BioShock fans eager to return to the world of Rapture can get an early look at the remastered gameplay featured in the upcoming BioShock: The Collection with a new “Let’s Play” video series from publisher 2K Games.
In addition to giving a sneak peek at the graphically upgraded BioShock in the video above, 2K reveals its first-ever gameplay footage from the remastered BioShock 2 and BioShock Infinite.
From its opening moments, 2007’s BioShock enchanted players with its distinctive undersea setting and horror-infused first-person shooter gameplay. BioShock 2 marked a return to Rapture’s collapsing society in 2010, while 2013’s BioShock Infinite shifted its setting to Columbia, a seemingly utopian society floating high above the clouds.
Publisher 2K has maintained a consistent release schedule for BioShock in the decade following its debut, launching a new sequel every three years since. It breaks from tradition for this year’s release of BioShock: The Collection, opting to remaster its previous games in the series rather than creating a true sequel.
BioShock: The Collection, launching next month for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PCs, offers visually updated graphics and higher-resolution textures for all featured games courtesy of 2K’s development partner Blind Squirrel Games. All three games will be presented at 1080p with frame rates “up to” 60 frames-per-second, according to a recent statement from 2K.
The upcoming compilation also includes all previously released downloadable content for the trilogy, including the Minerva’s Den story expansion for BioShock 2 and BioShock Infinite‘s alternate-universe spinoff Burial at Sea. Players hoping to host online death matches next month are out of luck, however, as BioShock 2‘s multiplayer content didn’t make the cut for BioShock: The Collection.
PC gamers who already own digital copies of Bioshock and BioShock 2 may be eligible to receive a free upgrade to the new remastered editions after BioShock: The Collection hits retail. The PC edition of BioShock Infinite is not part of the upgrade offer, suggesting that 2K has minimal changes in mind for its upcoming PC re-release.
BioShock: The Collection launches digitally and at retail on September 13.
Acer’s Predator Atlas 8 finally has a US release date and price, several months after the company first showed off the handheld in May. The highlight is the Intel Arc G3 Extreme chip inside, which has been adopted by only a couple of other consoles besides the Atlas 8. This version will go on sale exclusively at Best Buy on November 1 for $1,299.99.
Acer originally said the Atlas 8 would arrive in North America in October, but left pricing open at the time. The launch came amid the ongoing DRAM crunch, which has made memory more expensive across the PC industry and complicated pricing for hardware makers.
Gaming laptops and I have a complicated relationship. One of my first gaming rigs was an Acer Predator that was already outdated when I bought it. I was a broke college kid, and that was the best I could afford. So trying out high-end gaming laptops is always fun. But ASUS' ROG Zephyrus G14 is a lot more than a laptop that can run AAA games. It is portable, so you're not lugging around a 2.5kg machine everywhere you go. It is built well, none of that plastic chassis, and can even function as a normal laptop outside of just gaming.
Google Play is borrowing one of the Nintendo Switch’s most useful little tricks. A new Sidekick tool called Playbacks captures a short clip after something interesting has already happened, sparing players from running a screen recorder throughout an entire game.
Playbacks is part of Google Play Store v53.8 and keeps saved clips on the phone. Google first announced it earlier this month, but the new Play Store update marks its arrival for players. Anyone who has watched a perfect win vanish because the record button came too late already understands the appeal.