Bioshock

Basic Information

Available for Xbox 360 and PC (under the Games for Windows brand).
US release date: August 21st, 2007
PAL: Aug 24th
Japan: TBA
Developer: Irrational Games (acquired by Take Two)
Publisher: 2K Games
Genre: Shooter
Game Rating: M (Mature)
*Blood and Gore
*Drug Reference
*Intense Violence
*Sexual Themes
*Strong Language
Specs: 1 Player | Dolby 5.1 Surround | HDTV 720p | Marketplace Downloads | Xbox LIVE Aware

Marketing Info

BioShock is the "genetically enhanced" first person shooter that lets you do things never before possible in the genre: turn everything into a weapon, biologically mod your body with plasmids, hack devices and systems, upgrade your weapons and craft new ammo variants, and experiment with different battle techniques in an incredible and unique underwater city.

You are a cast-away in Rapture, an underwater Utopia torn apart by civil war. Caught between powerful forces, and hunted down by genetically modified “splicers” and deadly security systems, you have to come to grips with a deadly, mysterious world filled with powerful technology and fascinating characters. No encounter ever plays out the same, and no two gamers will play the game the same way.

BioShock is loaded with some of greatest, most modifiable weapons to ever blast their way into a shooter. But guns alone won’t be enough to defeat the devious AIs of Rapture. There are literally hundreds of other strategies players can use to take out his enemies. Here’s just a few things you can do a foe:

* Catch his Grenades in Mid Air and Toss Them Back at Him
* Freeze Him Solid and Shatter Him with Smack of your Wrench
* Lead him and his comrades to water and Zap them all with 1000 Volts
* Burn Him Up With Home-Made Molotov Cocktails
* Booby Trap Healing Machines and Watch Them Blow up IN his Face
* Brainwash Him to Become Your Personal BodyGuard
* Invent your own Ammo Types to Prey on his Vulnerabilities
* Turn his own Security System Against Him
* Light Him on Fire and Launch Heat Seeking Missiles At him
* Torment Him with Plagues of Insects
* Take Research Photos of Him to Learn his Weaknesses
* Send Him Flying into the Ceiling to Knock him Senseless

No encounter ever plays out the same way twice. No two gamers will ever play BioShock the same way.

Biologically mod your body: Plasmids are genetic augmentations that empower you with dozens of fantastic abilities. Send Electrobolts storming from your fingertips, unleash a swarm of hornets hatched from the veins of your arms, strategically turn enemies against one another with irritants.

Take control of your world: Hack devices and systems to reprogram enemy security bots into personal bodyguards, modify vending machines to change prices, and transform machine gun security turrets into powerless pieces of metal.

Upgrade your weapons: Look for Fire-For-Effect stations located through Rapture. Craft variants of ammo and plasmids by picking up materials in the city to modify them at U-Invent kiosks.

Experiment with battle techniques: With BioShock’s free-form combat options, gameplay scenarios can be approached with a variety of weapons, active and passive plasmids, environmental objects utilization, exploitation of political alliances, or a combination of techniques. Find your style but know when to adapt.

Explore an incredible world: The unique art deco world hidden deep under the ocean is vividly illustrated with realistic water effects and truly next generation graphics.
Make meaningful decisions: Do you exploit the innocent survivors of Rapture to save yourself … or risk all to become their savior?

Story

The game takes place in an underwater city named Rapture. Surviving a plane crash at the beginning of the game you find your way to this lost city, a decrepit and crumbling shadow of its former self. The ocean is reclaiming the space, and the inhabitants have turned into bloodthirsty mutants. During the course of the game you uncover how Rapture fell from its grace of a 1940s Utopian dream to the current nightmare. Minimal use of cutscenes are used as information is spread around the environment itself in newspapers, posters, and radio broadcasts.

Enemies

Splicers: Deformed, genetically modified Rapture citizens who are now remnants of Ryan's army, the Aggressors cannot survive without ADAM due to their extensive biological modifications. They wear little or no armor, and normally roam the levels of Rapture, searching for other inhabitants to kill and steal ADAM from. As their name would suggest, they are aggressive and quick to attack, and will use their enhanced physical strength, group tactics and, sometimes, semi-biological weapons to kill all in their path.

Gatherers: (Little Sisters) Originally to be portrayed as slug-like, genetically modified sea creatures but now shown as genetically modified children, the Gatherers were created by a scientist named Dr. Tanenbaum as a solution to the ADAM shortage. They extract ADAM from the dead with the tools they carry and eat it, their bodies reprocessing it into a usable form. The team designed them so the player would have a moral conflict in shooting children, to obtain ADAM as well as severe difficulty due to their relation to the Protectors as their charges. According to lead designer Ken Levine, the Gatherers have a direct link with the main character. In a recently released audio file, Levine clarifies how the player cannot physically harm a Little Sister, but they can "harvest" the ADAM from them (a process which they will not survive). This will be presented via audio, and a black screen.

Protectors: (Big Daddies, or Mr. Bubbles and Mr. B as some of the Gatherers call them) Mute, lumbering bio-mechanical monstrosities, created to protect the Gatherers. They are heavily armored and wield high-powered weaponry, including a large drill. Their armor somewhat resembles a large diving suit. Most of the inhabitants stay out of the way of the Gatherers and Protectors. They will not attack you unless provoked and according to lead designer Paul Hellquist "Once you mess with them, you find out why no one messes with them." In a recent trailer/commentary for Bioshock, it was revealed that, despite their size and typically slow movements, they become incredibly fast once engaged, in some cases quicker than the player.

Security Bots: Throughout the city of Rapture, they are called via alarm by various security cameras. Security bots appear to hover and fly using the same method as helicopters and are armed with machine guns. When disturbed, the security cameras' siren will sound and an unlimited supply of security bots will pour out for a limited time. The only way to take them down is to shut off the security system by using ADAM to turn it off. The security system can also be suborned by the player, either by "hacking" it or using the "Security Beacon" plasmid on an enemy.

Reviews

10/10 on OXM UK and 95% on PC Gamer

Videos

Bioshock Trailer:

<a href="http://video.stage6.com/1383169/.divx" target="_blank">http://video.stage6.com/1383169/.divx</a>)

14 minute developer walkthrough:

<a href="http://video.stage6.com/1348451/.divx" target="_blank">http://video.stage6.com/1348451/.divx</a>

7 minutes of gameplay footage:

<a href="http://video.stage6.com/1271315/.divx" target="_blank">http://video.stage6.com/1271315/.divx</a>

E3 2007 X-Play footage:

<a href="http://video.stage6.com/1430314/.divx" target="_blank">http://video.stage6.com/1430314/.divx</a>