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System Shock remake will get a fully playable build by September 2018

Published: 18:51, 07 April 2018

System Shock's remake may have endured a scare in February, when development was briefly halted but Nightdive Studios' latest announcement will surely appease the game's Kickstarter backers - System Shock will be playable come September.

Nightdive claim they've been in touch with the gaming community, ensuring they're aware that System Shock remake is still in the pipes. However, the company needed to take a step back and rethink the project.

As a result, the studio shed some developers and reverted to the original idea, which is to ensure System Shock "adheres closely to the vision of the original System Shock, rather than the reinterpretation that we were previously working toward."

Night Dive Studios A ghoulish creature attacks the player in a room filled with technology System Shock Remake

The devs also commented on System Shock's switch from Unity to Unreal Engine, claiming that this doesn't mean they'll have to start over. In fact, they said the majority of work done on Unity has simply been re-used in the process.

As a result, the team have been "making significant progress in a very short amount of time", prompting the devs to announce a fully playable version of System Shock in September 2018. Note however that "most of the art won't be finished", but testers will be able to play it "from start to finish."

Night Dive Studios A room in System Shock showing the padded tiles, the odd and futuristic design of the game System Shock Remake

Initial testers of System Shock remake will be the company's highest tier backers so if you're dead set on becoming one, you better get to backin'. Nightdive said they'll be handing out invites in September, so if you have cash - there's still time.

The devs also claim to have spent a lot of time on rethinking System Shock's audio work, conceding that their Kickstarter music demo for System Shock remake has fallen way short of their intended mark. Namely, achieving high fidelity while retaining the old school feel has turned out to be more difficult than it seemed.

Night Dive Studios The original System Shock, an enemy attacks the player in a wacky corridor System Shock

that went into audio alone makes it pretty clear Nightdive are aiming to deliver System Shock in a much improved package, without sacrificing things that made the game special to begin with. Here's to that.

System Shock Remake gallery

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A man with an axe running through a forest in SCUM
The remake of System Shock by Night Dive Studios gallery with concept art

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