In 2k Games' Bioshock® 2, ROKKAN-Designed Site Plays Supporting Role
The Brief:
Gamers eagerly waiting for the sequel to BioShock®, the award-winning, dystopian-narrative action experience from 2K Games, got something extra: an immersive website created in collaboration with 2K Games and ROKKAN that not only unveiled the game's new features, but also let fans take a glimpse inside the mind of one of BioShock® 2's most dangerous new characters: a Big Sister.
The Execution:
"Concept drives every decision we make, in both design and technology, and the concept here was to tell a part of the BioShock 2 story that can't be found in the game," said ROKKAN Executive Creative Director Charles Bae. "The site does more than promote BioShock 2-it's a supporting character, a supporting device in immersive storytelling. The user navigates the site as a Big Sister a few years prior to the start of BioShock 2's story. It's a deeper dive into the twisted mind of a girl who has significant ties to the world of Rapture."
BioShock® 2 begins ten years after BioShock. Placed in the original setting-a failed underwater, Art Deco utopia known as Rapture-the player navigates through the dark and beautiful city, where newly unstable and evolving denizens of Rapture are on the attack. Some can now breach the boundaries of the underwater city. Nowhere is safe.
To imagine and create the kind of rich, narrative-driven online experience that BioShock fans love, ROKKAN and 2K Games built on their long-standing collaborative relationship to tell the story. Having created the promotional site for the original BioShock, the two teams had already established a synergy and a strong creative base.
The team at ROKKAN met overarching challenges from capturing the Art Deco look and feel of the game to highly specific obstacles like animating a scene in which a character uses telekinetic powers found in the game to build a dollhouse. To further manifest the world of BioShock 2, ROKKAN produced a tremendous amount of 3D content exclusively for the site.
"The magnitude of the site was underestimated," said ROKKAN's Bae. "Phase 1 was boilerplate-screenshots, videos, downloads, game information-the required assets of a game site. Phase 2, the experiential portion, was a different story. The catalog of original assets we created is enormous."
The final product-a site with a rich, complementary narrative and a cohesive blend of multimedia-underscores ROKKAN's ability to work in close partnership with its clients, and its technical and creative reach.
"There's a time for simplicity and accessibility, and there's a time for madness," Bae said. "We chose madness."
The Tech:
ROKKAN combined its deep knowledge of its previous BioShock sites with the tools that best serve the BioShock look and feel: Flash, After Effects, 3D Studio Max, Photoshop, Illustrator, Maya and Modo.
ROKKAN, which is not a 3D post-production company and does not have a rendering farm, executed the 3D-heavy project thanks to the deep expertise and talent of its team. "Since rendering-time is an issue, we made everything pixel-perfect before outputting anything," Bae explained.
One thing the site is not: typical. "The trend in game sites has been to tie into the social-network zeitgeist," Bae said. "ROKKAN and 2K Games still value the creation of rich online experiences that can stand alone, and so does the BioShock 2 audience. That is what the BioShock 2 website delivers."
Credits:
Client: 2K Games
Title: BioShock® 2
Launch Date: December 7, 2009
Executive Creative Director: Charles Bae
3D Artist: Matt Burniston
Flash Developer: Errol Schwartz
Creative Director: Brian Carley
Technical Director: Russell Savage
Senior Interactive Producer: Jennifer Meeker
About ROKKAN:
With offices in New York and San Francisco, full-service interactive agency ROKKAN is a solutions-driven company with the right blend of creativity, energy, and innovation. ROKKAN works directly with clients and also partners with advertising agencies, delivering a wide range of strategic, creative, and technical solutions. From interactive, rich-media marketing campaigns to enterprise technical applications, ROKKAN is equipped for all client needs. ROKKAN's core expertise includes: Digital Business, Brand Activation, User Experience Design, Traffic Generation, and Technology. Recent campaigns and websites include projects for Virgin America, Adidas, Jose Cuervo, Rockstar Games, Time Warner, UGO Entertainment and 2K Games. Visit www.rokkan.com to learn more.
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