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Okay, okay! I get it! The "1999 Mode" coming to BioShock Infinite isn't because the games of that era were particularly hard. No. Instead, it's the year that System Shock 2 came out and as we all* know, the BioShock series is the spiritual successor to System Shock. Ken Levine of Irrational dishes the details to IGN.
You've won this round Ken Levine and Irrational Games, but I'll get you next time! [spoileri]I still don't like the name of the mode, though.[/spoileri]
*You probably didn't know that.
Is 1999 basically for the release year of System Shock 2?
Ken Levine: Yeah, that was when our first game came out, System Shock 2, and I want to make sure that you don't lose things that are in our culture. One of the things that's interesting about our first game is that it was pretty hard, you know? But games were much harder then in general. They weren't just more difficult, they asked different things of you. They really asked you to manage resources in a way that has sort of fallen out of vogue.
There is a notion of permanent choice in BioShock Infinite in general with your nostrums, but [with 1999 mode] you're choosing a path that is going to be mutually exclusive from other paths. If I want to be a pistol guy, that means I can't be a machine gun guy as well. When I find a machine gun, I'm going to suck at it. You're going to have these periods where you're limping along with the weapons that aren't right for you. I could have chosen to be a vigor guy but I haven't got a vigor, so I really have to struggle. That kind of bootstrapping is something that is sort of gone from games where you have to start from a really weak place to get back to a strong place. That's definitely something that I always enjoyed in games and still enjoy in games.
Ken Levine: Yeah, that was when our first game came out, System Shock 2, and I want to make sure that you don't lose things that are in our culture. One of the things that's interesting about our first game is that it was pretty hard, you know? But games were much harder then in general. They weren't just more difficult, they asked different things of you. They really asked you to manage resources in a way that has sort of fallen out of vogue.
There is a notion of permanent choice in BioShock Infinite in general with your nostrums, but [with 1999 mode] you're choosing a path that is going to be mutually exclusive from other paths. If I want to be a pistol guy, that means I can't be a machine gun guy as well. When I find a machine gun, I'm going to suck at it. You're going to have these periods where you're limping along with the weapons that aren't right for you. I could have chosen to be a vigor guy but I haven't got a vigor, so I really have to struggle. That kind of bootstrapping is something that is sort of gone from games where you have to start from a really weak place to get back to a strong place. That's definitely something that I always enjoyed in games and still enjoy in games.
You've won this round Ken Levine and Irrational Games, but I'll get you next time! [spoileri]I still don't like the name of the mode, though.[/spoileri]
*You probably didn't know that.
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