Irrational adds "1999" mode to Bioshock Infinite all for the older gamer

Irrational Games has announced '1999 Mode' for BioShock Infinite, a "new form of play" designed to challenge players in a "variety of ways".



"1999 Mode is a way of playing designed for gamers who long for the days of games that demanded more of the player," publisher Take-Two explains.

"It will include tweaks and features that BioShock fans will not experience in a standard play-through of BioShock Infinite, no matter the difficulty level."

In addition to these permanent decisions, 1999 Mode will feature demanding weapon, power, and health management, it's said.

The mode takes a much harder stand on player respawning, sending the player directly to a 'Game Over' screen if he or she lacks the resources to be brought back to life, Take-Two explains.

"We want to give our oldest and most committed fans an option to go back to our roots," said Ken Levine, creative director of Irrational Games.

"In 1999 Mode, gamers face more of the permanent consequences of their gameplay decisions. In BioShock Infinite, gamers will have to sweat out the results of their actions. In addition, 1999 Mode will demand that players pick specializations, and focus on them.

"I'm an old school gamer. We wanted to make sure we were taking into account the play styles of gamers like me. So we went straight to the horse's mouth by asking them, on our website, a series of questions about how they play our games.

"94.6 percent of respondents indicated that upgrade choices enhanced their BioShock gameplay experience; however, 56.8 percent indicated that being required to make permanent decisions about their character would have made the game even better."



Here's the full press release:


Back in December, there was a survey from us here at Irrational to better understand how you play games. We had a hunch about a new feature for BioShock Infinite, and we built this survey to see if it’s something that our fans wanted. The results of the survey are in and we heard what you want loud and clear, which is why we’re proud to announce something new for the game: 1999 Mode!

BioShock Infinite’s 1999 Mode will feature an especially demanding gaming experience, forcing you to examine your decisions while going through your adventure in Columbia. With every choice you make, there are irreversible implications, and if your choices guide you down a path not suited to your play style, you will suffer for it.

It’s not simply a matter of adjusting the difficulty sliders in the game – the team went much further than that. Resource planning? If you’re to survive this mode, proper planning will be crucial. Combat specializations? You’ll need to develop them efficiently and effectively throughout the story; any weapon will be useless to you unless you have that specialization. Combat? You will need to carefully target every shot, and your health will be set to an entirely different baseline. Game saves? Well, yes, there will be those, but according to Irrational Games Creative Director Ken Levine “there are game saves, and you’re gonna f***ing need them.”

“We want to give our oldest and most committed fans an option to go back to our roots,” said Levine. “In 1999 Mode, gamers face more of the permanent consequences of their gameplay decisions. In BioShock Infinite, gamers will have to sweat out the results of their actions. In addition, 1999 Mode will demand that players pick specializations, and focus on them.”