Bioshock on Xbox 360

[WiredWorm]

So.......

Am I the only person who's getting very excited at the prospect of Bioshock being released in the next week or so.

I've read all the media and looked at umpteen videos and it looks very very nice - just counting down the days til it's released now.

Anyone else planning on getting it then?

[Anders]

Oh yes, I'm really looking forward to it.

[Ratsoap]

So.......

Am I the only person who's getting very excited at the prospect of Bioshock being released in the next week or so.

I've read all the media and looked at umpteen videos and it looks very very nice - just counting down the days til it's released now.

Anyone else planning on getting it then?

Shitting 'eck! I thought it was still months away. I'm excited now. woo!

*Bimbles off to place preorder*

[WiredWorm]

I was debating about pre-ordering it - both Play and ShopTo.Net seem to have it at a reasonable price OR with a nice little bonus (BioShock Face Plate anyone?).

But then I also like the thought of walking into Tescos on the day of release, slapping down my cash and walking out with a nice new copy in my hand.......

Edit: Has anyone else seen the review in OXM? Got an extremely good review and a final score of 10/10.

[fog]

Looks like I got my 360 back just in time. Been looking forward to this for ages.

I was debating about pre-ordering it - both Play and ShopTo.Net seem to have it at a reasonable price OR with a nice little bonus (BioShock Face Plate anyone?).

Go the whole way man and get the Special Edition with replica Big Daddy

[WiredWorm]

Go the whole way man and get the Special Edition with replica Big Daddy

Tempting - but there's so many good games due out that i'm trying to conserve cash for other releases too. Stuntman is also out shortly and having played the demo on XBLM i'm fairly sure i'll be picking that up too - was a lot more fun than I expected.

And whenever anyone mentions Big Daddy in relation to Bioshock it always makes me think.......

[Flabio]

This ones been on my list for ages now. Along with Mass Effect and Halo3, I'll be doing a lot of 360ing before Christmas.

[fog]

Shirley Crabtree FTW!

I know what you mean about so many good games though. So much for the summer games drought. I can't say Stuntman appealed to me mind so I'd best go download and try that demo

[WiredWorm]

Before downloading Stuntman I couldn't really see how it could have any replay value - then I played the first level and an hour later I was still sat there trying to better my score. I guess that shows the replay value - even with only the 3 sample levels i've played it for a good few hours.

I'm actually glad in some respects that GTAIV got pushed back into next year. Over the coming months i've got the following on my list to buy.

Overlord
Bioshock
Stuntman Ignition
Mass Effect
Halo 3
Project Gotham 4
Timeshift
Half Life 2:The Orange Box
and BlackSite: Area 51

Phew - so that's me skinted well into the new year then

[nyarla]

I don't have a 360 but Bioshock looks ace
I love the idea of a large complex of buildings at the bottom of the sea, some areas of which are ruined etc, with the sea beginning to get in. Sounds like the best game setting ever to me.

[WiredWorm]

The art design in Bioshock looks really lovely. Watching some of the videos you can see the 60's theme really works very well and has been done so well - the lighting also is stunning.

I really can't wait to play this game now - it looks simply amazing.

[Mat]

I'll be grabbing it for PC rather than 360 as I have a nice shiny DX10 capable card

[benedictw]

Blimy - Bioshocks that close? I thought it was coming out on the 24th. I will get it the millisecond it arrives.

[WiredWorm]

Blimy - Bioshocks that close? I thought it was coming out on the 24th. I will get it the millisecond it arrives.

It is the 24th - which by my reckoning makes it 2 weeks today until it's out - and that's pretty damned close in my opinion - certainly close enough to start getting all giddy and excited!!

[Anders]

Let's get excited, then.

The game starts in the year 1960, with the player underwater following a plane crash in the ocean, surrounded by debris. No introductory cut scene is displayed explaining how this happened, leaving the player to decide for themselves why they were on the plane. Nearby, a lighthouse is sticking out of the water, in the middle of the ocean. Upon getting inside and traversing the internal stairwell, the player finds a bathysphere submersible with a corpse inside. Upon removing the corpse and descending in the bathysphere (having nowhere else to go), the player eventually reaches an underwater city on the ocean floor.

A plot unfolds involving the crumbling city and the utopian society for which it was built. It began with a Howard Hughes-like industrialist named Andrew Ryan. Born in Russia in the early 1900s, he witnessed the rise of the Soviet Union, losing his entire family to the corruption that would plague it throughout its existence. He eventually escaped to the United States, becoming a wealthy and respected industrialist/inventor. At first he is a dedicated patriot, grateful to his new nation for rewarding his intelligence and determination with prosperity and fame. However, his devotion is tested by the Great Depression, the New Deal, and finally shattered by the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Immediately afterward, in 1946, was when he withdrew from the world and built the underwater city. A hidden sanctuary for those Ryan considered to be humanity's best and brightest, the society was envisioned as the ultimate capitalistic and individualist paradise, with the elite achieving for themselves, rather than for the whole. Mocking the beliefs of common society, he named it Rapture. Protected by a network of giant sea walls and consisting of a cluster of enormous skyscraper-shaped hive towers, Rapture was designed to be entirely self-supporting, with all of its electricity, food production, water purification and defense systems powered by undersea volcanic openings. At one point, it is learned that Rapture's population numbered several thousand at its peak during the early 1950s, composed of those people Ryan viewed as the best examples of mankind. A large and tiered economy grew among the people, catering different quality products to different levels of the society. The city itself is inspired by Art Deco and has an appearance merging the futuristic and archaic.

A scientific discovery upset the balance of the society. Two scientists studying ocean-floor dwelling creatures discovered a species of sea slug that secretes pure stem cells. These could be used to enhance one's body, improving physical or mental capabilities, curing diseases and healing injuries.

A young entrepreneur named Tenebaum invested early on in the research to gain control over the material. The substance, dubbed "ADAM", became so sought after in the society, that it became the dominant currency of the city. A "full-scale genetic arms race" broke out between Ryan and Tenebaum as Tenebaum's monopoly on ADAM threatened the current social structure. Ryan eventually won, but everyone in the city was permanently changed.

During the war, it was discovered that ADAM could be used to modify one's body, combining technology and mutations to adapt and survive the conflict, but losing their humanity in the process. During the conflict, all natural sources of ADAM were destroyed, which eventually resulted in a major shift in the "ecology" of the city, as all inhabitants had become biologically dependent on ADAM to survive.

When the player arrives in Rapture, the city is in a state of disrepair, its vast underground living areas and laboratory complexes scarred by the effects of the civil war and poisoned by biological weapons. Low-level flooding is also found to be a problem, as the use of high-powered explosives and corrosion weapons during the war created small breaches in the city's sea walls, allowing seawater to enter some of the buildings.

As the player descends through the underwater city, he or she will explore the many levels of the giant undersea base, including the huge living quarters modules and the multi-floored scientific headquarters. Remnants of the last days remain in notes and recordings made by the citizens before and during the collapse of Rapture's society. Not only does this provide background, it also opens new avenues in the player's interaction with the ecology of Rapture."Unravel the amazing story as you play in Bioshock.

Fight INSANE geneticly modified people in rapture,

Aggressors: (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[8] 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, known as EVE. The team designed them so the player would have a moral conflict in using children to obtain ADAM as well as severe difficulty due to their relation to the Protectors as their charges. According to lead designer Paul Hellquist, the Gatherers have a direct link with the main character. In a recently released audio file, Levine described how the player cannot do anything cruel to Little Sisters, only harvest them. One cannot shoot the Little Sisters or set them on fire. Rewards for not killing Little Sisters are given by Dr. Tanenbaum, although the rewards are as of yet unrevealed by Levine.[9]

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. 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 "hacked" by the player to register the player as "friendly". Security bots appear to hover and fly using the same method as helicopters and are armed with machine guns. There is also a plasmid to make the security think you are a friend and attack the nearby enemies.