KickStarter System Shock 1 Remake by Nightdive Studios

[Spukrian]

To be fair, the original Enhanced Edition is in a pretty shocking state right now (thanks NightDive!)

I've seen this stated before, what happened, what did they do?

 

[SomeGuyWithAnOpinion]

I don't see the issue with having animations. Personally, I despise instantaneous healing in games.

The issue isn't that there are animations. The issue is that the Remake is so full of animations that constantly play, to the point of being obnoxious.

Med patches heal over time in the Remake after the animation. They should have just cut the animation after the first use. Currently it takes an actual eternity to actually heal because you have to sit through the extremely long animation AND wait for the heal over time.

To be fair, the original Enhanced Edition is in a pretty shocking state right now (thanks NightDive!)

I've seen this stated before, what happened, what did they do?

They were having a problem where enemies were getting stuck on terrain, so they fixed it by making all entities update their movement at 30 fps. The player is an entity, so it results in jerky movement, which is very noticeable. The movement in general is quite scuffed actually. The player character has always been bouncy, but in EE the player seems to constantly bounce off walls to a shocking degree, it's like we're controlling a bumper car.

Furthermore, the reactor code randomisation is broken. On every playthrough you will always get the same reactor code every time.

https://steamcommunity.com/app/410710/discussions/0/412448158150855864/
https://steamcommunity.com/app/410710/discussions/0/3114773449967279006/

 

[Talby]

What's the point in adding a female hacker? It makes no difference for gameplay and it's a first-person perspective game, so you don't even see your character.

 

[Trithne]

What's the point in adding a female hacker? It makes no difference for gameplay and it's a first-person perspective game, so you don't even see your character.

They put it in as a stretch goal, and the backers got whiny that it wasn't in the final product.

Also troonism.

 

[Semiurge]

They were having a problem where enemies were getting stuck on terrain, so they fixed it by making all entities update their movement at 30 fps. The player is an entity, so it results in jerky movement, which is very noticeable. The movement in general is quite scuffed actually. The player character has always been bouncy, but in EE the player seems to constantly bounce off walls to a shocking degree, it's like we're controlling a bumper car.

What version introduced these changes?

 

[SharkClub]

Level design: Probably the biggest issue. All of the levels make absolutely no sense in this game. They are confusing, filled with back-tracking and offer no incentive to explore them.

Now this is a take I just do not understand. When you're talking about the Level Design in the remake you're also talking about it in the original game since it's like 90% the same and that's not even an exaggeration.

It's a sci-fi dungeon crawl in a space station, yeah sometimes the levels get a bit abstract for what they're meant to be but I distinctly remember the first time I played it being impressed at how the game managed to not let me get lost and confused, I was never lost despite how confusing the map layouts looked on paper, because the game (and the remake) have a very good sense of when to utilize landmarks, special objects and room/texture types to keep the player tethered in the otherwise mazelike layout.

Complaining the levels are filled with backtracking is basically speaking from a misunderstanding of what you were supposed to be getting. The game has more in common with Metroid than it does with BioShock, backtracking to open up new areas is part of the appeal.

And lastly I have no idea where you got the feeling that the exploration is unrewarding. The game almost forces you to clear every level to find as many of the cameras and nodes as you can, and destroying them should feel like a bit of a reward in itself in the context of the game - you are progressing, bit by bit, and as SHODAN's security deteriorates, your access to parts of the levels opens up to allow you to explore more and complete more objectives. But if the purity of progressing through the game via exploration wasn't enough for you the game also has a bunch of secrets and tucked away upgrades and weapons you can find, sometimes you'll find a secret weapon that you wouldn't normally find in a more visible/less missable form until a couple levels later and get to let loose with it on some of the lower tier enemies before the more suitable targets start to show up. If anything the remake even enhanced the loot you can find via exploration by giving you upgrades for your weapons, too. People can argue about the merits of the junk and currency system but the weapon upgrades make a nice reward for participating in it as well as exploring levels thoroughly to find them.

 

[SomeGuyWithAnOpinion]

They were having a problem where enemies were getting stuck on terrain, so they fixed it by making all entities update their movement at 30 fps. The player is an entity, so it results in jerky movement, which is very noticeable. The movement in general is quite scuffed actually. The player character has always been bouncy, but in EE the player seems to constantly bounce off walls to a shocking degree, it's like we're controlling a bumper car.

What version introduced these changes?

The current patch on both Steam and GOG has this issue. The previous patch had the enemies getting stuck issue, which was resolved by the current patch.

 

[Tavar]

Level design: Probably the biggest issue. All of the levels make absolutely no sense in this game. They are confusing, filled with back-tracking and offer no incentive to explore them.

Now this is a take I just do not understand. When you're talking about the Level Design in the remake you're also talking about it in the original game since it's like 90% the same and that's not even an exaggeration.

It's a sci-fi dungeon crawl in a space station, yeah sometimes the levels get a bit abstract for what they're meant to be but I distinctly remember the first time I played it being impressed at how the game managed to not let me get lost and confused, I was never lost despite how confusing the map layouts looked on paper, because the game (and the remake) have a very good sense of when to utilize landmarks, special objects and room/texture types to keep the player tethered in the otherwise mazelike layout.

Complaining the levels are filled with backtracking is basically speaking from a misunderstanding of what you were supposed to be getting. The game has more in common with Metroid than it does with BioShock, backtracking to open up new areas is part of the appeal.

And lastly I have no idea where you got the feeling that the exploration is unrewarding. The game almost forces you to clear every level to find as many of the cameras and nodes as you can, and destroying them should feel like a bit of a reward in itself in the context of the game - you are progressing, bit by bit, and as SHODAN's security deteriorates, your access to parts of the levels opens up to allow you to explore more and complete more objectives. But if the purity of progressing through the game via exploration wasn't enough for you the game also has a bunch of secrets and tucked away upgrades and weapons you can find, sometimes you'll find a secret weapon that you wouldn't normally find in a more visible/less missable form until a couple levels later and get to let loose with it on some of the lower tier enemies before the more suitable targets start to show up. If anything the remake even enhanced the loot you can find via exploration by giving you upgrades for your weapons, too. People can argue about the merits of the junk and currency system but the weapon upgrades make a nice reward for participating in it as well as exploring levels thoroughly to find them.

You're absolutely right that I also critique the original game at the same time. Keep in mind that I didn't play it at the time and that my first immersive sim was System Shock 2. As a result, I expected System Shock 1 to be more or less similar to its successor which might have been a mistake.

I've never viewed the game as a dungeon crawler, I expected a somewhat realistic world. I think the developers had the same goal, after all they even included toilets in their game world which you would never do in a pure dungeon crawler. For some reason though they nevertheless used a level design which you would never find in real life. The layouts are completely non-sensical, just look at how many different elevators you need to use to travers the station or how often you go up and down ramps for no reason at all. Maybe that was just the state of the art at the time. But I agree that the weird layouts are fine if you view the game as a dungeon crawler. That said, I still got frequently lost in the levels if I didn't play close attention to the map which is fine for a dungeon crawler but a bad sign for a somewhat realistic world.

Regarding the exploration: You're right, you can explore the levels to find more weapons, other items and to reduce the security levels. My issue with the exploration is that all of these things don't really matter. Finding a new weapon in this game isn't exciting as there are too many of them and they are also poorly balanced. Given how easy the combat is, a lot of items (e.g., batteries) just pile up in your inventory and become worthless quickly. Upgrades are the same, I don't think I even found an upgrade which excited me which is a steep contrast to SS2 where cyber modules are very valuable. I think the game needs a better combat system and a balance overhaul for exploration to be actually rewarding. But I can see that some players just like to expore for it's own sake.

All in all, I think our disagreement stems from our different expectations. System Shock 1 is probably a game which is difficult to assess if you didn't play it when it originally came out.

 

[Semiurge]

They were having a problem where enemies were getting stuck on terrain, so they fixed it by making all entities update their movement at 30 fps. The player is an entity, so it results in jerky movement, which is very noticeable. The movement in general is quite scuffed actually. The player character has always been bouncy, but in EE the player seems to constantly bounce off walls to a shocking degree, it's like we're controlling a bumper car.

What version introduced these changes?

The current patch on both Steam and GOG has this issue. The previous patch had the enemies getting stuck issue, which was resolved by the current patch.

Shit, I thought this thread was for the Nightdive remaster, not remake.

 

[gurugeorge]

All in all, I think our disagreement stems from our different expectations. System Shock 1 is probably a game which is difficult to assess if you didn't play it when it originally came out.

Yeah, in the context of the often bizarre and "meaningless" (or barely meaningful - or rather, to be precise, purely-shooter-gameplay-functional) level design of 3-d shooters at the time, System Shock's level design was very realistic.

 

[Tweed]

All in all, I think our disagreement stems from our different expectations. System Shock 1 is probably a game which is difficult to assess if you didn't play it when it originally came out.

Yeah, in the context of the often bizarre and "meaningless" (or barely meaningful - or rather, to be precise, purely-shooter-gameplay-functional) level design of 3-d shooters at the time, System Shock's level design was very realistic.

 

[Trithne]

Also there's an audiolog that states that SHODAN has bots rearranging the floors according to a design only she knows, although you'd expect that if that were fully the case the station would basically be unnavigable by a human.

 

[Infinitron]

Coming to consoles on May 21st, Patch 1.2 soon(tm)



https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1598858095/system-shock/posts/4048002

March 2024 Update​

Hello, Hackers!

We appreciate your patience in waiting for this announcement, and are delighted to share the exciting news regarding the release date of the System Shock remake on consoles. We’re also eager to address community questions regarding the upcoming Patch 1.2, shipping of physical goods, and more.

With that out of the way, let’s jump right into the announcements!

ANNOUNCEMENT #1: System Shock Remake Console Release Date​

Nightdive Studios and PLAION announced that the award-winning System Shock remake will be released on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Series X|S on May 21, 2024. But that's not all; fans and newcomers alike can look forward to an expanded ending, a new female hacker protagonist, and more! System Shock will be available in both physical and digital formats on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S. The game will be released in digital format only on the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.

ANNOUNCEMENT #2: Where is Patch 1.2?​

The PC version of Patch 1.2 will soon be released in the near future.

ANNOUNCEMENT #3: Physical Goods​

As shared previously, physical goods have been created and boxed. We’re still waiting on publisher certifications before pressing the game to disc, and are working closely with our publisher to complete this process as soon as possible.

F.A.Q​

​

Questions from the community

• When will the shipping of physical goods begin?

Once we pass certification, we’ll begin pressing discs and shipping out physical goods.

• Console announcement date?

The console release of System Shock Remake will take place on May 21, 2024 for Xbox and PlayStation consoles.

• When will additional stretch goals be implemented?

Stretch goals such as the ability to select gender are currently included in the 1.2 patch.

That’s all for now!

Thank you,

- Team Nightdive Studios

 

[kites]

Announcing the details of the PC patch in the December update and saying it will be held for “console parity” was stupid of them. I didn’t think it would take this long..

 

[Katana1000S]

Crazy hard game to beat, esp in later cyberspace levels and this was on easy level ... I'm an elderly Gamer, will be 65 soon, but still enjoy a mentally challenging game such as this.

Back in the day, in the 90's and on a home built PC 486/dX2 and so forth, beat the game on hardest level, no problem, but the later cyberspace levels in new game and on easy level are completely Bonkers and borderline impossible without the use of a cheat engine, and that's what I finally did in order to progress.

I have the latest Xbox and may try it there, perhaps if they balance the cyberspace difficulty levels a bit better, because quite frankly, it was a damn pain in the ass to get through in order to progress to end of game.

Someone earlier in the thread, or maybe somewhere else, somebody mentioned a potential HI res graphic pack for this game ??? I'd like to see that ... but yeah, a damned good game, spoiled somewhat by the overly tedious and difficult annoying Cyberspace levels and some are needed to get a code to progress, bad game designer choice IMHO ... must be hundreds who made it so far and thought Fuck It I'll play something else.

 

[DJOGamer PT]

Shame about the physical copy being only available to backers

 

[Baron Tahn]

Dammit the only thing I am waiting for was the mention of a gamepig! They mentioned it before last patch, then it didnt happen. Nightdive is going into my sin bin if they dont do it this time.

 

[randir14]

The PC patch will be released before the console version comes out:

 

[Infinitron]

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1598858095/system-shock/posts/4063728

Physical copies shipping soon, please complete this BackerKit survey before April 1st​

Hello again, Hackers!

We’re excited to share the good news that we’ll begin shipping out physical copies of System Shock very soon! In order to make this process as smooth and easy for everyone as possible, we’re asking that you take a moment to complete one final BackerKit survey for us. With this survey, you’ll be able to confirm one last time that all of your order details, such as your shipping address, are correct and up-to-date.

BackerKit Survey: https://system-shock.backerkit.com/

If there’s anything you need to change or update, be sure to take advantage of this survey opportunity as soon as you can before everything is locked in on April 1st, 2024. After that time, no further changes can be made. Need help? Please refer to the following link for guidance on how to fill out your survey.

Survey Walkthrough: https://help.backerkit.com/article/390-390

Again, please keep in mind that after April 1st, 2024 you won’t be able to make any additional updates as we move into the next phase of shipping physical copies of System Shock. If you have questions or need additional help with this process please let us know in the comments, or by reaching out to our team through our support email (hello@nightdivestudios.com).

Thank you to everyone for your patience as we’ve worked to get your physical rewards prepared and shipped out!

- Team Nightdive Studios

 

[cvv]

Where's my SS2 remaster that I got for free for pre-ordering this?

 

[Grunker]

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1598858095/system-shock/posts/4063728

Physical copies shipping soon, please complete this BackerKit survey before April 1st​

Hello again, Hackers!

We’re excited to share the good news that we’ll begin shipping out physical copies of System Shock very soon! In order to make this process as smooth and easy for everyone as possible, we’re asking that you take a moment to complete one final BackerKit survey for us. With this survey, you’ll be able to confirm one last time that all of your order details, such as your shipping address, are correct and up-to-date.

BackerKit Survey: https://system-shock.backerkit.com/

If there’s anything you need to change or update, be sure to take advantage of this survey opportunity as soon as you can before everything is locked in on April 1st, 2024. After that time, no further changes can be made. Need help? Please refer to the following link for guidance on how to fill out your survey.

Survey Walkthrough: https://help.backerkit.com/article/390-390

Again, please keep in mind that after April 1st, 2024 you won’t be able to make any additional updates as we move into the next phase of shipping physical copies of System Shock. If you have questions or need additional help with this process please let us know in the comments, or by reaching out to our team through our support email (hello@nightdivestudios.com).

Thank you to everyone for your patience as we’ve worked to get your physical rewards prepared and shipped out!

- Team Nightdive Studios

why are we bumping the thread for shit like this?

 

[Tweed]

why are we bumping the thread for shit like this?

Because the check cleared.

 

[Non-Edgy Gamer]

My rant about the Diversified Shodan was more interesting than this lame survey.

Keep the prestigious magazine nonsense to the news forum.

 

[Grunker]

why are we bumping the thread for shit like this?

Because the check cleared.

I’d respect the hustle if that was the case. Unfortunately, only autism is to blame

 

[Infinitron]

It's a Kickstarter update, therefore it's relevant.

Patch 1.2 coming April 11th: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1598858095/system-shock/posts/4069347

April 2024 Update​

Hello, Hackers!

With the console release of System Shock on May 21 fast approaching, we’re delighted to share some good news with you. From physical copies shipping soon, to the PC patch rolling out next week, we hope you’ll be as excited as we are to dig into the latest update for System Shock.

Ready? Let’s jump right into the latest announcements!

ANNOUNCEMENT #1: Physical Copies Shipping Soon​

We know we keep saying “soon” but we really do mean it — physical copies will be shipped out very soon! As shared in our previous update, to get ready for this, backers were given one final survey opportunity to lock in their information through Backerkit.

This opportunity to update your information has since closed as of Wednesday, April 3rd. No further changes can be made as the shipping process begins. With that being said, if you run into any issues with your shipment or have any questions, please reach out to us at hello@nightdivestudios.com.

As soon as we’re able to share exact dates for when you can expect to receive your items in the mail, we’ll be sure to pass that info along to you.

ANNOUNCEMENT #2: Console Release Date Reminder​

We’re a little over a month away from the release of System Shock on consoles and want to confirm the release date of May 21 as previously shared by us at Nightdive and the team at PLAION remains unchanged. System Shock will land on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S on May 21.

ANNOUNCEMENT #3: PC Patch 1.2 Arriving Next Week​

We appreciate your patience on this and can now confirm that patch 1.2 for System Shock on PC is ready and set to roll out later next week on April 11. For more on what’s included in the patch, check out the official Steam announcement which includes the full 1.2 patch notes!

FAQ
​

Questions from the community

• When will the shipping of physical goods begin?

Now that everyone’s information has been updated, the shipping process will begin soon, please keep an eye out for additional information including when you can expect your items to arrive.

• Will I get both the PS4 and PS5, or Xbox One and Series X|S, versions of System Shock?

Purchasing the digital PS4 or PS5 copy will entitle you to both generational copies. Likewise, purchasing the digital Xbox One or Series X|S versions will grant you access to both via Smart Delivery.

• When will the 1.2 patch for System Shock on PC be released?

Patch 1.2 for System Shock on PC will be released next week on April 11.

• When will additional stretch goals be implemented?

Stretch goals such as the ability to select gender are currently included in the 1.2 patch for PC which is now set to release next week on April 11.

That’s all for now!

Thank you,

- Team Nightdive Studios