Bioshock and The Darkness
The coolest thing about being a freelance writer for Xbox.com is dropping my favorite phrase of the week: "I work for Xbox.com!!!" I love seeing the reactions of the PR rep's faces.
This time my favorite four words scored me a closed-door preview of 2K Games's new thriller/shooter Bioshock. I forced my way into the packed mini-theater when they tried to shut the door on me. I wanted to see this game. Made by Nate Wells and the team behind System Shock 2, which he quickly claimed to be the scariest game ever, Bioshock 2 takes place in one creepy place.
Bioshock is set in the underwater city of Rapture. Hardly Atlantis, the city was formed by a paranoid Howard Hughes-esque billionaire who populated the city with the world's brightest minds when he feared a nuclear holocaust … in the 1940s.
The eerie underwater darkness juxtaposes perfectly with the art deco design of Rapture, which is complete with dress shops, "Gents" restrooms and record store that sell … records! Remember those circular vinyl things from the pre-CD era?
In Rapture, people began genetically engineering themselves to keep from dying. The demo opened up by watching a duo consisting of a creepy girl, called Little Sister, and an underwater diver harvest genetic material out of a corpse. Finding and utilizing different genes, called plasmids, create Bioshock's most unique aspect.
"It's good to see plasmids as collectable cards," Wells said. "How you use them affects how you play the game." Some genes can be used to enhance your stats or weapon's ability. Other times, Wells showed, the plasmids can be used for even cooler things.
In one scene, Wells tossed a plasmid onto an enemy to trick Rapture's security system into seeing the mutant as an enemy. The flying turrets, which were makeshift chairs with boat motors, instantly attacked.
I didn't want to leave, but I reluctantly squeezed my way out of the Bioshock theater. The 20-minute demo from Wells was one of the most memorable things I saw at E3.
2K's other shooter, The Darkness, was equally as cool. It qualifies as a first-person shooter, but shooting is hardly the best thing about the game. Instead, when in dark places, you're able to summon demons and grow them from your body.
These demons take many forms, such as snake-like demons that sneak through air vents and flank the cops. Though always connected to the main character, they are completely controllable when going through the vents.
"The darker it is, the more power your demons have," said developer Jens Matthies. As soon as the lights go down, demons instantly grow from the ground. Some look like Zool, the demonic dog from Ghostbusters … only these puppies have hacksaws on their backs.
Matthies showed a demo where you're trapped in a building by the police. The police chief yells out, "Come out with your hands up and nobody will get hurt … " So begins the carnage. As soon as the law drove through the building, the demons trounced the officers and bit through them like I bit through the comp sandwiches in the 2K lobby bar.
And I ate those pretty freaking fast.
Article by Patrick F. Jones
