irrational-games posts

Another look at the original BioShock pitch

by John Callaham Jun 23rd 2010 @ 9:00AM

While developer Irrational Games didn't reveal their next game at E3 2010 last week the team behind the original BioShock is letting its fans take another look at the original pitch for their best known title. The developer's official web site posted the first half of their pitch last month and now they have revealed the second half of the original Bioshock presentation.

The second half takes a look at Irrational's original ideas for the game's interface, brief descriptions of the game's enemies, a back story that's far different than the one that actually showed up and ideas for multiplayer modes that were ultimately never used.

Filed under: RPG

Check out the original BioShock game design pitch

by John Callaham May 21st 2010 @ 9:00AM

You are an independent game developer with a solid track record of making great games. You have a project that you are trying to sell to a publisher. How do you do it? Irrational Games' web site gives us a prime example of such a game pitch. It has posted the first part of a multi-part look at the original 2002 design pitch for BioShock.

There are quite a few elements described in the original game pitch that didn't make it into the final game when it shipped in 2007 by 2K Games. Irrational even tried to make the pitch that the game could be the basis for a movie or TV series. Meanwhile we have still yet to learn what Irrational's next game will be all about.

Filed under: FPS

PAX East: Panel on the Future of PC Gaming

by Steven Wong Mar 30th 2010 @ 6:00PM

At PAX East, just a few hours after NVIDIA announced the launch of the 400 series GPU, a panel comprised of John Kreiner (Terminal Reality), John Abercrombie (Lead Designer at Irrational Games), and Michell Shuster (Co-owner of LanSlide Gaming PCs) came together to discuss the future of PC gaming. Moderated by Jeff Kalles from Penny Arcade, the panel took questions from the audience to figure out where PC gaming is headed, given the trends and approaches publishers are taking combined with the leaps in technology. Although the room was almost filled to capacity with PC gamers and all three speakers are self-described fans of PC gaming, the mood quickly turned a grim comparison with console gaming. It soon became clear that the future of PC gaming was already going through a long, dark and ominous tunnel into the unknown. The only question is whether there's any hope of seeing light at the end of it.

Continue reading PAX East: Panel on the Future of PC Gaming

Filed under: Features, Hardware, Opinion

Irrational Games reveals unused BioShock monsters

by John Callaham Mar 18th 2010 @ 8:00AM

We are still waiting to find out what in the wide, wide world of sports Irrational Games plans to do for its next game project. For the moment, though, we will have to be content with the developer's official web site offering us some unreleased concepts from its last game, the original Bioshock.

These splicers are decidedly weird looking and have names like Yam Hand and Jelly Man. We especially like Monster Bug, described as a "huge insect slowly growing from within a human being and taking over the physical form." Supposedly this particular creature concept helped to sell Bioshock to prospective publishers but it never made it in the final game. Pity.

Filed under: FPS, BioShock 2

Review: BioShock 2

by James Murff Feb 17th 2010 @ 12:00PM

My second entry into the world of Rapture is greeted rather mutedly. The box is black, with numerous white handprints forming the silhouette of a butterfly or moth. I've always been a sucker for minimalist design, so I crack open the box to delve into all of the extras that make the collector's edition 40 dollars more. I immediately notice a vinyl sleeve with the words "I Am Rapture, Rapture Is Me" on the cover. It blocks my vision to the other treats inside, but this is the whole reason I bought the collector's edition. A vinyl game soundtrack is almost unheard of, with the Machinarium soundtrack and now BioShock's soundtrack being notable exceptions.

Check out the latest BioShock 2 downloads right here on Big Download!

Gallery: BioShock 2 Screenshots

Continue reading Review: BioShock 2

Filed under: Features, FPS, BioShock 2

Freedom Force-themed free Valentine's Day card released

by John Callaham Feb 13th 2010 @ 5:00PM

It's by far one of our favorite game series of all time. Irrational Games' super hero RPG Freedom Force and its sequel Freedom Force Vs The Third Reich takes the Stan Lee-Jack Kirby style of comics and turns them into highly entertaining games.

Now Irrational Games has found a way to combine the Freedom Force series with Valentine's Day with their own printable cad featuring the game's robot-with-a-heart Man-Bot. The artwork was handled by Irrational's Robb Waters who also gets his own new Q&A where he chats about various stuff. You can even see him create the Man-Bot artwork via a time-lapse video on Irrational's web site. And remember, your special someone deserves something like this.

Filed under: Culture, RPG

System Shock 2 secrets revealed at Irrational Games' site

by John Callaham Jan 31st 2010 @ 1:00PM

It's still something hard to believe that a company that no one had heard before creates one of the best games of all time as its debut title. Yet Irrational Games did just that when they released the FPS-RPG sequel System Shock 2 back in 1999. Now the newly revamped Irrational Games web site is spilling a few of the development secrets from the game.

For example, did you know that the game started out with a kind of Heart of Darkness-Apocalypse Now style plot? Or that there were plans for a zero-g sequence outside the space ship hull? Well those secrets and more can now be read at Irrational's web site. We just hope the reveal of their next game is "soon".

Filed under: Indie, RPG

Irrational Games reveals cut features in BioShock and System Shock 2

by John Callaham Jan 27th 2010 @ 3:00PM

We've been very impressed with the community features and articles that have popped up on the Irrational Games' web site since the developer relaunched and rebranded itself earlier this month. This week the site has added a new feature that showcases five cut features from two of their classic first person games: System Shock 2 and the original BioShock.

Those features that didn't make it into the final games included more biomechanical items in BioShock and an audio log in System Shock 2. One feature in BioShock that has working code put in when the game shipped was pressure changes in the city of Rapture. Pressure changes were supposed to affect the enviroment and even the AI of the creatures in the game. Ultimately the code was never fully implemented because there were a number of production and gameplay issues that could not be solved.

Filed under: FPS

BioShock 2 pre-orders get original game for free

by John Callaham Jan 19th 2010 @ 7:00PM

Would you like another free game with the purchase of another game? If your answer is, "Yes" then head over to Steam or Direct2Drive. Both PC game download sites have just launched a nice pre-order offer for BioShock 2. The upcoming first person shooter sequel from developer 2K Marin can now be purchased for 10 percent off its regular price before it's release on February 9.

Oh, and when you pre-order the game you can get the original BioShock from Irrational Games for free immediately. If you want to go all out you can purchase a four-pack of BioShock 2 (this is for Steam online) for $134.97 (basically getting one of those game for free). Oh, and you still get four free original BioShock games to give to friends. All in all, it sounds like an excellent deal.

Gallery: BioShock 2 Screenshots

Filed under: FPS, Multiplayer, BioShock 2

So what is Irrational Games' next title?

by John Callaham Jan 17th 2010 @ 11:00AM

This past week Irrational Games returned to its original name and as a result its head Ken Levine has been giving a few interviews to various web sites. He also chatted with Game Informer magazine in its latest print issue and Shacknews reports that in that chat Levine still refuses to talk about their next game, saying, "I can't say yes or no to any particular thing, but I can say this: Don't believe everything you read." That's likely a reference to various rumors that the studio might be working on an X-Com remake.

So when will we learn about their first game? Our sister site Joystiq got Levine to say the announcement will happen "sometime after PAX (East) and GDC." That sounds awfully like an E3 2010 reveal to us.

Filed under: Biz, FPS, Multiplayer

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