As promised, GameSpot has posted their first look at the new Irrational Games production, which is called BioShock. The Unreal engine powered first person action RPG takes place in a "mysterious genetic laboratory", which is inhabited by various creatures which at point were of the human kind, but definitely aren't any longer. BioShock isn't a sequel to the System Shock games, but Irrational does hope to "further the open-ended, emergent gameplay of the previous games".

While System Shock 2 represented what Irrational general manager Ken Levine describes as "a convergence of technology and commercialism" (that game took place on a corporate-sponsored starship), BioShock will instead represent "a convergence of technology and biological life," or more specifically, genetics. It's important to note: BioShock is not a sequel to any of the System Shock games, nor does it have any official relation to those games. But like the previous games, this one will offer a horror-themed gameplay experience in which what you observe, and what happens to you, will be tempered by your own choices. "[At Irrational], we think emergence is the future," says Levine.

You can also find a video interview with Irrational's Ken Levine on this GameSpot page.