''Bulletstorm'' is a 2011
first-person shooter
A first-person shooter (FPS) is a video game genre, video game centered on gun fighting and other weapon-based combat seen from a First person (video games), first-person perspective, with the player experiencing the action directly through t ...
game developed by
People Can Fly
People Can Fly is a Polish video game developer based in Warsaw. The studio was founded in February 2002 by Adrian Chmielarz, previously the co-founder of Metropolis Software, together with acquaintances Michał Kosieradzki and Andrzej Pozna� ...
and
Epic Games
Epic Games, Inc. is an American Video game developer, video game and software development, software developer and video game publisher, publisher based in Cary, North Carolina. The company was founded by Tim Sweeney (game developer), Tim Sween ...
and published by
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) is an American video game company headquartered in Redwood City, California. Founded in May 1982 by former Apple Inc., Apple employee Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer game industry ...
(EA). The
video game
A video game or computer game is an electronic game that involves interaction with a user interface or input device (such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device) to generate visual fe ...
is distinguished by its system of rewarding players with "skillpoints" for performing increasingly creative kills. ''Bulletstorm'' does not have any competitive multiplayer modes, preferring instead to include cooperative online play and
score attack modes. Set in the 26th century, the game's story follows Grayson Hunt, a
space pirate
Space pirates are a type of stock character from science fiction. A take on the traditional seafaring piracy, pirates of history or the fictional air pirates of the 19th century, space pirates travel through outer space. Where traditional pirate ...
and former
black ops
A covert operation or undercover operation is a military or police operation involving a covert agent or troops acting under an assumed cover to conceal the identity of the party responsible.
US law
Under US law, the Central Intelligence Ag ...
soldier who gets shot down on a war-torn planet while trying to exact revenge on General Sarrano, his former commander who tricked him and his men into committing
war crimes
A war crime is a violation of the laws of war that gives rise to individual criminal responsibility for actions by combatants in action, such as intentionally killing civilians or intentionally killing prisoners of war, torture, taking hos ...
and assassinating innocents.
Development of the game began in June 2007.
Adrian Chmielarz and
Cliff Bleszinski
Cliff Bleszinski (; born February 12, 1975), popularly known as CliffyB, is an American video game designer, known for his work on the '' Unreal'' and ''Gears of War'' series while at Epic Games. After leaving Epic in 2012, he co-founded Boss K ...
served as its director and designer respectively, while
Rick Remender, the author of ''
Fear Agent'', wrote the game's story. It was originally envisioned to be a cover-based
third-person shooter
Third-person shooter (TPS) is a subgenre of 3D shooter games in which the gameplay consists primarily of shooting. It is closely related to first-person shooters, but with the player character visible on-screen during play. While 2D shoot 'em ...
, though the core combat loop and gameplay perspective went through multiple revisions.
Pulp magazine
Pulp magazines (also referred to as "the pulps") were inexpensive fiction magazines that were published from 1896 until around 1955. The term "pulp" derives from the Pulp (paper), wood pulp paper on which the magazines were printed, due to their ...
s, ''
Burnout'', ''
Duke Nukem'', and ''
Firefly
The Lampyridae are a family of elateroid beetles with more than 2,000 described species, many of which are light-emitting. They are soft-bodied beetles commonly called fireflies, lightning bugs, or glowworms for their conspicuous production ...
'' all inspired the team during ''Bulletstorm''s development. The team experimented with competitive multiplayer modes and campaign cooperative multiplayer mode during production but decided to remove them because of technological constraints.
Upon its release in February 2011 for
Windows
Windows is a Product lining, product line of Proprietary software, proprietary graphical user interface, graphical operating systems developed and marketed by Microsoft. It is grouped into families and subfamilies that cater to particular sec ...
,
PlayStation 3 and
Xbox 360, the game received positive reviews from critics who praised its setting, graphics, action, pacing and gameplay, but was criticized for its story, short length, writing and multiplayer modes. It amassed a great deal of controversy with
Fox News
The Fox News Channel (FNC), commonly known as Fox News, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conservatism in the United States, conservative List of news television channels, news and political commentary Television stati ...
during its release window for its depiction of sexual jokes for humor. ''Bulletstorm'' was a
commercial failure for both
Epic Games
Epic Games, Inc. is an American Video game developer, video game and software development, software developer and video game publisher, publisher based in Cary, North Carolina. The company was founded by Tim Sweeney (game developer), Tim Sween ...
and Electronic Arts, selling one million copies by 2013.
Gearbox Publishing released a remastered version of the game titled ''Bulletstorm: Full Clip Edition'' in April 2017 for Windows,
PlayStation 4
The PlayStation 4 (PS4) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 3 in February 2013, it was launched on November 15, 2013, in North America, November 29, 2013, in ...
and
Xbox One
The Xbox One is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. Announced in May 2013, it is the successor to Xbox 360 and the third console in the Xbox#Consoles, Xbox series. It was first released in North America, parts of Europe, Austra ...
, and a version for
Nintendo Switch
The is a video game console developed by Nintendo and released worldwide in most regions on March 3, 2017. Released in the middle of the Eighth generation of video game consoles, eighth generation of home consoles, the Switch succeeded the ...
, titled ''Bulletstorm: Duke of Switch Edition'', in August 2019. A sequel was put on hold as the studio reallocated its resources to work on ''
Gears of War: Judgment''. A
virtual reality
Virtual reality (VR) is a Simulation, simulated experience that employs 3D near-eye displays and pose tracking to give the user an immersive feel of a virtual world. Applications of virtual reality include entertainment (particularly video gam ...
version of the game, titled ''Bulletstorm VR'', was released on December 14, 2023.
Gameplay
As a
first-person shooter
A first-person shooter (FPS) is a video game genre, video game centered on gun fighting and other weapon-based combat seen from a First person (video games), first-person perspective, with the player experiencing the action directly through t ...
, ''Bulletstorm'' focuses on combat. The game features eight weapons, each with their own distinct behaviors.
In addition to standard firearms such as
shotguns
A shotgun (also known as a scattergun, peppergun, or historically as a fowling piece) is a long gun, long-barreled firearm designed to shoot a straight-walled cartridge (firearms), cartridge known as a shotshell, which discharges numerous small ...
and
assault rifles
An assault rifle is a select fire rifle that uses an intermediate-rifle cartridge and a detachable magazine.C. Taylor, ''The Fighting Rifle: A Complete Study of the Rifle in Combat'', F.A. Moyer ''Special Forces Foreign Weapons Handbook'', ...
, the game features unusual weaponry such as the "Bouncer", which shoots explosive bouncing
cannonball
A round shot (also called solid shot or simply ball) is a solid spherical projectile without explosive charge, launched from a gun. Its diameter is slightly less than the bore of the barrel from which it is shot. A round shot fired from a lar ...
s, and the "Flailgun", a cannon that shoots
bolas
Bolas or bolases (: bola; from Spanish and Portuguese ''bola'', "ball", also known as a ''boleadora'' or ''boleadeira'') is a type of throwing weapon made of weights on the ends of interconnected cords, used to capture animals by entangling ...
weighted by grenades. Each weapon has an alternate fire mode that uses "charges"; for example, the Screamer
revolver
A revolver is a repeating handgun with at least one barrel and a revolving cylinder containing multiple chambers (each holding a single cartridge) for firing. Because most revolver models hold six cartridges before needing to be reloaded, ...
's "charge shot" turns the weapon into a
flare gun
A flare gun, also known as a Very pistol or signal pistol, is a large-bore handgun that discharges flares, blanks and smoke. The flare gun is typically used to produce a distress signal.
Types
The most common type of flare gun is a Very (s ...
that ignites an enemy and sends them into the air.
The playable character is equipped with an "instinct leash" that allows him to pull enemies towards him; an upgrade unlocks the "Thumper", which slams down a ball of energy that launches all nearby enemies and explosive barrels into the air. The player can also kick enemies or run and slide into them. If an enemy is launched into the air from the whip or by being kicked/slid into, they go into slow motion, allowing players to perform "skillshots". Skillshots reward the player for killing opponents in the most creative and unusual ways possible. Points are awarded for various actions, such as killing enemies in midair, making use of environmental hazards such as kicking enemies towards spikes and impaling them, or using a weapon's distinct feature.
The more complicated or unusual the skillshot, the more points players acquire. Points are used as currency at "dropkits" scattered across the planet to purchase firearms, ammunition and upgrades.
Dropkit
checkpoints are also the sites where players can swap their weapons, access the Skillshot database, and view players' statistics.
Besides the single-player campaign, players can access two additional modes. In "Echoes", players must play through a single-player level and kill the enemies in the most unusual ways possible within a fixed period. Each player is given a rating on their performance, which is then uploaded to a
leaderboard. Another mode is "Anarchy", a four-player
co-operative multiplayer mode. In Anarchy, players must fight through waves of enemies and perform skillshots. When the group of players gains enough skillshots, they can then unlock new levels and arenas. The Anarchy mode has its own set of skillshots and a unique progression system.
Plot
''Bulletstorm'' takes place in the 26th century, where the universe is run by the "Confederation of Planets". Grayson Hunt (
Steven Blum
Steven Jay Blum (; born April 29, 1960) is an American voice actor. Known for his distinctively deep voice, his roles include Spike Spiegel from the anime series ''Cowboy Bebop''; Amon from ''The Legend of Korra''; Heatblast, Ghostfreak, and ...
) is the leader of Dead Echo, a black ops team under the command of Confederation General Victor Sarrano (
Anthony De Longis). Dead Echo assassinates a man named Bryce Novak and accesses his personal files; they discover Novak was not a criminal "separatist" as they had been told, but a civilian reporter, documenting evidence of Sarrano's corruption and his use of Dead Echo to eliminate his political and personal enemies. When Sarrano tries to have them killed for questioning him, Grayson and his team
desert
A desert is a landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions create unique biomes and ecosystems. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About one-third of the la ...
, flee to the edges of the universe, and become pirates.
Ten years later, the ship carrying Grayson (now struggling with
alcoholism
Alcoholism is the continued drinking of alcohol despite it causing problems. Some definitions require evidence of dependence and withdrawal. Problematic use of alcohol has been mentioned in the earliest historical records. The World He ...
), and his comrades Ishi Sato (
Andrew Kishino), Rell Julian (
Chris Cox), and Dr. Whit Oliver (
Robin Atkin Downes
Robin Atkin Downes is an English actor. He is known for his work in animation and video games.
Early life
Downes was born in London. He earned an MFA from Temple University in Philadelphia.
Career
Downes has voiced characters in animated f ...
) is intercepted by the ''Ulysses'', Sarrano's flagship, near the ruined planet of Stygia. In a drunken rage, Grayson attempts a suicide attack on ''Ulysses''. Both ships crash land onto Stygia, fatally wounding Ishi. Oliver sends Grayson and Rell to find an energy cell to power the ship's medical equipment so he can operate. Grayson locates an escape pod from ''Ulysses'' and retrieves its energy cell and a device called an "instinct leash". They return with the cell, and Doc manages to replace most of Ishi's body with cybernetics, including an AI processor for parts of his brain. However, in the middle of the operation, marauders break into the ship; Doc and Rell are both killed, and while Ishi survives, he is left permanently disfigured by the incomplete surgery.
Grayson and Ishi decide to work together to get off the planet, despite Ishi blaming Grayson for their friends' deaths. As they work their way towards the nearest city, the AI processor in Ishi's brain takes over several times, fueled by his anger at Grayson's selfishness and refusal to give up his vendetta. The instinct leash leads Grayson to another escape pod, where they find Trishka (
Jennifer Hale), a member of Final Echo, the unit that replaced Dead Echo. She agrees to work with Grayson and Ishi on the condition that they help her rescue Sarrano. Grayson eventually learns that Trishka was Novak's daughter; after Dead Echo inadvertently saved her life, she joined the military to hunt down the "separatists" who killed him. Grayson tells her that Sarrano was in fact responsible for her father's death, but lies about his involvement.
The three fight their way to Sarrano's escape pod, which landed on top of a skyscraper. Trishka holds Sarrano at gunpoint and demands answers; he manages to throw her off the roof and informs Grayson and Ishi that the ''Ulysses'' is carrying a "DNA bomb" designed to wipe out all life on Stygia so it can be repopulated. He claims that the bomb is damaged and that if it is not disarmed soon, they will die before help arrives. Reluctantly, the two fight alongside him to reach the wreckage of the ''Ulysses''. Sarrano tricks Grayson into arming the bomb and escapes, leaving him and Ishi trapped. Just as it seems they are about to die, Trishka, who turns out to still be alive, rescues them.
The three race to Sarrano's rescue ship and get on board just as it takes off. They fight their way through Sarrano's "Heavy Echo" troops and confront him on the ship's bridge. Trishka demands to know who killed her father, and Sarrano reveals that Grayson and his men did. An argument ensues, and Sarrano then uses his own instinct leash to hijack Ishi's body and force him to attack Grayson and Trishka. Encouraged by Grayson, Ishi manages to wrest back control and winds up taking a bullet meant for his friend. Enraged, Grayson impales Sarrano on the wall, but Sarrano is able to eject him and Trishka from the ship back onto Stygia's surface. Grayson and Trishka race back to the ''Ulysses'' and board an unused escape pod. They launch it into low orbit, with the explosion of the DNA bomb propelling the pod into space. As Stygia is slowly consumed by the blast, the two talk about Grayson's revenge, the loss of his team, and Sarrano still being alive. Trishka asks Grayson what he is going to do about Sarrano escaping, and the screen fades to black. In a
post-credits scene
A post-credits scene (also known as a stinger, end tag, or credit cookie) is a short teaser clip that appears after the closing credits have rolled and sometimes after a production logo of a film, TV show, or video game has run. It is usually ...
, it is revealed that Sarrano is now a cyborg due to the extent of his injuries. Ishi also survives, albeit under the full control of his AI processor.
Development

''Bulletstorm'' was developed by Polish game studio
People Can Fly
People Can Fly is a Polish video game developer based in Warsaw. The studio was founded in February 2002 by Adrian Chmielarz, previously the co-founder of Metropolis Software, together with acquaintances Michał Kosieradzki and Andrzej Pozna� ...
. They had previously created the ''
Painkiller
An analgesic drug, also called simply an analgesic, antalgic, pain reliever, or painkiller, is any member of the group of drugs used for pain management. Analgesics are conceptually distinct from anesthetics, which temporarily reduce, and in s ...
'' series, a
first-person shooter
A first-person shooter (FPS) is a video game genre, video game centered on gun fighting and other weapon-based combat seen from a First person (video games), first-person perspective, with the player experiencing the action directly through t ...
(FPS) designed for the PC. ''Bulletstorm'' was the studio's first
triple-A game.
Development began in June 2007, and the game enjoyed a roughly three-and-a-half-year development cycle. During the game's production, the studio had about 70 people working on it. The game was a collaboration between PCF and
Epic Games
Epic Games, Inc. is an American Video game developer, video game and software development, software developer and video game publisher, publisher based in Cary, North Carolina. The company was founded by Tim Sweeney (game developer), Tim Sween ...
, which had acquired a majority stake in the studio in August 2007.
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) is an American video game company headquartered in Redwood City, California. Founded in May 1982 by former Apple Inc., Apple employee Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer game industry ...
(EA) published the game under its EA Partners program, after being impressed by the studio's work on ''Painkiller''.
PCF's
Adrian Chmielarz directed the game, which was designed by Epic's ''
Gears of War
''Gears of War'' (also referred to as ''Gears'') is a media franchise centered on a series of video games created by Epic Games, developed and managed by The Coalition (company), The Coalition, and owned and published by Xbox Game Studios. The ...
'' creator
Cliff Bleszinski
Cliff Bleszinski (; born February 12, 1975), popularly known as CliffyB, is an American video game designer, known for his work on the '' Unreal'' and ''Gears of War'' series while at Epic Games. After leaving Epic in 2012, he co-founded Boss K ...
, and penned by writer and producer
Rick Remender. PCF confirmed on February 2, 2011, that ''Bulletstorm'' had declared
gold
Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...
, indicating it was being prepared for duplication and release.
Since ''Bulletstorm'' was the studio's first video game developed for home consoles, Epic Games helped PCF extensively when they were porting the game to
PlayStation 3 and
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. As the successor to the Xbox (console), original Xbox, it is the second console in the Xbox#Consoles, Xbox series. It was officially unveiled on MTV on May 12, 2005, with detail ...
.
Epic's own
Unreal Engine 3 rather than PCF's proprietary engine powered the game. This change allowed the team to create game demos quickly when they were pitching the project to publishers. The initial demo impressed Epic, who agreed to collaborate with PCF.
While PCF was the main developer of ''Bulletstorm'', Epic Games ensured that the game was high quality by providing feedback and engine support. Some of the game's development was outsourced to external companies in Germany, China, USA, Sweden, and Poland.
Epic, an esteemed developer, helped to secure a publishing agreement with Electronic Arts.
While there were communication troubles among the three companies initially, this problem eased when the studio streamlined the communication processes. Whereas EA and Epic had provided their feedback separately to PCF, the new communication model saw EA providing feedback directly to Epic, which would then integrate EA's feedback with their own and deliver it to PCF.
Regarding the collaboration with Epic, Chmielarz said that the studio "got some tough love from Epic and their uncompromising approach to quality", and suggested that it was "a fantastic lesson on what quality means".
Originally, the studio did not plan to have any unique gameplay feature or an ambitious goal for the game and only wanted to "offer a fun high adventure". The game was initially envisioned to be a
cover-based,
third-person shooter
Third-person shooter (TPS) is a subgenre of 3D shooter games in which the gameplay consists primarily of shooting. It is closely related to first-person shooters, but with the player character visible on-screen during play. While 2D shoot 'em ...
similar to ''Gears of War''.
The gameplay underwent multiple iterations, and as development progressed, it became a cover-based FPS. The team later decided to de-emphasize cover after they had created the weapons, as they felt the cover did not complement with the cover-based gameplay. The studio incorporated systems that would support
emergent gameplay
Emergent gameplay refers to complex situations in video games, board games, or role-playing games that emerge from the interaction of relatively simple game mechanics.
Designers have attempted to encourage emergent play by providing tools to play ...
.
''
Mega Man
''Mega Man'' (known as in Japan) is a video game franchise developed and published by Capcom, featuring the Mega Man (character), protagonist of the same name. The Mega Man (1987 video game), original game was released for the Nintendo Enter ...
'' inspired the slide mechanic, while
Scorpion
Scorpions are predatory arachnids of the Order (biology), order Scorpiones. They have eight legs and are easily recognized by a pair of Chela (organ), grasping pincers and a narrow, segmented tail, often carried in a characteristic forward cur ...
's spear in ''
Mortal Kombat
''Mortal Kombat'' is an American media franchise centered on a series of fighting game, fighting video games originally developed by Midway Games in 1992.
The original ''Mortal Kombat (1992 video game), Mortal Kombat'' arcade game spawned Lis ...
'' inspired the leash.
Through internal
focus testing
A focus group is a group interview involving a small number (sometimes up to ten) of demographically predefined participants. Their reactions to specific researcher/evaluator-posed questions are studied. Focus groups are used in market research ...
and seeing how fellow developers played the game, the team realized that "people were playing with their enemies like a cat plays with a mouse before he takes it out". This led to the creation of the Skillshots system, which aimed to reward players' creativity.
Bleszinski described the game as "the ''
Burnout'' of shooters", and cited ''
Duke Nukem'', ''
Firefly
The Lampyridae are a family of elateroid beetles with more than 2,000 described species, many of which are light-emitting. They are soft-bodied beetles commonly called fireflies, lightning bugs, or glowworms for their conspicuous production ...
'' and ''
Serenity'' as his inspirations.
While the studio had created a playable
team deathmatch
Deathmatch, also known as free-for-all, is a gameplay mode integrated into many shooter games, including first-person shooter (FPS), and real-time strategy (RTS) video games, where the goal is to kill (or "frag") the other players' characters as ...
prototype, they did not incorporate it into the final product because they believed that the market was crowded with competitive FPS at that time. The team created the Anarchy cooperative mode as an alternative. The development of Anarchy began during the late stages of production, and it catered only to hardcore players. He concluded it was the "wrong choice for the online modes" retrospectively.
Bleszinski added that the unusual firearms featured in the campaign would not translate well to a competitive game environment, and it would have required PCF to rework all the systems. The game initially had a cooperative mode that allowed friends to play through the campaign together, but it was cancelled after the team had realized that it shifted the game from "being this kind of puzzle shooter into essentially this downhill skiing simulator". Its removal allowed the studio to encourage players to use Skillshots more frequently and enabled the team to create more unique scenarios. The score attack Echoes mode was added in the last six months of production after seeing gamers and journalists competing against each other for high scores playing the game's
E3 2010 demo.
Chmielarz recruited Rick Remender in 2009, impressed by his work on comic book series ''
Fear Agent'' and ''Black Heart Billy''. Remender was invited to visit PCF's headquarters in Warsaw for a week and finished drafting the story with the game's team.
The game's story focused on "redemption and revenge", and the planet Stigya, a tourist paradise destroyed by a natural disaster of unknown origin, was to evoke the same feeling as ''
BioShock
''BioShock'' is a 2007 first-person shooter video game developed by 2K Boston (later Irrational Games) and 2K Australia, and published by 2K. The first game in the ''BioShock'' series, it was released for Microsoft Windows and Xbox 360 ...
''s
Rapture
The Rapture is an Christian eschatology, eschatological position held by some Christians, particularly those of American evangelicalism, consisting of an end-time event when all dead Christian believers will be resurrected and, joined with Chr ...
. Remender added that the story telling was not intended to be serious, and that the narrative relied a lot on
cliches.
The character Ichi was described as "Samurai
Spock
Spock is a fictional Character (arts), character in the ''Star Trek'' media franchise. He first appeared in the Star Trek: The Original Series, original ''Star Trek'' series serving aboard the starship USS Enterprise (NCC-1701), USS ''Enterpri ...
" while General Sarrano, who was initially only a placeholder villain, was described as a "classic psychopath" and "pure evil".
Pulp fiction
''Pulp Fiction'' is a 1994 American independent crime film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino from a story he conceived with Roger Avary.See, e.g., King (2002), pp. 185–7; ; It tells four intertwining tales of crime and violence ...
such as ''Juan Buscamares'' (a comic series published in January 1998 in ''
Heavy Metal'' magazine), ''
Indiana Jones
''Indiana Jones'' is an American media franchise consisting of five films and a prequel television series, along with games, comics, and tie-in novels, that depicts the adventures of Indiana Jones (character), Dr. Henry Walton "Indiana" Jones, ...
'', and
men's magazines
This is a list of men's magazines from around the world. These are Magazine, magazines (periodical print publications) that have been published primarily for a readership of Man, men.
The list has been split into subcategories according to the t ...
covers from 1920 to 1970 all helped inspire the game's narrative and visuals. The game was criticized on release for its heavy profanity; Chmielarz responded that as Poles, English's profanity was "exotic and fun to us" and he did not realize that the game had so much of it until he read the Polish translation. The team incorporated a language filter, though Chmielarz noted that few noticed its existence.
Release
In 2008, Electronic Arts announced it would be publishing a new
Intellectual property
Intellectual property (IP) is a category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognize more than others. The best-known types are patents, co ...
(IP) from independent game developer
Epic Games
Epic Games, Inc. is an American Video game developer, video game and software development, software developer and video game publisher, publisher based in Cary, North Carolina. The company was founded by Tim Sweeney (game developer), Tim Sween ...
. The name "Bulletstorm" was revealed when game developer
People Can Fly
People Can Fly is a Polish video game developer based in Warsaw. The studio was founded in February 2002 by Adrian Chmielarz, previously the co-founder of Metropolis Software, together with acquaintances Michał Kosieradzki and Andrzej Pozna� ...
filed a trademark request for the name in December 2009. Originally, Epic Games designer
Cliff Bleszinski
Cliff Bleszinski (; born February 12, 1975), popularly known as CliffyB, is an American video game designer, known for his work on the '' Unreal'' and ''Gears of War'' series while at Epic Games. After leaving Epic in 2012, he co-founded Boss K ...
was scheduled to announce the game alongside ''
Gears of War 3'' during an appearance on ''
Late Night with Jimmy Fallon
''Late Night with Jimmy Fallon'' is an American television talk show broadcast by NBC. The show was the third installment of the '' Late Night'' franchise. Hosted by Jimmy Fallon, '' on April 8, 2010. However, his appearance was delayed to April 12, 2010. The game was revealed before Bleszinski's scheduled appearance when gaming magazine ''
Game Informer
''Game Informer'' (''GI'' is an American monthly Video game journalism, video game magazine featuring articles, news, strategy, and reviews of video games and video game console, game consoles. It debuted in August 1991, when the video game reta ...
'' released its May 2010 issue, which mentioned the game on its cover.
EA provided extensive marketing for the game. Epic released a limited edition of ''Bulletstorm'' exclusively for the Xbox 360 known as the ''Epic Edition''. The ''Epic Edition'' includes bonus in-game content when playing ''Bulletstorm'' online, and early access to the multiplayer beta of ''
Gears of War 3''. In January 2011, a
viral video
Viral videos are video, videos that become popular through viral phenomenon, a viral process of Internet sharing, primarily through video sharing websites such as YouTube as well as social media and email.Lu Jiang, Yajie Miao, Yi Yang, ZhenZhon ...
for ''Bulletstorm'' was released, parodying the
''Halo 3'' "Believe" diorama. This was followed in February with the release of ''Duty Calls: The Calm Before the Storm'', a free downloadable PC game that parodies the ''
Call of Duty
''Call of Duty'' is a first-person shooter military video game series and media franchise published by Activision, starting in 2003. The games were first developed by Infinity Ward, then by Treyarch and Sledgehammer Games. Several spin-of ...
'' series as well as general first-person shooter clichés. Players who preordered the Limited Edition for the PC also received a free copy of
Klei Entertainment's ''
Shank''. A demo of the game, featuring one of the game's Echoes missions, was released on January 25, 2011, for the Xbox 360 and on January 26, 2011, for the
PlayStation 3. Following this announcement, Bleszinski wrote a
tweet on January 14, 2011, saying the demo was only for
PlayStation 3 and
Xbox 360, which game reviewers considered was a way of making fun of PC players. Epic Games' vice-president
Mark Rein later clarified that a PC demo would be released after the game's release. Epic released it on April 4; it featured the same level as the console versions.
The demo attracted more than two million players, though in hindsight, Chmielarz believed the demo had confused players, as the Echo mission did not adequately communicate the experience to the player.
The game was released for Windows, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360 on February 22, 2011. Ragdoll effects, blood, splatter and dismembering were initially
censored
Censorship is the suppression of speech, public communication, or other information. This may be done on the basis that such material is considered objectionable, harmful, sensitive, or "inconvenient". Censorship can be conducted by governmen ...
in the game's German version, despite the
German Entertainment Software Rating Board granting it an "Adult" rating. The German rating board later reversed its decision with ''Bulletstorm: Full Clip Edition'', which was allowed to be released uncensored. Both Bleszinski and Chmielarz criticized the game's marketing campaign, which focused extensively on the game's silliness and relied a lot on jokes.
The first
downloadable content
content (DLC) is additional content created for an already released video game, distributed through the Internet by the game's publisher. It can be added for no extra cost or as a form of video game monetization, enabling the publisher to gain ad ...
(DLC) for ''Bulletstorm'', titled ''Gun Sonata'', was released on April 14, 2011, for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360,
and on May 19, 2011, for the PC. The content includes three Anarchy maps, two Echo missions and two Leash colors.
The second DLC, ''Blood Symphony'', was released on June 10, 2011, for Xbox 360. The content includes two "Echoes" maps, three "Anarchy" maps, and a new mode called "The Ultimate Echoes".
Remastered version
Gearbox Publishing revealed the remastered version during
The Game Awards 2016
The Game Awards 2016 was an award show that honored the best video games of 2016. It was produced and hosted by Geoff Keighley at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles on December 1, 2016, and was live streamed across several platforms. During th ...
in December. It increased texture resolution and included support for
4K resolutions, and additional content created by People Can Fly. The remastered version includes new content such as the
Overkill Campaign Mode, which starts the players with access to all the game's weapons and six new Echo maps. Those who pre-ordered the game received access to the ''Duke Nukem's Bulletstorm Tour'' downloadable content, allowing players to play as
Duke Nukem with new voice lines recorded by
Jon St. John. Gearbox'
Randy Pitchford
Randall Steward Pitchford II (born April 21, 1971) is an American businessman. He co-founded the video game development studio Gearbox Software in 1999 and was president and CEO of the company until 2021, upon which he became CEO and president ...
explained that the remastered version was not a free update for those who already owned the game on Windows because the license was still held by Electronic Arts, and Gearbox had only secured the rights to help People Can Fly create the remaster. In addition, there were issues in transitioning from the discontinued
Games for Windows Live platform. Entitled the "Full Clip Edition", the remastered version was released on April 7, 2017, for Windows (with a ''Lite'' version, which only contains the campaign),
PlayStation 4
The PlayStation 4 (PS4) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 3 in February 2013, it was launched on November 15, 2013, in North America, November 29, 2013, in ...
, and
Xbox One
The Xbox One is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. Announced in May 2013, it is the successor to Xbox 360 and the third console in the Xbox#Consoles, Xbox series. It was first released in North America, parts of Europe, Austra ...
. Gearbox sparked
controversy
Controversy (, ) is a state of prolonged public dispute or debate, usually concerning a matter of conflicting opinion or point of view. The word was coined from the Latin '' controversia'', as a composite of ''controversus'' – "turned in an op ...
when they partnered with game key reseller
G2A for the sales of exclusive Collector's Editions of ''Full Clip Edition''. The studio ultimately canceled its agreement with G2A. A port of the ''Full Clip Edition'' for the
Nintendo Switch
The is a video game console developed by Nintendo and released worldwide in most regions on March 3, 2017. Released in the middle of the Eighth generation of video game consoles, eighth generation of home consoles, the Switch succeeded the ...
, titled ''Duke of Switch Edition'', was released on August 31, 2019.
VR version
On June 1, 2023, during the 2023 Meta Quest Games Showcase, a VR version, published by People Can Fly and developed by Incuvo, of the game was announced, using
Unreal Engine 4
Unreal Engine 4 (UE4) is the fourth version of Unreal Engine developed by Epic Games. UE4 began development in 2003 and was released in March 2014, with the first game using UE4 being released in April 2014. UE4 introduced support for Physically ...
. Initially set for release on December 14, 2023 on
Meta Quest 2,
Meta Quest Pro and
PlayStation VR2
The PlayStation VR2 (PS VR2) is a virtual reality headset for the PlayStation 5 and Personal computer, PC, developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment and released on February 22, 2023.
History and development
Development of PS VR2 took about s ...
, the date was later pushed back until January 18, 2024.
Reception
Critical reception
According to
review aggregator
A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews and ratings of products and services, such as films, books, video games, music, software, hardware, or cars. This system then stores the reviews to be used for supporting a website where user ...
Metacritic
Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...
, the game received generally positive reviews upon release.
The game's combat received acclaim. Writing for ''
GameSpot
''GameSpot'' is an American video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information on video games. The site was launched on May 1, 1996, created by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady, and Jon Epstein. In addition ...
'', Kevin VanOrd described the game as "sometimes ludicrous and often ludicrously fun". He praised the skillshot mechanic for tying into the upgrade system as this gave players an incentive to use them during combat. He also enjoyed the weapons, which enables players to fight against enemies in "intriguing" ways.
Tim Turi of ''
Game Informer
''Game Informer'' (''GI'' is an American monthly Video game journalism, video game magazine featuring articles, news, strategy, and reviews of video games and video game console, game consoles. It debuted in August 1991, when the video game reta ...
'' praised the game for offering players a lot of freedom when controlling Grayson, comparing the game favourably to ''
Mirror's Edge
''Mirror's Edge'' is a 2008 action-adventure platform game developed by DICE and published by Electronic Arts. The game was released for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in November 2008, and for Windows in January 2009. Set in a near-future city, i ...
''. He also applauded how the game allowed players to combine different moves together freely.
Rich McCormick of ''
PC Gamer
''PC Gamer'' is a magazine and website founded in the United Kingdom in 1993 devoted to PC gaming and published monthly by Future plc. The magazine has several regional editions, with the UK and US editions becoming the best selling PC games m ...
'' also liked the skillshot system for allowing players to use their creativity to eliminate enemies. However, he noted that this combat loop falls flat during the latter part of the game where players combat more agile mutant enemies.
Arthur Gies, an ''
IGN
''IGN'' is an American video gaming and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa district and is headed by its former e ...
'' reviewer, described the game as "violently charming". He felt the skillshot system, the weapons, and the responsive gunplay turned ''Bulletstorm''s combat into a success. He noted, though, that by the end of the game, the combat became monotonous and repetitive as the game failed to offer more diverse combat encounters.
David Houghton of ''
GamesRadar
''GamesRadar+'' (formerly ''GamesRadar'') is an entertainment website for video game-related news, previews, and reviews. It is owned by Future plc. In late 2014, Future Publishing-owned sites ''Total Film'', '' SFX'', '' Edge'' and ''Computer ...
'' compared the game to a "3D
puzzle game
A puzzle is a game, problem, or toy that tests a person's ingenuity or knowledge. In a puzzle, the solver is expected to put pieces together ( or take them apart) in a logical way, in order to find the solution of the puzzle. There are different ...
" and a "high-speed
strategy game
A strategy game or strategic game is a game in which the players' uncoerced, and often autonomous, decision-making skills have a high significance in determining the outcome. Almost all strategy games require internal decision tree-style think ...
". He described the game as "a very intelligent, highly intricate, and sumptuously nuanced design masquerading as a big dumb action game" and recognized that its gameplay helped evolve the FPS genre.
Critics also generally enjoyed the game's setting and pacing. VanOrd liked the variety in the game's mission design and felt that most of the missions were entertaining and exciting. Despite this, he was disappointed by the game's linear design, making it difficult for the player to control the battlefield when they were facing multiple enemies at once.
Gies, ''
Joystiq
''Joystiq'' was a video gaming blog which was part of the Weblogs, Inc. family later owned by AOL. It was active from 2004 to 2015, acting as the primary video game blog for the group, and operating alongside ''Engadget'' and sister blogs such ...
''s Randy Nelson, Christian Donlan of ''
Eurogamer
''Eurogamer'' is a British video game journalism website launched in 1999 alongside parent company Gamer Network.
In 2008, it started in the formerly eponymous trade fair EGX (Eurogamer Expo until 2013) organised by its parent company. Fr ...
'' praised the game's setpieces and pacing.
Both McCormick and Gies praised the game's visuals and the setting's color palette.
Nelson praised Stygia as a setting, describing the campaign as a "wild ride through some truly fantastic, alien locations".
Gies also appreciated the game's environmental storytelling, which helped establish Stygia's history and turned it into an interesting setting.
The characters and the writing in the game received a mixed opinion. The characters were conflictingly considered rounded or one-dimensional,
and VanOrd called the profanity-filled dialogue "cringe-worthy" and undermined the studio's attempt at serious storytelling.
Nelson, in contrast, believed the use of profanities fit tonally with the game and offered moments of levity following combat-heavy sequences.
Gies described the set-up as original and liked the characters, though he criticized the anticlimactic ending. Nick Chester, writing for ''
Destructoid
''Destructoid'' is a website that was founded as a video game-focused blog in March 2006 by Yanier Gonzalez, a Cuban-American cartoonist and author. Enthusiast Gaming acquired the website in 2017 and sold it to Gamurs Group in 2022.
Histor ...
'', said the entertaining story complemented the gameplay fairly well, though he noted the narrative relied on pulp fiction clichés and predictable plot twists.
Taylor Cocke of ''
1Up.com'' liked how the game parodied other FPS writing and that it broke free of a focus on melodrama. However, he remarked the story was overly serious, and the campaign was dragged down by the stark contrast between the tone of the story and the chaotic and creative nature of the combat.
The multiplayer component of the game received lackluster reviews. VanOrd felt the multiplayer was fun but limited in scope. He remarked that the experience, while mostly rewarding, could be frustrating if the players were joined by strangers. He added the mode's maps were too small and players may get bored easily because of a lack of variety.
Gies shared a similar sentiment, writing that Anarchy became repetitive very quickly. Gies labeled the absence of campaign co-op as a missed opportunity. While he called Echo a good inclusion, he was disappointed that the leaderboard was not incorporated into the game's main campaign.
Nelson liked the Anarchy mode for including new Skillshots, but called the Echo mode "cut-and-dry".
Donlan liked the Echo mode for being a distilled experience, which disregarded the story elements completely and compared the leaderboard competition favorably to that of ''
Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit'' and ''
Zuma Blitz''.
The remastered version also received generally positive reviews.
Scott Butterworth of ''GameSpot'' praised the upgraded textures and visuals, "impressive"
draw distance
Draw, drawing, draws, or drawn most commonly refer to:
* Draw (terrain), a terrain feature formed by two parallel ridges or spurs with low ground in between them
* Draw (tie), in a competition, where competitors achieve equal outcomes
* Drawi ...
and stable frame rate. However, he was disappointed that the Duke Nukem DLC did not meaningfully change the story or change the
cutscenes.
''IGN''s Lucy O'Brien praised the improved lighting system and believed that the improved visuals helped elevate the intensity and the urgency of the game's setpieces. However, she noted the original game showed its age due to the presence of
invisible walls
''GameTrailers'' (''GT'') was an American Video game journalism, video gaming website created by Geoffrey R. Grotz and Brandon Jones in 2002. The website specialized in multimedia content, including Trailer (promotion), trailers and gameplay f ...
and the lack of a dedicated jump button. She expressed her disappointment that PCF did not add much that was new to the remaster. Reviewing the Nintendo Switch version, PJ O'Reilly of ''Nintendo Life'' expressed his disappointment regarding the absence of multiplayer and the lack of gyroscopic controls. The VR version of the game was panned. Scott Hayden from ''Road to VR'' felt that the gameplay was "more tedious and less fluid overall", and remarked that the game was "not only uglier than the original, but less fun overall". Ian Higton from ''Eurogamer'' described it as an "incredibly sloppy, clumsily produced VR port".
Fox News controversy
On February 8, 2011, the game came under scrutiny by
Fox News
The Fox News Channel (FNC), commonly known as Fox News, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conservatism in the United States, conservative List of news television channels, news and political commentary Television stati ...
in an article on their website by John Brandon, a televised broadcast and another article. Part of a Fox News panel was psychologist
Carole Lieberman, who said, "The increase in rapes can be attributed in large part to the playing out of
exualscenes in video games". Her statement caused enraged gamers to
review bomb
A review bomb is a malicious Internet phenomenon in which a large number of people or Sock puppet account, a few people with multiple accounts post negative user reviews online in an attempt to harm the sales or popularity of a product, a service, ...
her book at
Amazon.com
Amazon.com, Inc., doing business as Amazon, is an American multinational technology company engaged in e-commerce, cloud computing, online advertising, digital streaming, and artificial intelligence. Founded in 1994 by Jeff Bezos in Bellevu ...
. Lieberman later responded by saying that her quotes were taken out of context by Brandon. Nonetheless, she continued to draw correlations between rape and sexual content in video games, claiming to have "thousands" of research papers supporting her claim. To support her claim, Lieberman referred to eight sources, one of them being ''Bulletstorm''. Gaming blog ''
Rock, Paper, Shotgun
''Rock Paper Shotgun'' is a British video game journalism website. It was launched in July 2007 to focus on PC games and was acquired by Gamer Network, a network of sites led by ''Eurogamer'', in May 2017.
History
''Rock Paper Shotgun'' ...
'' analysed Lieberman's claims, and found only one of eight sources she provided had anything to do with the subject at hand. ''
Kotaku
''Kotaku'' is a video game website and blog that was originally launched in 2004 as part of the Gawker Media network. Notable former contributors to the site include Luke Smith, Cecilia D'Anastasio, Tim Rogers, and Jason Schreier.
History ...
'' also quoted data from
US Department of Justice
The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a federal executive department of the U.S. government that oversees the domestic enforcement of federal laws and the administration of justice. It is equ ...
that the number of rape cases have been declining since 1973, though Lieberman disputed this by saying that the official rape statistics were "known to be variable and unreliable". Dr. Mark Griffiths, a professor at
Nottingham Trent University
Nottingham Trent University (NTU) is a public research university located in Nottingham, England. Its origins date back to 1843 with the establishment of the Nottingham School of Design, Nottingham Government School of Design, which still opera ...
, whose lectures focused on video game addiction, described Fox's news piece as "sensationalist" in a ''
Guardian
Guardian usually refers to:
* Legal guardian, a person with the authority and duty to care for the interests of another
* ''The Guardian'', a British daily newspaper
(The) Guardian(s) may also refer to:
Places
* Guardian, West Virginia, Unit ...
'' interview. He added it would be very difficult to prove that exposure to sexual content in video games contributed to rape crimes because of the large number of
confounding factors involved. Brandon followed up his report on February 20, adding that the gaming press "reacted violently" and the experts he had talked to "were nearly universally worried that video game violence may be reaching a fever pitch". ''Rock, Paper, Shotgun'' later contacted the experts, most of whom said they had never said there is a conclusive link between video game violence and real world violence.
EA defended the game's developers and the game. Its vice president of public relations, Tammy Schachter, wrote the publisher had followed the policies established by the ESRB and marketed the game only to a mature audience. She added that "much like Tarantino's ''
Kill Bill
''Kill Bill: Volume 1'' is a 2003 American martial arts action film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino. It stars Uma Thurman as the Bride, who swears revenge on a group of assassins ( Lucy Liu, Daryl Hannah, Vivica A. Fox and Michael ...
'' or Rodriguez's ''
Sin City
''Sin City'' is a series of neo-noir Comic book, comics by American comic book writer-artist Frank Miller. The first story originally appeared in ''Dark Horse Presents Fifth Anniversary Special'' (April 1991), and continued in ''Dark Horse Prese ...
'', this game is an expression of creative entertainment for adults." Epic's CEO
Mike Capps added that the Fox News controversy helped the game reach a wider audience, and he was delighted the gaming press helped defend the game. He noted his concern that the Fox news piece may mislead an uninformed public.
Sales
EA had high sales expectations for the game. David DeMartini, an EA executive, remarked the game had the potential to perform as well as the ''Gears of War'' games.
In the United Kingdom, ''Bulletstorm'' was the second best-selling video game in its release week behind ''
Killzone 3''. In the US, it was the seventh best-selling game in February 2011. It sold around 300,000 units in February; the Xbox 360 was the platform of choice for most players.
Capps added the game did not turn a profit for Epic,
while an unnamed source from EA revealed that the game "underperformed" for them. In 2013, it was revealed the game sold just under one million copies. Capps added that the game did not sell well on the PC, citing
piracy
Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and valuable goods, or taking hostages. Those who conduct acts of piracy are call ...
as the main reason behind its disappointing performance, though he admitted it was not a very good port. Chmielarz initially blamed the game's EA marketing, which reduced "fresh ideas to dick-jokes for dude-bros". He later recognized the game was the victim of an industry shift, as smaller-tier games were slowly being phased out. However, Sebastian Wojciechowski, the CEO of People Can Fly following their split from Epic, felt the game sold well, adding it would never be considered as successful or profitable as Epic's ''Gears of War'' series at the time.
''Bulletstorm: Full Clip Edition'' debuted as the 23rd best-selling game in the UK in its release week. Wojciechowski added that the sales of the remaster "went really, really well" and that it validated the studio's belief that it should do something with the IP in the future.
Sequel
According to Capps, the studio had begun development of ''Bulletstorm''s sequel but was sidelined as Epic assigned PCF to work on ''
Gears of War: Judgement'', a spin-off in the ''Gears of War'' series. PCF became independent in 2015 following a
management buyout
A management buyout (MBO) is a form of acquisition in which a company's existing managers acquire a large part, or all, of the company, whether from a parent company or individual. Management- and/or leveraged buyouts became noted phenomena of 19 ...
,
and it retained the
intellectual property
Intellectual property (IP) is a category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognize more than others. The best-known types are patents, co ...
rights to ''Bulletstorm''. Speaking about a potential sequel in 2019, Wojciechowski, said the studio wanted the IP to have a "second life" despite the fact that it was not the studio's short-term goal. Wojciechowski added that should the studio return to the IP, they would consider ways to make it more popular.
See also
*
List of commercial failures in video gaming
As a hit-driven business, the great majority of the video game industry's software releases have been failure#In business, commercial disappointments. In the early 21st century, industry commentators made these general estimates: 10% of published ...
Notes
References
External links
*
Bulletstormat
MobyGames
MobyGames is a commercial website that catalogs information on video game
A video game or computer game is an electronic game that involves interaction with a user interface or input device (such as a joystick, game controller, controlle ...
{{Authority control
2011 video games
Action-adventure games
Cooperative video games
Electronic Arts games
Epic Games games
First-person shooters
Games for Windows
Multiplayer and single-player video games
Obscenity controversies in video games
PlayStation 3 games
PlayStation 4 games
Science fiction video games
Unreal Engine 3 games
Unreal Engine 4 games
Video games about revenge
Video games developed in Poland
Video games set in the 26th century
Video games set on fictional planets
Windows games
Xbox 360 games
Xbox One games
Xbox One X enhanced games
Nintendo Switch games
PlayStation 4 Pro enhanced games
Virtual reality games