Bioshock Infinite's recently announced 1999 Mode is, according to Irrational Games Design Director Bill Gardner, not something they want gamers to stumble across by accident for fear of getting overwhelmed.
The concern is justified by the very nature of the new game mode, which is intended to bring back the tension and permanence of decisions made in classic games.
Ken Levine, co-founder of Irrational Games, says he is an "old school gamer. We wanted to make sure we were taking into account the play styles of gamers like me".
Levine decided to poll gamers on Irrational's website. 94.6 percent of respondents "indicated that upgrade choices enhanced their BioShock gameplay experience." More notably however is that "56.8 percent indicated that being required to make permanent decisions about their character would have made the game even better.”
"This is not a mode for a guy who only plays two or three games a year".
Permenant Choices
Bill Gardner said there is no plans to alter the save system in 1999 Mode, nor to add weapon degeneration. Instead gamers will have to deal with the consequences of their decisions.
"We take this even further by raising the stakes and make it so that if you’re not specializing in something, you’re really not going to be use that tool effectively (be it a weapon, vigor or other tool)."
The decisions you make will affect gameplay dramatically, "your choices push you towards specific play styles, and these are choices you’re going to need to commit to. Once you walk down a path, it’s going to be very difficult, if not impossible, to change course."
The game mode is one that is more than likely to appeal to the growing number of gamers who feel video games are becoming too easy. Gardner acknowledges this, but also understands more people will choose not to play in 1999 Mode than those who will.
As such, Irrational Games is musing the idea of putting the game mode behind an unlock code, much like the infamous Konami Code, to prevent players accidentally stumbling across it.
Difficulty Level
In an interview with Rock Paper Shotgun, Ken Levine said the goal is to never have an absolute brick wall where the player can no longer progress in the game. "But I think there has to be places where some gamers will be 'oh, guess I’m going back to the savegame' because they really put themselves in an untenable situation."
The game mode is not being designed as another difficulty level, rather as an alternate method of playing the game. In deciding upon the name Levine remarks that "we already had difficulty levels in there, but they don’t really change the way you play the game". 1999 Mode will fundementally change the way a gamer will approach and play Bioshock Infinite.
- Source
- Irrational Games
