Introduction:
Developer Irrational Games and Publisher Take-Two Interactive stunned the gaming industry in 2007 when they released BioShock, one of the most critically acclaimed shooters of all time that captivated audiences with its dark, mature narrative, its smooth and exhilarating gameplay, and its setting Rapture, a dystopia at the bottom of the Atlantic Sea. This year, Irrational hopes to recapture the gaming industry with BioShock Infinite. Irrational’s ambition of weaving together a story with themes of racism, religious zeal, cultism, and what it means to be truly American has the potential to fail miserably into an offensive piece of garbage. After delays after delays, did BioShock Infinite reach its sky-high goals? Let us find out.
Story:
In BioShock Infinite, you play the role of Booker Dewitt, played by Troy Baker, who is sent to the flying city of Columbia to retrieve Elizabeth, a girl imprisoned in Columbia for unknown reasons, who is played by Courtnee Draper. This seemingly simple setup serves to introduce the player to the beautiful, yet dark world of Columbia. You must fight against the main antagonist, the prophet of Columbia, Zachary Comstock, a religious leader who is also fighting a civil war in the city. You arrive in the city in the midst of the war against the Vox Populi, the voice of the people. The Vox, led by Daisy Fitzroy, an African-American woman, seeks to kill off the leaders of the city in order to create a perfect society based on equality.
The organization seems to be pure at first, but as the story progresses, you discover the atrocities it has committed in the name of equality. This creates a sense of tension as you play through the game, but the character that really feels threatening was Songbird, a tragic half organic and mechanical bird-like creature that serves as Elizabeth’s jailer and also as her only friend for the period of time she spent being locked away in the flying city. This creates an interesting relationship between Songbird and Elizabeth as she must choose between betraying her only friend or the man who promises an escape from her world.
BioShock Infinite also has other interesting characters, such as Jeremiah Fink, the most powerful businessman in Columbia, and Lady Comstock, the prophet’s diseased wife, but the most interesting characters are by far the Lutece twins, Rosalind and Robert. These two physicists are responsible for Columbia being able to fly and many other dark experiments the player discovers as the game progresses. The twins’ constant amusement and dark banter solidifies them as the most interesting characters in the entire game. If there is anything I can complain about in the story is that players do not get enough of the characters. We never really learn about Fink’s background. Even though Songbird is easily the most menacing and tragic character in the game, the player only encounters Songbird three times. I finished the game with a want for more time with the character, but ultimately, this a minor complaint about a fantastic game.
Story: 9.3/10
Gameplay:
The original BioShock introduced powers, called plasmids, in addition to conventional first person weapons. Each plasmid’s unique ability encouraged experimentation and choice. By experimenting to find my own unique player style, I could focus my efforts on upgrading that specific power. This worked wonderfully in BioShock and continues to do so in BioShock Infinite.
BioShock Infinite refines the powers, this time named vigors, into truly unique assets that never overlap in function as they often did in the original BioShock. These powers are slowly introduced after about the first twenty minutes into the game. Discovering the best combinations of vigors for my play style always felt exhilarating even towards the end of the game.
Irrational has done a fantastic job with the vigors, but what about the guns? BioShock Infinite is a first person shooter game, after all. I am glad to say that Irrational has also cleaned up the shooting as well. I did not have to rely on only two overpowered weapons like I did in BioShock. Each weapon feels unique and substantial during combat, but that is not all. Irrational has also added skyrails to combat. You can use these rails to travel from building to building as you flea some of the tougher foes. These rails add vertical variety to the otherwise linear gameplay.
Fighting enemies felt incredibly natural and exhilarating, but BioShock Infinite is not without its faults. The one thing I have to complain about is that enemies never use vigors in any of the difficulty options. This adds to the feeling that you are an overpowered bullet-soaker when in reality you are just a man on a mission. This made the game a little bit too easy, but untimely I have little to complain about for the combat.
Combat: 9.0/10
Graphics:
Columbia’s stunning vistas and idealized American buildings are made possible by utilizing Epic Game’s Unreal Engine III, and for the most part, this is a good thing. The art style screams quality and time. You can tell how many hours were put into BioShock Infinite by looking around every corner only to find a consistent attention to detail.
Racist or xenophobic pieces of art are places all around Columbia to discourage racial mixing and encourage public service. This works only because of Irrational’s dedication. The game studio takes its work very, very seriously. These displays of propaganda work beautifully to sell you the world of Columbia and to produce a hatred for the main antagonist, Zachary Comstock. Watching Columbia go through its violent civil war produces mixed emotions as you stop to both think about the death and to take in the magnificent level design. Once again, Irrational has done a fantastic job in creating a twisted, beautiful world that you just cannot get enough of.
Graphics: 10/10
Sound:
Sound design often helps to immerse the player in the game world. The Original BioShock launched with a fantastic original score, and Garry Schyman returns to deliver another excellent original score. He creates satisfying resolution with just enough dissonance to remind the player of the flawed and dark world.
The atmospheric tension added by the music during combat helps to create a sense of speed and danger, which never goes away until you kill the last enemy in the area. Additionally, the music added during slower paced segments helps to soothe and transition the player into a much calmer mode where the player can absorb information.
This works best during a segment where you visit the prophet’s wife, Lady Comstock’s, memorial. Mozart’s fantastic Requiem slowly comes into prominence. This combines with the religious art to create an unforgettable moment in gaming. I remember just listening to the music and looking around at the art. Moments such as these evoke many emotions, and the player must determine how he has changed after playing that game. Overall the sound design is more than solid; it is incredible.
Sound: 10/10
Conclusion:
Irrational delivers another incredible game. Everyone who plays BioShock Infinite will be impacted in some form. I took away that the decisions mater and that every decision I make, good and bad, will form me into a distinct man. With BioShock and BioShock Infinite, Irrational has helped to define the current console generation. Both of these games will be remembered for years to come as some of the best video games ever created. Everyone, gamer or not, should play this game.
Final Averaged Score: 9.575/10
