System Shock pre-orders go live next month, and will include the game's "final demo"

News
By published

"The feedback we’ve received for the previous demos has been invaluable to us"

A screenshot from a recent System Shock remake demo
(Image credit: Nightdive Studios)

It's almost here, folks – pre-orders for the System Shock remake go live at the end of next month. 

Available from Steam, Epic Games Store, and GOG, pre-orders will open "near the end" of February and come bundled with the game's "final demo", said to include the medical level, cyberspace level, "full dismemberment, all newly recorded voice lines, and a ton of additional features and polish". 

"We will still improve on the experience as we get closer to launch so please check it out and share your feedback with us on Discord," Nightdive Studios said in a recent update on the Kickstarter. "The feedback we’ve received for the previous demos has been invaluable to us and we greatly appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts. Console versions of the demo will come later."

But that's not all. 

"We’d like to announce that anyone who pre-orders System Shock remake will receive System Shock 2: Enhanced Edition for free and all Kickstarter/Backerkit backers who backed at the $30 level or higher will also be receiving SS2:EE for free," the studio added.

"It’s our intention to release both System Shock remake and SS2:EE around the same time. SS2:EE has evolved into more than what we were intending. This will be a complete source port to our KEX engine. All the character and weapons models are being remade, and we’ve received permission from the Shock community to include many of the mods that have become standard for many Shock 2 veterans."

ICYMI, System Shock 2 Enhanced Edition will include VR support, as Nightdive recently confirmed with a brief clip of VR gameplay. The clip shows one developer using the motion controls on a Valve Index VR joystick to attack one of the game's iconic Blue Monkeys with a wrench.

As for the beleaguered third instalment of the franchise? Our last update was in May 2020, when System Shock 3 developer OtherSide Entertainment announced that publishing giant Tencent "will be taking the System Shock franchise forward".

As Austin reported at the time, while OtherSide's announcement was vague, many assumed this meant a total buyout. However, Nightdive Studio CEO Stephen Kick subsequently confirmed on Twitter that Nightdive still owns the System Shock franchise and IP itself. 

Nightdive Studios it was also re-releasing System Shock 2, too. 

Looking for something new to get stuck into while you wait? Here are the best PC games right now.

See more Games News
Vikki Blake
Vikki Blake
Weekend Reporter, GamesRadar+

Vikki Blake is GamesRadar+'s Weekend Reporter. Vikki works tirelessly to ensure that you have something to read on the days of the week beginning with 'S', and can also be found contributing to outlets including the BBC, Eurogamer, and GameIndustry.biz. Vikki also runs a weekly games column at NME, and can be frequently found talking about Destiny 2 and Silent Hill on Twitter. 

Latest in Games
Palworld
"We hit this disgusting number that makes me feel sick": Palworld devs don't know why their survival game was so successful - "If we knew how to do it, we'd do it again"
Palworld
Nintendo's Palworld lawsuit "came as a shock" to Pocketpair because patent infringement was "something that no one even considered"
Palworld screenshot showing a young woman with tied-back red hair petting her Pal, a large white and purple Xenogard
Palworld dev reckons "very few companies could survive" a launch like theirs: "A lot of companies might crumble under the threats, under the pressure, under the negativity"
I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream
For 30 years, PC gamers have been keeping this cult classic horror game based on a 58-year-old short story to themselves, but next week it's finally coming to consoles
A screenshot from No Man's Sky showing someone in a space suit stood amongst futuristic-looking architecture.
No Man's Sky programmer shares the "first 3D world" he co-created at 18 years old, which was "a foundational step for me from there to No Man's Sky"
Dragon Age: The Veilguard screenshot showing Solas, a pale bald Elven mage, wielding lightning-like powers while grimacing
Dragon Age The Veilguard's playtesters were initially confused about almost every aspect of the game's combat: "It's OK, sometimes we have to let it go"
Latest in News
Palworld
"We hit this disgusting number that makes me feel sick": Palworld devs don't know why their survival game was so successful - "If we knew how to do it, we'd do it again"
Palworld
Nintendo's Palworld lawsuit "came as a shock" to Pocketpair because patent infringement was "something that no one even considered"
Palworld screenshot showing a young woman with tied-back red hair petting her Pal, a large white and purple Xenogard
Palworld dev reckons "very few companies could survive" a launch like theirs: "A lot of companies might crumble under the threats, under the pressure, under the negativity"
I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream
For 30 years, PC gamers have been keeping this cult classic horror game based on a 58-year-old short story to themselves, but next week it's finally coming to consoles
Colin Farrell wins Golden Globe for The Penguin
Penguin actor Colin Farrell could be going from villain to hero as the star of DC's Sgt. Rock movie
A screenshot from No Man's Sky showing someone in a space suit stood amongst futuristic-looking architecture.
No Man's Sky programmer shares the "first 3D world" he co-created at 18 years old, which was "a foundational step for me from there to No Man's Sky"
More about games
Palworld

Nintendo's Palworld lawsuit "came as a shock" to Pocketpair because patent infringement was "something that no one even considered"

I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream

For 30 years, PC gamers have been keeping this cult classic horror game based on a 58-year-old short story to themselves, but next week it's finally coming to consoles
Palworld

"We hit this disgusting number that makes me feel sick": Palworld devs don't know why their survival game was so successful - "If we knew how to do it, we'd do it again"

See more latest
Most Popular
Palworld
"We hit this disgusting number that makes me feel sick": Palworld devs don't know why their survival game was so successful - "If we knew how to do it, we'd do it again"
Palworld
Nintendo's Palworld lawsuit "came as a shock" to Pocketpair because patent infringement was "something that no one even considered"
I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream
For 30 years, PC gamers have been keeping this cult classic horror game based on a 58-year-old short story to themselves, but next week it's finally coming to consoles
Palworld screenshot showing a young woman with tied-back red hair petting her Pal, a large white and purple Xenogard
Palworld dev reckons "very few companies could survive" a launch like theirs: "A lot of companies might crumble under the threats, under the pressure, under the negativity"
Colin Farrell wins Golden Globe for The Penguin
Penguin actor Colin Farrell could be going from villain to hero as the star of DC's Sgt. Rock movie
A screenshot from No Man's Sky showing someone in a space suit stood amongst futuristic-looking architecture.
No Man's Sky programmer shares the "first 3D world" he co-created at 18 years old, which was "a foundational step for me from there to No Man's Sky"
Dragon Age: The Veilguard screenshot showing Solas, a pale bald Elven mage, wielding lightning-like powers while grimacing
Dragon Age The Veilguard's playtesters were initially confused about almost every aspect of the game's combat: "It's OK, sometimes we have to let it go"
Robert De Niro and Debra Messing in The Alto Knights
Robert De Niro talks embodying his "mythological" gangsters in The Alto Knights, whose real conflict inspired The Godfather
Saints Row Review
Saber Interactive CEO says Saints Row had to die because the games were too expensive: "The days of throwing money at games other than the GTAs of the world is over"
Team Liquid clears Chrome King Gallywix
World of Warcraft's latest raid race ends in disappointment after 12 days with a final boss so lackluster the team who won was visibly confused to have beaten it