It looks like BioShock 4 is in a spot of trouble following a new update from one of its core developers.
BioShock 4 has been in development for a number of years, but aside from a few studio updates, we haven’t really heard anything regarding the upcoming sequel.
We’ve been aware of plans for a sequel to BioShock Infinite as early as 2014, when 2K stated that it would be “exploring the next BioShock” without Irrational Games’ input.
We know that BioShock 4 has been under development with 2K internal studio Cloud Chamber since at least 2018, though seven years later it seems as though the game is no closer to an official reveal.
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Now, a new update from one of BioShock 4’s core developers doesn’t necessarily spell good news for the project. Cloud Chamber went through a series of layoffs earlier this year, following reported efforts to “rework” the upcoming BioShock game.
It seems that BioShock 4’s narrative lead Liz Albl was part of those layoffs, as the writer announced on their LinkedIn that they had joined CD Projekt Red as a Senior Writer for Cyberpunk 2.
Albl was at Cloud Chamber for nearly three years working on BioShock 4, before leaving the company in August, hinting that they were also impacted by the redundancies.
Albl’s previous credits prior to BioShock 4 include Ghost of Tsushima, Watch Dogs: Legion, and Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag.
The writer was also at Monolith Productions for a time, working on the Wonder Woman game that was cancelled back in February.
BioShock 4 is being "reworked"
“Work on the next BioShock game has been underway for several years,” read an email sent by 2K president David Ismailer back in August.
“While we’re excited about the foundational gameplay elements of the project, we’ve made the decision with studio leadership to rework certain aspects that are core to a BioShock game, and in doing so are reducing the size of the development team to focus on this work and give the game more time in development.”
Meanwhile, former BioShock lead Ken Levine’s new game, Judas, appears to be in a similar state of troubled production.
Following Irrational Games’ rebrand to Ghost Story Games in 2017, Judas was officially announced at The Game Awards in 2022.
It was originally intended for release by the end of Take-Two’s 2025 fiscal year, which ended in March this year. However, there hasn't really been any new information regarding the release since then.