DISCO ELYSIUM, IT TAKES TWO, BIOSHOCK and LIFE IS STRANGE TV adaptations in development

More video game franchises are heading to the small screen.

Netflix announced this week it is developing a TV movie based on the alternate-history BioShock franchise, specifically the first game. Released in 2007, BioShock was a first-person shooter set in the underwater, utopian city of Rapture, a city founded to allow scientific and sociological research unfettered by the laws or morality of society at large. Needless to say, Things Go Wrong. BioShock 2 (2010) was well-received, although developed by a different team. The original development team reconvened to release BioShock Infinite (2013), a quasi-prequel set in the flying city of Columbia. A fourth game has been in development off and on ever since. The series has sold 34 million copies to date.

Gore Verbinski, director of the original Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy, worked on a theatrical film version of BioShock for several years, but butted heads with the studio over budget and the film's rating. No writer, director or producer is on board with this latest iteration.

Meanwhile, Amazon has signed a first-look deal with dj2 Entertainment, the production company recently responsible for the Sonic the Hedgehog movie. The company is currently developing three game projects for the screen: co-op platformer It Takes Two (2021) from Hazelight Studios, which focuses on teamwork and cooperation between two players; major RPG success Disco Elysium (2019) from ZA/UM; and Life is Strange (2015), an adventure game from Dontnod Entertainment.

Of the three, Disco Elysium is the most intriguing. The game is set in a large city recovering from a brutal war. The game plays an detective suffering from amnesia and a possible split personality who investigates a brutal murder. The game is notable for its offbeat setting and atmosphere and its complete lack of combat in favour of using dialogue and negotiation to overcome obstacles.

The move comes after the enormous success of Arcane on Netflix, a TV show based on the League of Legends video game franchise. Some recent game-to-film adaptations, like Werewolves Within (2021), Mortal Kombat (2021), Sonic the Hedgehog (2020) and Pokemon: Detective Pikachu (2019) have all picked up good reviews as well as solid box office, although Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City (2021) and Uncharted (2022) have had rougher receptions.

The marketplace is going to get even more crowded in future, with a TV adaptation of Halo launching in late March, and HBO's The Last of Us set for an early 2023 release.

New BIOSHOCK game in development

2K Games is working on a new BioShock game, it has been confirmed.

Games website Kotaku unearthed the information as part of a wider investigation of the shrinking of Hanger 13 Studios, which owners 2K had downsized following the disappointing critical reception of Mafia III in late 2016. This was despite formidable sales for the game, which shifted 5 million copies in its first couple of months on sale. Hanger 13 spent some time developing both a Mafia IV concept and also an idea for a music-based superhero game named Rhapsody, which eventually collapsed.

As part of the investigation, it was revealed that some key Hanger 13 personnel had transferred to one of 2K's other studios to work on a project code-named Parkside. According to Kotaku's article, two interesting pieces of information came out of this. First is that the studio in question is 2K Marin, the much-troubled 2K subsidiary that was effectively shuttered in 2013 following the disappointing launch of The Bureau: XCOM Declassified. The studio appears to be have been reconstituted. The second piece of information was that Parkside is really the next game in the BioShock franchise.

The BioShock franchise is one of the most revered in modern gaming, a first-person shooter series with cutting-edge visuals and intelligent (if occasionally muddled) storytelling. Created by Ken Levine and Irrational Games, the franchise was seen as a spiritual successor to the Ultima Underworld, Deus Ex and System Shock games developed by Looking Glass Studios and Ion Storm. Levine and Irrational developed the first and third games in the series, BioShock (2007) and Bioshock Infinite (2013), whilst 2K Marin worked on BioShock 2 (2010).

After the release of BioShock Infinite, Levine felt burned out from making high-pressure games with budgets in the tens of millions of dollars. He wanted to make smaller-scale, narrative-focused games. To this end Irrational was rebranded Ghost Story Games and downsized massively. Levine and Ghost Story have been working on their debut title ever since. Given that the first 3 games had sold over 25 million copies between them, 2K confirmed that the BioShock series would continue, but some commentators were dubious of the series moving forward without Levine's guidance.

Nothing is known of the next BioShock game save that it will have some big shoes to fill without Ken Levine's singular vision. However, given that BioShock 2 was also made without any involvement from Levine and was an extremely strong game, that's not perhaps as much of an issue as it could have been.

The game is likely a long way off still, given it's not even been officially announced yet.

SYSTEM SHOCK remake announced, sequel teased

A video game development studio by the name of Night Dive have acquired the full rights to the System Shock IP. Night Dive recently masterminded the re-release of System Shock 2 and have now confirmed that a "full remake" of the original game is underway.

Night Dive have also acquired the property in its totality, so can also begin planning a System Shock 3 if they wish. However, they admit this is beyond their current scope and would have to partner up with another company to undertake that project.

System Shock (1994) was a first-person science fiction roleplaying game, set on a space station. The player controls a hacker who becomes embroiled in the machinations of a devious, sentient AI called SHODAN. It was created by Looking Glass Studios under the supervision of the legendary Warren Spector (who later created Deus Ex), shortly after the same team had completed work on Ultima Underworld II. System Shock, like the Ultima Underworld games, was praised for bringing the immersive 3D viewpoint of action games like Doom but creating a more thoughtful, intelligent RPG around it.

In 1999 Looking Glass Studios and Irrational Games (headed by Ken Levine) collaborated on System Shock 2. This was a more sophisticated game in terms of graphics, interface and the amount of freedom it gave the player to pursue their own goals. It frequently appears on "Best Games of All Time" lists and it is considered extremely influential on later RPG design. SHODAN, the evil (kind of) antagonist AI character, was a key inspiration for the similar (but more humorous) AI character GLaDOS in Portal and Portal 2.  System Shock 2 came out very close to Deus Ex, which itself had been heavily influenced by the original System Shock.

Arguably the biggest legacy of the two games was that in 2007 Irrational Games would go on to make a "spiritual sequel" to the games, which went on to become a massive, international hit by the name of BioShock. It was followed by BioShock 2 (2010) and BioShock Infinite (2013). However, some critics cite System Shock 2 (which a true RPG, not a FPS like the BioShock franchise) as being superior for giving the player much greater control and choice in the narrative.

Take-Two Interactive shut down Irrational Games

Take-Two Interactive has closed down the Irrational Games studio, which it owns. Irrational are the creators of the BioShock franchise, most recently responsible for creating and releasing BioShock Infinite and its expansions.

The head of Irrational, feted game designer Ken Levine, announced the move on the company's website. The move stunned both gamers and critics, as BioShock Infinite had been both a critical and apparently a commercial success upon its release a year ago. According to Levine's announcement, the move had been taken as he wished to re-focus on narrative-driven games and needed only a small team of 15 or so people to do that. This led to speculation from the press, as the move meant making 185 people jobless. Questions were raised about whether it would have been easier to Levine to simply leave Irrational and leave the team intact for other projects (such as future BioShock games, with Take-Two confirming it is interested in pursuing the franchise with new games in the future).

However, an alternative possibility is that BioShock Infinite's success was overstated. Though the game sold 3.7 million copies in its first two months on sale, that came after a development period lasting more than five years (since BioShock's release in 2007; BioShock 2 had been created by a different studio) and costing anything up to $200 million (including marketing), although that figure was later denied by Levine. In comparison, the game Skyrim from Bethesda took only about two and a half years to make, cost less than $80 million and sold 7 million copies in its first month on sale. Take-Two's biggest 2013 release, Grand Theft Auto V, has sold over 32 million copies to date and made $1 billion in just its first three days on sale. Compared to these figures (though admittedly outliers), it looks like BioShock Infinite underperformed and, given its long development time and budget, failed to turn a profit, certainly not before the end of that financial year.

Regardless, this is regrettable news. Irrational were one of several companies to splinter off from the legendary Looking Glass Studios. At Looking Glass Levine worked on a series of iconic games, including System Shock and Ultima Underworld. After leaving to found Irrational in 1997, Levine continued to work on Looking Glass titles such as System Shock 2 (a co-production with Irrational) and Thief: The Dark Project. In 2002 Irrational released their first solo game, a superhero RPG called Freedom Force, which was well-reviewed and praised for its art style and humour. A sequel, Freedom Force vs. the Third Reich, followed in 2005. Irrational also released Tribes: Vengeance in 2004 and SWAT 4 in 2005, both of which were also well-received. In 2007 Irrational released BioShock, a 'spiritual successor' to System Shock 2 which focused on narrative and political themes fused to a memorable art style and an emphasis on combat. Irrational passed on making the 'quickie' sequel, BioShock 2 (instead released by 2K Marin, themselves rendered defunct last year by Take-Two), to focus on a more ambitious project, BioShock Infinite. This game was repeatedly delayed and was not released until early 2013.

Irrational focused on narrative and story-driven games with strong, recognisable characters and offbeat atmospheres not quite like anything else out there. Their loss from the gaming world is regrettable.

The SF of Gaming

Where would computer games be without science fiction? Alien bad guys, stonking great railguns, cyborg protagonists and post-apocalyptic landscapes are ten-a-penny in games. The number of games out there without any SF or fantasy elements is tiny; even the historical simulation Civilization games allows Gandhi to build an army of death-dealing laser tanks and then fly to Alpha Centauri, whilst the Crusader Kings series postulates fantastical alternate timelines where Wales is a European superpower.

Scientifically inexplicable.

That said, SF in games is usually scenery rather than the focus of the setting. The socio-economic basis of why the alien Lord Mental, with access to vast resources and commanding a star-spanning empire, needs to invade Earth in the Serious Sam series remains resolutely unexplored. And how do those suicide bomber guys scream when they don't have a head anyway? The science in science fiction is often questionable in books (and almost non-existent on TV and in film), and even moreso in games.

Still, exceptions exist. Here's a look at some games which attempt to use real science as more than just wallpaper.

Frontier: Elite 2 - Real Astronomy & Newtonian Physics

Released in 1993, Frontier was David Braben's ambitious follow-up to the classic, medium-defining 1984 space sim Elite. Frontier allows you to take on the role of the captain of a spacecraft. You can indulge in trading goods between star systems, fighting pirates (or turning pirate yourself) or undertaking missions for one of several interstellar powers (the Federation, the Empire or numerous independent worlds, as well as various corporations). You can switch between spacecraft and upgrade them.

Where the game was truly stunning was that it simulated the entire Milky Way Galaxy on just a single floppy disk. 100 billion stars were located in the galaxy, and the several hundred closest to Earth were placed in their (more or less) correct astronomical positions, along with a few hundred other major stars. You could fly to the Pleiades (though it'd take a while), check out Polaris or skim the surface of Arcturus. The game also used real Newtonian physics, complete with effectively infinite inertia once you had fired your engines in a particular direction, and space stations simulating gravity through centrifugal force. You could even fly over planetary surfaces and land at starports.

Of course, the game looks pretty primitive by modern standards, 99% of the stars in the game are randomly placed and named and the Newtonian physics make space combat unintuitive and almost ridiculously difficult to pull off (and the fact that few later space games - I-War and Tachyon's nods to it side - use real physics may be down to Frontier's problems). But the ambition and scope are there. It will be interesting to see if Elite: Dangerous, due in 2014, manages to solve the issues whilst retaining the immense scale, scope and ambition of its forebear.

Damocles: Mercenary II - Comets and Time Dilation

Predating Frontier by a few years, Damocles similarly depicts an impressive 3D universe which allows you to land and take off from planets. The setting is much more limited, with just a single solar system on offer. The spacecraft is also merely a way of getting from planet to planet, with the focus being on your character wandering around (in first-person 3D; a stunning achievement in 1990). The premise is that the comet Damocles is about to crash into and destroy the planet Eris and your character has to find a way of stopping it. The game presents several possibilities, from the direct (finding and blowing up the comet with a mega-powerful antimatter bomb) to the sensible (redirecting the comet away from Eris onto a safer orbit by blowing up another, uninhabited body nearby).

One of the more interesting things about the game is that your spacecraft can accelerate to near-lightspeed to get around the system, but this results in time dilation. You can travel right across the system in minutes, but the doomsday clock will tick down at a ridiculous rate. This forces the player to find alternate ways of travelling around (teleporters being the favourite alternative, but their locations are unknown at the start of the game) to avoid the problem.

Syndicate - Cyberpunk Dystopia

Also released in 1993, Syndicate was an action-strategy game set in a dystopian cyberpunk future, where the world is controlled by corporations who influence and pacify citizens via chips in their brains. These chips can be subverted by the player, allowing them to take control of huge crowds of people during missions to be used as cannon fodder or a distraction. This notion of human/computer interfaces is only lightly touched upon in the game due to control limitations, although it does bring in other SF ideas such as robot policemen and massive corporate advertising boards (influenced by Blade Runner). Most sinister is the way the game postulates a future where governments are rump states at best, with the real power held by corporations and their private armies.

A sequel, Syndicate Wars, moved the game into 3D in 1996. Recently, several of the design team for Syndicate and its sequel announced a Kickstarter campaign for a 'spiritual sequel', Satellite Reign, that will expand upon many of the ideas in the original game and allow for things like hacking and more freeform approaches to missions.

Hostile Waters - Nanotech Singularity and Social Revolution

One of the greatest (though also underplayed) strategy games of all time, Hostile Waters (aka Antaeus Rising in the USA) places you in command of an immense aircraft carrier with orders to liberate a chain of newly-risen islands from the control of a hostile power. What at first appears to be a remake of the classic 1987 strategy title Carrier Command (itself given a lacklustre, official remake in 2012) quickly turns into a different beast. Part of this is down to the compelling fiction, created by writer Warren Ellis.

The game postulates a technological singularity (in 2012) which comes to pass due to the invention of Creation Engines, devices which use nanotechnology to break items apart and reassemble them at a molecular level. Anything can be turned into anything else. Rubbish can be transformed into food, sand into diamonds. This immediately removes scarcity - famine, lack of resources - as an issue for everyone on the planet and would seem to herald a golden age. The owners of the means of production, who are effectively out of a job, resist by trying to regulate the introduction of Creation Engines, resulting in a messy, bloody global civil war. At the end of the war the 'old guard' are defeated and everyone lives in a world of plenty. Needless to say, some of these old guard launch a new assault using weaponised Creation Engine technology...technology which gets out of hand very rapidly.

Dealing with SF hot topics like nanotechnology, the Singularity (not exactly in a robust way, though, as the post-2012 society is still pretty comprehensible to us), life-extension via 'saving' consciousness on AI systems, the conflicts of closed systems versus open ones and ideology versus religion, the game's storyline is surprisingly deep though arguably flawed: the world also being a secularist paradise with billions of people abandoning religion seems a bit far-fetched, though there are hints that the new society has a sinister side as well. All the more remarkable is that this background is there purely to explain the game's use of standard strategy tropes, like being able to build vehicles instantly on the battlefield. The fiction is impressive and well-thought-out, complementing the amazing gameplay very well.

Portal - Science as Fun

Released in 2007, Portal was a small game but a hugely influential one. The game is based around the idea that you can create two linked dimensional portals on certain surfaces, allowing for intelligent ways to solve apparently insurmountable puzzles. Jumping across a vast chasm is possible by creating a portal on the wall behind you and another at the bottom of the chasm: falling into the chasm builds up enough momentum to shoot through the portal, over the top of the chasm and landing safely on the other side.

The portal technology is of course highly speculative, but it's a rare example of a gaming taking its central scientific/technological premise (no matter how ludicrous) and exploring it intelligently. The 'science!' theme, the impressive AI antagonist, the game's remarkable sense of humour and it's bigger, better sequel all help cement the game's reputation as one of the finest first-person action games in existence.

Deus Ex: Human Revolution - Augmentation and Cyborgs

This prequel to 2000's classic Deus Ex deals with a number of important near-future issues. As well as the standard cyberpunk government/corporation tension, the game explores the theme of augmentation and using technology to enhance human abilities in depth and with intelligence. The notion of how much of our bodies we can replace and remain human is also a key theme: does the corporation 'own' protagonist Adam Jensen because they paid for the augmentations that allow him to live? A rich and involving game (let down a little by silly boss fights).

BioShock Infinite - An Infinity of Possibilities

This recent game is set in an alternate timeline in which a huge flying city called Columbia was built in the early 20th Century thanks to the invention of quantum engines, technology that never existed in our world. As the game progresses, the protagonist and the girl he was sent to save find themselves passing through tears in the fabric of reality into other universes, including some similar to our own and others completely different.

The 'many worlds' theory of quantum reality is a common theme in modern SF, but this is the first time a game successfully explores the same theme with some intelligence and uses it to tie together the disjointed narrative in a manner which makes sense.

Wasteland 2 - Post-Apocalyptic Wildlife

The upcoming Wasteland 2, from some of the same team that gave us the Fallout games, is a post-apocalyptic romp which makes few pretences towards scientific realism in its backstory or how anyone survived the nuclear apocalypse. However, the developers have called upon the services of real scientists to help portray environments and creatures, leading to the creation of the fearful giant hermit crab, which hides within the shells of abandoned and burned-out cars and gives the players a nasty surprise when they wander by.

As we can see, there are a few games around which do make more use of science and real SF ideas than as just a cheesy explanation for insane ultraviolence. Hopefully this is something we will see more of in the future.

See also: Polygon has interviews with the scientists who have consulted and advised on games such as Wasteland 2, BioShock Infinite, Deus Ex: Human Revolution and the upcoming Outlast.

BioShock Infinite

1912. Booker DeWitt, a war veteran and former Pinkerton agent, is recruited by a shadowy figure to undertake a dangerous mission: he must go to the city of Columbia and rescue a girl called Elizabeth. He must take her back to New York to clear his debts. Booker agrees, but finds his task is more complex than he could possibly imagine: Columbia is a city floating in the sky, held in place by quantum engines. Even worse, Booker's coming has been foretold by the city's messianic leader, the Prophet Zachary Comstock. DeWitt is the False Shepherd who is prophecised to kidnap Elizabeth and expose her to lies. As the entire city turns against him, Booker is forced into a dangerous alliance with an underground resistance movement if he is to save Elizabeth and discover the truth about the city...and himself.

BioShock Infinite is the third game in the BioShock series, following on from BioShock and BioShock 2. However, it is a stand-alone game that does not require foreknowledge of the older two games to be enjoyed (though there are a few nods to those who have played the earlier titles).

In fact, it would be more accurate (not to mention appropriate) to say that there are in fact two BioShock Infinites. The first is a narrative and character-based game featuring a complicated storyline and an exploration of themes revolving around the American ideals of free speech, equality, liberty and responsibility. The narrative is recursive, using time loops and parallel universes to drive forwards the storyline and melds elements of hard SF, steampunk and revolutionary fiction together. The storyline is also highly focused on individual characters, including Booker DeWitt, Elizabeth (Booker's companion for a chunk of the game), the Lutece twins and the rarely-seen, often-heard ruler of Columbia, Zachary Comstock. The narrative is twisted and twisting, complicated (though mostly cohesive) but well-told and addressing issues that most games pretend simply don't exist, such as racism and prejudice, and doing so intelligently. In short, it's a bit of a triumph.


The second BioShock Infinite is the actual gameplay, wherein you blow away a truly vast number of adversaries with an exotic selection of advanced weapons and semi-magical powers. Enemies are defeated more quickly if you shoot them in the head (causing their skulls to explode) or use your powers to lift them into the air and then blast them over the edge of the city. BioShock Infinite is a startlingly violent game where your path through the excellent story is soaked knee-deep in blood.

There's a bit of a dissonance between the story and the gameplay. Ken Levine and his team have attempted here to create a complex and literate narrative, perhaps gaming's answer to Ulysses, except that Leopold Bloom didn't periodically wander out onto the streets of Dublin to mow down hordes of enemies with a crank-powered rotary chain cannon (literary critics are divided on whether this would have improved the book). This collision between gameplay and story is something that the original BioShock also suffered from, though in Infinite they do a much better job of trying to integrate the two together. For a start, combat is fast, fluid and fun, a far cry (no pun intended) from the often-stodgy shooting of the original game. There are a few similar problems, such as the fact it's bewilderingly easy to get stuck on the corners of buildings and platforms and the game seems highly reluctant to let you jump over anything (often resulting in your character bunny-hopping like a maniac to clear a two-foot step whilst multiple opponents are firing missiles at your head), but broadly speaking the combat - incongruous to the setting as it often feels - is pretty good. It's particularly good fun to take to the overhead sky rails to zip above enemies' heads, either shooting them from afar or jumping off to perform a melee takedown. Booker's different powers - Vigours - are varied and entertaining to use, and intelligent use of Vigours can mean the difference between a fight being a dull slog and an exhilarating demonstration of power. It's all cool, but it also feels rather distanced from the actual storyline and the quieter moments of exploration and dialogue.

Much has been made of the game's environment and with good reason. The art direction is stunning. BioShock Infinite is hardly at the cutting edge of visuals (the Unreal 3 Engine is starting to show its age) but its colourful palette, World Trade Fair-inspired architecture, open spaces and blazing sunlight combine for a vivid gaming experience. The game may be shifting far fewer polygons than Crysis 3, but the ingenuity and originality of the design more than makes up for that. It's a game so striking that it's fun just to wander around and look at things. Unfortunately, this artistic excellence does not extend to character animations, which are often unconvincing and wooden. It's not Bethesda-bad, but it's certainly somewhat lacking compared to the game's strengths in other areas.

Much has also been made of your AI companion, Elizabeth, who accompanies you for roughly four-fifths of the game. Elizabeth doesn't fight, but she can help you explore areas and finding money, and also scavenges extra ammo, health and salt (which recharges your Vigours) for you mid-combat. She is also an accomplished lockpicker, and can use lockpicks to open sealed doors. Lockpicks are severely rationed for the first half or so of the game, forcing you to carefully explore each area before moving on, but later on become so commonplace that such care is no longer required. Elizabeth's voice acting is good but her animation is somewhat lacking. She also has disconcerting tendency to teleport around the map, as her pathfinding leaves something to be desired. Combined with her inability to fight, this makes her rather less impressive a companion character than Alyx Vance in the nine-year-old Half-Life 2, which seems rather poor going.

The game's biggest weakness is the same as with BioShock before it. Irrational Games (and Looking Glass, where its founders worked beforehand) started off with roleplaying games, most notably the System Shock series, which is the spiritual predecessor to the BioShock series. These games were roleplaying games with shooter elements, whilst the BioShock series are shooters with a few roleplaying elements grafted on. This is fine, except that the complicated story, more notable characters and even the fascinating environment feel like they've still been designed for a roleplaying game. The result is a game which hints at immense depth but it held back from fully exploring or embracing it by its shooter credentials.

As it stands, BioShock Infinite (****½) is a very strong shooter with an unusually deep story, complex characters and thematic elements that don't entirely gel with the game's genre. It's still a fascinating, fun and thought-provoking game, but one that does not fulfil its full potential due to genre limitations. However, it's still a remarkable game, with a genuinely intelligent and smart ending, one of the best endings a game has ever had. It is available now in the UK (PC, X-Box 360, PlayStation 3) and USA (PC, X-Box 360, PlayStation 3).

On a lighter note: BioShock Infinite

BioShock Infinite was released today. Whilst I merely enjoyed BioShock, not considering it the revolutionary FPS gamechanger a lot of other reviewers did, I was intrigued enough by the new game to check it out on release day.

 
Just three hours in so far, but it's an immense improvement on its forebear in every way. Richly atmospheric, the game has stunning art design and some unusually good writing, not to mention a very weird undercurrent to the tone. Something that is very impressive is the way the game uses the founding history of the United States as a form of mythology, with statues of Washington, Jefferson etc. that depict them almost like Greek gods. The utopia's undercurrent of fascism is also carried out well. The first time you hear casual racist slurs in the game it's a bit of a surprise and the game continues trying to unnerve the player from then onwards.

It could all go to pot in the remaining nine hours (approximately), but so far, cautiously impressed.