A recent string of job postings suggests the next Bioshock game is going to have an open world. A new studio, Cloud Chamber, is looking to hire fresh talent, including a senior writer capable of delivering “character-driven stories in an open world setting”. It may seem strange, but I never imagined for a moment that Bioshock would go open world. My love for the series has evidently clouded my judgment, as I’m only just beginning to realise that a healthy sprinkling of RPG goodness is precisely what Bioshock’s plasmid-charged universe needs.
I've spent hours plundering the watery depths of Rapture’s crumbling cityscape, with nothing but Andrew Ryan’s misanthropic musings to keep me company. In another timeline, I skyhooked through the clouds of an immense floating city. Bioshock’s anarchic dystopias are an absolute joy to behold, helping to deliver some of the most impressive set pieces in gaming. But the trilogy’s on-rails approach to storytelling can sometimes hurt the overall experience.
Oftentimes the journey is a little too reminiscent of an amusement park ride, the audience spirited from one scripted spectacle to the next. You get the sense that the show’s puppeteer is directing your every move, desperately trying to keep you suspended in disbelief. Aside from the odd detour, going off the beaten track is usually out of the question. And given that Rapture and Columbia are the star attractions of their respective games, this is a problem.
0 Commentaires