I was reading up on Bioshock Infinite, and it crossed my mind that despite looking really good it might not sell. I know Bioshock 1 did pretty good, but that was at the beggining of a generation. If you look now, most games don't sell that good anymore. I know some people may say that Bioshock is a known name, but Bioshock 2 didn't do so hot.

Do you think good reviews will be enough to make Bioshock Infinite sell? Bioshock 2 had a decent marketing campaign and it didnt help (although it was profitable still)..

Infinite will outsell 1, and I base that on not a goddamn thing.

Edit: Oh, and you can quote me on that.

Don't forget this time around the PS3 version is out the same day with the other version. Yes it will sell.  
 

@SharkEthic

Infinite will outsell 1, and I base that on not a goddamn thing.

Edit: Oh, and you can quote me on that.

There's been a ton of press about it, not to mention it looks fantastic.

It'll be fine.

@SharkEthic said:

Oh, and you can quote me on that.

Will do.

Infinite will outsell 1, and I base that on not a goddamn thing.

It will be profitable, meaning their next title might be required to say BioShock in the title. Who knows, maybe a new generation of hardware will free them to do something completely new.

I asked my friend if he was going to buy Bioshock Infinite, and he said no, i'm also not going to buy it. So if you extrapolate that data this game won't sell a single copy.

It'll sell, it's hyped to be amazing. Unless something catastrophic happens, or there are game breaking bugs, I think it will sell very well.

BioShock Infinite's first month will almost certainly be better than BioShock's. The original only sold 490,000, according to NPD charts. To those who are unfamiliar with the rough chronology of shooters in '07, BioShock was overshadowed by Halo 3 and Call of Duty 4, which has brought in a huuuuuge wave of players, many of which have expanded into other games as well.

Will it sell more than the 4 million plus copies BioShock eventually sold? Hard to say. It is the end of a console generation; that cuts some of the "evergreen" status on the game. But I imagine it'll sell very well. I wouldn't be surprised if they sell two million in the first month in this post-Call of Duty/Skyrim world.

They've certainly sold me a copy, anyways.

Bioshock 2 was an unnecessary follow up to a great game. It was also made by a different developer, so the fans didn't really care. 
 
This one is a prequel, not that that really means much but it's being made by the original BioShock developer and they are trying something new with it.  
 
I don't know, can never tell with these things anymore, but it might be fine. Can only wait and see.

No it won't sell a single copy ever.

Like hot cakes. Even my Call of Duty playing friends know the name Bioshock, enough people know that a new Bioshock is a big deal and they should probably check it out.

@mordukai said:

@CornBREDX: Don't forget that they devoted resourced to a MP mode that's pretty much dead now.Could have used those resourced to make SP better.

You do know that both developers and press members (i.e. people close to the process) have both completely disavowed this idea and urge us to never say this nonsense again, right? It's a completely different skill set, and the people in charge wouldn't have changed, so what possible resources could've been used in this case? They don't need more artists/sound designers/programmers because that's not what's wrong with the game. The problem is conceptual, meaning it lies with people who would've been in charge of the project regardless. Unless you're saying BioShock 2 just should've been made by Levine/Kojima/Completely Different People, in which case yes, BioShock 2 would've been a better game if it'd been a completely different (and, perhaps more importantly, better) game.

Keep in mind that 2 sold less than 1 and launched on more platforms to bigger a installed audience. We know Irrational didn't make it, but does the average person know that or care?

Is there still hype for this game? I feel like the excitement for this game peaked around a year-and-a-half ago and has gradually dwindled to cautious skepticism.

@CornBREDX said:

Bioshock 2 was an unnecessary follow up to a great game. It was also made by a different developer, so the fans didn't really care. This one is a prequel, not that that really means much but it's being made by the original BioShock developer and they are trying something new with it. I don't know, can never tell with these things anymore, but it might be fine. Can only wait and see.

I have to disagree on "the fans didn't really care". BioShock 2 was made by a different dev and hardly a necessary sequel (especially considering they set it in Rapture all over again and very little changed) but frankly I enjoyed that game more than the first and have replayed it several times. In fact I'd challenge anyone to mount a definitive argument against it being a far better game than the original. It played better, looked better, had a fantastic story and I know I'm not the only one who loved to wander around Rapture again and see another of its stories. Not to mention the MP was pretty darn fun if a bit silly and the DLC support for that game was outstanding too. I hate seeing BioShock 2 get a bad rap just because it was "more of the same" and "unnecessary", it was still brilliant and had it been released alone would've been seen in a far more positive light. At least that's what I think.

On the topic, nah course not, nobody buys good video games these days.

Yes, it will.

I really liked that recent trailer mostly cause the song was cool, but at the end of the day it looks like more Bioshock and apart from the story I didn't care too much for the way Bioshock 1 actually played.

@JohnstonThistle: I'm with you on that. BioShock 2 was awesome. I prefer the first game's story and characters, but the sequel was no quick cash-in.

I know I'm buying it.

@mordukai said:

@CornBREDX: Don't forget that they devoted resourced to a MP mode that's pretty much dead now.Could have used those resourced to make SP better.

You do know that both developers and press members (i.e. people close to the process) have both completely disavowed this idea and urge us to never say this nonsense again, right? It's a completely different skill set, and the people in charge wouldn't have changed, so what possible resources could've been used in this case? They don't need more artists/sound designers/programmers because that's not what's wrong with the game. The problem is conceptual, meaning it lies with people who would've been in charge of the project regardless. Unless you're saying BioShock 2 just should've been made by Levine/Kojima/Completely Different People, in which case yes, BioShock 2 would've been a better game if it'd been a completely different (and, perhaps more importantly, better) game.

@mordukai said:

@Little_Socrates said:

@mordukai said:

@CornBREDX: Don't forget that they devoted resourced to a MP mode that's pretty much dead now.Could have used those resourced to make SP better.

You do know that both developers and press members (i.e. people close to the process) have both completely disavowed this idea and urge us to never say this nonsense again, right? It's a completely different skill set, and the people in charge wouldn't have changed, so what possible resources could've been used in this case? They don't need more artists/sound designers/programmers because that's not what's wrong with the game. The problem is conceptual, meaning it lies with people who would've been in charge of the project regardless. Unless you're saying BioShock 2 just should've been made by Levine/Kojima/Completely Different People, in which case yes, BioShock 2 would've been a better game if it'd been a completely different (and, perhaps more importantly, better) game.

None the less, money and manpower went towards that feature. You say those resources could have been used for anything else?

Most likely, they'd just go toward more QA, a couple more setpieces, and other games. The people employed for multiplayer would probably have been working on another title, at least. That said, BioShock 2 is still 2K, and Spec Ops: The Line was already in development, so they could have worked on that multiplayer and it might have been similarly ancillary rather than almost-garbage.

I don't think throwing more people at BioShock 2 would've possibly made that game more interesting. I just think BioShock 2 is an incredibly well-constructed pile of boring ideas, both in terms of gameplay and in terms of story. It's not like the completely-absurd flaws that sink a game like Fable III or Too Human, it's more the absolutely-dull elements that make a game like Medal of Honor: Warfighter so boring.

Right now, to be honest, I don't care. As long as the game is good, that's a start. In time if it doesn't sell well, and I love it, then I'll be disappointed, but for now, I don't care.

@Alexandru said:

I was reading up on Bioshock Infinite, and it crossed my mind that despite looking really good it might not sell. I know Bioshock 1 did pretty good, but that was at the beggining of a generation. If you look now, most games don't sell that good anymore. I know some people may say that Bioshock is a known name, but Bioshock 2 didn't do so hot.

Do you think good reviews will be enough to make Bioshock Infinite sell? Bioshock 2 had a decent marketing campaign and it didnt help (although it was profitable still)..

Bioshock 2 read like a joke in pre-release announcements and media hype.

It was like the publisher wanted a repeat of the hit that was bioshock and just demanded more of everything.

Seriously, like : "You can go outside Rapture! You can BE a big daddy! Introducing the Little Sister!" It was like bad fan fiction.

I didn't play Bioshock 2. I do want to play Infinite.

So... Ancedotally, it will sell.

It looks pretty great in most regards except the box art.

Will it sell?  Sure, it will sell better than the prior games.  But, will it sell as well as it could have sold?  Nope, no way in hell, will it sell as well as it could have last year.  There was a huge amount of hype around the game three years ago, and even two years ago or even at the last e3.  But, now people have burned out their energy on this game.  Irrational Games kept showing this game for the last three e3s, and while the game media cares they  I don't think the energy for this game anymore.
 
This is not about can it sell or the game being good; it will sell...it will probably be good...but the hype train for this game ran out of coal a year ago.  

It probably will.

It's going to do very well.

Maybe? I mean it depends on what is being released around it, how well it is marketed, and what people's wallets look like at that time.

@CornBREDX said:

The first Bioshock is a horror game.

@StarvingGamer said:

Is there still hype for this game? I feel like the excitement for this game peaked around a year-and-a-half ago and has gradually dwindled to cautious skepticism.

Yeah... I really dislike the extreme amounts of hype publishers drum up for some games ~6 months before (they think that) the game will be out. Makes situations like this super-awkward. Either way, I hope it's a good game.

@Mnemoidian said:

@StarvingGamer said:

Is there still hype for this game? I feel like the excitement for this game peaked around a year-and-a-half ago and has gradually dwindled to cautious skepticism.

Yeah... I really dislike the extreme amounts of hype publishers drum up for some games ~6 months before (they think that) the game will be out. Makes situations like this super-awkward. Either way, I hope it's a good game.

Thats where 2k should come in. Its the marketing team's job to create hype. We better see that next year. From what i saw of that game, it doesn't look cheap. 400k like the first one would be a disaster.

@mordukai said:

Why is this in the Off Topic?

This is a relationship advice website, so threads about video games are off topic.

On a related note, I wouldn't date Elizabeth - she kinda freaks me out...

Nope. Next question.

@Azteck said:

No it won't sell a single copy ever.

But... but... I already paid for it! WHY WON'T THEY SEND IT TO ME AZTECK??!?

Worst. Q1. Ever.

@Alphazero said:

@Azteck said:

No it won't sell a single copy ever.

But... but... I already paid for it! WHY WON'T THEY SEND IT TO ME AZTECK??!?

Worst. Q1. Ever.

Sorry man, the post man will probably just burn the package on your porch.

EVERYONE will buy it, all wars will end, people will praise Ken Levine as their true leader and Bioshock will become the new Call Of Duty.

We will have Bioshock cafes, bioshock parties, it will be the craziest most intense consumer fever to ever sweep an entire planet, even alien lifeforms will contact earth in peace to check Bioshock out.

.... Or it will sell decently well and everyone will go on with their lives

I think people might be underestimating the problems suggested by this game's repeated delays. ON the one hand, it's good that it's getting the dev time that it needs. On the other hand, this is a game that looks ambitious beyond any AAA title that's ever been released in its attempts to create a word that has events that appear scripted while actually being procedural, and in affording the player options that allow him freedom without being cripplingly vast. I'm not saying this game will be bad, but if it is, I won't be totally shocked. It's not as if Bioshock really did anything so innovative that we can be certain Infinite will do the same.

On the other hand, Bioshock is one of those games that penetrated that second 'tier' of gamers that generally only follow high profile releases, I think. It definitely has a lot of eyes on it.

@Veektarius said:

I think people might be underestimating the problems suggested by this game's repeated delays. ON the one hand, it's good that it's getting the dev time that it needs. On the other hand, this is a game that looks ambitious beyond any AAA title that's ever been released in its attempts to create a word that has events that appear scripted while actually being procedural, and in affording the player options that allow him freedom without being cripplingly vast. I'm not saying this game will be bad, but if it is, I won't be totally shocked. It's not as if Bioshock really did anything so innovative that we can be certain Infinite will do the same.

On the other hand, Bioshock is one of those games that penetrated that second 'tier' of gamers that generally only follow high profile releases, I think. It definitely has a lot of eyes on it.

I suspect the game will be very good.

I also suspect it will be FAR more scripted than what people think.

No.

I'm pretty confident it will.

It'll sell just fine. People know the name BioShock.

yes

@ExplodeMode said:

Keep in mind that 2 sold less than 1 and launched on more platforms to bigger a installed audience. We know Irrational didn't make it, but does the average person know that or care?

They seemed to. There was very little hype or coverage of Bioshock 2, relative to Bioshock 1. A lot of the people that didn't appreciate the deeper stuff in Bioshock probably weren't interested in the sequel anyways.

When I first heard about it, I brushed it off and say BAH. But the more I watched, read and heard about it, the more I actually got excited for it. Now it's one of my most anticipated games for early 2013. I assume other people might have felt the same, so yea, I think it has potential to do some decent numbers.

Bioshock 2 built up some negative by being a sequel most people thought was unnecessary, being developed by people not Irrational and by adding MP that most people thought it didn't need. I thought the game was pretty great but it had a lot working against it.

Infinite is gonna be juuust fine. It looks amazing, it's getting good hype and it's Irrational. That game is gonna sell.

yeah, i think so. i am going to buy the game.