Published on Sep 08, 2022
The BioShock series has become one of the most recognisable and beloved in gaming history. The publisher, 2K, is still releasing updates to support the series fifteen years after it was first released. Or, more precisely, to make the games run through their launcher, as evidenced by the patch notes for both an older update and a new update (via PC Gamer), as indicated by the patch notes from both older updates and a new update. This time, the patch even went so far as to label it as a “Quality of Life Update,” when all it did was enable linking to 2K accounts and add the new launcher, which includes a store to purchase new content.
So, we are being forced yet again to use another game launcher, but what has fans pissed off is the fact that this new update has rendered the games unplayable for Linux users as well. Initially, it seemed that only Bioshock Infinite was affected by the issues, but now it appears the entire series is a bust due to all the problems. The Linux Gaming subreddit seems awash, with players decrying the changes and trying to find solutions. Several players are expressing their wish that Steam would make it possible for them to access older builds instead of being forced to use the most recent version of the game, and I’m kind of surprised that it didn’t already exist as an option.
It is not surprising that fans have taken to Steam’s review section to voice their dissatisfaction, with one user saying that 2K’s launcher is filled with bugs, crashes, and corrupted save files, among other issues.
