It’s been more than six years in the making, but an iOS version of Ken Levine and 2K’s classic first-person shooter Bioshock is finally arriving in the App Store. Currently, it’s just available in the New Zealand App Store, but it should work its way across the international time zones and eventually end up in the US App Store at 11EST tonight. If you’re curious how Bioshock translates to the iOS platform, check out our lengthy hands-on video from earlier this month which is embedded below.

Back in 2008 when an iOS port of Bioshock was originally announced, that caliber of game was simply mind blowing running on iPhone hardware. We’ve come a long way since then, so the impact isn’t quite as profound, but there’s still something magical about the idea of Bioshock in its entirety nestled comfortably in your pocket. Sure there are concessions, and the graphics have been dumbed down and virtual buttons are less than ideal for a game like this. As we’ve seen in pre-release coverage, how much those concessions will matter is subjective.

Personally, I don’t mind the graphical downgrade and I get along just fine with virtual FPS controls, but your mileage may vary. Obviously a PC or console would be the optimum place to play something like Bioshock, but the portability factor and the idea that this game will be exposed to an audience an order of magnitude larger than any it’s ever been exposed to before are really exciting prospects. To see how others are getting along with Bioshock on iOS, be sure to check out our forums, and check back later tonight when we’ll post when it and all this week’s releases hit the US App Store.

International App Store Link: Bioshock, $14.99 (Universal)