," meaning all but 15 staffers had lost their jobs. Levine is working on a "smaller, more entrepreneurial" project for Take-Two with those remaining at the company.
The Furious Fourcast returns as Scott is set free from his real world life long enough to indulge in gaming. The Titanfall beta weighs heavily in episode 27 as Max, Jen and Robert all share their beta experiences. There's also some unfortunate news to cover regarding BioShock Infinite studio Irrational Games plus a strange Doom beta announcement.
Buy, Sell or Wait also returns this week where we learn that both Jen and Max have a certain fondness for garbage from different mediums. Plus, is there anyone not hype after the Guardians of the Galaxy trailer?
Gaming, specifically home console gaming as we know it, has entered a new, somewhat strange era. Video gaming roughly started around the creation of Pong in 1972 and its home counterpart in 1975; after the crash in the market, it was thanks to two Italian plumbers in 1985 that brought video gaming back to life. If we pick up around that point, then video gaming as we, the gamers, know it has been around for nearly thirty years. Thirty years holds significance, as there are now two clear generations of gamers; in fact, many parents today are the first generation of home gamer, in their late 20s and 30s, some even older still.
As the generation gap opens and expands, naturally different viewpoints will espouse on the same topic. Ask teenagers and their parents the same question, and one of them will undoubtedly see this hypothesis in action. House, trance, EDM, and trip-hop pound in the head of Millennial, while their parents wistfully long from everything from The B-52s to Ace of Base, and their grandparents remember cheering up "Sleepy Jean" with The Monkees. The Generation Gap is nothing new, but itÄ‚Ë€â„Ës new in the world of gaming
When the announcement of Irrational GamesÄ‚ËĂ˘â€šÂ¬Ă˘â€žË shuttering came about yesterday, many gamers were stunned, and as well they should have been. I donÄ‚Ë€â„Ët think anyone saw that coming, without even the slightest of hint from Ken Levine, the studio, or Take-Two Interactive. IÄ‚Ë€â„Ëm sure he debated the decision for some time, but to the rest of us, it appeared as if he woke up on February 18, 2014 and said, "Time for a change!"
In his open letter published on the Irrational Games Blog, Levine stated that "in time we will announce a new endeavor with a new goal: To make narrative-driven games for the core gamer that are highly replayable." Sadly, that meant laying off all but about fifteen of the staff involved in Irrational Games. But while the announcement was surprising, I was even more surprised by some of the responses to the announcement, and surprised to find that they seemed to fall along lines not defined by color, gender, or sexuality, but by generation.
It seems almost bizarre to talk about "older gamers," but responses to the end of the studio that made monumental smash hits such as System Shock 2, Freedom Force, and the highly-acclaimed BioShock and BioShock Infinite (BioShock 2, it should be noted, was developed by sister studio 2K Marin) not only bemoaned sorrow for the staffers now looking for new work, but for the state of gaming today.
Irrational Games, the studio behind BioShock and BioShock Infinite, is closing its doors. Co-founder and creative director Ken Levine announced today that he's starting a new company.
Burial at Sea campaign. The first episode arrived in November, while the second debuts on March 25. It is unclear what this announcement means for the future of BioShock for the PlayStation Vita. We've reached out to Irrational Games and Take-Two for comment.
The entire BioShock universe is now in 2K's hands, Levine said, though no new installments have been announced beyond BioShock Infinite and BioShock for PS Vita.
"I'm handing the reins of our creation, the BioShock universe, to 2K so our new venture can focus entirely on replayable narrative," Levine said. "If we're lucky, we'll build something half as memorable as BioShock."
Burial at Sea campaign. The first episode arrived in November, while the second debuts on March 25. It is unclear what this announcement means for the future of BioShock for the PlayStation Vita. We've reached out to Irrational Games and Take-Two for comment.
The entire BioShock universe is now in 2K's hands, Levine said, though no new installments have been announced beyond BioShock Infinite and BioShock for PS Vita.
"I'm handing the reins of our creation, the BioShock universe, to 2K so our new venture can focus entirely on replayable narrative," Levine said. "If we're lucky, we'll build something half as memorable as BioShock."
