BioShock 4 – Everything We Know

2K’s BioShock series has seen three installments so far, and a fourth game is now in the works–with some key changes compared to the original three. For starters, series creator Ken Levine is not actively involved in the next game, which we will refer to in this post as BioShock 4 until 2K gives the game an actual name.

Beyond Levine not being directly involved, the new game is being made at an entirely new studio, Cloud Chamber. In this post, we’re rounding up everything we know about the next BioShock game, and we’ll continue to update this as more information eventually comes to light.

Table of Contents [hide]

When will BioShock 4 be released?
Preorder BioShock 4
BioShock 4 trailer information
BioShock 4 platforms
BioShock 4 story, setting, and characters
BioShock 4 game engine
Who’s developing BioShock 4?
Ken Levine is not involved “at all”
The BioShock movie

When will BioShock 4 be released?

The new BioShock game was announced in December 2019, and as part of that announcement, 2K confirmed only that the game was happening. It did not provide any release date, or even a release window, for when it might be available. At the time, 2K and developer Cloud Chamber said the game would be in development for “the next several years.” It’s now 2025, and there have not been any significant updates about the game since, however.

2K is owned by Take-Two, and the company has discussed how it believes it has a powerful lineup of compelling titles in the works across a number of franchises, including BioShock. BioShock is one of Take-Two’s 13 franchises that have individual titles with sales of more than 5 million units. The entire BioShock series has sold more than 43 million copies. And regarding Take-Two’s confidence in the brand, management highlighted that every game in the series has received at least one “perfect” review score from an accredited outlet.

Preorder BioShock 4

BioShock 4 is not yet available to preorder, but if it follows the pattern set by previous entries in the series, fans can expect a standard edition and likely multiple special editions of the game.

BioShock 4 trailer information

There is no trailer yet for BioShock 4, nor is there any word on when one might arrive. Publishers are known to make announcements during the summer game showcases around June, but as of yet, there is no indication or even a tease of any forthcoming BioShock reveals.

BioShock 4 platforms

Platform details for BioShock 4 have not been announced yet, but it’s likely the game will come to PC, as well as PlayStation and Xbox consoles. Though the original launched only on Xbox and PC, subsequent games had multiplatform releases.

BioShock 4 story, setting, and characters

The BioShock series is known for its narrative, with some of the stories weaving elements of people like Ayn Rand and George Orwell. The first two games were set in the underwater city of Rapture, with BioShock Infinite sending players into the skies in the airborne city of Columbia. All three games featured different protagonists. As of yet, however, there is no word on the setting, story, or characters for BioShock 4.

BioShock 4 game engine

A game engine for BioShock 4 has not been announced, but job listings at developer Cloud Chamber mention Unreal Engine 5. This is the newest version of Epic’s game-development engine, and previous BioShock games also used Unreal.

Who’s developing BioShock 4?

While the first BioShock was created by 2K Boston, BioShock 2 was developed by 2K Marin, and BioShock Infinite was produced by Irrational Games, it has been announced that the upcoming BioShock 4 will be brought to life by Cloud Chamber – a freshly established 2K studio with no previously released games.

Cloud Chamber can be seen as a group of creative minds who are passionate about advancing the boundaries of interactive entertainment by developing distinctive, enjoyable, and intellectually stimulating experiences that resonate with the global audience.

Cloud Chamber has offices in San Francisco and Montreal. Both Cloud Chamber studios are headed up by global studio head Kelley Gilmore, who has significant experience in various aspects of game development and publishing. At 2K in particular, Gilmore has worked on the Civilization and XCOM franchises.

“We founded Cloud Chamber to create yet-to-be-discovered worlds–and their stories within–that push the boundaries of what is possible in the video game medium,” Gilmore said. “Our team believes in the beauty and strength of diversity, in both the makeup of the studio and the nature of its thinking. We are a deeply experienced group of game makers, including many responsible for BioShock’s principal creation, advancement, and longstanding notoriety, and [we are] honored to be part of the 2K family as stewards of this iconic franchise.”

Ken Schachter, previously general manager for Zynga in Toronto and founder of indie developer and publisher Trapdoor, is leading the Montreal team specifically.

Ken Levine is not involved “at all”

Ken Levine, the mind behind BioShock, did not contribute to BioShock 2 and is absent from BioShock 4 as well. In 2022, he explicitly stated that he has no role in BioShock 4 whatsoever.

He stated that he prefers not to take partial actions; he wants full commitment, no in-between. He wishes them well and acknowledges that he knows about the game just as much as anyone else does. When it’s released, he plans on playing it like a dedicated player.

So, what is Levine working on?

Following the release of BioShock Infinite in 2013, Irrational Games downsized significantly and was effectively rebranded as Ghost Story Games. Levine is heading up this new team, which is making the procedurally generated roguelite game Judas.

Levine described it as ‘pseudo-procedural’ because it doesn’t follow the Minecraft model of generating everything based on mathematical rules. Instead, smaller components are built within the game, and then the game is taught how to create good levels, narratives, and most crucially, respond to the player’s actions.

The BioShock movie

Alongside the upcoming release of a new BioShock video game, a BioShock film is being developed by Netflix and will be helmed by Francis Lawrence, who directed The Hunger Games series. However, due to some internal changes at Netflix, the movie has undergone modifications but continues in production. Recently, Jack Quaid from “The Boys” expressed interest in potentially starring in it.

2025-03-17 22:13