It's been awhile since we heard anything about the BioShock film adaptation. Following the departure of director Gore Verbinski - not to mention the fact that Irrational Games head and BioShock creator, Ken Levine is busy preparing BioShock: Infinite, it's not necessarily a surprise that development on the game's film adaptation has somewhat stalled.

However, Levine did take time out of his busy schedule to comment on the film - asserting that the team is still cautiously interested in bringing BioShock to the big screen.

The BioShock project represents another example of the growing caution that video game developers are exercising when it comes to film adaptations of their IP's. Following on the heals of the announcement that Ubisoft wants an unprecedented amount of control over any attempts at an Assassin's Creed movie, Levine asserts that while his team at Irrational Games would love to see a great BioShock movie that simultaneously pleases fans and non-fans, any film that can't strike that balance would only set the franchise back:

"We got very close to having it get made — we had a deal in place and a director. But for us there's no burning [desire] to have a movie made just to get it made. For us and for Take-Two, it's really got to be something that will a) give the fans something that they want, and b) for those who don't know BioShock, really introduce them to something that is consistent with the game, and is it going to be a good representation of the game."

Anyone who has played the original BioShock knows that Levine understands cinematic storytelling (he got his start as a screenwriter) - as a result, Levine is much more savvy about the movie industry than his colleagues were only a few years back (we're looking at you Doom and Max Payne):

"There are differences between games and movies, no doubt, but the movie has to draw from the same DNA in terms of the world and the story beats. But you know, we don't have a need to get it made."

It's worth giving Levine (as well as other game developers) credit for holding the line and knowing the kind of film that they would like to see made.

BioShock's purposed "R Rating," coupled with big budget visuals, were major factors in the deterioration of the film's development; however, for anyone who has played the games, it's hard to imagine a BioShock film that doesn't fit the dark and twisted tone of the game - as well as feature some epic Big Daddy action. As a result, it's good to see that game developers are now at a point where they trust their own creations enough to hold-out for movie adaptations that will actually represent the spirit and excitement of their titles.

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We will continue to keep you posted on the status of BioShock as more information is released.

Source: Industry Gamers