Oct. 15, 2007 A tool that addresses activation issues with the PC version of Bioshock can now be downloaded. You may recall that when BioShock released, the game's SecuROM copy protection came under fire for, among other things, only allowing two simultaneous installs of the game on different PCs and problems the copy protection raised with reinstalling it. "Also, we have in the works a revoke tool which you will be able to run on your machine if you want to free up that key and move it to ... » Read More

15 Oct 2007

A Look at Far Cry 2 Creative Director Clint Hocking's Critique of BioShock

PC News from N4G | BioShock

PC - BioShock - A Look at Far Cry 2 Creative Director Clint Hocking's Critique of BioShock

Clint Hocking: "To cut straight to the heart of it, Bioshock seems to suffer from a powerful dissonance between what it is about as a game, and what it is about as a story. By throwing the narrative and ludic elements of the work into opposition, the game seems to openly mock the player for having believed in the fiction of the game at all. The leveraging of the game's narrative structure against its ludic structure all but destroys the player's ability to feel connected to either, forcing the player to either abandon the game in protest (which I almost did) or simply accept that the game cannot be enjoyed as both a game and a story, and to then finish it for the mere sake of finishing it".

Read on to find out more of what the Creative Director on Far Cry 2 had to say.
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14 Oct 2007

BioShock Activation Revoke Tool Released

PC News from N4G | BioShock

PC - BioShock - BioShock Activation Revoke Tool Released

2K Games has released the "BioShock Revoke Tool" to redeem one of your activation credits before uninstalling BioShock from your PC. The 2K Games link below lets you download the tool, read a quick FAQ to help you decide if you need the revoke tool, and download the full instructions on how to properly use the revoke tool.
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12 Oct 2007

The Evolution of BioShock

PC News | BioShock

Strange and wonderful. Those are the two words that best describe the BioShock experience. What other game has dared to throw so many bizarre oddities - killer diving suits, cannibalistic little girls, underwater utopias, gene splicing drugs - together in one package? More importantly, what other game succeeds at being this crazy and, at the same time, this believable? To fully understand and appreciate BioShock's unique achievement, though, you have to know how it started. How it ... » Read More

1 Oct 2007

BioShock before Big Daddies, Splicers and moral dilemna

PC News from N4G | BioShock

PC - BioShock - BioShock before Big Daddies, Splicers and moral dilemna

BioShock was one of the most anticipated titles of 2007, and rightfully so -- the blend of briskly paced action and emotionally engaging story redefined the FPS genre and attracted many players that had never played shooters before. Little do most casual fans know that BioShock once had nothing to do with Big Daddies, Little Sisters or even an underwater metropolis.
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29 Sep 2007

Rumor: Microsoft Payoff = No PS3 Bioshock

PC News from N4G | BioShock

PC - BioShock - Rumor: Microsoft Payoff = No PS3 Bioshock

This month's EGM reports:

"By now you've probably heard of the 360 first-person underwater adventure game BioShock. Or read about it. Or (if you're smart) finished it. But for the uninformed: Would you kindly go play it already? Thanks. Just don't expect to play it on the Playstation 3. See, my spies let slip that Microsoft handed publisher 2K a mammoth moneyhat to keep BioShock out of Sony's waters. And the extra content originally planned for the PS3 version? You just might see that on a potential Game of the Year edition for the 360."
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28 Sep 2007

Boy does not strangle sister over BioShock game

PC News from N4G | BioShock

PC - BioShock - Boy does not strangle sister over BioShock game

There is a story currently popping up all over the Internet about a Kansas teenager who supposedly strangled his little sister thanks to influences from BioShock. Aside from the fact that it's the most ridiculous story ever conceived, it has been confirmed by Destructoid's Joe Burling to be completely false. Already circulating Webs, the tale is getting somewhat out of hand and really isn't very funny anyway, due to the fact that it's so badly done.
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28 Sep 2007

Boy nearly strangles sister over Bioshock, Jack Thompson responds harshly

PC News from N4G | BioShock

PC - BioShock - Boy nearly strangles sister over Bioshock, Jack Thompson responds harshly

Videogames are often criticised for negatively influencing the behaviour of their players, and the latest report from KCTV, telling the story of a Kansas teenager who nearly strangled his little sister after she interrupted him while he was playing 2K Games' Xbox 360 masterpiece, Bioshock, isn't going to help the cause.

Violent videogame-hating attorney Jack Thompson has since released an ominous statement in which he says that "Justice will be served to the bastards that caused this crime."
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26 Sep 2007

BioShock for PS3 and Wii, says analyst

PC News | BioShock

Sept 26, 2007 BioShock could make its way to Wii, PS3, PS2 and handhelds, according to an analyst in a recent Take-Two report. In a company update, Janco Partners analyst Mike Hickey banked on Take-Two extracting more from the success of the critically acclaimed BioShock, as well as the continued anticipation of GTA IV. "We expect management could choose to raise capital now, leveraging a higher share price, investor enthusiasm over the GTA IV release, the franchise potential of BioShock and ... » Read More

25 Sep 2007

Analyst: Take-Two Turnaround Well Underway; BioShock to PS3, Wii?

PC News from N4G | BioShock

PC - BioShock - Analyst: Take-Two Turnaround Well Underway; BioShock to PS3, Wii?

Speaking of the much lauded BioShock, Janco Partners analyst Mike Hickey said that he thinks Take-Two could bring BioShock to PS3, PS2, Wii and handhelds some time during the company's 2009 fiscal year. In addition, he noted that the next game from 2K Boston/Australia could be released during FY09 as well. Another big contributor, according to Hickey, will be Mafia 2, which "likely will go platinum."

As part of the publisher's turnaround, Hickey believes Take-Two is also going to start raising additional capital in advance of the launch of Grand Theft Auto IV next year. "Additional capital could be used to insure liquidity for working capital needs, fuel potential studio acquisitions, and fund future development projects," he said.
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24 Sep 2007

Quartermann: Viva Pinata to Wii, No BioShock PS3?

PC News from N4G | BioShock

PC - BioShock - Quartermann: Viva Pinata to Wii, No BioShock PS3?

The latest issue of EGM contains some tasty Quartermann rumors. With Viva Pinata already heading to the Nintendo DS and the continued success of mini-game compilations on Wii, doesn't it make sense Viva Pinata: Party Animals should show up on Wii? Q seems to think so, but it doesn't seem like it'll be hitting day-an-date this Fall.

Also, those rumors of BioShock coming to the PlayStation 3? Scrap 'em; apparently, the incredible success of 2K Games' new IP on Xbox 360 (and PC) means Microsoft has snatched the rights to keep Rapture on their hardware. The additional content originally planned for the better-late-than-never PS3 version may show up in a Game of the Year edition or downloadable content on Xbox Live.
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22 Sep 2007

Windows Vista vs Windows XP Performance: 7 Months Later

PC News from N4G | BioShock

PC - BioShock - Windows Vista vs Windows XP Performance: 7 Months Later

It has been over seven months since Firing Squad last took a look at Windows Vista performance versus Windows XP. In that series of articles, Firing Squad found that both AMD and NVIDIA's Vista performance was lacking in comparison to Windows XP, although NVIDIA's showing in Vista was much worse: Vista performance was in some cases substantially slower than Windows XP, features were missing, and SLI was unsupported entirely. Meanwhile, AMD's biggest problem was the OpenGL portion of their Vista driver, OpenGL-based games like Quake 4 scaled poorly in performance in comparison to WinXP and Firing Squad encountered numerous visual artifacts. CrossFire support was also limited.

As you can imagine, in the span of the past seven months quite a bit has changed on the Vista driver front and Firing Squad received quite a few emails asking to revisit the topic.
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17 Sep 2007

UK Charts: MoH First, Bioshock 10th

PC News from N4G | BioShock

PC - BioShock - UK Charts: MoH First, Bioshock 10th

Stranglehold comes close second as Super Paper Mario and Heavenly Sword debut.

Some major new titles invade the top ten this week as the charts continue to hot up. A resurgent Midway will be pleased with Stranglehold's debut at number two, while Nintendo's Super Paper Mario arrives in fourth to keep the number of Nintendo-punlished titles in the top ten at a healthy four.

1) Medal of Honor: Airborne (EA)
2) John Woo Presents Stranglehold (Midway)
3) Tiger Woods PGA Tour '08 (EA)
4) Super Paper Mario (Nintendo)
5) Wii Play (Nintendo)
6) More Brain Training From Dr Kawashima (Nintendo)
7) Heavenly Sword (Sony)
8) The Sims 2: Bon Voyage (EA)
9) Dr Kawashima's Brain Training (Nintendo)
10) Bioshock (2K Games)
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17 Sep 2007

BioShock - post-mortem interview

PC News | BioShock

Sept 17, 2007 BioShock caught most everyone by surprise. Who would have guessed that a first person shooter could also work as a dark and psychologically complex morality play? Who knew a failed underwater utopia would end up everyone's favorite setting since Halo's ring? Who knew a game about gene splicing, homicidal diving suits and zombie children was destined for not only critical, but commercial success? One man probably did. Ken Levine, Creative Director and President of 2K Boston, is ... » Read More

17 Sep 2007

CliffyB on BioShock: "Fu*k bees"

PC News | BioShock

Sept 17, 2007 Better late than never - Epic's Cliff Bleszinski has reviewed (kind of) the mighty BioShock on his blog, saying some very nice things about it. He even calls it his game of the year, but that's got nothing to do with the fact that it uses Epic's technology or because he's friends with some of the staffers, he points out. Still there are some points he doesn't like, or can't get his head around. "I don't understand how this brainstorming session went down," he wrote. "Like, I get ... » Read More

11 Sep 2007

BioShock 2 in 2009?

PC News | BioShock

Sept 11, 2007 Following its extremely positive reception, BioShock is being eyed as a major new franchise by 2K Games parent Take-Two - which is already talking sequels. The publisher's recently spoke of the possibility of hitting "roughly" a new BioShock release every two years. "I would say, probably, roughly an every-two-year schedule would be optimal. And if you look historically, that has been largely the case with GTA, and I'd expect we'd apply roughly the same strategy to BioShock ... » Read More

11 Sep 2007

Bioshock ships 1.5M; Sequels being discussed

PC News from N4G | BioShock

PC - BioShock - Bioshock ships 1.5M; Sequels being discussed

"I'm particularly pleased with the tremendous market response to 2K's BioShock," said Zelnick. "It is reported we are the top-selling title at GameStop, less than a month since launch. We have already shipped more than 1.5 million units. Clearly we have a new hit franchise on our hands. And this one was developed internally and we own the IP. We're proving our ability to diversify Take-Two's product portfolio."
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10 Sep 2007

BioShock Receives "All-time Highest Ranking on 360 for 2007"

PC News from N4G | BioShock

2K Games, a publishing label of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc., announced today that BioShock secured the position of all-time top ranked Xbox 360 game* and the year's highest ranked game across all console platforms on Metacritic.com, the popular site that aggregates review scores from the leading video game publications and websites.
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10 Sep 2007

Bioshock holds firm at No.1 on the all formats Australian Chart

PC News from N4G | BioShock

PC - BioShock - Bioshock holds firm at No.1 on the all formats Australian Chart

The Xbox 360 SKU of Bioshock remains at the top of the Australian all formats chart this week, with the PC version also sitting in fifth. More after the jump.
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10 Sep 2007

UK Charts: EA shoots down BioShock

PC News from N4G | BioShock

PC - BioShock - UK Charts: EA shoots down BioShock

Medal of Honor: Airborne hits number one, Tiger in second as 2K title slips to third.

Former number one Bioshock is knocked down to third, just ahead of an impressive debut for South Peak Games' Two Worlds, which debuts at four.
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