We don't want it, 2K

[Update: 2K games has provided Destructoid the following memo, which was also posted on Steam: “Our last patch to BioShock Infinite on Steam was intended only for Windows but unexpectedly affected shared dependencies with the Linux version that made the game unplayable on some versions of Linux. We’ve since identified and fixed those conflicts and have verified those soluti??ons addressed the issue in Linux (Ubuntu 22.10). We apologize for the inconvenience to our fans on Linux and appreciate their patience ??as we worked on a fix.”]

Fifteen years later, BioShock remains one of the most recognizable and beloved series in gaming, and publisher 2K is still releasing updates to support the series. Or, more specifically, to make the games run through their own launcher, as evidenced by the patch notes from both older updates and a new one (via PC Gamer). This t?ime around they even labeled the patch as a "Quality of Life Update," when all it did w??as enable linking to 2K accounts and added the new launcher "which includes a store to purchase new content."

So they're forcing yet another game launcher on us, but what really has fans peeved is that this new update has rendered the games unplayable for players running them on Linux. At first, it seemed to just be BioShock Infinite that was affected, but now it's looking like the entire series is a bust. The Linux Gaming subreddit is full of players decrying the changes, and trying to find solutions to fix the problem. Some players ar?e expressing their wish that Steam would let them access earlier builds rather than forci?ng them to use the most recent version, and I'm kind of surprised that wasn't an option already.

Naturally, fans took to the review section on Steam to voice their discontent, where on?e user said tha?t 2K's launcher is riddled with bugs, crashes, and corrupted saves.

I have my BioShock collection on my PlayStation so I'm in the clear, but man, I am feeling the frustration on behalf of PC gamers. Here's hoping that 2K gets the message soon and decides to scrap the launcher alt?ogether, or at the very least releases a patch to fix the games for Linux users.

Recently I've been partial to arguments about why it's important to own physical media, and I have to say this si??tuation is only pushing me further into that camp. If I spent money on a game, I certainly want to be able to play it without the meddling of a company years after the game's releas?e.

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Always keeps us coming back for more

Repl??ayability is a word that gets thrown around a lot, both as a criticism ??of games and as part of their development. It's an important factor to consider �?your game has to be fun enough to play and creative enough as it goes on that players will always want to have another go, regardless of how many hours they've put into it.

This ide??a of playing a game over and over is not only a testament to how well it's designed, but can also help prolong the life, and revenue, of any particular title.

Take Twitch streaming for example -- a lot of the content is from players who are going back through their favorite games,?? which exposes viewers to that game again. That could drive players to return to a game they had put down and all but forgotten about, or even encourage them to purchase it for the first time. It's also a symptom of a devout fandom. When you really love a game, oftentimes you're willing to replay it because you want to experience that world again, and DLC just mean??s more of it.

So this word comes up all the time when we're talking about a base game, but often DLC falls out of that conversation entirely. With all these new expansions dropping like Life is Strange: True Colors' Wavelengths, Outer Wilds: Echoes of the Eye, and of course the announcement of the final Smash Ultimate fighter Sora, it got me thinking about what DLC out there is worth the replay. They de??serve some love, too!

DLC itself can vary a lot in terms of what it offers the player �?sometimes it's just a cool outfit you can equip in-game, sometimes it's a new game mode or map, and other times it's a story expansion ?that bolsters the whole experience. So for th?e sake of our argument, I think anything that has you coming back for more is fair game.

For me, mos?t of the time that means the story content. My numbe??r one DLC is easily The Last of Us: Left Behind. Sometimes I can find backstories?? a bit predi?ctable, but I thought Left Behind built on Ellie's character in a substantial way, while also ??giving us some of the most challenging and compelling gameplay of the series. Maybe I'm a bit biased as a Last of Us Part I fang??irl, but this is one of the all-time greats for me.

BioShock Infinite's Burial at Sea is another one of my personal favorites �?it draws on the main series in ??a fun way, the visuals are to die for, and there are some really show-stopping set pieces. It's a fun change of pace to play as Elizabeth, especially when you get to stealth more than you usuall??y would in a BioShock game. I honestly think Burial at Sea is a stronger story than Infinite, too, but that's a debate for another day.

Those are just the few that I've played a??nd really loved, but there are so many othe??r DLCs out there that I know are worth the price of purchase alone. I hear Minerva's Den from BioShock 2 is one of the best pie??ces of video game storytelling ever (that series really knows what it'??s doing with DLC). There's also Red Dead Redemption's Undead Nightmare, which brought the game new life with a horror-themed zombie mode. You can never go wrong with zombies, and having them set in the wild west? Sign me up. I've been meaning to pick up the Breath of the Wild Champions' Ballad, because I hear it adds a lot of challenge to the gameplay.

So we wanna know, which of your f??avorite DLCs get you coming back time and time again? What is it about it that you like?? Which games don't have DLC that would make you give it another try if they did?

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Seems promising

Backward compatibility on Xbox One often turns out to be the best way to experience 360 titles. Any form of screen tearing is removed and framerates tend to be more consistent throughout. There are definitely some notable exceptions to that (Halo: Reach required a patch before running correctly), but the improved playability in most titles ?i??s a nice bonus for anyone with older discs laying around.

Since the BioShock trilogy was made available through backward compatibility this week,?? naturally tests were going to be run to see how much better the performan??ce would be over the original hardware.

I honestly forgot that BioShock on 360 had the ability to uncap the framerate, but I playe?d the game back in 2010 and haven't touched a console version of the series since. I don't remember being too irritated with the 30 FPS lock, but it looks like anyone playing this on Xbox One should expect to see a fairly consistent experience with the uncapped option.

BioShock 2 doesn't fare nearly as well in Digital Foundry's testing, but locking the framerate to 30 isn't the worst thing in the world. For that matter, at least the art direction isn't altered. The sound quality is also a lot higher th??an in the remastered collection, not to mention you can still experience the multiplayer (though do you really want to?).

While BioShock Infinite wasn't tested, I think it is safe to assume t?hat the game is a lot more consistent on Xbox One than it ever was on 360. Even if that version looks dramatically worse than the remaster, not having to double dip just to replay a game on newer hardware ??is a huge boon. I'm fine with lesser quality if the experience is smooth.

BioShock 1/2 Xbox One Back-Compat: 60fps Gameplay? [YouTube]

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Forget the stupid collection

I'm in love with how developers and Microsoft have been pushing backward compatibility on the Xbox One. 2K may have released an updated version of BioShock, but you can now just play the original 360 release on your shiny new box. That is a surprisingly user-friendly move for a company to make, ev??en if mega fans probably already bought the remastered collection.

As of today, BioShock, BioShock 2, and BioShock Infinite are playable on Xbox One via your original 360 discs (or digital purchases). I'm unsure if the DLC is included, though other games with DLC did contain them. I'm sure the games also run a little better on Xbox One, so it might negate getting the "collection" unless you want a true 1080p presentation. Honestly, the games don't look that much better in the remastered format, though BioShock Infinite is n?ice looking on PC (and subsequently on PS4 and Xbox O??ne).

As Major Nelson notes, these titles now bring the Xbox One backward compatible catalog up to 300 games. While I can't find a 100% definitive number of games, it looks like the 360 contained around 1,173 titles, so we're about 30% of the way to a full library. I doubt we'll see every game (Guitar Hero and DJ Hero are basically imp??ossible to emulate), but having a majority of ?the library available would go a long way towards making the Xbox One a valuable purchase.

At least I wo??n't have to rebuy any older games to play them again, unlike some other system (*??cough* PS4 *cough*).

Major Nelson [Twitter]

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Especially if you own the games on Steam already

2K has clarified the upgrade process for BioShock: The Collection on PC ahead of next week's launch. In ??short, if you already own the games on Steam, this is what ??you can expect to get for free:

• BioShock ➜ BioShock remastered including the unlockable video series, Director's Commentary: Imagining BioShock
• BioShock 2 ➜ BioShock 2 remastered
• BioShock 2: Minerva's Den ➜ BioShock 2: Minerva's Den remastered

As a quick reminder, BioShock Infinite is present in The Collection, but that game was deemed new enough to not warrant its own remastered re-release on PC, so it isn't a part of this upgrade process.

For most players, scoring the enhanced versions of BioShock, BioShock 2, and Minerva's Den won't require any extra effort. If you own any of these titles through Steam, you'll see new "remastered" versions of them listed separately in your li??brary beginning September 15, 2016 at 3:00pm Pacific. After that point, you're free to install the upgraded games or continue playing the originals.

Folks who own BioShock outside of Steam, however, will need to put in a little more work to claim their free remaster. Essentially, you're just verifying that you did, at one point or another, pay for the game. If you own a physical copy without a CD key, you can send your Steam profile and proof of purchase in a support ticket to 2K. For non-Steam copies of BioShock 2, you'll need to find the Games for Windows Live key that came with your physical or digital purchase, and then redeem that on Steam.

See? Not too bad at al?l. 2K also shared the system specs for the remasters today.

Minimum Specs:

• OS: Windows 7 Service Pack 1 64-bit. Platform Update for Windows 7 SP1 and Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1
• Processor: Intel E6750 Core 2 Duo 2.66 GHz / AMD Athlon X2 2.7 GHZ
• Memory: 4 GB
• Hard Drive: BioShock 25GB; BioShock 2 25GB; BioShock Infinite 20GB; Total for all three games 70GB
• Video Card: DirectX11 Compatible, AMD Radeon HD 7770 / NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560
• Sound Card: DirectX Compatible Sound Device
• Other Requirements: Software installations required including DirectX and Microsoft Visual C++ 2010 & 2012 Redistributable Package.

Recommended Specs:

• OS: Windows 7 Service Pack 1 64-bit. Platform Update for Windows 7 SP1 and Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1
• Processor: 3GHz Quad-Core
• Memory: 8 GB
• Hard Drive: BioShock 25GB; BioShock 2 25GB; BioShock Infinite 30GB; Total for all three games 80GB
• Video Card: 2GB ATI Radeon HD 7970, 2GB NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770 or better
• Sound Card: DirectX Compatible Sound Device

BioShock: The Collection PC Upgrades [Steam]

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OMG I HOPE SO

A remaster of the BioShock trilogy may be coming to current-gen consoles as early as this Nove??mber.

It's all rumours and conjecture at present -- and 2K is saying nothing -- but South African retailer Raru shared details over the weekend... only to pull the page back dow??n?? again a little while later.

Google is not the friend of accidental leaks, however -- you can still see it listed here in Google Cache. A release date had been pencilled in for November 27, 2015. 

I AM EXCITED. You?

BioShock Collection coming to PS4 &; Xbox One in Novem?ber, retail leak says [VideoGamer]

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Celebrate good times

It's been a long time coming, but Minerva's Den for BioShock 2 is worth the wait. The beloved DLC is now yours if you already owned the core game on PC -- otherwise, it's on sale for $4.99. What's more, Steam Achievements, Big Picture Mode, and full gamepad support are in. And Games for? Windows Live and the SecuROM DRM are out!

"If you have already purchased BioShock 2 through a different digital partner, we've got you covered," reads a post by publisher 2K Games. "Simply take the same game activation key you already own and 'activate' it within Steam. Doing this will grant you access to BioShock 2, all of its multiplayer and Protector Trials DLC, as well as Minerva's Den."

Multiplayer now uses Steamworks and is said to be tweaked. Matchmaking allows players to search for "any game" and character leveling is "quicker and easier." Hey, some of us actually liked the multiplayer for what it was. Now that this version of BioShock 2 is where it needs to be, if you're looking to buy, hold off momentarily -- there's a 2K Games sale on Steam thi?s weekend.

BioShock 2 Updated [Steam]

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Starting a two man indie team

Jordan Thomas, creative director at 2K Marin, has left his post at the company to establish his own two person indie. During his tenure at 2K, Thomas worked on titles such as BioShock, BioShock 2, and The Bureau: XCOM Declassified, before being pulled to assist with the completion of BioShock: Infinite.

Interestingly enough, it was his time working on BioShock: Infinite that helped cement his decision to leave saying, "while BioShock spoke to me, it'll never be for me what it is for Ken [Levine]. I've expanded that legacy here and there, but I could never have created it from scratch. I need to build something that is, to me, what BioShock is to Ken. No matter h?ow long it takes, I have to start now."

For now, Thomas and his associate plan to work on games that speak to the gameplay tenets and principles that speak most to them, drawing inspiration from games such as Thief and BioShock. Just don't go expecting any big triple A product. Thomas intends to keep initial projects "as lean as possible for now, in the hopes that we're not writing checks our asses can't cash. Indie ambition is its greatest strength?? and its greatest weakness. And if there's interes?t, if it finds an audience, we might expand the vision and explore further dimensions of the same theme with more content producers." 

It'll definitely be quite some time before we see anything out of the two person team, so for now, props to Thomas for such a ballsy move. Leaving a sure enough thin??g to pursue your creative passion is scary, so here's to hoping it all pans out for them.

Bioshock 2 creative director leaves Take-Two [Gamesindustry International]

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Somewhere under the sea, a boy is drinking his pee

BioShock Infinite is still a few months off, so 2K Games has decided to make a quick buck in the interim with BioShock: Ultimate Rapture Edition. Slated for January 14, the package bundles both BioShock and BioShock 2, along with downloadable content. 

Here's the extra stuff, in 2K's own words:

• Museum of Orphaned Concepts: Take a tour of a never-before-seen BioShock museum and view early concept art, character models and more set within the halls of Rapture.
• Plasmids Pack: Includes four additional Plasmids and Gene Tonics -- Sonic Boom, EVE Saver, Vending Expert and Machine Buster -- for use in BioShock.
• Challenge Rooms Pack: Previously exclusive to PS3™ and now available for Xbox 360 for the first time, the pack tests the player’s mettle by requiring them to utilize the skills learned while traversing the halls of Rapture to survive three separate puzzle rooms in BioShock.
• Sinclair Solutions Tester: Contains a number of customization features that allow players to further their character’s development in BioShock 2 multiplayer modes and provides a deeper multiplayer experience.
• Rapture Metro: Includes six additional multiplayer maps, an additional multiplayer gameplay mode and a rank increase to level 50 for BioShock 2 multiplayer.
• The Protector Trials: Features frantic combat and fast-paced action designed to push players’ mastery of weapons and Plasmids in a BioShock 2 single-player experience spread across six maps.
• Minerva’s Den: A substantial narrative experience that puts players in the role Subject Sigma and introduces new characters, locations and mystery to the world of Rapture in BioShock 2. Set in a new environment, Rapture Central Computing, Minerva’s Den adds a gripping new storyline to extend the BioShock 2 experience.
• Also included, is an exclusive collectable sticker pack from BioShock Infinite’s world of Columbia to get gamers ready for the next chapter in the BioShock universe.

Ultimate Rapture will cost $29.99 which, when you look at all the stuff it packs, really ain't a bad deal at all. If you've been holding out since 2007, your patience will have bee??n suitably rewarded. Then again, if you real??ly have been holding out since 2007, you're kind of weird. 

The bundle will be available for both PS3 and Xbox 3?60.

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