The very first BioShock game, released in 2007, received universal acclaim. Its innovative use of setting, philosophical themes, and brutal combat helped to make it one of the most memorable games of its console generation, and it continues to influence titles today. After the release of BioShock: The Collection in 2016, the franchise was pretty quiet until the confirmation of BioShock 4 in 2019.
2K Games and Cloud Chamber Studios clearly have an eye on expanding the franchise, as in addition to BioShock 4, there was the reveal that a Netflix film adaption was in the works. While all of this exciting new BioShock content was good news for fans, the majority of BioShock 4's development has been shrouded in an air of secrecy. It's been three years since the game was announced, and still, players don't have a clear idea of what the next entry will entail. However it shapes up, many fans are hoping that BioShock 4 will have more in common with the original game than with the most recent installment BioShock Infinite.
The Beauty Of The Original Game
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While BioShock 2 still centered the action in the fan-favorite submerged metropolis of Rapture and BioShock Infinite brought plenty of interesting new elements to the franchise's formula, it was the first BioShock that really stands head and shoulders above the other entries. It's hard to forget the first time seeing the doomed utopia crumbling away under the ocean waves as the bathysphere descends, and nothing in the subsequent games had quite the same impact. This could be why BioShock Infinite's DLC Burial at Sea brought players back to Rapture with a two-part installment that neatly tied up a lot of narrative loose ends that had been in place since the start of the series, and revisiting other elements of BioShock in BioShock 4 makes sense.
All of the games in the BioShock franchise have been popular with players and have carved their own niche in the video game market, but the original BioShock broke the most new ground with its features, gameplay, and setting. It handled its disturbing atmosphere, feeling of constant disquiet, and complicated themes with aplomb, and delivered a challenging and thought-provoking experience that isn't seen often in video games. Alongside its macabre moments and brutal violence, BioShock was a mature game that wasn't afraid to push its protagonist or its players and put its plot front and center.
Why The Next Entry Should Emulate It
Although many players would like to see a return to what made the first BioShock great, this shouldn't be seen as a step backward for BioShock 4. There are still lots of aspects that could be improved upon, and plenty of directions that the next game could take to ensure it's not just a graphically-improved copy of the original. BioShock Infinite is a great game, but it didn't offer as much freedom when it came to Vigors compared to the first game's Plasmids, and its combat became a little formulaic as the game wore on, but BioShock's own combat needs some tweaks as well. BioShock's embrace of horror, its claustrophobic setting, and its thorough environmental storytelling are also all things that should feature in BioShock 4, even if the setting is vastly different.
With no release date, no confirmed title, and no official setting, players have been speculating like crazy about BioShock 4 ever since it was announced. There are rumors of a space setting and cosmic horror elements, or an arctic location, or even an open world to really shake up the series' gameplay, but little is actually known about BioShock 4. The developers have confirmed that the next installment will maintain the franchise's iconic FPS action and have a meaty narrative for players to explore, but other aspects have been left up to fans' imaginations. BioShock 4 may be almost as much of a mystery now as when it was first announced, but hopefully its development is in safe hands, and the newest entry will embrace the original elements of BioShock that became so critically lauded and beloved.
BioShock 4 is currently in development.