Bioshock Was Almost Cancelled As The Director Thought It Wouldn’t Sell Well

Expert Verified By

Bioshock Almost Didn't Happen!

Story Highlights
  • According to game director Ken Levine, Bioshock was nearly cancelled. 
  • System Shock 2 didn’t sell well, which raised similar concerns about Bioshock.
  • However, Take-Two later published the IP, and it now stands as one of the most famous IPs.

Bioshock is nearly two decades old and remains one of the most prominent IPs in gaming. The original game immediately became a hit for its unique story-telling and atmosphere, but this success was almost stopped by the director himself.

According to his latest statement, the first game was on the cusp of being cancelled before becoming a reality.

Why it matters: This instance underscores the challenges of experimenting with unique ideas in gaming. The same problem is even more prevalent in modern development since projects have such big budgets.

Bioshock
Bioshock was almost canceled due to budget concerns

According to Bioshock director Ken Levine, the franchise faced various challenges early on regarding budgets and sales expectations. The game was a risk that the team was hesitant to take.

As reported by GamesRadar, many original developers came to Levine due to their love for immersive sim classic System Shock 2. However, Levine scrapped the idea because these types of games didn’t typically sell much.

We can’t make those games because they don’t sell well.

-Ken Levine

Interestingly, even the prototype created by Irrational Games was rejected by most publishers. However, it was later pitched to journalists who really liked the idea, and Levine received several calls for the idea to be put in motion.

Bioshock
The last Bioshock game was released more than a decade ago

The publishing rights were then picked up by Take-Two, which acquired Irrational Games in the future. The series, once on the brink of cancellation, went on to record great sales and saw a positive reception from the audiences and critics.

While Levine left the company as it was shut down, Bioshock is set to make a comeback with a fourth game in development, as well as a Netflix TV show in the works. Meanwhile, Levine is working on a similar game titled Judas, set for March 2025.

Was our article helpful? 👨‍💻

Thank you! Please share your positive feedback. 🔋

How could we improve this post? Please Help us. 😔

Gear Up For Latest News

Get exclusive gaming & tech news before it drops. Sign up today!

Join Our Community

Still having issues? Join the Tech4Gamers Forum for expert help and community support!

Latest News

Join Our Community

104,000FansLike
32,122FollowersFollow

Trending

AMD: X3D Turbo Mode Increases Performance Of Ryzen 9000 CPUs By 35%

The latest AMD X3D turbo mode which will come in AGESA version 1.2.0.2 uplifts the performance of the X3D versions by 35%.

Silent Hill 2 Remake: SH2 Essentials Mod Increases Up To +31% Performance

The Silent Hill 2 Remake new mod SH2 essentials offers up to +31 increase in performance with sacrificing minimum visual quality.

Dragon Age: The Veilguard Lost Nearly 50% Players In Less Than 10 Days After Launch

Dragon Age: The Veilguard has lost over 40K players since its launch, which isn't common for a hyped RPG game.

PS5 Pro Pricing Didn’t Have A Negative Effect; Aimed For Hardcore Users, Says Sony President

Sony President Hiroki Totoki said that the PS5 Pro's pricing hasn't had a negative impact yet, and it is aimed at hardcore users.

PlayStation CEO Says Concord Failed Because ‘It Lacked Internal Evaluation’

PlayStation needs more user testing and internal evaluation to avoid producing titles like Concord that don't resonate with the audience.