Remasters make sense for the new generation of consoles since early on both consoles lack backwards compability- though the Xbox One has been making strides to make more 360 games playable. But what about on PC? Since remasters sometimes make many background changes as well as the improved textures for higher resolutions, should someone who bought the game have to double dip and buy another copy? Since most folks on PC have already embraced digital distribution, this doesn’t make much sense.
Publishers 2K agree, so whoever already bought Bioshock 1 or 2 on PC, you are entitled to download remastered versions of the game, part of Bioshock: The Collection which also includes 2013’s Bioshock Infinite.
If you own them on Steam, you will receive the remasters added automatically into your library. It’s as easy as that!
If you own physical copies of the game instead, fret not, as there are methods to claim the free download of the remaster. For Bioshock 1, you need to send a ticket to 2K Support-plus all the details required and also the proof of purchase. If you bought the game nine years ago, some copies may not include CD keys, so it takes a bit of work to claim it.
For Bioshock 2 and its DLC Minerva’s Den, all the copies include a Games For Windows Live key, so just activate that key on Steam (in Activate A Product on Steam) and you should be good to go.
Here’s the full instructions over on Steam.
Not too hard, isn’t it? Good for 2K for honouring past customers who bought the games already on PC and treating them a free copy of the remasters. Getting two out of three games for free (Bioshock Infinite is not remastered on PC since it is still on par with the upcoming Xbox One and PS4 versions) from Bioshock: The Collection is a good deal. So if you happen to own either of them, maybe its the time to head down to Rapture and give it another look.
Bioshock: The Collection includes remasters of Bioshock 1, 2, Infinite and all its DLC (sans Bioshock 2’s multiplayer mode) will be released on 13 September, all for the price of one normal game disc for the Xbox One and PS4. Remasters of Bioshock 1 & 2 will be availalble on PC on the same date.