Liz Albl recently took to Twitter and confirmed that she has joined Cloud Chamber Games as Narrative Lead on BioShock 4 (or whatever it ends up being called).

Albl has been involved in writing teams on a number of major projects over the years. According to her LinkedIn page, after starting out as a writing intern on Assassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag, she was a writer on a number of other Ubisoft titles, including Far Cry 5 and Watch Dogs: Legion, following which she moved to Sucker Punch to serve as a senior writer on Ghost of Tsushima. Most recently, Albl was at Monolith Productions, where she worked on the upcoming Wonder Woman game for a period of nearly two years.

Details on BioShock 4 have been scant since it was officially announced in late 2019 that the game was in development. As per recent leaks, it will be set in a fictional 1960s Antarctic city called Borealis, while job listings have also suggested that the game is being developed using Unreal Engine 5.

Job listings have hinted at other details for the first person shooter as well, such as a potential open world setting, highly reactive environments, dialogue choices, and more.

The dream is real! So happy to announce I've joined Cloud Chamber as Narrative Lead on BIOSHOCK ⚡ pic.twitter.com/tdNfvar7x2

— Liz Albl (@mslizalbl) December 7, 2022

Over on Twitter, leaker @oopsleaks, who claimed in a previous leak that the game would be called BioShock Isolation, recently claimed that the long-awaited sequel’s development has run into some hurdles. Cloud Chamber has allegedly lost 40 developers, which includes leaks as well, some of whom left the studio of their own accord, while others were allegedly fired “for various reasons”.

The leaker claims that 2K Games is unhappy with the progress the project has made and the pace at which its development is moving along, which has brought about a “slight restructuring” at Cloud Chamber. The studio has apparently also started hiring new employees, and though the game is still scheduled to launch be the end of 2024, it’s announcement date has seemingly been pushed back.

As always with leaks of an unverified nature, it’s best to take this with a grain of salt for now, especially seeing as 2K Games and Cloud Chamber themselves have said next to nothing about BioShock 4 – or whatever it ends up being called – since having confirmed that it’s in development. We’ll keep an eye out for more details though, so stay tuned.

I’ve been told that some left on their own, some were fired for various reasons, nevertheless it’s not a ‘development hell’ but rather a ‘slight restructuring’. The studio has already started hiring new employees. It is likely that the announcement date may shift for this reason.

— Oops Leaks (@oopsleaks) February 15, 2022

In a recent Sacred Symbols video uploaded by journalist Colin Moriarty, it’s been claimed that BioShock 4 will take place in a fictional 1960s Antarctic city called Borealis. In its own report, VGC corroborates this detail, stating that it has heard the same from its own sources.

Moriarty also states that the development team at Cloud Chamber is well aware that the game will be compared to previous BioShock games and, more specifically, the works of series creator Ken Levine, suggesting that the developers are designing an experience very much in the same vein. Moriarty also claims that BioShock 4 is currently targeting a 2022 launch.

Another recent leak claimed that BioShock 4 will be called BioShock Isolation and will feature setting and story will revolve around two new cities, one on top of each other, with an announcement planned for sometime in 2022. Read more on that through here.

Previous job listings have also revealed potential new details on the next BioShock game. It seems to be using Unreal Engine 5 for its development, while listings have also made mention of an open world setting, the game taking place in a “new and fantastical world”, and a dialogue system, emergent AI systems, and more.

As shared over on Twitter by @oopsleaks, the new BioShock game will allegedly be called BioShock Isolation, for which a logo has also been shared- though the leaker says the game’s title could change in the future. BioShock Isolation will be developed on Unreal Engine 5, according to the leak, which is something that job listings have previously suggested as well. Meanwhile, the game’s development team is apparently comprised of several veterans of Irrational Games, the studio that developed the original BioShock and BioShock Infinite, as well as developed who have worked on AAA releases such as Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Deus Ex: Mankind Divided, Mafia 3, Watch Dogs: Legion, and more.

Interestingly, the leak also provides a slide from the presentation that was supposedly used to pitch this new BioShock game, which, if accurate, reveals that the game’s dystopian setting and story will revolve around two new cities, one on top of each other.

The city on top is described as a “free and wealthy society led by a successful entrepreneur”, while the underground city is said to be “isolated” and “separated from the upper world”, and is supposedly “led by a dictator waging a vertical war”. A border known as the “flipside zone” separates the two cities and is described as “the hottest point” in the ongoing conflict between the two cities.

While Cloud Chamber and 2K Games themselves have said next to nothing about the next BioShock game in an official capacity, previous job listings have hinted at some details, such as the game having an open world setting, taking place in a “new and fantastical world”, and featuring a dialogue system, emergent AI systems, and more.

The leak in question here claims that an announcement for BioShock Isolation will arrive within the first three months of 2022, so if that is indeed the case, we’ll know soon enough how accurate these details are (or aren’t). Until then, we’ll keep an eye out for new updates, so stay tuned.

#Bioshock Isolation (title may change) logo variant

– Set in a new-to-franchise isolated dystopian city
– Unreal Engine 5
– Developed by Irrational Games veterans and people who worked on Watch Dogs: Legion, Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Mafia 3, Deus Ex: MD
– Announcement Q1 2022 pic.twitter.com/BwyXKp1LKK

— Oops Leaks (@oopsleaks) November 17, 2021

A slide from the new #Bioshock game pitching presentation.

There might be two cities with radically different ideology, one of them located underground right below the other, both sharing a "flipside" border zone with an unleashed "vertical war". pic.twitter.com/Cy6fddJmV1

— Oops Leaks (@oopsleaks) November 27, 2021

Developer Cloud Chamber recently posted a job listing for the position of Senior Gameplay Programmer. By and large, it looks like a pretty standard job listing, but one thing that does jump out is the fact that BioShock 4, which the studio is currently working on, is apparently going to be built using Unreal Engine 5. Under the “job details” section, the job ad reads: “Work within Unreal Engine 5 adapting existing systems and building new technology in order to fulfill the project’s technical needs and creative goals.”

Given the fact that BioShock 4 is probably not going to be out for some time yet and is targeting next-gen development, it makes sense that the game is going to use the newest toolset available.

Meanwhile, other recent job ads have also revealed quite a few potential details on the upcoming shooter, including an open world setting, dialogue choices, AI improvements, and more.

The BioShock franchise has always been an interesting one to look back on. It had three very successful and acclaimed titles and then just…kind of stopped. There’s a few reasons for that, but they aren’t largely relevant since we know a new game has been in development since 2017. We know little about it, however, and only bits and pieces that comes from areas like job listings. Now, we have a tidbit that could point to what direction 2K is keen to take the sci-fi series. 

A job listing for Senior Writer is live now at Cloud Chamber, who is developing this new title. As spotted by PCGamesN, tucked away subtly is they are looking to “find someone who can weave impactful, character-driven stories in an open world setting.” This would indicate that the current direction of the game is an open world title of some kind. That also jives with other information we’ve gleamed of the game from other listings, such as the mention of a sandbox world of some kind, which you can read more about through here. 

BioShock 4, or whatever it will be called, has not been officially announced. As it stands now, it seems as if the game, in whatever form it’ll take, is still a good ways off.

It’s now been almost a whole decade since the last BioShock game. The franchise was a highly successful and influential one, but has been on ice ever since BioShock Infinite released. While we do know that a fourth entry is in the works, even if it won’t be for a good while now, a new set of job listings point to a potential picture.

Senior Voice Designer, Game AI Programmer and Lead Systems Designer listings have appeared for developer Cloud Chamber, the development house that’s been set up to work on the sequel. In them there’s a lot of details, such as the game being aimed to be narrative-driven, which is no surprise, but there’s also mention of “dialogue systems,” meaning there could be some type of choice system. Alongside that is also mention of an “emergent sandbox world,” which seems to hint something more open world. Maybe the most interesting bit is that of the work for AI, which they describe as “a meaningful AI urban crowd system and the systemic tribal ecology of a sometimes hostile AI.”

Of course, considering how this is all pieced together from various different job listing from a title that is clearly still in the pretty early stages of development with previous job listings pointing to it being exclusive to next generation systems, so this could mean nothing to the final project. It’s unclear when we’ll see BioShock 4 or whatever it’ll end up being called, but I wouldn’t expect it for quite some time.

It’s hard to believe that it’s now been over 7 years since the last original release in the BioShock series, BioShock Infinite. The series was something of a standard bearer during the last generation, but has completely skipped this one outside remasters. We know the franchise isn’t dead, and now several new job listings tell us a few things about what to expect.

If you’re unaware, the next game, which we’re tentatively calling BioShock 4, is being developed by Cloud Chamber. The studio was formed by publisher 2K Games specifically to develop the series. Several new job listings have appeared, which you can check out through here. There’s not a whole lot here we didn’t know, as previous job listings have revealed a vague idea of the game’s direction earlier this year already.

But one thing is that the listings confirm the game is in development for next generation systems, which many assumed. One newer part that sticks out as well is wanting to breath “life into a new and fantastical world.” That seems to point to a new setting and not a return to either Rapture or Columbia. There’s also a few odd pieces in here such as a Cinematic Artist job that asks for “Wes Anderson like precision and panache in your camera positioning and movements,” which is a bit strange considering what many expect the game to be.

It’s also mentioned that the game uses Unreal Engine 4, but as the publisher mentioned this year, this game is a long ways off (and you can probably assume based on how many of these key job listings remain open), so it’s not outside the realm of possibly that it will switch over to UE5 at some point. We’re most likely at least a year away from ever hearing anything official about whatever BioShock 4 will ultimately become, but at least we have something of an outline of what they are looking to do, so it’ll be exciting when the game is officially unveiled.

There have been rumors and whispers about another BioShock game being in development for years. Only recently was it confirmed that a fourth title was, in fact, being developed by a new team. However, if you’re looking forward to it, I’m about to put a bit of damper on that excitement, because it’s going to be a good long while before we see this bad boy.

In their most recent financial results call, Take-Two Interactive (the parent company of BioShock publisher 2K Games) spoke about the sequel. They offered no real details, only that it “will be in development for the next several years.” Considering the alleged rebooted production, it’s not too surprising, and Cloud Chamber has indicated a lengthy wait in talking about the game previously. Don’t expect this one anytime soon.

While the wait for the fourth game is going to be a big one, it does give you time to replay or catch up with the previous titles with the current BioShock: The Collection that collects everything from the franchise so far. If you happen to be subscribed to PS Plus, that collection is even free for you this month.

2K Games recently announced that the next BioShock game was in development at newly set up studio Cloud Chamber, and though the studio claims to be a couples year away from talking about the project (even though it’s reportedly been in the works for some time now), there are other ways to learn more about the game.

For instance, the studio recently put up a bunch of listing for job openings across its two studios in Montreal and California (via GamesRadar) as it prepares to ramp up work on BioShock 4 (or whatever they will end up calling it), and one thing that a few listings mention is a reactive world, something that seems to be a big focus for the developers.

The listing for Lead World Designer, for instance, talks about “bringing a rich and dynamic game world to life.” BioShock 4 is apparently looking to create a world that is “populated with memorable experiences that complement the game’s main story.” The ad also talks about the game’s world being “at the nexus of story, architecture, and design”, and “a compelling systemic environment that players are hungry to explore.”

The listing for Lead Combat Designer, too, makes mention of “player expression and experimentation within a highly reactive world.” BioShock 4’s combat is, as per this listing, looking to be a “systems-driven experience” that embraces the idea of “player expression” through emergent design. Finally, the listing for Senior AI Engineer also puts a lot of chips on the game’s systemic nature, with mentions of “an urban crowd system and the systemic tribal ecology of a sometimes hostile AI.”

If these job listings are any indication of what direction Cloud Chamber are taking with BioShock 4, there’s certainly plenty of cause for optimism. It looks like the developers are keenly aware that storytelling and thematic depth are going to be crucial in a BioShock game, but they’re also putting a great deal of emphasis on emergent gameplay and player expression, sort of like an immersive sim. Of course, it remains to be seen just how well they can put their money where their mouth is, but at least the early signs seem positive.