My name’s Grant and I’m an animator for the BioShock Add-On Content Challenge Rooms. I was asked to spearhead any animation tasks that was needed for this project. The development team has been working hard here at 2K Boston on these new rooms and we are closing in on the finish line. But, it has been a great experience because it got me the chance to do things I haven’t done before for Bioshock.
One of our first goals was to get the Ferris Wheel in the game. The finished asset was actually physically in the original release of the game, but never used. It was a shame, because it’s a really well crafted piece. So I went through the steps of breaking it apart, rigging it and getting it to move convincingly. Then I had to learn some things about collision and getting the Little Sister to stay in the carriage without misbehaving. After a bit of elbow grease and sweat we got a functioning Ferris Wheel in engine. I hope you guys have fun playing in that room!
I also had to do quite a few more custom Little Sister animations. Revisiting the Little Sister rig from BioShock was a welcome assignment, and I found it somewhat cathartic to once again channel my inner child. My coworkers must have thought it odd when I would jump around my space and wave my arms to act out some of her moves. Actually they’re probably used to it by now.
The team worked really hard and it was fun diving into this project. I have to give props to Kirk Bezio (Add on content Designer), Chad King (Add on content Lead Artist) and Dan Kaplan (Add On content Programmer) in particular for their roles in getting this done. It almost felt like being back in school, except my peers weren’t students but big time pros.
Thanks for taking the time to read our post!
(Average: 4.65 out of 5)
74 Comments
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1
Marsz85 | September 24th, 2008 at 5:08 am
Thanks for posting! I can’t wait to play this masterpiece!
2
BZKlint | September 24th, 2008 at 5:10 am
thx can’t wait to play ;)
3
XxBigP123xX | September 24th, 2008 at 5:12 am
Are they free?
4
LordJonas | September 24th, 2008 at 5:15 am
Nice work! certainly something to consider when buying the game even if you have it on PC
5
Stoffinator | September 24th, 2008 at 5:16 am
I’m looking forward to this release. Just not sure if I will be able to pick it up being there are so many games out this October. Shame on Sony for doing them all in one month.
6
Arda82 | September 24th, 2008 at 5:17 am
I’d like to say thank you 2k Boston all the way from Istanbul, Turkey… I am truly excited to play this game on PS3. I did not have the chance to play the game on the PC but will be playing it on the PS3 no doubt about it. I hope you guys can bring Bioshock 2 on PS3 as well… Best wishes
7
GAME-HERO | September 24th, 2008 at 5:23 am
waiting with money in-hand for release day.
8
Zorox | September 24th, 2008 at 5:24 am
Why is an one year old port priced at $60?
9
Daver | September 24th, 2008 at 5:27 am
i used to not like FPS lol and now im getting them all (resistance1 is the shooter that got me in)
anyway i already preordered it, cant wait to try it out
10
GGCAN | September 24th, 2008 at 5:34 am
Thanks Grant.
I’m going to give this one a try….
11
iReyz | September 24th, 2008 at 5:43 am
BioShock 2 better be Xbox 360/PC exclusive!
BioShock is a true 360/PC game, that’s how it feels at least.
12
TheHakku | September 24th, 2008 at 5:49 am
BioShock 2 is going to be available for PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. Yummy Xbots.
13
tetsuo_shima | September 24th, 2008 at 5:54 am
iReyz….your an idiot. Bioshock 2 will be much better if it’s made for both systems. Go someplace else fanboy.
14
vandam | September 24th, 2008 at 5:55 am
What? never played bio shock and I have no idea what he is talking about!! LOL Back to MGS4 But I cant wait to try it out!! Looks sweet
15
Daver | September 24th, 2008 at 5:58 am
@14 Vandam
lolll MGS4 never gets old XD
16
FrankDogg | September 24th, 2008 at 5:59 am
@ number 11
You do know this is a PLAYSTATION blog don’t you?
17
THATPSPGUY | September 24th, 2008 at 6:05 am
Socom kicks this games butt also. back to that.
p.s. can I PUHLEASE be able to post on their(Socom) blog again??
18
drdre74 | September 24th, 2008 at 6:06 am
How many new rooms are in the PS3 version ? Also will there be a demo on PSN before the game release?
19
theownerz | September 24th, 2008 at 6:07 am
@16 wait for it it will kick in eventually
20
CHRP718 | September 24th, 2008 at 6:15 am
@11 get out you dumb xbot
21
Madman | September 24th, 2008 at 6:15 am
This is easily one of my most anticipated games right now.
22
Raacky | September 24th, 2008 at 6:15 am
socom blows, this game will crush it…anyway…i’m really excited to play this game, looks pretty interesting
23
IceCold | September 24th, 2008 at 6:24 am
What a great game, from what I’ve played thus far. I have it on the box but never finished it. Plan on getting it for ps3!
24
blkant | September 24th, 2008 at 6:45 am
I must admit, this little bit here on our PS3 blog, was very polite and almost humbling that you guys did in-fact add something new, maybe not a whole new level or boss or something, but the functioning ferris wheel, is pretty damn cool. Like the little features in a game that make it so much better, this is one of them, because of this alone, I may in-fact consider getting this now. Thank you for doing this little yet im sure rewarding in game bit, instead of doing a standard port :)
25
THATPSPGUY | September 24th, 2008 at 6:46 am
I never said I wouldn’t play it, just really never heard a whole lot about it. just about how it gets delayed. Just hope it’s gone “gold” and will arrive soon. I’m sure it will be great but kicking socoms butt completely. I highly doubt it…
26
Scodo_Thope | September 24th, 2008 at 6:52 am
Shock Me!
:P
27
balliinn | September 24th, 2008 at 7:04 am
does this game support 1080i?? if it doesn’t, i’m not going to get it.
all PS3 games should support 1080i.
28
zeke2040 | September 24th, 2008 at 7:08 am
i so pre-order this game about 4 months ago… this game is gonna rock da house…lol i wonder what kind of DLC we’ll have for this game… at least the game comes with trophy’s so it’ll be twice as fun… thanks for the update as well… keep up the good work.
29
minestrone11 | September 24th, 2008 at 7:10 am
Wonderful post, I’ll be picking up the game on the 21st!
30
ftwrthtx | September 24th, 2008 at 7:16 am
It will be nice to see this game run at it’s full potential.
Thanks for the info
31
icarus69 | September 24th, 2008 at 7:23 am
This is a must-buy for me since I haven’t played the previous versions of the game.
Hopefully you guys can make it so that we PS3 gamers don’t experience framedrops since the PS3 is a complicated bit of hardware.
Keep those updates coming!
32
ibor4you | September 24th, 2008 at 7:25 am
Just reorder and can’t wait the this baby come to me :]
33
cgb777 | September 24th, 2008 at 7:28 am
Awesome. I bought this game for PC but I’m seriously considering buying it again for ps3.
34
leetfoo | September 24th, 2008 at 7:31 am
awesome. If it pays in 1080i, I’ll certainly pick it up.
35
dan1066 | September 24th, 2008 at 7:31 am
this game is looking brilliant. ive never even played a little bit on the 360 so im really lookin forward to getting this.
is it true that the release date for bioshock in europe has been pushed forward? i heard something about it being released a week or so earlier than expected
36
iReyz | September 24th, 2008 at 7:40 am
” tetsuo_shima | September 24th, 2008 at 5:54 am
iReyz….your an idiot. Bioshock 2 will be much better if it’s made for both systems. Go someplace else fanboy.”
Uhm kay.
I own both a PS3 & 360 thanks.
37
Ghostm | September 24th, 2008 at 7:42 am
How many gigabytes is the mandatory installation?
38
MarkSawbo | September 24th, 2008 at 7:43 am
@36
Well what makes it a ‘true’ 360 game? Its exactly the same.
39
SlavedHeart | September 24th, 2008 at 7:53 am
Duuh… this game better come out for the Famicom, because we all know that gaming died when the famicom went belly up. Or maybe the Colleco Vision (heck, I’ve even still got my Sega CD if you want to be true heathens).
As an aside to the fairer heads in the thread, it’s really nice that we are getting a little more content because we had to wait a year, and I for one don’t mind paying full price for a full conversion (if the news IS true that this isn’t JUST a port, but a full do-over). Either way, hopefully this game gets the attention it deserves instead of just being another battleground state in the election for national game machine president.
What? we aren’t electing one machine over another? You mean we can all have our own choice and pick the console we prefer instead of all subscribing, mooney style, to one platform or another? That’s just crazy.
40
whatisdelicious | September 24th, 2008 at 8:06 am
Question:
Will the awesome BioShock preorder/special edition stuff be coming out with the PS3 version?
I was tempted to buy a copy of the 360 BioShock just to get my hands on that art book and Big Daddy figure. I’d suggest a soundtrack, but I feel like I’ve already taken the free orchestral stuff and mixed it in with the best of the licensed tracks really well, so I wouldn’t get much out of it. But I digress.
Also, thank you for taking so much care with the PS3 version. If only Capcom could take a step back and learn a thing or two about porting.
41
EvoAnubis | September 24th, 2008 at 8:08 am
No, Grant; thank YOU for caring enough about the PlayStation community to take the time to post here.
I won’t be among those buying this game when it comes out, but I hope it’s successful enough that you guys throw Bioshock 2 our way. THAT I’ll buy.
Actually, let me rephrase that.
Would you kindly launch Bioshock 2 on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 simultaneously? *winks*
42
madriiax | September 24th, 2008 at 8:10 am
Very cool, I’d like to see more posts like this. Developers just posting interesting little bits of production we normally would never hear about.
Can’t wait to play!
(console war stuff in here is retarded)
43
Onna76_NL | September 24th, 2008 at 8:25 am
Thanks for putting so much effort into the port to the PS3. Next time when Bioshock 2 releases… release them at the same time on the PS3 and 360 will you? Thanks :-)
44
Violater | September 24th, 2008 at 8:28 am
What will be the retail price of this year old title?
45
Letters2Kay | September 24th, 2008 at 8:33 am
Props to you all! Bioshock is an amaing title, and I can’t wait to play through it again on my system of choice. I’m looking forward to what I’m sure will be a smoother experience this time around. Thank you! :)
46
MakaiOokami | September 24th, 2008 at 8:37 am
@ IReyz (a.k.a. 11 and 36)
1. The PS3 is more powerful as stated by Mirror’s Edge team, and Activision with regards to the fact that the 360 version of World Tour can only do MIDI capabilities with the Drums while the PS3 gets keyboards, drums, guitar, bass, etc…
2. The PS3 has more to offer than the 360 in terms of freedom, capacity, and possibility of adding mouse support.
3. Star Ocean 4 doesn’t feel like a 360 game but that didn’t stop Square now did it? Star Ocean is primarily done for Sony. Of course you guys may be losing Gears of War for the 3rd one since console exclusivity agreement ends there.
4. There’s no real advantage the 360 has over the PS3 that isn’t balanced out by something that the PS3 has over the 360. Plus the PS3 doesn’t have any specific mold or shape. The PS3 has never really been defined by one or 2 franchises the way that Halo and Gears define Microsoft. You could try and say God of War but that’s a late cycle game not an early cycle game. Devil May Cry came out before even that. Metal Gear has been on GC, Xbox, and Snake has been on the Wii. Furthermore the game that may end up describing the PS3 as an iconic game is LBP that doesn’t really fit any molds. LBP is pretty much such a versatile game that it isn’t just a single specific experience.
In other words the PS3 is not a 1 trick Pony by any means. The PS3 has always been so versatile with so many different experiences, games types, feelings, moods, broad range, huge amount of appeal, and various franchises coming and going in and out of popularity… that there is no possible way you could suggest that a game “Isn’t quite a PS3″ kind of game because quite frankly… PS1, 2, and 3 have launched so many IPs and genres into fame that… you really can’t make such a radical statment without some sort of fact.
So I’ll say this only once to you and all the other Xbots that hate on the PS3. Put up some evidence, or go hate somewhere else.
Your statement has now been fully discredited. End of discussion unless you have some form of proof rather than empty bias with no backing.
47
EViD | September 24th, 2008 at 8:43 am
Thanks for the update. I got a couple questions:
You said “Add-On Content Challenge Rooms.” Does this mean I’ll have to buy them through PS Store, that they are not on the blu-ray?
And how many rooms are there?
48
FritoZ | September 24th, 2008 at 8:52 am
looking forward to playing through this game again, and now with new challenge rooms!
it seems like so long ago i beat this on the 360… i hope all this extra time means some bump in the graphics department..although the 360 version already looked great!
cheers
49
MakaiOokami | September 24th, 2008 at 8:55 am
Also I would like to add…
Thanks Bioshock team at 2K Boston for putting the time, the effort, and the resources into improving the experience for Playstation users.
I have considered buying a powerful PC for gaming but, I would rather get any game I can for PS3 since I will be migrating my regular PC usage to Linux and my gaming to Mac. I really honestly can’t stand Microsoft, Vista, and they’re coming out with Windows 7 probably by the time I get a new computer… so any Mac or PS3 support is so much appreciated.
I also appreciate the time you’re taking to make this article for the Playastation users. More of us appreciate it than the ones that make dumb comments like the person I responded to and I’m sorry to go on such a rant on your blog posting.
Thanks again
50
twooh | September 24th, 2008 at 8:57 am
$60? I’ll wait for it to be reasonable. $40 sounds about right, seeing as it’s a year old game now.
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