2K Games has announced that it has signed a partnership with London, Ontario’s Digital Extremes to develop a multiplayer experience for BioShock 2. Under this partnership, Digital Extremes will be working with the creative team at 2K Marin to produce a new and substantial online element intended to enhance the lore and fiction of the BioShock series.
“The fans asked for a multiplayer experience and we answered,” said Christoph Hartmann, president of 2K. “With Digital Extremes delivering a multiplayer experience for BioShock 2 that features all of the things that make BioShock unique, we’re holding ourselves to a high standard so that we can deliver the depth and variety that fans of the BioShock universe demand.”
The multiplayer in BioShock 2 is said to be a prequel experience, one that will expand upon the origins of the BioShock fiction. Set during the fall of Rapture, players assume the role of a Plasmid test subject for Sinclair Solutions, a premiere provider of Plasmids and Tonics in the underwater metropolis.
Features will include:
- Evolution of the genetically enhanced shooter – Earn experience points during gameplay to earn access to new Weapons, Plasmids and Tonics that can be used to create hundreds of different combinations, allowing players to develop a unique character that caters to their playing style.
- Extending the Rapture fiction – Players will step into the shoes of Rapture citizens and learn more about the fall of Rapture as they progress through the experience.
- See Rapture before the fall – Experience Rapture before it was reclaimed by the ocean and engage in combat over iconic environments in locations such as Kashmir Restaurant and Mercury Suites, all of which have been reworked from the ground up to deliver a fast-paced multiplayer experience.
Digital Extremes brings more than 10 years of first person shooter experience including development of award-winning entries in the Unreal and Unreal Tournament franchise.
Although I feel that a multiplayer component is an unecessary addition to the BioShock franchise, I am rather excited about the partnership between 2K Marin and Digital Extremes. Their work on the early years of the Unreal Tournament franchise is a shining example of their ability to deliver a fun, fast-paced multiplayer experience. And as a note to Digital Extremes: I would not object to the inclusion of the ASMD Shock Rifle.
MON-MON-MON-MONSTER KILL!
Richard Mitchell is a video game addict living in Toronto. He has been gaming for more than two decades, and despite multiple interventions, continues to game today. He has an Xbox 360, a PS3, a Wii, a Nintendo DS, a gaming PC, and a life, and does his best to juggle them all.