Friday 13 August 2010

Skyoshock

Well, a guy can dream - and aren't dreams what made Rapture real (not really) in the first place?

It appears my borderline lunatic ravings about Guillermo del Toro potentially being involved in Irrational Games' next effort were all for naught; I was just tilting at windmills anyway. Del Toro isn't making a game with the creators of Bioshock after all. What he's working on remains to be seen. The ultra-secretive project the talented folks at Irrational have been keeping busy with since 2007, on the other hand - Icarus, as it's been known till now... that, there's been some news on.

To say there's been some news, in fact, is perhaps to understate the case. As of yesterday, we know perfectly well what Irrational Games are making. Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, I give you... Skyoshock.


Skyoshock, aka Bioshock Infinite.

What?

Quite frankly, this announcement absolutely baffles me. Irrational have gone on the record repeatedly since Bioshock's release to say they were working on something worlds apart, and having sister studio 2K Marin develop the disappointing sequel to the original game somewhat cemented the notion that Irrational would either be creating new IP or revisiting a classic property. But no. They're making Bioshock... in the sky... with (steampunk) diamonds. Transposing the Randian philosophy and retrograde aesthetic of that modern classic to a floating wartime flotilla.

Rapture, meet Columbia.

Well, if anyone can pull it off, I believe Ken Levine can. But I'd been hoping, I confess, for something rather more daring than what the internet has already taken to calling Skyoshock.

One way or another, we won't know for sure what Bioshock Infinite truly is until closer to its projected release in 2012. Perhaps between now and then Irrational can convince their marketing gurus that slapping the Bioshock brand (such as it is) on the box is only going to lead to unrealistic expectations and unnecessary confusion. Perhaps two years is long enough that doing so will prove more harmful than helpful. Please, 2K Games: give this world room to breathe.

A guy can dream, right?

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