Back in May, 2K Games released a most frustrating document. While it confirmed the existence of critically acclaimed shooter BioShock’s port to PS3 and promised “new features and content,” the press release didn’t provide the foggiest idea of what that content might be. However, with E3 behind us 2K’s seals have begun to crack, and details about trophies, graphics and DLC have bobbed to the surface.
Challenge Rooms:
Several sources are reporting that the PS3 port will feature new “challenge rooms,” separate from the story-driven experience and accessed through the game main menu a la Portal. Appearing as exclusive downloadable content for the PS3, the challenge rooms are all-new enclosed environments in Rapture where a (hopefully) fiendish puzzle awaits the player. One such room, shown off at E3 2008, tasked players with freeing a Little Sister from a stuck Ferris wheel by blasting the control box with electricity from a number of nearby sources. Players are timed as they attempt each challenge, and particularly speedy players will, upon completion, obtain…
Trophies:
Over at the official PlayStation Blog, designer Tynan Wales has not only confirmed that trophies will feature prominently in BioShock PS3, but also described a few of them in practically hyperbolic detail. As explained in late June, PS3 hands out Bronze, Silver and Gold trophies rather than a fixed number of points per achievement, and those who collect every single trophy in a game will receive a Platinum trophy to demonstrate their dedication to that particular game.
For Bronze, it sounds like 2K’s PS3 trophies will closely mirror their Xbox 360 counterparts, providing bonuses for those who fully explore their combat options:
Just like in the original BioShock, for the PS3 version our initial emphasis was on encouraging thoroughness and exploration of the BioShock universe. Each system in BioShock has a reward for the player that digs deep enough. Our hope is that players that may otherwise neglect a system will want to explore it just for the Trophy. Systems like Researching, Modifying Weapons, Hacking, and Crafting are all loaded with awards. A meticulous player will find themselves up to their armpits in prizes.
Silver, meanwhile, seems to cater to the completionists, featuring the familiar Historian achievement:
The “Historian” Trophy is awarded for finding every single audio diary. This particular Trophy is Silver because we understand the rigor required for this endeavor. If you’re a true adventurer and seek to know the full story of the fall of Rapture, look under every desk and open every door. There are many to find.
But Gold offers something new — an opportunity for gamers to find their balls. Brass balls, mind you.
We believe that BioShock PS3 has a lot to offer in a single play through, but we wanted to emphasize and reward a player’s second or third descent into Rapture. This led us to create new Trophies that encourage more advanced tactics and enemies that provide a greater challenge. As a result of this thinking the first Trophy bears the name, “Brass Balls”. If you desire to be among the few who have this prestigious award on their mantle, you must win BioShock on Hard difficulty with the Vita-Chambers turned off.
Graphics:
The most recent addition to our collection of BioShock PS3 revelations is also the most disheartening — whatever Sony fanboys might say about the relative power of the PS3, we’re not going to see that power displayed in the bloody underwater halls of Rapture. In an interview with Videogamer.com published earlier today, senior producer Melissa Miller related:
We’re looking to match the quality of the original version. We want to make sure that the water is just as great, and I think you can see from the demonstration, that it looks no different from the 360 version.
It’s a shame that we won’t see much in the way of new textures or effects… but that said, it’s been less than a year since we first dove into BioShock, and even in the face of gorgeous titles like Mirror’s Edge the eye candy holds up fairly well.
BioShock PS3 is slated for October of this year.
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