holiday season. Hit the jump to read more.

According to a flurry of websites, the news is being reported the latest issues of game magazines EGM, PSM3, and Swedish magazine GameReactor. The latest issue of EGM also has some screenshots as well as an interview with Jordan Thomas (the man taking the reigns from Ken Levine) about the future of the series.

Sources: 1UP, CaVG, Sixth Axis

A deal has been signed between Universal and Take Two to turn arguably one of last year’s greatest games, into a film. The movie is to be directed by Pirates of the Caribbean director Gore Verbinski, whose previous work includes The Ring and The Weather Man.

As any gamer knows, most good games become terrible films, with the last major game set for movie stardom, Halo, failing to leave the design board. Is there any hope that BioShock: The Movie won’t suck? Thankfully, yes. In an interview with The Cut Scene, Verbinski had these comforting words for us: “We want to take all the strengths from the property. Of all the games I’ve played, this is the one that I felt has a really strong narrative.”

He also spoke about how the game’s more adult themes would not be compromised for the sake of the film, “We’re prepared to make it an R-rated movie. I don’t intuitively see it as PG-13. The content and the graphic nature of the story itself is smarter than that. It’s not for young kids,” adding that “I think we’ll go right up to the edge with the Little Sisters. I don’t want to soften it to the point where the core audience feels betrayed.”

He also mentions during the interview that he and BioShock’s creative director, Ken Levine, have talked on the phone, discussing what will and won’t work within the confines of a film. Since most of the game’s strength and success hinged on Levine’s vision, this can only be a good thing.

Source: Variety

Bioshock 2 was officially announced last month for a Q4 2009 release date. Now, based on recent job listings for Bioshock 2 positions, it looks as though we may see the game on multiple consoles. Hit the jump for details.

If you check out the job listing for Senior Designer here at GameSutra, you’ll see that the platforms listed are Playstation 3, Xbox, and Wii. Also, under qualifications, they list that Playstation 3 experience is required.

Could we see Bioshock 2 on multiple consoles?

Source: Kotaku

It’s official. 2K Marin, the newly opened 2K studio stationed in California and created by luminaries from 2K Boston (the staff behind original BioShock) will be developing a sequel to BioShock, and it is reportedly going to see the light of day by late 2009.

I hate waiting, but as long as Ken Levine and/or other visionaries for BioShock will be in positions of power, I don’t have problems believing that the wait will be worth it.

And contrary to previously spread rumors, the word ‘sequel’ was tossed around quite a bit as opposed to the prequel that many seemed to believe that we’ll be getting. However, I think seeing how Rapture became what it was in BioShock 1 will be exponentially better than whatever cockamamie story they can come up with.

Clearly, I’m being a little facetious, but that’s just because throughout Bioshock I came to care about Rapture and its ugly-ass inhabitants.

If you don’t know what I’m talking about and have a PC that can pack somewhat of a punch, try playing BioShock. I’m sure you won’t regret it. I mean it’s only $30 now. Even if all you have is a 360, it’s absolutely worth the $60 price of entry, although you can probably find it cheaper on the 360 by now as well.

Source: DevelopMag.com

It’s almost not fair. It’s been out for a few months, and I still couldn’t decide whether Bioshock would be my personal Game of the Year. But here it is again, at just $29.95.

Usually I’d let my comrade Michael Geslani report the things that fall under “completely-unfair-might-as-well-be-stolen” gaming deals of the week, but I couldn’t help myself.

This should just be illegal. I mean, I may as well walk up to Ken Levine and take the shirt off his back. Hell – why not just hijack the next shipment that bears a 2K logo? It should have a BioShock or two in the back.

Go and buy this damn thing already. If you don’t like it, I’m sure they’ll accept your soul along with the game when you go to return it.

Source: Steam

It is not too often that we get to report genuinely uplifting, and all around “happy” news, but we just received an email from the 2K Games community manager, responsible for Bioshock, inquiring about how they may reach the artist behind the amazing Bioshock 2 fan art we shared with you yesterday.

2K Games shared that they “really loved” the post and wanted to track down the artist responsible in order to thank him directly. We spoke to Ben a few minutes ago to share the news, and it’s safe to say that he was very happy.

The talented artist, with one year of college remaining, appears to have a very bright future ahead of him. Ben has agreed to chat with us and you can bet your little sister that we will keep you updated on this story as things evolve.

Fan Made Bioshock 2 Concept Art

6 Photos