Ten Questions with BioShock's Ken Levine

10 Questions with Ken Levine, creative Director and co-founder, Irrational Games:

We sat down with BioShock’s main man, Ken Levine to get the lay of the land ahead of the game’s release. Well actually, we didn’t. We emailed him, but we did sit in the same room for the BioShock event and maybe even *gasp* brushed past him. We’ll never wash our shoulder again, but check out Ken’s thoughts below:


BigPond GameArena: The style and aesthetic of BioShock is immediately obvious - how critical is it to the game's overall impact?

Ken Levine, Irrational games: The visual look of the game is shorthand for what happened to the ideals of the city: Incredible idealistic beauty meeting the realities of nature.

GameArena: What’s the one element in BioShock that you're most proud of?

Ken: There’s really two. First, the relationship of the Big Daddy’s and Little Sisters. There’s never been a first person shooter with that kind of gameplay/story/emotional dynamic. Secondly, I love the fact that nearly EVERYTHING in the world can be turned into a weapon. The game is like a 15 million dollar playground.

GameArena: What's more important to you as a creator - an open ended experience or a strong storyline? Do you think that more linear single player experiences are enjoying a renaissance at present?

Ken: There’s a difference between a linear storyline and linear gameplay. BioShock has a fairly linear storyline, but the player’s gameplay experience is anything but linear. One of our goals in making BioShock is that it’s a game that would make strategy guides almost useless: every gamer’s experience is going to be different.

GameArena: Describe your emotions and thinking about BioShock at the very start and contrast to now when you're verging on completion - what's your predominant emotion?

Ken: We’re all a bit tired, but we can’t wait for people to get their hands on it. At the beginning we were excited to see what BioShock would become.

GameArena: Is there a kind of special pressure when you know you're working on one of the year's biggest titles?

Ken: It’s really not any different than any other game we worked on in the sense that we want it to be great and are busting our humps trying to make it great. The only difference is the size of the team and the amount of anticipation.

GameArena: Do you anticipate any controversy surrounding scenes featuring (what were) children that can be 'harvested' ?

Ken: We’re simply trying to tell a good story and challenge the player from a moral perspective. It’s a classic tradition in film and literature, and 2K and Irrational believe that M rated video games have just as much right to make challenging material as the other media do.

But we’re handling the complex ethical topics in BioShock with respect and care, and we believe, in the tradition of films like The Godfather and Schindler’s List, the game will make people think about the moral universe.

GameArena: Do you agree that consumers are more sensitive to mature themes in gaming than in cinema? If so, why?

Ken: I think the mainstream press is. From the data I’ve seen, parents are quite comfortable with the games rating system.

GameArena: What's it like to work for years on a project, walk into a store and see your team's efforts sitting on the shelf? What kind of attributes do you look for in your team members?

Ken: It’s kind of strange to see it on the shelf- a bit anticlimactic. I’d much rather be able to watch people play it and enjoy it. In terms of team members, we look for a few key things: #1 is brains. #2 is talent, #3 is the desire to work hard and do great things.

GameArena: What does someone like you - who lives and breathes games creation - do to get away from your day job? What games do you play yourself?

Ken: For better for or for worse, when I come home from my job making games, I play games. The last few months have been a bit lean because of the whole “we’re shipping BioShock thing!” but I’ve gotten in a bunch of WOW, some Crackdown, some CATAN on Xbox Live, GOW 2, and Marvel Trading Card game on my PSP. Oh, and Puzzle Quest!

GameArena: Finally: a quick word association quiz:

"Atlantis"
Ken: Namor

"Controversy"
Ken: Beatles vs Monkees

"Next generation"
Ken: N64

"PlayStation3"
Ken: Need more games!

"Success"
Ken: My wife

"Immersion"
Ken: X-com

"Linearity"
Ken: Sierra Games

"Genetic engineering"
Ken: Eat as much as I want

"Halo 3"
Ken: Pre-ordered

"BIOSHOCK"
Ken: Old Friend

Thanks to Ken Levine and 2K Games for taking the time to make this happen.