BioShock 4 could very well be in development for the oncoming next-generation platforms unless Take-Two Interactive was just toying with the fan-base.
In an earnings call for the second quarter of the fiscal year, CEO Strauss Zelnick boldly stated that the company “has the strongest development pipeline in history”. The list includes sequels to some of the “biggest franchises” under Take-Two Interactive as well as an exciting new intellectual property.
There was no mention of which particular franchise would be receiving a sequel but at this point, it’s fair to say that the suggestion made was for BioShock 4. Borderlands 3 has already been released and at least one of those potential sequels has to be Grand Theft Auto 6. Leaving the new intellectual property alone, the only other big name left out is BioShock 4.
In the past several years, 2K Games has only come around to release a collection that bundled the remastered versions of the first two installments and BioShock Infinite. When it comes to BioShock 4, however, the publisher and developer have been maintaining radio silence.
The silence, though, was broken a few months back by an anonymous source claiming to have gotten hold of a company document from inside 2K Games. The leak carried several details about BioShock 4, as well as stating the installment to be in a “rather solid and advance state of development”.
In addition, BioShock 4 was said to be a direct sequel to the second installment and will continue the story of Rapture. With BioShock Infinite, there was a chance that another installment could possibly be set differently. Take-Two Interactive categorically mentioning a sequel kind of gives the rumor sustenance.
The same rumor suggested that BioShock 4 will be announced in the first quarter of 2020 for a release somewhere in 2021 or 2022. Both of the next-generation consoles will receive the sequel simultaneously with PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. There’s obviously going to be a release for PC as well.
The timeline would work for Take-Two Interactive provided that development has indeed reached advance stages. The only question now is about the developer. Since Irrational Games bowed out, there have been reports that 2K Games created a small studio to head BioShock 4. However, the publisher has been keeping a tight lid on things and is why it’s been difficult to ascertain the staffers involved. There’s a possibility that some of the developers from Hangar 13, the studio that developed Mafia III, might have been reassigned.
