The 2009 Summer Games Preview

Bioshock 2

Platform: PC, Xbox 360, PS3
Publisher: 2K Games
Release Date: October 30th

Though the original BioShock didn’t exactly leave itself open to a sequel (regardless of which ending you took), that hasn’t stopped 2K Games from trying to build on the popularity of the original. Given how successful the first game was it really was inevitable that a sequel would be put into development sooner or later.

Set more than a decade after the first game, BioShock 2 looks to be a fairly massive departure from what you might expect a sequel to be though, with players getting a chance to control the first Big Daddy ever created in the underwater megalopolis. Unique among his race, this first Big Daddy is the only one who has retained any sense of free will – one which drives him into battle against the new Big Sister, who has been kidnapping girls from the mainland and turning them into Little Sisters.


The change in perspective between the two games has bought about a number of major gameplay changes, and players can now venture outside of city for short periods thanks to the Big Daddy’s diving suit and are able to work alongside any Little Sisters they find along the way.

Just because you’re now making use of the Big Daddy’s iconic drill hand and rivet gun doesn’t mean they’ll be fewer Plasmids though, with players now able to dual-wield weapons and plasmids, as well as make use of the expanded tonic system. That level of weaponry may sound excessive, but you’ll probably need it – Rapture hasn’t aged well since the first game and you’ll be venturing into some totally new sections of the city.

The Tales of Monkey Island

Platform: PC, WiiWare
Publisher: Telltale Games
Release Date: Season starts July 7th
Not only have classic adventure game fans been blessed with news that Lucasarts will be re-releasing The Secret of Monkey Island in a new Special Edition, but there’s also a series of new adventures coming from the team behind Sam and Max too.

Collectively dubbed The Tales of Monkey Island, the first season of the episodic adventure is set to consist of five instalments, each of which should take a few hours to complete as Guybrush attempts to rid the Carribean of the notorious Lechuck. Getting rid of the spectral pirate won’t be easy this time though (not that getting rid of a ghost/zombie/demon is ever easy) as Guybrush has accidentally exposed himself to a voodoo curse.

Infected by the Pox of Lechuck, Guybrush is slowly changing and losing control of his own body – though the infection has at least also turned Lechuck back into a vulnerable mortal. Starting off stranded on Flotsam Island, the mighty pirate wannabe will have to find a way to rid himself of the curse, save his wife, kill his nemesis and fight a growing plague of zombie pirates.

While some fans of the game are likely to be put off by the fact that Tales of Monkey Island will be done in 3D – a move of dimensions that wasn’t too popular for Escape from Monkey Island, it does at least bode well that Dave Grossman is designing the game. He helped design both of the first games you know - so there's a slim chance we might find out what the actual secret of Monkey Island is!

Well, OK, probably not - but it may mean that we'll get more of the same witty banter and clever ideas as we did in those games, all nicely presented in a new 3D form and with the voice work of the cast from The Curse of Monkey Island. It's a good time to want to be a pirate!