BioShock Creator Not Ruling out a Return to Rapture

[Logan Westbrook]

BioShock Creator Not Ruling out a Return to Rapture

Irrational's Ken Levine says that the BioShock series could head beneath the waves again, as long as the concept was solid.

Levine may have made a point [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/102897-Levine-BioShock-Was-Never-Just-About-Rapture] of saying that BioShock was about more than just objectivist underwater cities and genetic experimentation run wild, but that's not to say that Irrational is totally finished with Rapture. Fans of what is possibly the most unique videogame setting in years will be pleased to learn that as long as it had the right idea, Irrational would make a BioShock 3.

Levine said that leaving Rapture behind had been very difficult for him, as he had a great deal of attachment to the setting. As hard as it might have been however, he thought that he had said everything he needed to in that space for now. He didn't rule out a return in the future though: "[N]ever say never," he said. "Yeah. I mean, life's a long time. But I'd HAVE to have an idea that drove that. I'd have to spring from the idea."

While a return to Rapture someday sounds good in theory, a big part of the setting's appeal was how fresh it was, and that's something that you can't ever get back. It's a pretty safe bet that if Irrational did ever make another game in Rapture, it would be pretty special, but taking that creativity and using it to make something new sounds much more appealing than revisiting something old.

Source: CVG [http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=261670?cid=OTC-RSS&attr=CVG-General-RSS]


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[Captain23222]

*sigh* its getting to the point where I'm begining to see Bioshock as less and less like a game written by a genius and more by someone who got lucky. I'll keep an eye on the new one but this seems like sheer desperation. Half Life as a series was greatly improved by their sense to nuke black Mesa and force themselves to create a new world. Willingness to regress is only going to end up hurting the game in the future.

 

[mexicola]

Ken, next time you think about making another Bioshock game just slap yourself on the wrist and try to think about something original instead.

 

[Jaebird]

I literally have to words for this. I'm serious. I've tried to write out a response at least three times. That's how dumb this idea is.

When I saw Bioshock Infinite, I truly wanted to play it. I could care less about the first Bioshock, because I always lose interest early on in the game. Plus, dark and claustrophobic levels aren't my cup of tea. Not because it's scary, but it doesn't feel right to me when I'm fighting rabid enemies and The Flash inside a diving suit.

 

[Generic_Dave]

I assume he means IRRATIONAL won't make another Bioshock without something new to say. But that we'll see Bioshock 3 from the rest of the 2k empire around Christmas 2011!

 

[Evilsanta]

Well i buy it it was good. Though it has to come with something new.

 

[Outright Villainy]

I think all the posters above me are missing the point; he said he'd only go back if he had a damn good reason to. He's essentially saying he just wasn't limiting himself, I don't really see what's so bad about that.

 

[Woodsey]

I could care less about the first Bioshock,

So you're interested in it a little at least?

[small]From now on, I will pick on anyone says "I could care less...".[/small]

OT: He's probably just doing a "never say never". I think people forget that he didn't have anything (or had very little) to do with BioShock 2.

 

[DazBurger]

Well... I Would really like a game taking place in Rapture before everything went crazy.
Perhaps playing as a mobster in Raptures underworld.

 

[tlozoot]

Why all the hate? He said he wouldn't come back to Rapture unless there was something new to do or something else to say.

This is a man who wants the narrative concept to be solid before anything else happens - this sort of thinking is what makes great, memorable games.

 

[DTWolfwood]

Ok now this man wants to cover every possible angle now! its the "In case our new setting fails, we can still milk the old one" line of thinking.

pfft after the cash-in that was Bioshock 2, i no longer have any appreciation or anticipation for this franchise.

p.s. I still do have fond memories of Bioshock. 2 just tainted it. Good thing i played a friends copy and didn't buy that poop!

 

[Asehujiko]

Annually releasing game does not rule out possibility of sequel or remake! How shocking!

 

[Brad Shepard]

Here is the one and only way you can return to rapture.

You play as a big daddy again,

Spoiler: dont read this unless you beat Bioshock 2

but sense Subject Delta died, the only Big Daddy with a sense of 'free will' is gone, so i dont know how this is going to work

And all the splicers have had so much Adam that they grew gills, and the sea slugs are just hybriding with everything that moves to produce more adam.

 

[scotth266]

Inb4 enormous QQ about how the creator of the game isn't staying true to the vision of the original game.

(By the time I'm done writing this the above statement will be invalidated, but whatever.)

I've noticed that there's a subset of Bioshock fans who seem to hate every decision that 2K makes about the franchise. First when Bioshock 2 popped up, they complained that it would sully the awesomeness that was Bioshock 1 (it didn't.) And when Bioshock Infinite came out, they complained about how it would be a continuity wreck/wasn't "a real Bioshock game." That particular piece of idiocy still galls me.

Man, there used to be a time when you could make a franchise without a set-in-stone continuity, a time where each game was self-encompassing, but still contained elements from the other games. You know, kind of like how Final Fantasy games work (some of them do link, such as FFVII and Dirge Of Cerberus, but for the most part they take place in different timelines.) For some odd reason people seem to think that new franchises aren't allowed to do this anymore.

What if the Halo franchise were to continue, but instead of fighting the Covenant, Master Chief found himself in some weird galaxy, trying to find his way home (and save the universe in the process?) Would everyone complain that Halo wasn't Halo anymore? Or would they salute it for trying to break the mold of previous games?

Now that they've announced that they COULD go back to Rapture IF THE FOUNDING IDEA WAS SOLID, there are going to be loads of people dismissing 2K as franchise whores for no good reason, even though they've blatantly stated here that they're going to put it off until they feel the time is right.

 

[jamesworkshop]

"[N]ever say never,"

"It's a pretty safe bet that if Irrational did ever make another game in Rapture,"

Does anyone actually read anything other than the title

 

[Cowabungaa]

Here is the one and only way you can return to rapture.

Nooo! A prequel would work brilliantly!

Think Prototype meets BioShock meets GTA! That's the BioShock I long for.

 

[Ranooth]

Sim City: Rapture Edition

Need i say more?

 

[chinangel]

Bioshock 2 was fun, but there were points that irritated the living hell out of me. Like why can't I see my gun reload? I thought the 'drop gun off screen' thing died with Goldeneye!

at any rate, Bioshock infinite looks good, and it seems to keep that same strange distopian (Is that the word?) city. Except in the sky. Srsly? The game looks GREAT.