BIOSHOCK-ed!!!

ildu · Fri 17/08/2007 14:38:42

Quote from: Vince Twelve on Fri 17/08/2007 11:11:41
Quote from: nick.keane on Fri 17/08/2007 09:15:58
Also, game demos usually have a tendency to be more "alpha"-versions of the finalize product - in other words, I doubt Irrational decided to make the demo on august 8th and release it on August 13th, so they probably made the demo out of a build they made, say, in February or March, which means that the final product will more-than-likely look better/different.

I would strongly disagree with pretty much that whole paragraph.

The demo is almost certainly created from a near final build of the game by removing all the art/sound/code assets not needed by the demo. It's a chunk of the whole, not an early version of the whole. A developer would never release a demo of their soon-to-be-released blockbuster that lacked all the bug squashing, graphical improvements, and general polish that they had done in the past seven months. The final version that you'll buy in the store will likely be identical to this in every way except for the few ways that they changed it specifically for the demo.

The general public will almost never see a game in it's alpha stage. Especially since one of the definitions of an alpha release is that it's for internal testing.

The devs said in an interview just 3-4 weeks ago that they didn't know if they were going to make a demo. So basically yes, it has been created after the game's been complete. Also, the demo isn't exclusive of the game. The demo is how the game starts. Apparently, everything is the same, except you get the guns earlier than you would in the full game, and the enemy placement and number is different. Also, you might wager that the beginning cinematic has been cut a bit for the demo, since it is very short.

As far as I know, most demos these days arrive after the release date, and they're usually just cropped elements of the full game.

R4L · Fri 17/08/2007 16:13:35

QuoteFirst of all, Bioshock doesn't have multiplayer...?

I said it HAS plans for multiplayer.

QuoteArbiter > Master Chief.

Tell that to all the Halo 2 fans...

QuotePlease read his post again... especially the part about unlocking through the Internet.

Already read it. I thought of that after I posted my reply.

I'll probably buy it.

Vince Twelve · Sat 18/08/2007 00:27:43

Quote from: R4L on Fri 17/08/2007 16:13:35
QuoteFirst of all, Bioshock doesn't have multiplayer...?

I said it HAS plans for multiplayer.

Quote from: Irrational Games spokesman back in JanuaryThere will be no multiplayer (hold on before you complain!!!!) but for a very specific reason. BioShock features a compelling storyline that revolves around the experiences of one man as he enters the decaying world of Rapture. Having a multiplayer component would have compromised the story we were trying to tell so we made the decision to keep this game as a single player experience. There will be an online component, however, where new content can be downloaded.

link=　http://kotaku.com/gaming/bioshock/bioshock-community-site-opens-230306.php

nick.keane · Sat 18/08/2007 04:49:14

Quote from: Vince Twelve on Fri 17/08/2007 11:11:41
Quote from: nick.keane on Fri 17/08/2007 09:15:58
Also, game demos usually have a tendency to be more "alpha"-versions of the finalize product - in other words, I doubt Irrational decided to make the demo on august 8th and release it on August 13th, so they probably made the demo out of a build they made, say, in February or March, which means that the final product will more-than-likely look better/different.

I would strongly disagree with pretty much that whole paragraph.

The demo is almost certainly created from a near final build of the game by removing all the art/sound/code assets not needed by the demo. It's a chunk of the whole, not an early version of the whole. A developer would never release a demo of their soon-to-be-released blockbuster that lacked all the bug squashing, graphical improvements, and general polish that they had done in the past seven months. The final version that you'll buy in the store will likely be identical to this in every way except for the few ways that they changed it specifically for the demo.

The general public will almost never see a game in it's alpha stage. Especially since one of the definitions of an alpha release is that it's for internal testing.

You're asuming I'm stating anything in that paragraph as fact. I didn't say that the game was in an alpha stage - I said it it could be towards a more alpha build, wherein alpha can be defined as any prerelease build between design and the product 'going gold', so if the word more prerelease let's you sleep at night, replace alpha with that.

ildu said it himself - the build is recent (although I ran into a few graphical glitches that hopefully will be fixed in the final build). End of story on that, but it still doesn't mean that there never has been a demo released based off a "more pre-release" version of a game.

In any case, I finally got my crappy, crappy XBox to get all the way through the demo yesterday, and the lobby scene right before the end was freaking awesome!

ildu · Sat 18/08/2007 04:54:46

Quote from: nick.keane on Sat 18/08/2007 04:49:14ildu said it himself - the build is recent (although I ran into a few graphical glitches that hopefully will be fixed in the final build).

I highly doubt that since the game was already shipped before the development of the demo was completed.

Redwall · Sat 18/08/2007 05:07:31

There is a difference, nick.keane. Traditionally prerelease is at the very least divided between alpha and beta, with occasionally further iterations as well. (Though I think Halo 3 went a little far with an epsilon stage...)

nick.keane · Sat 18/08/2007 10:44:15

I know that, I'm just saying that many games release demos that are produced prior to the completion of the game itself, or are older builds of a portion of said game.

EDIT:
And the whole talk the particular builds of demos is getting off-topic, in any case - I want to hear about your experiences with BioShock, the demo! Are you hyped? Gasping in anticipation?! Think it's going to flop n' drop?! Give us your thoughts.

ManicMatt · Sat 18/08/2007 13:46:25

I think it's going to sell quite well, and upon hearing there is a limited edition tin case edition I want to get my hands on that! (And running a videogame shop increases those odds)

Yeah true the style is really cool, and the graphics are good, but I guess I like more than just shooting things all the time in games. (Hello Halo!) I hope it has a proper storyline in there where you discover more secrets and the truth etc.

Now then, Stranglehold demo. Max Payne did it better.

Redwall · Sat 18/08/2007 16:01:03

QuoteI like more than just shooting things all the time in games. (Hello Halo!) I hope it has a proper storyline in there where you discover more secrets and the truth etc.

Do you know anything about this game at all? :'(

ManicMatt · Sat 18/08/2007 17:51:15

Apparently not.

What, the powers like freezing and electricity?

The hacking of robots?

The advanced AI?

The water effects?

What?!!

R4L · Sat 18/08/2007 22:47:03

Quote from: Vince Twelve on Sat 18/08/2007 00:27:43
Quote from: R4L on Fri 17/08/2007 16:13:35
QuoteFirst of all, Bioshock doesn't have multiplayer...?

I said it HAS plans for multiplayer.

Quote from: Irrational Games spokesman back in JanuaryThere will be no multiplayer (hold on before you complain!!!!) but for a very specific reason. BioShock features a compelling storyline that revolves around the experiences of one man as he enters the decaying world of Rapture. Having a multiplayer component would have compromised the story we were trying to tell so we made the decision to keep this game as a single player experience. There will be an online component, however, where new content can be downloaded.

link=　http://kotaku.com/gaming/bioshock/bioshock-community-site-opens-230306.php

Seems my info is a bit old... thanks for the update!

Domino · Sat 18/08/2007 23:25:14

Played the demo for the second time today. I enjoyed it more this time around than i did the first. I can't help just looking around and enjoying the scenery. There were areas where water was pouring onto the floor and i just looked in amazement at how real it looked.

I wish i didn't have to work Tuesday, so i could play it all day long.

nick.keane · Sun 19/08/2007 06:26:11

I'm gonna try to grab it as soon as it comes out, but of course most of the retailers probably aren't going to have it in stock or unpackage their shipments until the afternoon.

hedgefield · Sun 19/08/2007 12:23:40

Argh, did I pick the wrong week to go on a vacation...

I'll probably pick it up when I come back next weekend, when my new laptop should have arrived aswell, so I can enjoy it in all it's glory. Can't wait!

Akatosh · Sun 19/08/2007 13:32:16

I'd buy it, but my laptop doesn't run anything that released after '05 properly, so I'll probably just have to replay System Shock 2.

Or get someone crazy to make a mod for Bioshock that removes all DirectX 9/10 effects, makes it possible to be run at 640x480 and and and.

(As they did with Oblivion)

ildu · Sun 19/08/2007 23:01:06

PC demo set to be released tomorrow:

http://www.2kgames.com/cultofrapture/home.html

Sylpher · Sun 19/08/2007 23:15:58

Already have the collectors edition purchased. Lumping this game up with Halo is quite a disservice to both games. Not to say either game is more awesome, but they are completely different styles of shooters.

nick.keane · Sun 19/08/2007 23:26:01

Quote from: Akatosh on Sun 19/08/2007 13:32:16
I'd buy it, but my laptop doesn't run anything that released after '05 properly, so I'll probably just have to replay System Shock 2.

I just hope the whole Microsoft "Games for Windows" program doesn't restrict BioShock to run on only Vista like they did with Halo 2. Not much of a problem for me, seeing as I have Home Premium, but last time I checked around a little over 80% of people running windows-based platforms use XP.

And if anyone has never, ever played system shock or system shock 2, go to www.the-underdogs.info, do a search for em, and download them. Suffice to say, both games were pretty far ahead of their time, which is unfortunate because they became cult classics rather than the massive blockbusters they should've been $:-\$ . Hopefully, BioShock will aim to break this cycle on Tuesday!

ildu · Mon 20/08/2007 00:26:00

Quote from: nick.keane on Sun 19/08/2007 23:26:01I just hope the whole Microsoft "Games for Windows" program doesn't restrict BioShock to run on only Vista like they did with Halo 2. Not much of a problem for me, seeing as I have Home Premium, but last time I checked around a little over 80% of people running windows-based platforms use XP.

As far as I know, Vista is only required if you want to play with dx10 settings. And since the vast majority will play with dx9 at this point in time, it's not an issue.

nick.keane · Mon 20/08/2007 01:16:29

Quote from: ildu on Mon 20/08/2007 00:26:00
Quote from: nick.keane on Sun 19/08/2007 23:26:01I just hope the whole Microsoft "Games for Windows" program doesn't restrict BioShock to run on only Vista like they did with Halo 2. Not much of a problem for me, seeing as I have Home Premium, but last time I checked around a little over 80% of people running windows-based platforms use XP.

As far as I know, Vista is only required if you want to play with dx10 settings. And since the vast majority will play with dx9 at this point in time, it's not an issue.

I wonder just how much of a difference there is between dx9 and dx10. I'll google it.