Have you heard the one about
BioShock 2? You know: "How many devs does it take to screw up a
BioShock sequel?" We haven't come up with the punch line yet, but 2K Games seems to be increasing the odds of
something going wrong for
BioShock 2 by adding a fourth studio to the
company crowd of developers. Lyon-based Arkane Studios joins lead developer 2K Marin (in California), its collaborator 2K Australia (we repeat: Australia), and
multiplayer specialist Digital Extremes (headquartered in Ontario) in a cast that's starting to look like a "We Are the World" tribute to the late Mr. Jackson. We know, we know:
outsourcing and globalization are just signs of business as usual these days, but when you've got this many cooks in the kitchen, development could easily flip a wrong page to
the recipe for disaster.
"Arkane is assisting in the creation of levels that embody the aesthetic and gameplay ideals that make
BioShock such a unique and exciting experience," 2K Marin's Alyssa Finley explained, according to
Develop. Oh, well,
that's a relief. And here we were worried the plan was to recycle
unused assets from the first game.
{ Jul 10th 2009 at 11:15AM } 
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Neuromancer @ Jul 10th 2009 11:17AM
This whole thing is getting more and more bizarre by the day.
copa @ Jul 10th 2009 11:26AM
I absolutely loved Bioshock, and have zero interest in this game.
Latin_Trident @ Jul 10th 2009 12:10PM
I am still interested in the game but I don't think I will be pre-ordering it. This game will most likely fall under the "I'll wait for my friends, joystiq, and gamespot to review it." category and if I like what I hear, I'll pull out my wallet...or borrow it from a friend.
Mazrael @ Jul 10th 2009 12:42PM
Couldn't they just drop the multiplayer..? I personally won't be bothering with it.. that money spent on MP could go into making a more complete campaign
B3astofthe3ast @ Jul 10th 2009 11:19AM
I've found that if its not the original developer that game comes out much worse...*coughguitarhero3-5,CoD3,wawcough*.
Sly @ Jul 10th 2009 3:21PM
WaW was actually pretty good. easily an 8/10. nowhere near COD4, but still, it's not as bad as you make it out to be. COD3 though? eww.
Silencio @ Jul 13th 2009 6:48PM
CoD3 was better than WaW. They just took the goods from Call 4 and dropped the good ideas that they had in Call 3. I miss being able to throw a 'nade in the hatch of a tank.
Wiizer (Michael Pachter MUST DIE.. Professionally) @ Jul 10th 2009 11:19AM
The more, the merrier?
Frivolous @ Jul 10th 2009 11:19AM
I don't like the idea that they haven't even gotten to making levels yet...
Lucky @ Jul 10th 2009 11:22AM
Between all these studios and the 7-inch vinyls they're sending out to the fans for free, I have to wonder how bloody much money they expect to make with this game.
dark_inchworm (on Steam!) dark inchworm (on XBL!) @ Jul 10th 2009 11:27AM
7-inch vinyl records (you may be shot if you say "vinyls" in the wrong crowd)? Where?
Lucky @ Jul 10th 2009 11:57AM
http://forums.2kgames.com/forums/showthread.php?t=39974
Essentially, some people have received nice swag in return of sending a letter to an address in the game's promo site http://www.somethinginthesea.com
I apologize to any audiophiles out there.
Kdiggy @ Jul 10th 2009 11:28AM
I loved the first one... but with all of the great games coming out in the crowed end of year release schedule, I might hold off on this. Anyone else feel the same?
343 Guilty Fart @ Jul 10th 2009 1:50PM
Yeah. I loved the first game but I feel oddly unexcited for the sequel.
Paul @ Jul 10th 2009 1:55PM
I bought into the hype of the first one and hated it...fighting the same two enemies over and over... I stopped after beating that guy with the golf club.
I'm not interested in this one at all. I wish they would kindly abandon this game
Jerk Face @ Jul 10th 2009 11:28AM
This... this is getting a little concerning.
Ben @ Jul 10th 2009 11:29AM
Well... At least one of the original developers' names is there (2K Australia)... Right..?
I just hope that the addition of Arkane Studios is only a new thing to us. That is, I hope they've been designing the levels since the wee hours of development instead of... Well, the 10th of July, 2009.
Neuromancer @ Jul 10th 2009 11:30AM
Anyone remember when games used to be made by like, 10 different people? Now they're made by 10 different companies.
Viney @ Jul 10th 2009 11:43AM
Yes I remember, but what are you getting at? Current gen games should still be made by 10 man teams? I'd be interested to see how long a 10 man team would take to make a MGS4.
DeMerch @ Jul 10th 2009 11:51AM
I don't think he was getting at anything. He was just commenting on the fact that back in the day games used to be made by a fraction of the people that it takes to make a game now.
SilverArrows @ Jul 10th 2009 2:03PM
Welcome to the age of over-reaction. Where every small news story gets a "I'm so concerned about this" now.
If Bioshock 2 sucks, its not because it had 4 different studios attached to it, it'll probably be because there didn't need to be a Bioshock 2.
Adding more studios doesn't mean they will be "designing" things ... they mostly were added to finish off coding and content work. This is common practice in any (software) development cycle, and is very common in gaming. Its All Hands on Deck time, time to get the game out.
Its not like there is designing happening this late anyways, the game "should" be in the final push to release.
HazyCloud @ Jul 10th 2009 11:43AM
At this rate, the next dev to work on BioShock will be Treyarch.
Bradwart @ Jul 10th 2009 11:49AM
Nash. Rockstar will be next. And there will be prostitutes and car chase scenes!
Lucky @ Jul 10th 2009 11:58AM
GTA: Rapture. ...I think I'd buy it.
Paul @ Jul 10th 2009 1:58PM
people need to lay of treyarch. ok so they may not have the talent of all of the 10-year vets at IW but for christsakes you guys act like treyarch is a bad studio. Cod3 and WaW are not bad games at all. compared to a lot of the other ww2 shooters they are actually towards the top of the heap.
5 years from now they're gonna be this amazing studio and everyone is gonna be all over their dicks
Darthweder @ Jul 10th 2009 3:00PM
@Paul
And maybe they should stand up for themselves and demand they be taken out from beneath Infinity Ward's shadow. Maybe then people wouldn't call their games bad, because when compared to Infinity Ward's, they are.
McWilly @ Jul 10th 2009 5:07PM
No, they're not.
Silencio @ Jul 13th 2009 6:50PM
Yes, they are.
Bradwart @ Jul 10th 2009 11:44AM
The game will ship with the first level. The other 9 levels will be DLC for a convenient 400 points...each. And people will still buy it!
DeMerch @ Jul 10th 2009 11:46AM
So having 4+ studios working on a game guarantees that the game will suck? How much precedent is there for that assumption?
Dakar @ Jul 10th 2009 12:01PM
Sounds like they brought more people in in a push to hit deadline (This thing is due out in what, two months?).
Not a very encouraging sign. Even if its a very good game conceptually, this sort of hustle will all but guarantee an unpolished and untested (read: probably buggy) experience.
I forsee an early patch for one.
hplcman @ Jul 10th 2009 12:03PM
As long as each studio has VERY well defined tasks it shouldn't be too much of a problem. I'm more concerned about the impression this sends. It's like they're trying to save the game 'cause they know it sucks.
diangelogrey @ Jul 10th 2009 12:03PM
Who cares!! As long as the game is awesome none of this matters!
KingOfHearts @ Jul 10th 2009 12:30PM
This could be a hot mess.. If they dont play their cards right..
Or, it could be one of the best games of this year..\
I mean, two heads are better than one. More people, more ideas.. its just how they put it together that decides whether it's good or not...
3dpenguin @ Jul 10th 2009 12:51PM
There already is a punchline thanks to Tootsie Roll Candy Company
"How many devs does it take to screw up a BioShock 2?"
"The world may never know..."
Noxat @ Jul 10th 2009 1:14PM
This is starting to feel like a 'straight to DVD' sequel. At least it hasn't dropped to the lowly realms of 'made for TV' sequel yet.
Doctor_Fu_Manchu @ Jul 10th 2009 1:17PM
Hopefully this will give Arkane Studios the money to finish The Crossing.
Jack Tretton @ Jul 10th 2009 1:41PM
"'Arkane is assisting in the creation of levels that embody the aesthetic and gameplay ideals that make BioShock such a unique and exciting experience,' 2K Marin's Alyssa Finley explained..."
How about knocking on the door of the developer who made the first game "such a unique and exciting experience"? That would be 2K Boston, right?
ChomskyKnows @ Jul 10th 2009 2:15PM
Somebody better be holding the reigns because this sounds more and more like a clusterfuck all the time. Seems like the developer(s) and/or publisher couldn't even figure out what the game itself was called (at any rate - they clearly didn't seem to be able to control the message). No Ken Levine, 4-thousand different developers, farmed-out tacked on multiplayer. I don't want to cart around a little sister for half the game -- that was my least favorite level from the first one.
This sounds like a bizarre "by committee" thing instead of a developer's labor of love.
Nevertheless, the first one is still probably my favorite game, so I will buy the second one no matter what. But, I'm worried. I want this thing to be a 9.5 or better.
ChomskyKnows @ Jul 10th 2009 2:19PM
i meant the "reins"...but then again...
Joe @ Jul 10th 2009 2:54PM
The sad truth is that the game is practically guaranteed to make money since it will just ride on the success of the first game. They know if just like we know it.
It's a shame but at the end of the day it's about the money, not the quality.
Course if they more foresight they'd see higher quality now means more money in future sequels.
Joe @ Jul 10th 2009 2:58PM
Well that's assuming that the quality is in fact suffers from having another studio work on it. But who knows maybe they are all on top of things.
kentuckyfried @ Jul 10th 2009 4:55PM
When you have them many people remotely working on a project, the result is oftentimes a complete goatfvck. Geography still makes things less efficient.
Hopefully, they can pull it together, but I'm not holding my breath. The effort sounds difficult and traditionally, sequels (outside of stuff in the COD reality-distortion field) don't usually do so well.
Clinton @ Jul 10th 2009 8:50PM
I'm so uninterested in BioShock 2, they could add 5 more devs to the mix before I could be bothered to raise an eyebrow.
I can't blame anyone for being skeptical though. It reflects poorly on 2K Marin when it looks like they need all this extra help.