2K Games has launched the BioShock iPhone and iPad versions on the App Store, marking the first time the award-winning game has appeared on a mobile device.
BioShock is one of the highest-rated first-person shooters of all time. As such, you shouldn’t be too surprised by its $14.99 price as “a premium mobile game. We haven’t tried the game ourselves, but according to 2K the BioShock iPhone and iPad versions “bring the complete experience of the original ‘genetically enhanced’ action-adventure, first-person shooter to iOS devices.”
The game has of course been tweaked for the mobile interface with optimized touch controls and full Made for iPhone (MFi) game controller support.
BioShock iOS is a universal app that features Game Center support for iOS devices including iPad Air, iPad Mini 2, iPad 4, iPhone 5S, iPhone 5C and iPhone 5. Note that if you have an earlier device than those, BioShock will not work.
That’s particularly important to note when it comes to iPad, as it won’t work on the original iPad, iPad 2 or iPad 3.
BioShock sends players on an adventure to explore the submerged Art Deco city of Rapture, where deranged survivors of a failed objectivist utopia try to take down any and all intruders. Players must genetically modify their own DNA to gain superhuman powers.
The BioShock iPhone and iPad version features a new leaderboard system, an in-app digital artbook based on the original Special Edition, and a new player profile function that allows players to see how they stack up against their friends. Some of the personal in-game stats the game gracks include how many weapons and plasmids are used and the number of enemies killed.
BioShock first launched in 2007 on Windows PC and Xbox 360. The game, which has since won more than 50 awards, was developed by Irrational Games. Its sequels and spinoffs have also been well received, though none of the games has quite matched the quality, acclaim or sales of the original.