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Oblivion, Bioshock bundle doesn't feature Game of the Year edition

by David Hinkle { Jun 18th 2009 at 6:58PM }

Well, the Bioshock and Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion bundle just got a lot less interesting. We put in word to Bethesda's Pete Hines asking which version of Oblivion would be included in the bundle, and he got back to us with this most sad news: It's the original game. That means it's not the Game of the Year edition including Shivering Isles, the lengthy expansion featuring the hilarious Daedric Prince of Madness, Sheogorath.

Borderlands planning on October release

by Alexander Sliwinski { Jun 8th 2009 at 1:30PM }

Gearbox has confirmed its casual E3 mention to Joystiq that it plans to release Borderlands this October. A company representative told us today that it's looking forward to breaking new ground this fall when the "role-playing shooter with strong co-op and split-screen gameplay" is released. The rep also confirmed that the post-apocalyptic action game will launch simultaneously on Xbox 360, PS3 and PC.

Borderlands had been banging around for a while, then disappeared for an awkward period of time before ultimately reemerging – think: butterfly – with a new art style, which freshened up the title and removed it from "Fallout clone" territory. We'll have our E3 impression of the title up soon.

Gallery: Borderlands

Mafia II trailer is all snow covered streets, bullet ridden corpses

by David Hinkle { Jun 1st 2009 at 11:59PM }

Wiseguys finish first, and it's usually thanks to gallons of unwillingly donated blood and plenty of expended bullets, as this Mafia II trailer demonstrates. The family always comes first (unless you're Fredo, of course), and never lets anyone get in its way. If they try, well, you need only reference the above trailer to see how such problems are solved.

Essential reading: Joystiq impressions: Mafia II

BioShock 2: Simultaneous release on Xbox 360, PS3 & PC [update]

by David Hinkle { May 29th 2009 at 11:13AM }

We've been waiting on platform confirmation for 2K's upcoming BioShock 2 for some time now, and now we finally know which systems the title will release for. VG247 confirmed with 2K that the game will release "on PS3, 360 and PC on 30th October, just for the record." It should be noted that October 30 is the European release date for the game, and that it's already been confirmed for a November 3 release in North America.

With the game releasing on multiple platforms on day one, it means that PS3 enthusiasts won't miss out on the fun due to timed exclusivity this go round.

Update: We contacted 2K to clarify the statements that VG247 received, and it confirmed that a simultaneous Xbox 360, PS3 and PC release would occur in North America as well. Huzzah!

BioShock 2's Big Daddy revealed on GamePro cover

by Griffin McElroy { May 21st 2009 at 5:30PM }

GamePro is promising that its upcoming July issue will blow the doors off of the sequel to 2K's undersea shooter, BioShock. Of course, by the time it hits newsstands, you'll probably be full to the gills with all the the BioShock 2 details you can handle -- we're sure to hear a ton about the game during E3.

Fortunately, GamePro recently offered a delicious morsel to its potential readers, uploading the Big Daddy-infused cover of the upcoming issue to the mag's online edition. You can check out the full cover -- and the design for BioShock 2's diving suit-wearing protagonist -- after the break. As a point of reference, here's the original Big Daddy. And here's a poster for the hilarious, heartfelt Adam Sandler comedy Big Daddy. And here's professional wrestler Big Daddy V! Wait, we forgot what we were doing ...

[Thanks, Storm Eagle!]

Continued →

GDC09: 2K as confused about 'Sea of Dreams' as we are

by Richard Mitchell { Mar 24th 2009 at 4:26PM }

This is getting ridiculous. After confirming that the Sea of Dreams subtitle had been dropped from BioShock 2 and then confirming that it hadn't been dropped, it seems like 2K is taking too many of its own plasmids. Following a serious back and forth regarding the game's name at GDC, 2K eventually settled on "no comment." The company says that there should be an official answer by the end of the week.

Kind-hearted folk that we are, we've decided to help out 2K marketing by putting the question to a key demographic: Joystiq readers!

BioShock 2 not waiving Sea of Dreams subtitle

by Richard Mitchell { Mar 23rd 2009 at 8:44PM }

It looks like someone at 2K missed the memo. After confirming last week to Joystiq that BioShock 2 had dropped its Sea of Dreams subtitle, 2K has now unconfirmed the news to Eurogamer. So, to reiterate, the full title is, in fact, BioShock 2: Sea of Dreams. It's a shame because we were really hoping to pitch a new subtitle. Alas, it looks like BioShock 2: Big Daddy Day Care just wasn't meant to be.

Joystiq will be spending some quality time with the game in the very near future. Stay tuned.

We really want this new BioShock art book

by Justin McElroy { Mar 18th 2009 at 8:30AM }

We know how it is. You're standing at your local department store/Cracker Barrel gift shop/hotel mini-bar and you just can't find the perfect gift for that special video game blog in your life. Hey, we've all been there. This year, we're going to make it easy on you: You should get us ... err, rather, your favorite video game blog, whichever that may be, this new BioShock art book.

Breaking the Mold: Developer's Edition is 174 pages, $24.99, is now available for pre-order and will make us love, prize and cherish you above all other readers from now until the end times. Did we mention there's free shipping?

2K exec criticizes casual titles on Wii

by David Hinkle { Jan 14th 2009 at 2:41PM }

2K Games Global President Christoph Hartmann doesn't see 2009 as a great year for casual publishers. He sees the console flooded in a flurry of casual games, what he dubs "crappy titles." He thinks that for every ten casual titles produced, publishers expect two to be hits, financing the other eight. The problem is that all of those titles flood the market, making it tougher for casual games to prosper and only servies to confuse consumers.

He points to his own 2K-published Carnival Games as an example. "Had we released it last week, it would have been much tougher," he says. "There's far too much stuff in the Wii market [now] and it's hard to shine."

Regardless of a game's focus, we've always been big advocates of fun. If a game is only a collection of minigames, it's fine so long as they're fun to play. We think even pushing for that ten can mean that more than two are engaging and not "crappy," as he puts it. What do you all think? Too many casual games out there?

[Via Joystiq]

BioShock franchise has 'potential' for five sequels

by Dustin Burg { Jan 7th 2009 at 3:00PM }

Talking with MCV, 2K Games global prez Christoph Hartmann admits that the BioShock franchise could churn out five total sequels in its life, but promises that 2K won't just "cash in" on the title.

Talking about the potential for future sequels, Hartmann says that "if we spin it the right way and get the right twist of innovation, we can make six parts of it, as Star Wars did." Something that Star Wars did do, but video games are a bit different and as much as Hartmann wants to compare BioShock to Star Wars, it's clear to us that BioShock is its own beast. Just be careful 2K. Just be careful.

[Via Joystiq]

Joystiq hands-on: BioShock PS3 'Worlds of Hurt' DLC

by Randy Nelson { Nov 10th 2008 at 7:59PM }

click to enlarge

Just didn't find BioShock PS3's Survivor difficulty, well, masochistic enough? Then you'll want to give the game's DLC – coming to PSN on Nov. 20 – a spin, if only for the utterly insane "Worlds of Hurt" challenge room. We had a chance to brave it ourselves and found that we needed every ounce of courage and knowledge of Rapture's workings to make it through even a bit.

The scenario has you battling through several rooms of increasing difficulty with the ultimate goal of freeing a Little Sister. It starts off with a single Splicer but soon tests every strategy-forming inch of your grey matter.

Gallery: BioShock Challenge Rooms (PS3, 11-10-2008)

Continued →

Get your first glimpse of MLB Superstars

by David Hinkle { Nov 4th 2008 at 9:04PM }

2K Sports just dished out a new trailer for their upcoming game, MLB Superstars, and it's pretty much like the other updates we've had on the game. Instead of looking at ridiculous screens, you get to look at ridiculous screens in motion. This trailer focuses on the 'Whack a Wall' minigame.

What do you all think? Still just a bunch of minigames thrown together, or do you see something you like here?

Gallery: MLB Superstars

[Via press release]

Upcoming BioShock patch will fix graphical issues

by Alan Tsang { Oct 15th 2008 at 4:00PM }

Some of you who've played the BioShock demo may have noticed a number of minor graphical differences between the PS3 and 360 versions. A 2K community manager by the name of 2K Elizabeth made a post on their forums about an upcoming patch that will fix some of those problems, specifically:

Fix for an issue where large blocky pixels would show up whenever viewing the Bouncer and Elite Bouncer variants of the Big Daddy.
Fix for an issue where white/discolored bars would show up at the right and bottom sides of the screen during the plane crash / water scene at the beginning of the game.

There are other problems fixed, but the full patch list will be unveiled at a later time. The patch itself will be released some time after the game's launch, but no specific date has been announced.

[Via VG247]

MLB Stickball hits XBLA this week

by Richard Mitchell { Oct 6th 2008 at 12:35PM }

Well this one came right out of left field. After two weeks of big name games hitting Xbox Live Arcade, we are greeted this Wednesday with MLB Stickball from 2K Sports. We know next to nothing about the title, though a pair of screenshots reveal what looks like stickball featuring super-deformed versions of familiar players from Major League Baseball. Gamescore Blog also notes that players can unlock baseball cards and earn extra points for hitting certain objects. So, breaking a window will earn points then? Count us in.

MLB Stickball will be available this Wednesday for 800 Microsoft Points.

Gallery: MLB Stickball (XBLA)

MLB Superstars pitches us some new screens

by David Hinkle { Sep 29th 2008 at 9:01PM }

Click image for new screens

If you're asking yourself why we're continuing to cover this game, know that it's sort of turned into a sick obsession for us. Taking widely recognized baseball players and making their likenesses compete in minigames that are anything but their sport of choice is like taking a gardener and asking him to build a rocket and land on the moon. It's just plain silly.

But, then there are small, tiny rays of hope that manage to break through the thick protection of cash-in that is the outer crust of MLB Superstars. That ray of hope? The Philly Phanatic. It can't be all* bad now, can it?