Almost six years
ago our video game collections were graced with one of the greatest works of
modern gaming, Bioshock. A game with such immersive story and hauntingly beautiful
atmosphere it redefined the first person shooter genre. Not sense
Half Life 2 had we seen such an incredible FPS experience, and we haven't had
one of such magnitude since; until now. After years in development, delays, and
teasers, Bioshock Infinite has finally arrived. And not
only has it met our expectations, but surpassed them in every single way. The most discernible difference between Infinite and the previous two
games is the setting. While the first two take place in the underwater city of
rapture, this game takes place in the mysterious flying city of Columbia. It
was designed by a man named Comstock and was revealed at the 1893 world’s fair.
Comstock is a religious fanatic who has formed his own religion. It's
a strange combination of Christianity and American history where the founding
fathers have been elevated to Gods as well as naming himself a prophet. He aims
to make Columbia more American than America. The city is looked at as a utopia,
but you soon learn it's nothing more than a hell above the clouds. Just like
the rest of the United States at the time the city is extremely racist, with
whites at the top and people of color as well as the Irish at
the bottom. And these people can only get work as servants or in hard
labor. The racism is so extreme, most look at Abraham Lincoln as
a heretic and John Wilkes Booth as a hero. The city became
the pride of the United States, but after outrage over Columbia's involvement
in ending the Boxer Rebellion Comstock decided to secede from the
Union. And after that they just disappear. The game takes place in 1912
and follows a man named Booker DeWitt, a former soldier who has gambled himself
into unimaginable debt. He is sent to a lighthouse off the coast and is told
"bring us the girl and wipe away the debt." He is then
transported to Columbia and is amazed at what he sees. But when he arrives he
is labeled a false shepherd and is persecuted by
the people. Not even ten minutes and the people wanted his head on a pike.
After making his way to the monument of Columbia he finds what he's looking
for, a young girl named Elizabeth who has been kept locked up for as long
as she can remember. He learns that she has some unique abilities and is
initially freaked out. All he knows is that he need to get her out of Columbia
and into the hands of the people he owes money to, but Comstock refuses to let
her go without a fight. To put it lightly, Bioshock Infinite is one
of the most astounding games I've ever had the pleasure of playing.
Not since Red Dead Redemption have I seen a game with such rich and deep
characters and I don't think I've seen a game come close to the thematic
elements seen here. The game takes a critical look at society and what we've
done. It's not a game about choice, but about the choices we make as people. As
far as the technical aspects go I can't think of a game on the same level. The
graphics, the game play, and the environment work in such
perfect sync it's beautiful. The thing that originally
intrigued me about the game was the setting. Was Columbia going to be as
amazing as Rapture, fortunately it is. While Columbia lacks the creep factor
that made Rapture so appealing, it did bring a level of ingenuity and design that
works incredibly well. From the beautiful walkways to
the disgusting slums, Columbia never gets old. One of the biggest
problems people had with the original Bioshock was that it was too easy, but
Infinite manages to be challenging without aggravating the
player. The new powers are awesome and the new weapons are simplistic in their
design but fantastic in their execution. You can now use your powers in
combination like hurling a flock of crows at an enemy then setting the crows on
fire to do more damage. One of the coolest new aspects of the game is the
addition of the skylines, long rails suspended in the air that you can hook
onto at any time. They allow for fast paced and varied combat, as well as
helping you gain better vantage points and getting away from the fight in a
pinch if you need it. Also the addition of several new enemies is welcome, and
often they will appear in the middle of a fight and cause you to change
priorities. The often long combat sequences never get tiring. The
most drastic and biggest change in the game would be the addition of an
AI partner, Elizabeth. And I have never liked a computer controlled
partner so much. Not only is her character likable but she is very useful.
She never gets in your way, she can throw you ammo and health in the middle of
a fight, and collect money you don't find. And after a while you really start
to care for her and want to help try and figure out what she wants to know.
Bioshock Infinite is truly amazing; it hits the nail on the head in
every single aspect. My one complaint about the game would be that you can
carry only two weapons at a time, compared to the first two games when you can
carry all the weapons at once. But in the game you can upgrade your weapons,
and since you can only carry two it really makes you think about which upgrades
you get and what weapons you use most. But that's just a little thing and is by
no means a deal breaker. That one little thing aside I really can’t think
of any other criticisms about the game, it truly is perfect. It's not
just the best game I've played this year or even in the last couple years, it
is truly one of the greatest games I've ever played. 5/5
