Last week, a group of Irrational staffers, a photographer, and a big bag of swag traveled to Dragon*Con’s Night at the Georgia Aquarium in search of BioShock cosplayers. We found a whole bunch. Plus, the aquarium was a gorgeous, atmospheric setting. We took some cosplayers by surprise when we showed up with our cameras, while others had known to look for us from previous posts and tweets. All of the fans we met were incredible, and made for awesome photos.

Enjoy some of the highlights of the shoot, taken by photographer Webb Chapell, and check out the full gallery on Flickr.

Spider Splicer and Thuggish Splicer

Delta and Eleanor Lamb

Thuggish Splicers, Houdini Splicers, Spider Splicers and Sander Cohen. Oh my!

Andrew Ryan and Jasmine Jolene

Jack, a Little Sister and a Splicer

Saturnine Houdini Splicer, Dr. Steinman, Splicer, and Jack Ryan

Finally, we spotted this Little Sister during our final shoot of the night. She was happy to perform a Mr. Bubbles song for us, so we knew we had to get video to share!

Click here to view the embedded video.

Thanks again to everyone who showed up!

]]> http://irrationalgames.com/insider/bioshock-photoshoot-at-the-georgia-aquarium/feed/ 38 http://irrationalgames.com/insider/irrationals-pax-panel-and-voice-actor-qa/ http://irrationalgames.com/insider/irrationals-pax-panel-and-voice-actor-qa/#comments Wed, 31 Aug 2011 20:56:21 +0000 IG.Chris http://irrationalgames.com/?p=18681

PAX Prime 2011 saw the first public appearance on behalf of BioShock Infinite by the game’s two lead voice actors, Troy Baker (Booker DeWitt) and Courtnee Draper (Elizabeth). They participated in our panel to discuss the process of bringing video game characters to life, alongside Irrational creative director Ken Levine. For those unable to make it to the show, our friends at G4 helpfully recorded the whole thing! Its a good solid 45 minutes of insight and behind-the-scenes video, so head over to G4’s site and make with the watching already.

But as much as we enjoyed putting the panel together, we can’t overlook a pretty major flaw: There just wasn’t enough time for the planned question-and-answer session.

We want to make things right, and what better place to do that than on the internet, where none shall be denied answers due to lack of PAX badge ownership. Send your questions for Ken, Troy, or Courtnee to voiceactorqa@irrationalgames.com. Get them in by Wednesday, September 7, and we’ll address them in an upcoming feature here on the site.

And hey, if you were one of the privileged PAX attendees and you made it to the panel, share your feedback in the comments below!

Our booth was staffed not only with humans but also with the massive Songbird statue we debuted at PAX East earlier this year. All weekend we enjoyed fans dropping by to chat or take photos, some in impressive costumes–both BioShock-related and otherwise. Browse through some of our favorites in our PAX Prime 2011 Flickr gallery.

We were also graced by the presence of Troy Baker and Courtnee Draper, the voice actors behind Booker DeWitt and Elizabeth. They participated in our panel alongside creative director Ken Levine and G4’s Adam Sessler, and were on hand for a signing session with Ken.

The official Irrational Games Award for Most Delicious Cosplay 2011 goes to Bacon.

Jess (our official Elizabeth model), Troy Baker (voice of Booker DeWitt), Courtnee Draper (voice of Elizabeth), and Ken Levine (Irrational Games creative director).

A fan came by to model his wrist chain tattoo inspired by BioShock, and asked Ken Levine to autograph it. Which he did. That’s not actually two overlapping tattoos.

Troy is, quite frankly, terrified by the Swag Monster who stopped by the Irrational booth. As for Courtnee and Ken, they cool.

If you couldn’t make it out, Irrational has more event plans soon. We’re calling for cosplayers at Dragon*Con in Atlanta this weekend, and we’ll have Troy and Courtnee back for another appearance at New York Comic-Con in October. Mark your calendars!

We posted a Flickr gallery with shots from throughout the show, including evidence of one of the strangest contests we’ve ever run. Many attendees were given invitations to the fan event at random, but some got their passes by winning the sticker contest. Thousands of BioShock Infinite stickers were distributed during the show, and the fans with the most elaborate or impressive sticker-constructed costumes were rewarded.

This fairly terrifying sticker contest entrant is also modeling Irrational’s Gamescom-exclusive t-shirt, starring Elizabeth with her Lincoln mask. The back is proudly emblazoned with Booker’s immortal line, “Keep looking, Lincoln!”

This impressively sticker-clad woman won a ticket to our fan event for this thorough getup.

Irrational’s Keith Shetler, Stephen Alexander, Kate Baxter, and Joe Faulstick proudly show off a Best of Gamescom award from GamingXP. Everyone in this photograph agrees that Keith looks weird without his glasses.

See you next year, Gamescom!

Browse through the full set of photos at our Flickr gallery. Next up is PAX Prime–check out our plans.

PAX Prime is just days away, and Irrational is gearing up for the transcontinental trek from Boston to Seattle. We’ve got plans.

THE PANELS

You’ve got two chances to see Irrational in PAX panel discussions. Mark your schedules:

- Friday, 2:00PM (Unicorn Theatre): Creative director Ken Levine will be a special guest on Geoff Keighley’s GT.TV Bonus Round panel along with fellow game designers David Jaffe (God of War) and Todd Howard (The Elder Scrolls series). They’ll be discussing what’s the state of the industry, talking shop, and generally shooting the breeze. GameTrailers will be there to record the panel and air it online at a later date.

- Saturday, 2:00PM (Unicorn Theatre): Ken will be joined by the Troy Baker and Courtnee Draper, the voice actors behind Booker and Elizabeth. It’s their first public appearance in support of BioShock Infinite, so you won’t want to miss it. They’ll discuss what goes into bringing video game characters to life and screen some unique behind-the-scenes footage. If you can’t make it to PAX, catch it streaming live on G4TV.com.

THE BOOTH

If you attended PAX East this year, you saw our life-sized Songbird statue, accompanied by a model playing Elizabeth. They’re back, so be sure to stop by our booth to say hi and take a photo. While you’re there, check out our other activities:

- Entire weekend: We’ll be setting up a BioShock Infinite gallery with a collection of gorgeous Irrational-created concept art. Browse through it, and pay close attention, because if you can successfully answer a few questions about what you saw, we’ll hook you up with a poster.

- Saturday, 3:30PM: Creative director Ken Levine and Troy Baker and Courtnee Draper, the voice actors behind Booker and Elizabeth, want to sign your stuff.  Throw them a bone.

- Throughout the show: We’ll be announcing t-shirt giveaways over the course of the weekend with a 15-minute heads up on Twitter. Follow @IrrationalGames to stay in the know–we’ll also be tweeting about the sights we see, the fans we encounter, and any other promotions we come up with.

Be there.

Are you going to be at Gamescom? Irrational is hosting a fan event at the 2K Games booth! Attendees will receive a goodie bag and a raffle ticket to win even more great prizes. Plus, eleven members of Irrational Games will be there to chat.

But you need a ticket to get in–we’ll be handing out passes randomly to people who show up for the BioShock Infinite live demo in the 2K Games Theatre on Friday and Saturday. Good luck!

If you aren’t lucky enough to be in Cologne this week, we’ve still got something for you: four new screenshots showing off some up-close, detailed scenes from our recent gameplay demonstration. Check them out at the official BioShock Infinite site.

You won’t want to miss Irrational’s PAX Prime 2011 panel, where you’ll be able to see the voice actors who bring BioShock Infinite’s Booker and Elizabeth to life.

Troy Baker, the voice of Booker DeWitt, and Courtnee Draper, the voice of Elizabeth, will join Ken Levine for a discussion about creating characters in video games. Although you’ve heard their performances in our recent gameplay demonstration, it’s the first time Courtnee and Troy will be representing the game in public.

PAX Prime runs from August 26 to August 28 in Seattle. The Irrational Games panel will be held on Saturday at 2:00pm in the Unicorn Theatre. Check out the official PAX site for more schedule information.

We’ll also be holding a signing session at our booth on Saturday at 3:30pm, soon after the panel ends. Bring your swag–Ken, Troy, and Courtnee will be happy to autograph it. And come by our booth at any time during the show to browse our BioShock Infinite art gallery and have a chance to win some Irrational loot.

If you aren’t going to PAX, don’t worry: G4TV.com will be streaming the panel live starting at 2:00pm Pacific Time. We’ve got you covered.

When we heard about Dragon*Con’s annual Night at the Aquarium event, we knew we had to be there. Irrational’s own Sarah and Phil (who showed off their own costumes last Halloween) will be roaming the event with a professional photographer in tow, gathering material for the Irrational Games website and handing out prizes to BioShock cosplayers! If you’re attending the con, come join us at the aquarium! We’ll be leaving our own costumes at home, so we’re counting on you to make up for it.

Dragon*Con runs September 2-5 ,2011 in Atlanta, and the Night at the Georgia Aquarium takes place Saturday, September 3,2011 from 7-11pm. Night at the Aquarium is open to non-con-attendees. Tickets are $20, or $18 if you register before September 1.

Get started on those costumes and be sure to attend–Splicer Phil knows where you live.

Our booth loomed over the entrance lobby in the Boston Convention Center–a fitting location for our Elizabeth actress and the massive statue of Him that greeted (and posed with) convention attendees.

Being located away from the show floor gave us a great opportunity to chat informally with fans and give away some Dog in a Wheelchair shirts. All of you who visited really made all the planning and preparation worth it. Except for our tireless Elizabeth, everyone at the booth was an Irrational Games employee, and we were all humbled by the enthusiasm and passion of the fans.

We saw people from across the gamer spectrum: casual players all the way up to ambitious cosplayers and tattooed super-fans. At one point, G4 even came by the booth to film a massive gathering of costumed attendees depicting characters from dozens of games.

There were plenty of moments that stuck with those of us manning the booth, including the father named Andrew Ryan with a son named Jack Ryan (really!), the amazing tattoos of Jordan Hill, the story of how BioShock led one man to meet his significant other, and the memory of Ken Levine signing some fans’ chests…both female and male.

On Saturday night, we held a fan party at M.J. O’Connor’s Irish Pub. A couple hundred fans joined a group of Irrational staffers for a night of discussion, drinking, board games, and giveaways.

The atmosphere was relaxed and conversational–exactly what we were hoping for. And after a raffle, a few lucky fans walked away with some coveted prizes: a BioShock Little Sister statue; a Murder of Crows vigor bottle; and a signed, framed print of one of Robb Water’s Game Informer covers. (Check out Irrational community member Syclone’s video of the proceedings.) All attendees were given a BioShock Infinite poster and a t-shirt.

To everyone we met at the booth and the party: thank you! It was the first time we’ve had this kind of presence at a big fan event, and thanks to our fans, it couldn’t have gone better. We can’t wait for the chance to do it again.

Head over to our forums to discuss your PAX East experience. There’s a thread for general impressions from the convention, one about Irrational’s presence, and one with reports from the fan party.

Join Irrational creative director Ken Levine and a cast of personalities from G4 this Saturday at PAX East for G4 Feedback Live at 3:30pm in the Manticore Theatre.

Ken will chat with G4’s Adam Sessler, Kevin Kelly, Matt Keil, and Nikole Zivalich about pretty much anything relating to video games–the G4 folks promise “honest thoughts, obscure literary references, and expert insight into the issues you really care about.” Check out the official PAX East schedule to plan out your expo weekend.

And don’t forget–on Friday at 5:00pm we’ll be hosting our own panel with Ken Levine, Nate Wells, Shawn Robertson, and Stephen Alexander. They’ll delve into the unique process of creating the world of Columbia for BioShock Infinite at Irrational.

As if that’s not enough, we’ll be handing out swag the whole weekend. Read up on how to get your own.

We’ll be giving away shirts at our booth at 1:00pm and 3:00pm every day of PAX East–Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Stop by the hard-to-miss statue of Him out in the North Lobby of the convention center to pick yours up.

On Friday and Saturday only at 1:00pm and 3:00pm, we’ll give away a few tickets to our invite-only fan event at M.J. O’Connor’s, in the Westin adjacent to the convention center.

A total of 9 lucky attendees will also walk away from the show with signed, NECA-made BioShock splicer masks. Until 11:45am each day, we’ll be giving away raffle tickets, and at noon each day we’ll pick 3 winners. Remember to be at the booth at noon–if your number is called and you aren’t there, we’ll pick someone else!

Finally, Ken Levine, Nate Wells, and Shawn Robertson will hold a signing session at 5:00pm on Saturday. Bring your copy of BioShock, other Irrational-made game, or Irrational stuff for them to sign!

The adorable pup on the shirt was created by Irrational artist Robb Waters, based on Shawn Robertson’s infamously discarded gatherer concept for the original BioShock.

See you at PAX! And don’t forget to attend our panel on world creation on Friday at 5:00pm in the Manticore Theater.



To make sure the early birds had a chance to get the worm as well, we selected these 20 winners from his first 200 followers:

@circadianwolf, @Daouzin, @iammigz, @Kusanavi, @clivecook, @bccook, @EmpireJones, @knueppelklaus, @Lejade, @Ansob, @Trachalio, @jsdc, @machetemasuno, @lucasrizoli, @fadc, @Delerat, @plantieri, @Blenkins, @thejoshfox, @MitchellMc

We also wanted to choose one early bird for a Crow Bottle too, as a special thanks. That winner is @RossLucksinger

So everybody gets what they like, these folks can choose between a signed by Ken poster or a signed  Irrational “Dog In A Wheelchair” t-shirt.

If your name is on this list, please get in touch with us by mailing information@irrationalgames.com and we will get this prize to you ASAP.

Irrational Games is coming out to PAX East in Boston, and we’d love to meet you.

You’ll be able to find us at our booth in the North Lobby of the Boston Convention Center. We’ll be overseeing a massive sculpture of Him, Elizabeth’s jailer and protector seen at the end of BioShock Infinite’s gameplay video. The sculpture will be accompanied by an actress playing Elizabeth herself–dressed in a costume hand-crafted by Irrational’s own Sarah Rosa. Fans who come by the installation can pose in His claw, chat with Irrational developers, and at 1:00pm and 3:00pm each day, pick up some nice swag.

On Saturday night, we’ll be taking over M.J. O’Connor’s inside the Westin Boston Waterfront Hotel directly adjacent to the convention center, to chat with fans, offer free food and drinks, play board games, and raffle off some very exclusive prizes. This is an invite-only event, and so far the response has been overwhelming. However, we will have a limited number of tickets to give to you at the show! Here’s how you can get in:

- On Friday and Saturday at 1:00pm, and 3:00pm we will give away tickets at our booth in the North Lobby.
- Before our panel on world creation begins, we’ll be handing out tickets to the first people standing in line–so get there early! The panel features Irrational’s Ken Levine, Nate Wells, Shawn Robertson, and Stephen Alexander. It will be held Friday, March 11 at 5:00pm.

There are also many ways to get your hands on Irrational swag at PAX East–don’t miss out!

Hope to see you at the show!

We are pleased to announce that on Saturday, during our joint panel with Game Informer at Penny Arcade Expo in Seattle, we will be screening that gameplay demonstration to the public for the first time. The session, “From Concept to Cover: The Game Informer Selection Process,” will feature team members from Game Informer and Irrational discussing how video game magazine covers are chosen, with examples drawn from the upcoming October issue of the magazine.

We’re looking forward to releasing the footage later this month for everyone to enjoy–and we’ll keep you updated on when and where that will happen once those details are locked down–but PAX attendees who show up for the Game Informer panel will have the first opportunity to see the world of Columbia explored in real-time.

When: Saturday, 1:30 PM – 2:30 PM

Where: Unicorn Theatre

Who: Andy McNamara [Editor In Chief, Game Informer], Andy Reiner [Executive Editor, Game Informer], Leonie Manshanden [Director of Marketing, Irrational], Shawn Robertson [Lead Artist, Irrational]

• Meet Irrational Games Staff
• Get sweet LOOT!!
• High Fives!

Come rain or shine!  6:00 PM on Friday!  Join the Facebook Event.

Game developers can’t stand those damned journalists, the way they pick apart your three years of hard work with a review they wrote in an afternoon. And journalists don’t understand why game developers won’t listen to all of their great ideas! What happens when we force some of the industry’s most opinionated writers and developers to hash out their issues in front of an audience? Will they finally see eye-to-eye, or kill each other in public? Watch as writers Chris Kohler (Wired.com) and Patrick Klepek (G4) square off against game creators John Drake (Harmonix) and another guest from the industry.

When: Friday 2:00pm – 3:00pm

Where: Manticore Theatre

Who: Tim Gerritsen [Director of Product Development, Irrational Games], Chris Kohler [Editor, Games, Wired.com], John Drake [Publicist, Harmonix Music Systems], Patrick Klepek [News Editor, G4], Jeff Green [Editor-in-Chief, EA]

Schwag

Irrational Games will be handing out all types of goodies to fans at PAX East.  Watch the @IrrationalGames twitter feed for real-time updates on our location in the event center, as well as code words to get good loot!

Fan Meet-ups

Irrational Games will be holding a meet-up each day of PAX East, to give you the chance to meet our staff.  Shake some hands, get your photo taken, exchange high fives and score more schwag!   Times and locations will be posted on IrrationalGames.com as well as on Facebook and Twitter.

Panels

Irrational Games is happy to be on some great panels at PAX East.   Be sure to get to these early as they could fill up quickly!

It’s Got A Good Beat, And I Can Kill Zombies To It

“Since the first kid heard the four-note Space Invaders theme blasting out the arcade doors, music has played a powerful role in the history of digital games. Join panelists Aubrey Hodges (Doom, King’s Quest, Spy Hunter, Madden NFL), Jim Bonney (Mortal Kombat, John Woo’s Stranglehold), Tom Salta (H.A.W.X, GRAW 1 & 2, Red Steel), Gene Rozenberg (Henry Hatsworth, Madden NFL) and Duncan Watt (League Of Legends, Brothers In Arms: Hell’s Highway, Need For Speed: Undercover), for an audiovisual trip celebrating great videogame music – from the past, to the present… and into the future. Audience discussion encouraged. “

When: Friday 3:00pm – 4:00pm

Where: Jamspace

Who: Irrational Games Audio Director Jim Bonney, with Duncan Watt of Fastestmanintheworld, composer Tom Salta, and Gene Rozenberg and Aubrey Hodges of 38 Studios

The Future of PC Gaming (Yes, there is one!)

“Will Moore’s Law run out of steam in 5 years or 15? With advancements in both hardware and software coming out seemingly on a daily basis, it can be tough to keep up with. Wondering what technologies will trickle down into your next computer, what software will power the games of tomorrow or how the gaming marketplace will change in coming years? Catch a glimpse into the computer gaming future with our panel of industry gurus.”

When: Friday 10:00pm – 11:00pm

Where: Wyvern Theater

Who: Irrational Games Lead Programmer John Abercrombie,  with Joe Kreiner of Terminal Reality, and Mitchell Shuster of LanSlide Gaming PCs.  Moderated by Jeff Kalles of Penny Arcade.

Podcasting (f)or PR

“Podcasting has become the new medium of choice for developers cultivating early relationships with “Alpha” gamers — those who influence the buying decisions of the unwashed masses. In this panel, we’ll talk about how firms like Irrational Games and Insomniac use in-house podcasts to keep their communities engaged, and how the media- and fan-affiliated podcasts rely on developers for a steady stream of content.”

When: Saturday 5:30pm – 6:30pm

Where: Naga Theater

Who: Irrational Games Creative Director Ken Levine and Podcast Producer Shawn Elliot, with Jeff Green from EA.com, Larry Hryb (a.k.a. Major Nelson) from Microsoft, and James Stevenson from Insomniac Games.  Moderated by Julian Murdoch from GamersWithJobs.com.

Sequelitis Snake Oil: Quack Medicine for the Video Game Industry

“Why do passionate gamers treat the word “sequel” as a pejorative while often bestowing their highest praise upon those very same sequels? This panel will seek to diagnose the video game industry’s purported “sequelitis” and – by way of discussion from thoughtful panelists, including Irrational Games’ Ken Levine; Harmonix’s Dan Teasdale; Giant Bomb’s Jeff Gerstmann; and moderator Chris Grant, from Joystiq – debunk the quack medicine that’s identified video game sequels to be symptomatic of the industry’s creative bankruptcy.”

When: Sunday 4:00pm – 5:00pm

Where: Manticore Theater

Who: Irrational Games Creative Director Ken Levine, with Chris Avellone of Obsidian Entertainment and Dan Teasdale of Harmonix.  Moderated by Chris Grant of Joystiq and Jeff Gerstmann of Giant Bomb.

Stay tuned to IrrationalGames.com for the latest information on panels, meet-ups, and schwag!