Alyssa Finley is executive producer at 2K Marin working on the mighty BioShock 2. It's being tipped to be one of the biggest games of 2009. Here she explains why.
Has the reception for the first BioShock made your life difficult in coming up with a worthy sequel?
Alyssa Finley: We're completely blown away by the response to the first BioShock -- but honestly, even though it's a challenge to live up to, I don't think we'd want it any other way.
How has the story progressed in BioShock 2 and how has Rapture changed?
Finley: Jack left a bit of a power vacuum behind when he left Rapture -- different people, with different ideologies stepped in to fill in where Ryan and Fontaine left off. In the last 10 years, the normal business of Rapture that took place under Andrew Ryan's reign has not been taking place, and instead, splicers and survivors have been using whatever means possible to survive within the city.
BioShock 2
Official trailer
9:45Hunting the Big Sister
BioShock 2
Official trailer
9:45Hunting the Big Sister
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How have you made sure Rapture's just as mysterious and compelling to explore as the first time around?
Finley: Rapture is full of interesting places and interesting stories -- the first game only touched on a few of them. When developing BioShock 2, we made sure to respect the same storytelling techniques, and use the same attention to detail when building spaces and populating them.
Donning the suit of a Big Daddy is a huge shift from BioShock's protagonist. How have you made sure players will relate to the character? Aren't Big Daddies just hulking, mindless beasts?
Finley: The player doesn't just play any Big Daddy, he plays a prototype Big Daddy -- the very first one that was successfully created. As a prototype, this Big Daddy is faster and more agile than the Big Daddies previously seen and also has the ability to switch weapons and use plasmids. To your point about Big Daddies being mindless beasts, another thing that is special about the prototype Big Daddy is that he has somehow regained his free will which is a very important distinction.
As a Big Daddy, what are your goals?
Finley: There are two possible ways to answer this question. What are your goals as determined by the story and your goals as determined by you the player? I'm not going to go into the story goals for fear of spoiling the new mysteries of Rapture, but I can say that it certainly would be fair to wonder how you became the first Big Daddy. In terms of the second part, I can go into more detail.
As I mention above, you've somehow regained your free will as the prototype Big Daddy. This allows you to take part in moral choices throughout Rapture, the most significant being your interactions with the Little Sisters.
What are relationships with Little Sisters like on the other side of the fence? Why would we want to force poor little girls to harvest ADAM?
Finley: ADAM is a resource that helps you grow; it allows access to new plasmids, new tonics, and character growth opportunities. It is the most precious resource in Rapture.
That said, Adopting Little Sisters and using them to gather ADAM is a player choice. In general, we try to leave the decision of whether to Adopt a Little Sister and how to deal with that Little Sister to the player, rather than forcing them to follow a specific path.
But playing as the first Big Daddy definitely offers deeper more significant interactions with the Little Sisters. You aren't a stranger to them, you are Mr. Bubbles and they look to you for protection. What you do with that trust is your choice as the player.
Have you developed RPG elements in the sequel?
Finley: BioShock 2 is very similar to BioShock 1 in that it offers the ability for character growth and character customisation without forcing the player to make permanent, irreversible choices.
We hear you can now use weapons and plasmids simultaneously. How does that affect players' strategy in combat?
Finley: We like to think that it opens up more options beyond the one-two punch.
So who is the Big Sister?
Finley: The Big Sister is someone w...---
Ah, don't spoil it for us
How hard is she? Can a Big Daddy do her some damage?
Finley: She's definitely the toughest predator in Rapture but a Big Daddy, especially one that can use plasmids, can absolutely do her some damage.
How do you go about avoiding her attention?
Finley: The Big Sister is watching what happens to the Little Sisters in Rapture very carefully. You get her attention by interacting with Little Sisters -- and you can avoid it by not doing so, as long as you can live without the ADAM that the Little Sisters provide.
Vita Chambers were a controversial aspect of the first game's design - specifically that when fighting Big Daddies you could simply keep respawning until they were defeated. How have you addressed fan concerns?
Finley: We've done two things. First of all, BioShock 2 will feature the same option as the 360 DLC and the PS3 offered, to allow the player to turn off Vita Chambers if they so choose. In addition to that, we've made some tuning changes that will basically prevent that strategy from being effective.
And you have plans for multiplayer this time... ?
Finley: Absolutely. More details will be coming about the multiplayer very soon...
Good to see CVG failing to include what should already have become a standard question for any game: "What DRM will the game have, will there be limited activations and will it require online authentication?"
Until that multi-part question is satisfactorily answered *in detail* I'm not buying this game. The taint of travesty that embroiled "Bioshock 1" still prevents me from buying that game today even at discount prices.
Your denying yourself the pleasure of playing a game over DRM? Thats a bit daft isn't it? Most normal gamers wont let an issue like drm get in the way of the game. And what "taint of travesty" is this? I got bioshock on steam and it works fine despite being moved from machine to machine and 3 different OS's.
I take it by your comment that you have not taken the opportunity to grant yourself a well-informed opinion about the less savory aspects of DRM entail. Do yourself a favour and research it a bit. Incidentally, I'm positive that "most gamers" can speak for themselves and thus do not require you to represent them without their consent. Speaking of which, I know for a fact that I'm not the only gamer who is prepared to boycott a game with DRM. Again, do some research and you will find there are plenty who share my sentiments on this matter.
Perhaps you favour one simple game over far more, in my opinion, important matters in the long run and that is your prerogative. Personally I like to remind the developers and publishers that while I enjoy some of their games I do not *need* their games to get by on a daily basis. The same can not be said for them: They do need my support, and the support of many other gamers, in order to make their paychecks. They would do well to remember that.
As for the Steam version of "Bioshock" that's well and dandy, and truly I am pleased on your behalf that it has worked without qualms. However, personally I do not wish to purchase my games over Steam. I view Steam as merely another form of DRM - sure, greater convenience but nonetheless still a medium of control over my gaming habits which I don't get to have a direct say in unless I buy stock in Valve. That is not a system I'm prepared to support. There are plenty of reasons and examples of why blind faith and trust in corporations are a poor idea.
I guess I missed the part where you somehow became Judge Advocate...Oh wait. I didn't and your opinion is just that: Yours, and it's meaningless to me on this matter. Next!
Good to see CVG failing to include what should already have become a standard question for any game: "What DRM will the game have, will there be limited activations and will it require online authentication?"
I agree, it's very good to see. I want to hear about the actual game, not read line after line of boring text regarding anti-piracy measures. That would be sh*t. Nobody here is interested in that rubbish
Besides, DRM security isn't implimented until the very last minute, so asking about it now would be stoopid and pointless.
One can presume by your comment that you are either a young boy who has yet to appreciate the grand scheme of things, or you are a short-sighted, instant-gratification driven adult with a wholly lax attitude that would happily engage in a sucker's purchase. Thankfully for you there are still plenty of individuals whom, like me, aren't prepared to roll over and play patsy to various unscruplous corporate interests. You may thank me and the rest should the day ever dawn on you when you realise what's at stake here.
whilst i too agree that DRM is a blight upon Gaming and media in general. The interview was to try and gain some more information on the game itself. Not what mesures the company might take to stop piracy on the PC version. I'm sure that much closer to the games release there will be an announcement stating this.
DRM is generally handled by the publisher, not the developer. Every single time I've seen a developer quizzed about it, they either simply quoted the publisher, or referred the person on to the publisher.
So, if CVG had asked the question, the answer almost certainly would have been something along the lines of "sorry, you're asking the wrong person".
Wow, it amazes me that not one of these comments have anything to do with the actualy content of the game. I mean, why do you guys come to this site, to argue like little children and try to prove something or to actualy get some info on new games?
whilst i too agree that DRM is a blight upon Gaming and media in general. The interview was to try and gain some more information on the game itself. Not what mesures the company might take to stop piracy on the PC version. I'm sure that much closer to the games release there will be an announcement stating this.
I short KFD. give it a rest.
I wish I could share your optimism, MONKEY, however it appears that many publishers have every reason to try and weasel their way out of answering the DRM question as it is bound to hurt sales. By avoiding it some seem to think they can avoid the ugly truth (presuming their game does carry virulent DRM). I won't give it a rest: This is a cancer and there will only be one victor in this war. I don't intend to lose and the tide appears to finally be turning against the current version of DRM (altered versions may still be used in the future and if they can be fine-tuned so as not to butt-rape the customer then *maybe* it can become a passable measure).
I can appreciate not you and others may not care about this as much as I do and that they would rather have other bits of info on the game, yet for the PC crowd at least, if Bioshock 2 ships with the same crap DRM as its predecessor then it's a game breaking risk (not to mention the problems it can cause with the PC itself). That is wholly unacceptable and that is why I will not desist, I will not back-down and I will most certainly not "let it go". To the death! En garde!
Wow, it amazes me that not one of these comments have anything to do with the actualy content of the game. I mean, why do you guys come to this site, to argue like little children and try to prove something or to actualy get some info on new games?
I beg to differ. Whether this game comes with DRM or not does relate to info about the game and whether or not I will buy it. Others may disagree yet I, and others, find it entirely reasonable to have that question included as standard fare along with questions such as, "Will there be multiplayer? Will the protagonist have big boobs like Lara Croft? Will there be X amount of guns and crystalline graphics, etc. etc.?"
DRM is generally handled by the publisher, not the developer. Every single time I've seen a developer quizzed about it, they either simply quoted the publisher, or referred the person on to the publisher.
So, if CVG had asked the question, the answer almost certainly would have been something along the lines of "sorry, you're asking the wrong person".
Aye, that could be. However, an "Unknown" response in this case is going to end with the same result as confirming that a game comes with DRM: No purchase, at least until that bit of info is cleared up.
My point is that the majority of gamers are going to read an article about what features the game itself has. I'm not saying I agree with DRM, but i've personally never had an issue with it. Copy protection has been a part of gaming for years (I remember having to dig the TMHT manual out every time I wanted to play it as you had to enter a word from a particular page) and is not going away. You can take the moral high ground all you want, but I wont let copy protection stop me enjoying gaming.
Well, these comments officially suck balls. The_KFD_Case has got on his soapbox and he 'aint climbing down again until November '09!
I henceforth retire from The_KFD_Case's "field of battle", with an aim to persuing a peaceful life, raising my young 'uns far, far away from this bloody conflict that is DRM.
My prayers are with you, brave KFD. You carry the hopes and dreams of us all on your shoulders. You hold our very destiny in your hands as you fight against the tyranical machinations of the industry overlords.
I'm really looking forward to this game! I don't wanna overhype anything but I really, really, enjoyed Bioshock 1. In fact it's the game that got me into FPS. Sad I know but I'm a late developer for FPS.
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