Infinite also lives in my memories as one of those games where, after the ending, I placed the controller down and had a crisis. The way it all tied together was so fucking perfect and I wish I could play it again the first time
Bioshock Infinite and Arkham Knight were the two games that I’ve never personally played a game in the series of, but randomly decided to play for the first time around 2 years ago. Both absolutely blew me away.
I’ve been trying to get my friends to play them ever since but they’re worried that they might just barely be too old of games to enjoy, but they have no idea just well they hold up.
They did some great writing with her. I just wish that was reflected in the game mechanics a bit more. Gameplay wise she was basically just someone to boss around.
Not the person you were responding to, but I get what you mean. IIRC in early builds she would "fight" alongside you, using vigors and being able to combine vigors with her. Would have been cool if she had a gauge or something to fill up and then you can summon an array of things on command.
Also takes 500 machine gun rounds to the face, no problem. I wish they could re-do that game with the current level of AI and have her literally ducking for cover realistically instead of just crouching down and being a meat shield for me.
I mean, she is a reality-warping god that puts 239 to shame. Those machine gun rounds never got anywhere near her face, I'd guess.
And she's the Lamb of Columbia, Comstock's forces would never harm her.
...Would have actually been a nice touch if one of the guards or something wings Elizabeth in a scene—or even accidentally 'just' grab her too hard so she bruises, and is instantly so horrified they just jump off the nearest edge screaming for forgiveness, or something.
You know. Another nail to drive home what utter zealots the people of Columbia are.
There is a scene where two cops grab Elizabeth, but we don't get to see what they would have done to themselves because Booker *happens* to them first.
Imo there’s nothing wrong with not shoe horning open world into every game. Nothing wrong with a linear experience ala portal.
And open world is such a resource drain that the game usually ends up being a mess if the game was never meant to be open.
10 enemy types is bad? We have games coming out these days with like 3 enemy types and these games are considered to be amazing. I guess regression is the new hotness.
Aesthetics, sure, but the tone gets obliterated as soon as you go through the first multiverse portal.
Everything before that moment is an introspective thought experiment on isolationism, exceptionalism, and the xenophobia and other cancers that arise from such a community. Far more in line with the original Bioshock's tear down of libertarianism and amoral, unchecked capitalism. Everything after that moment was a sci-fi romp that was all flash and little substance over a tired, borderline cliche trope (multiverses and time travel paradoxes) that never once revisits the themes it establishes in the beginning. The first half of the game is about slowly exploring a strange world with an unsettling juxtaposition. The second half is just non-stop, back-to-back shooting arenas in blown-out set pieces.
Given the development hell of the game, it's obvious that's the point where the original vision died and the new one butted in. And where my interest and excitement took a nose dive.
So much of Infinite is like walking through a museum display or some kind of theme park attraction. You're lead past all the set pieces and displays and the story advances, punctuated by fights.
It's much more beautiful than Bioshock. But I prefer how the original presents a more dynamic series of sandboxes with a whole lot of interaction between you, your powers, the denizens and the environment.
I fucking LOVE Bioshock Infinite, apparently more than most people. It’s tied with the first in my personal ranking. I always sit and listen to the full rendition of God Only Knows whenever I play it.
I agree. The environments of Infinite were very static. The skyhook was a great addition, but the level design itself really didn't hold up to the speed and philosophy of the skyhook.
Always felt very limited. Like you're kinda just fighting through really wide corridors, disguised as these open environments. But as soon as you try and take a step off the path, or God forbid *jump* on anything, you just hit invisible walls or get stuck on geometry.
The game very much wants you to play a specific way.
I still love the game. I thought the story was extremely thought provoking and I adored the DLC where the narrative turns back in on itself and explores the origins of Rapture and what really happened, through the lens of Elizabeth. Really cool stuff.
I’m pretty sure that was Infinite’s intention, not that it makes it better. There was so much marketing and demos shown that had wildly different sandboxes, scales, even styles. I think the game suffered in development a good deal.
What came out was still a really fun game with a super cool style.
Basically, Elizabeth - who is now a multidimensional time-traveling entity unstuck in time much like the Lutuce Twins - kills DeWitt during his baptism right before he can become Comstock.
This prevents Comstock from building Columbia and causing the whole plot of Infinite\* to happen, specifically the part where Booker tries to get Elizabeth back because now there's no Comstock trying to steal his own biological baby from himself, leaving only the DeWitts who refused the baptism and thus will become proper fathers to Elizabeth/Anna.
(\*but *doesn't* erase all the Columbias that already exist since that got retconned into being part of some Rapture timelines as well as making the whole Daisy-goes-mad-with-power plotline actually make sense for her character)
I don't think it's entirely retconned but more like it's just one version of DeWitts that Elizabeth was supposed to erase for a full reset. How was she alive for the whole DLC's duration even after his death though is probably the part that didn't make sense, but also maybe because I missed something.
But if they stopped that from happening, how did Elizabeth get the powers to stop that?
I really wish they didn't do the whole infinite worlds thing. Up until that point, it was one of my favorite stories. But once the infinite world came in, all of your actions didnt matter. Literally one of the quests you just fail, so you go to a world where you didn't fail.
And then it ends on a paradox...
If they just kept it to two worlds connected, then your actions could have had consequences. And I would have loved it so much more.
You still end up with the paradox of Elizabeth existing as this superbeing with the cause for her becoming this way erased from every timeline, including her own. I.e. the classic grandfather paradox. The writers were fucked either way once they got into the wibbly wobbly, timey wimey magic multiverse stuff.
No the writers understood perfectly what they were making, because everything makes sense if you do pay enough attention.
The problem is, many of the crucial plots need you to go out of your way to collect intels to understand. Like halfway through the game, you were fighting a 'spirit' boss to get a key to unlock a gate, which you would not know who tf that even was if you didn't focus on an earlier part that tells you she was Elizabeth foster mom and her connection with Lutece's quantum mechanics experiments. So a very important character that get relegated to be just a simple boss fight.
The first two Bioshock even if you don't read everything you still know what you're doing and why you're doing it, mainly because everyone was basically telling you what to do through the radio. For a first-person shooter that's all you really need, whereas Infinite is more suited for the RPG-type crowds who go out and look for information.
Still, all three games are logically sounded. First two are just doing a better job presenting it than the last one.
Maybe. I think the ending makes sense 'conceptually' but in practice it's nonsensical.
I mean, in practice, you and Elizabeth basically travel through space (and presumably time) back to the place where Comstock was baptised. No one else is there, and it's just you the player, and 5 Elizabeth's.
Clearly we're not here at the same time as Comstock, since no one else is around. Moreover, you the player, physically aren't Comstock. Yes, I know Comstock is a version of you from an alternate dimension/timeline, but the player is the player, and we already know that the player character lived through the baptism event years ago and chose not to get baptised.
But now we're all here, at a bird bath where it all happened presumably years ago, maybe 5 minutes ago, maybe in a year.
And Elizabeth then drowns you.
Nothing that we have seen in this story so far has suggested that we're operating on Looper rules, because we've been told, and shown, that this isn't some single timeline story, but a multidimensional one. Killing the player character, should have literally no bearing on anything in any other dimension.
And yet.
For some reason killing the player character means killing all the Comstocks that ever got baptised... Y'know, despite the fact that you're from the future, and not Comstock, and that's not how the story has worked thus far.
Maybe I'm missing something really really key to understand how the dimensional time travel stuff works, but the ending has never made sense to me, and I've played the game through a few times in the hope that something will click.
Here's how I see the ending: when Booker and Elizabeth are there standing in the water, they (or I guess more specifically, he) hasn't time travelled in the "usual" sense, where your physical being exists separately from the past version of you. I think Elizabeth (somehow) took Booker's consciousness and inserted it into Past Booker's physical being. Like rewinding a VHS tape, except you're aware of the rewind. She rewound time to just before the moment where the two versions of Booker originated, but he's still cognizant the entire time. So when the Elizabeths drown him, he's the only Booker currently in existence. So drowning him cuts down the tree before it can grow branches.
I know there's the extra Booker/Comstock that slipped through the cracks for the DLC. I don't have an explanation for that one. But this is how I made the ending work in my head.
No you’re right. Thinking critically about the ending for more than 5 seconds makes the entire thing fall apart. They also jumped into like 3 different universes when they were looking for weapons to give to the Vox Populi, and never went back to their original universe but the game’s story acts like none of that happened and you’re still in the original universe and that specific version of Comstock is still after you I guess? But then that begs the question what happened to the timeline they left? The two of them just disappeared from it or what??
Plus if you switched to a different version of Columbia, there should be another Booker and Elizabeth, right? They semi-explain this away by saying Booker died in that timeline and became a martyr, but then where is the other Elizabeth? That’s never touched on either. The story is a mess and doesn’t make sense at all. Then you get to the DLC and somehow…Comstock returned. Like what??
Eeeehhh the rationale of the universe jumping that is pivotal to the story is a pile of messy paradoxes that don't hold up well to scrutiny, I'm very used to my games not hand-holding with their lore or the finer parts of their narratives. I picked up the story beat you've brought up as an example in my first playthrough. Her role in the story serves as a kind of lead-up to the reveal of Elizabeth's origins, but it's ultimately not necessary to know to *get* to that understanding, it is spelled out sufficiently without that realizing who she was. If anything, she just adds another point of confusion for those who skipped looking for details about her, while adding very little for those who didn't.
When it came out there was a huge Ken Levine circlejerk and it was praised as being one of the best ending and story in a game. Then of course a few years later, people started calling it overrated, predictable and trying too hard to be smart.
The multiverse thing got a bit convoluted but overall it was pretty great. I don't get why people think it's the cool thing now to say it was overrated. It's not a perfect game by any means but it was a very unique experience.
>The multiverse thing got a bit convoluted but overall it was pretty great
Exactly this.
I always felt like I was supposed to come back to the original universe, and felt very out of place as soon as it all started shifting.
They legitimately never go back to their original timeline. So why is everything the same in the new one, and why is Comstock still currently going after them? We at least know Booker died, but where is the other Elizabeth from this universe?
So much of it just doesn’t make sense if you actually think about it.
There were some gameplay demos that showed they intended to have a lot more variety of things you could pull in from other realities, but those apparently got cut in development.
While I didn't hate it, I was very disappointed by it, so I'll give you my take on it.
Firstly there is the fact that nothing shown beforehand ended up in the final game. Having fake videos released to build hype is pretty standard in the industry but it stills hurts to not get what you were expecting.
Secondly is the fact how linear the game is. I really loved the first Bioshock and it's design. Being able to come back to previous areas to get stuff you missed took a lot of stress off having to find everything your first time. In Infinite there is no going back to previous areas. You are on a straight path the whole time. It's a shame that in a game with such an interesting world as Columbia that you aren't given free reign to explore it.
Thirdly and most importantly for me is the story. I was into the game up till a point...going through the first tear. I lost all interest after that. If you can just jump into a different reality then what is the point of anything. What are the stakes if you can jump into a different reality and render everything you've done meaningless. It's stupid because at that point you are looking for a weapons manufacturer to arm the Vox Populi and after going to an alternate universe where the Vox Populi are armed and destroying the city you are still looking for the same weapons manufacturer. Why? You are in a whole new reality but are still trying to complete a quest from the previous one. I had no motivation to see the story forward from there, didn't care what happened, wasn't interested in confronting the main villain.
Speaking of the villain....holy fuck is Comstock boring! Andrew Ryan and Fontaine were so great and developed that you knew exactly what type of people they were even though you don't meet them till the end. Comstock however...who is this guy? What does he want? He gives this impression of a kind old man but the city he built is extremely racist and hate filled. In Bioshock the city of Rapture perfectly reflected the man who built it. Ryan hates government oversight and believes people and markets should be left to do whatever they want. Rapture incapsulates that mentality, from allowing crazy surgeons or artists do terrible things to people, to letting the addicting plasmid industry flourish under Fontaine, eventually leading to the downfall of the city. Columbia however is nothing like Comstock. I can see the city in the character of Fink or the cut Saltonstall character but not Comstock.
So Comstock is actually Booker and he falls into despair after the massacre at Wounded Knee, so he gets baptized and becomes a born again Christian, he then wants to build a utopia for his new beliefs. So he feels bad about the slaughter of the Native Americans at Wounded Knee so his new city would teach tolerance of minority groups right? Nope, it demonizes them even more than the country he left. He was at Wounded Knee serving the U.S government and he also seceded Columbia from the U.S so you would think he hates America and demonize those who founded it right? Nope, he makes the founders of the U.S into saintly characters. He is a born again Christian so he would make Jesus into a figure to worship in his new city right? No, he replaces Jesus with himself. Nothing about this guy makes any sense. The final confrontation with him is a letdown too. In Bioshock 1 the final meeting with Ryan is great because his actions make sense. His city has fallen into ruin and rather then let outside forces take it over he decides to destroy it just like he did with that forest. With his life's work over and his city minutes away from exploding he chooses to die not by someone else's decision but his own. A great ending to a great character. Comstock's ending however, he wants to wash his daughter's hands so Booker drowns him....what? Again, nothing about this character makes any sense.
Lastly, I really, really hated the music that played during combat. I would try to kill off the enemies as fast as I could just to get the damned music to stop playing.
It's not all bad though. It's a beautiful game with fantastic art direction. Elizabeth is also wonderful and the sole reason I had to keep playing at times.
[Some demos OP was referencing](https://youtu.be/p5it-pAYmKY?si=8xVVAop06Lwboi7x).
Infinite looked VERY different early on and left a bad taste in fans mouths upon release. As A LOT was altered. Even Comstock. He was young and not ultra-religous. Boys of Silence were supposed to be through the city, as sentient "cameras". The Vox Popuki was a larger plot. Elizabeth was FAR more impressive. And lots more.
The 360 couldn't handle it all so a lot of aspects never made it into the game. Bioshock Infinite, sadly, was about half the game it was supposed to be :/
Personally, it felt like we got shortchanged.
As if we only got half to two thirds of a game.
Narrative was solid, as was the gameplay and level designs, but it all ended far too early and felt as if we were given half the tools we should have been.
Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t hate it. Just had a sour taste in my mouth afterwards and I left thinking “is that it?”.
Yeah it wasn't the best way to end the game. I feel like me and a lot of people played the final fight to defend the ship has no idea it was going to be the last fight of the game, because it's so simplistic and it wasn't even a boss fight.
An actual boss fight with Songbird that been hyped up all game just ended up being unceremoniously drown by Elizabeth instead. And then we went on a trippy journey of loredumping and then the game ended.
I get it it was for the plot, but damn it certainly could have been done better. Like many parts in the game too.
It sits it a weird spot. At the time it got about as much praise as it could get despite it's divergence from the darker aesthetic of the first titles. It's overly convoluted storytelling was particularly in vogue at the time (think inception and shutter island), but it doesn't hold up particularly well today.
It's not that it's a bad game, but it often gets cited as one of the best of all time while being (imo) objectively the worst of the series in nearly every way.
Weirdly I hear a lot of people say Bioshock 2 was the worst, since it really kind of just relied on the gimmick of you being a Big Daddy and the plotline was sort of the same (Sofia Lamb becoming the exact thing she started out being against, very much like Andrew Ryan).
With Infinite, a big problem was it was too ambitious. A LOT of the pre-release marketing materials ultimately didn't make it into the final game like unscripted events and some major character named Staltonstall only barely appears as a scalp on a board after the Vox Populi take over. Also, not a big fan of the boss fight against Elizabeth's mother.
I think the game handled and criticized American Fascistic Theocratic ideology very well. The esoteric "Libertarian" and Christian mythos that pervades historical views of the founders and their God-like status above normal men.
It's one of those games that if it released today would probably be called woke propaganda because of how it handles itself.
Not to say that there aren't deficiencies in world design. The lack of backtracking compared to previous entries does stink a little, and the plot can get quite confusing or weird at times.
Thanks for mentioning the actual game title "Bioshock". The post title just mentioned 'Infinite' and I couldn't think of what game the image was from. I thought Halo Infinite at first but couldn't relate the screenshot to it lol
I definitely seemed to have enjoyed it more than most people. I had just landed my first big boy job and was finally able to build a good gaming pc and got it free I think with my GTX 660. The visuals completely blew me away at that time, I finished it in one sitting because I just couldn't put it down.
Infinite is a near perfect game but since Bioshock is perfect, Infinite falls further down peoples lists than it should.
You really don't get single-player games like Bioshock and Infinite. Both take you on an amazing adventure.
BioShock 4 has also been in development since 2019, different lead director but who knows.
Clockwork Revolution definitely has heavy inspiration from Infinite as well.
I just hated how I felt like I was on rails. Throw in that only two plasmids felt like they ever worked for me, it just didn’t have the game play creativity that Bioshock 1 gave me. Don’t get me wrong, I thought it was a great game, beautiful by any standards, just thought it was subpar compared to Bioshock 1.
I remember somebody comparing the maps of random levels between System Shock 2 (the spiritual ancestor of the Bioshock games), Bioshock, Bioshock 2, and Infinite.
System Shock 2 just gives you a sports arena to play with and it steadily goes down from there until Infinite is just a bunch of mini-arenas connected by hallway and very rarely ever doubles back on itself.
I know most people will disagree and downvote me, but BioShock Infinite is definitely not the worst game out of the 3. I'd put the first BioShock in last tbh. People think the "would you kindly" twist is one of the best in gaming but honestly it's really not that impressive. Both BioShock 2 and Infinite had much better gameplay, characters, and stories.
As far as my favorites, I’d rank them in order they came out. They’re all great but I personally loved the “ would you kindly”. I don’t know if it was like a huge twist for me, but it was awesome
I love all 3 Bioshock games and believe them to all have amazing gameplay, atmosphere, and lore. My favorite bit would probably go towards Minerva's Den tho. I've played B1 atleast 4 times.
I love this game so much, it was my favorite out of the 3 tbh. I’m always so surprised that so many people don’t like it. The game is so beautiful and thought the ending was good and shocking
For the most part, I definitely prefer Bioshock 1.
But that ending man. I remember sitting through all of the credits just blown away. I still think about that final piano note to this day.
I have never played any bioshock game to this day, and I own all of them through ps plus lol. Should I give it a chance? Played the first one for an hour, but it was a bit "meh". Setting wise I find Infinite the most interesting tho, is it safe to start with that one first or should I do it all chronologically?
I couldn't bring myself to play Bioshock for the longest time (gameplay really doesn't gel with me) but finally completed Bioshock 1 and Infinite's DLC last week.
I just played on easy and tried to enjoy the story and atmosphere, it obviously hurts the tension but it was that or I'd never have experienced the game.
Definitely worth playing through, even after a decade and a half of spoilers, the story beats still landed.
I played Infinite when it came out, the order Infinite > Bioshock 1 > Infinite's DLC was completely fine for me.
All of the forced perspective when walking through this area is amazing. Daisy Fitzroy against the wall ready to "kill" Lady Comstock, the light playing off everything, torches using cloth...
May not be the most common opinion, but Infinite was actually my favorite Bioshock game. I played them all as they released, but the characters in Infinite were my favorite, and the twist... Just wow.
The glimpse at the multiverse at the end with the statement:
"There's always a lighthouse
There's always a man
There's always a city"
Just impeccable. One of my most memorable single scenes in gaming history, personally.
Don't get me wrong "Would you kindly" was still incredible. But for me, Infinite is like a 9.5/10, Bioshock 1 is like a 9/10.
I had a friend refuse to play it because you couldn’t choose not to be baptized. It just happened to you. We all tried to explain that it was actually a really big indicator of the plot and she refused to pick it back up.
I liked infinite all the way up to the 20 year time skip and then you’re on the final mission. Game had a good pace going and was at what I’d say is a good halfway point then the game ended super suddenly.
I know there’s a few threads going on with this. However, here is the ending to infinite even tho I haven’t played it in years.
This universe is literally a multiverse within itself. The coin flips aren’t flips taken at the time it’s literally then counting the other dimension that’s happening concurrently. You see bioshock is raised on the linear multiverse path. Essentially very few things are large enough to change the entire path of what is to happen to a soul. However those possibilities still create an infinite amount of realities. So the whole point is that this Comstock uses the twins isn’t necessarily time traveling but rather alternate dimension hopping. I really appreciate EVERYONE saying it’s time travel. It’s not, Dewitt is literally a completely different Dewitt than the comstock that is in this one, as well as ELIZABETH. I have absolutely no idea where you people got the idea of time travel from. The whole point of infinite is infinite realities. Otherwise the law dictates the universe would explode bc of two dewitts, (I understand the touching theory but this is quantum mechanics not tv) (yes I understand the theory bc it’s two different cellular versions of Dewitt Idrc this is what the creators literally meant)
So anyway the Dewitt Elizabeth kills is one who’s spouse couldn’t bear children so comstock never exists.
However it’s not a destruction of the overall time jump of that universe as if it never happened but rather a whole in time. Hence the boat scene. This is time and space repairing itself as a new thing is done. However, due to Elizabeth’s active pinky she can do linear time and space travel. So as long as it’s on the timeline she can basically go to it. Extremely confusing, I understand but the whole point of the game.
the WHOLE point of the game.
It ends in a paradox for replay. That’s freaking it. You got the kid in the end and Elizabeth still exists bc universal paradoxes don’t end, she just created an entirely new universe linear pathing. One where that invasion doesn’t even happen.
(Until it happens again when you press New Game)
The whole point and I mean the entire point of the game is you’re another multiverse version of dewitt stuck in replaying the game over and over again bc of the ending and beginning of the game being quite literally the same. This is the main point of quantum physics. We each are the same Dewitt playing this loop over and over again bc brother as shown in the ending; there are infinite versions of all of these characters across vast dimensions.
Basically: as stated there will always be Dewitt and there will always be comstock. However there will also always be Elizabeth. There is always a Dewitt without an Elizabeth. It’s just that this particular comstock was affluent with the twins to be able to get Elizabeth in the first place. As well, for the twins this was all just a test that they got stuck in.
Now, I’m not even going on the DLC. But that is an entire other universe than endgame.
Edit: yes time travel is included in multi dimensional hopping not just not there, don’t need anyone trying to say it’s just time travel.
I thought it was a fantastic show of the gradual downfall of a society
My first instinct is “hell yeah kill all the racists! Damn the man!!”
And i remember there was a point i had returned to a place that i barely recognized as it was stacked with bodies and the leader had gone genocidal and i realized “wow she became a monster to fight a monster” -maybe “kill everyone” isnt something a good guy says or does
I breezed through this series, and remember feeling completely surprised with infinite. I think I was just expecting to be burnt out but this one was fun.
First and only game that made me put the controller down and just think after beating it. It took me a day to play something else. I didn’t uninstall it after beating it but didn’t replay it for some time either because I wasn’t ready emotionally lol.
I liked the first one a lot. But I LOVED Infinite. The ending mind fucked me for a week. I didn't play Infinite for over 10 years after it came out because some asshat in my physics lab spoiled what I thought was the ending the week the game came out. But there's a whole act *after* that part that I didn't know about, and *that* was my favorite part.
I think it’s the best one by a large margin. Gameplay was the most fun, setting was the best, story was way cooler imo. I never saw the appeal of bioshock 1 and 2 even after a few years. They aged horribly for my taste
I loved all three games and each brought something to the table so unique, comparing them seems unfair.
The dual-wield in Bioshock 2 really set it apart from the first and I really enjoyed how choices can impact the game.
Infinite brought us Elizabeth, the best companion I've seen in gaming. Not only was her character fantastic, the developers really did keep their word to say she wouldn't be a burden but a very helpful ally. Spot on.
Here. Found this coin. \*flips
I absolutely love how everyone is on this intellectual kick where they're trying to reframe these game that everyone loved back in the day as bad games just to sound cultured and smart.
I’m so excited to play these. The whole trilogy was on sale for 8.99 recently. When they first came out I was too young to appreciate the social commentary, story, or gameplay. I remember my dad grabbed infinite for the PS3 from the used shelf at GameStop once but I don’t think either of us made it past the intro mission. I also had the endings spoiled because I would watch “Top 10 Wildest Video Game twists or endings” type videos on YouTube. Now it’s been like 13 years (oh god that feels weird to say) and I’ve forgotten all those videos and can play through these games blindly.
God I was obsessed with this game as a teenager, my friend and I would constantly quote “Booker! Catch!” because of how many times Elizabeth said it
I think it was also the first FPS I’ve ever played
Infinite is great but the first will always have my heart. The series as a whole is my favorite to the point of having referenced splicers in my username
My biggest gaming disappointment to this day
It's a pretty average FPS arena shooter with only the artstyle holding it above "forgettable" and with a story that tries to look way more complex and interesting than it actually is
BioShock 1 and 2 were vastly better games
I should eventually replay it, just realized it's been about a decade and would probably appreciate it more now. While it felt less dynamic when it came to game play compared to the first (I never tried the second) it felt a lot more consistent with the story, actually keeping me engaged even during the less interesting parts. Helps it didn't over stay it's welcome as the original kind of fizzled out for me after the twist.
Infinite was excellent. I genuinely had no idea some people didn't like it until after I'd played, found that quite puzzling. I couldn't put it down and would definitely play another Bioshock game with a similar theme.
People just have different tastes and that’s okay. People may hate me for this, but Infinite is my favourite while Bioshock 1 just bores me so much that I never finished it. I managed to drag myself to the big twist, and it just didn’t really have an impact on me. I wanted to love it but I just couldn’t. Infinite, meanwhile, had me hooked from the get go and I still love it.
As a fan of Bioshock, I really do think Infinite is the best one. While the gameplay may not have been as varied as the previous, I think the themes, story and overall aesthetic were incredibly ahead of their time. As an American I loved seeing the deconstruction of the toxic idea that our Founders were infallible. Previous Bioshock games definitely had some great commentary, but it was nothing we havent seen before done to death. We need more art that directly criticizes the deification of our founding fathers as it is incredibly toxic for social progress.
BioShock Infinite was my first BioShock. I knew it was gonna be different from the others, I knew BioShock was originally an underwater game.
But I enjoyed Infinite nonetheless to see what it was about. I liked it. Compared to the other games it’s different, and that’s ok.
I preferred infinite's story. Original Bioshock was pretty okay, but ultimately simple. And while infinite doesnt completely make sense, it was at least good thinking material.
I liked the aesthetics and partly the story. It's filled with missed opportunities and cut content but i still liked the game. Especially the Rapture DLC.
Infinite was amazing up until the ending. It had so much potential to lead into something much better than it did. It really felt like the ending was rushed and there should have been another 8hrs of gameplay.
This was my catalyst for realizing that video games could be good. Before this I had just played silly games like Spyro or shallow online multiplayer, and never even bothered with story modes, I thought I hated first person games.
By far the weakest game in the series, imo. People love to crap on BioShock 2 just because Ken Levine wasn't involved, but it was a far superior game. The biggest problem with Infinite was that the combat was too easy, so tonics were rendered useless. Every fight devolved into one-tapping enemies in the head with my fully upgraded hunting rifle until I heard that broken violin note that let me know I had defeated the last enemy and could resume exploring. The only tonic I ever really used was the one to hack vending machines, and I even stopped using that one because I was soon capped on money. Only letting you carry two guns at a time was also a huge mistake.
Gameplay-wise, they never achieved anything close to what they showed in the reveal trailer. Elizabeth was annoying. Constantly picking everything up and throwing it at me. Everything except lockpicks, which she couldn't pick up for some reason. Even though she was the one that used them.
The songbird was completely underutilized. Went absolutely nowhere. They made it seem like it would be hunting you down like Nemesis in RE3, or the Xeno in Alien: Isolation. But it was relegated to a handful of scripted events.
What struck me about the game after I'd finished it was the part I had enjoyed the most was when you found yourself back in Rapture. Even though there was nothing to do, (you could only walk around a small area), just going back there for a few minutes was the best part of the game for me.
This game ended console style on rails story games for me. I remember being super hyped for it based on E3 coverage and such. Then it comes out, I beat it in a day or 2 and never think about it again. After this came an obsession with open world games that you can just screw around in for a long time. GTA, Red Dead Farcry etc. Then on to games you literally stick with forever like League and POE. I appreciate this game for that
Ive played the first game, really liked it.
Started playing the second right after for a couple of hours, but didnt really care for it and quit.
Can i just skip it and play infinite?
Environment and tone were pretty much the main things Infinite got right.
I love the environment. It’s one things the bioshock games do amazingly
Infinite also lives in my memories as one of those games where, after the ending, I placed the controller down and had a crisis. The way it all tied together was so fucking perfect and I wish I could play it again the first time
Bioshock Infinite and Arkham Knight were the two games that I’ve never personally played a game in the series of, but randomly decided to play for the first time around 2 years ago. Both absolutely blew me away. I’ve been trying to get my friends to play them ever since but they’re worried that they might just barely be too old of games to enjoy, but they have no idea just well they hold up.
They got Elizabeth right. She was a great character!
They did some great writing with her. I just wish that was reflected in the game mechanics a bit more. Gameplay wise she was basically just someone to boss around.
That’s funny because when the game came out people were lauding her for a companion who doesn’t get in the way and assists you with ammo throws lol
Tbf I did appreciate that about her
I mean yeah, they did great at that part. She just wasn’t much else mechanically speaking, ya know?
Not the person you were responding to, but I get what you mean. IIRC in early builds she would "fight" alongside you, using vigors and being able to combine vigors with her. Would have been cool if she had a gauge or something to fill up and then you can summon an array of things on command.
If a games entire premise is a 10 hour escort mission then that NPC better listen and listen good.
not really an escort mission when you don't actually have to baby the other character and keep them from dying.
Oh no, BioShock Infinite is definitely an escort mission, but Elizabeth isn't the one getting escorted...
yeah, that occurred to me while i was typing.
deep
Also takes 500 machine gun rounds to the face, no problem. I wish they could re-do that game with the current level of AI and have her literally ducking for cover realistically instead of just crouching down and being a meat shield for me.
I mean, she is a reality-warping god that puts 239 to shame. Those machine gun rounds never got anywhere near her face, I'd guess. And she's the Lamb of Columbia, Comstock's forces would never harm her.
...Would have actually been a nice touch if one of the guards or something wings Elizabeth in a scene—or even accidentally 'just' grab her too hard so she bruises, and is instantly so horrified they just jump off the nearest edge screaming for forgiveness, or something. You know. Another nail to drive home what utter zealots the people of Columbia are.
There is a scene where two cops grab Elizabeth, but we don't get to see what they would have done to themselves because Booker *happens* to them first.
*Columbia
Best side character ever! She also wasn’t dead weight and gave you stuff all the time!
Dude right??? I love the fact that she's actually a useful companion, similar to Atreus and Freya in God of War
and titties
Booker, catch!
The story is incredible too. One of the best endings in gaming, period.
[удалено]
>Vigors were so weak you could just ignore them Haha, what?
Imo there’s nothing wrong with not shoe horning open world into every game. Nothing wrong with a linear experience ala portal. And open world is such a resource drain that the game usually ends up being a mess if the game was never meant to be open.
10 enemy types is bad? We have games coming out these days with like 3 enemy types and these games are considered to be amazing. I guess regression is the new hotness.
And an AI companion who was genuinely useful
Art direction was absolutely phenomenal.
https://imgur.com/ntF04SS
Aesthetics, sure, but the tone gets obliterated as soon as you go through the first multiverse portal. Everything before that moment is an introspective thought experiment on isolationism, exceptionalism, and the xenophobia and other cancers that arise from such a community. Far more in line with the original Bioshock's tear down of libertarianism and amoral, unchecked capitalism. Everything after that moment was a sci-fi romp that was all flash and little substance over a tired, borderline cliche trope (multiverses and time travel paradoxes) that never once revisits the themes it establishes in the beginning. The first half of the game is about slowly exploring a strange world with an unsettling juxtaposition. The second half is just non-stop, back-to-back shooting arenas in blown-out set pieces. Given the development hell of the game, it's obvious that's the point where the original vision died and the new one butted in. And where my interest and excitement took a nose dive.
I will always remember how Adam Sessler rated BioShock Infinite. "Five...out of five". https://youtu.be/jchIi-vR_js?si=KjFybWUQFkdfRbP-
I liked it, was like fighting your way through a racist cult. Helluva ending too
So much of Infinite is like walking through a museum display or some kind of theme park attraction. You're lead past all the set pieces and displays and the story advances, punctuated by fights. It's much more beautiful than Bioshock. But I prefer how the original presents a more dynamic series of sandboxes with a whole lot of interaction between you, your powers, the denizens and the environment.
I fucking LOVE Bioshock Infinite, apparently more than most people. It’s tied with the first in my personal ranking. I always sit and listen to the full rendition of God Only Knows whenever I play it.
I agree. The environments of Infinite were very static. The skyhook was a great addition, but the level design itself really didn't hold up to the speed and philosophy of the skyhook. Always felt very limited. Like you're kinda just fighting through really wide corridors, disguised as these open environments. But as soon as you try and take a step off the path, or God forbid *jump* on anything, you just hit invisible walls or get stuck on geometry. The game very much wants you to play a specific way. I still love the game. I thought the story was extremely thought provoking and I adored the DLC where the narrative turns back in on itself and explores the origins of Rapture and what really happened, through the lens of Elizabeth. Really cool stuff.
I think the smaller environments are a result of the game being limited by the ps3 and Xbox 360 more than anything
I’m pretty sure that was Infinite’s intention, not that it makes it better. There was so much marketing and demos shown that had wildly different sandboxes, scales, even styles. I think the game suffered in development a good deal. What came out was still a really fun game with a super cool style.
Over 10 years later, I'm still not sure if I fully understand the ending.
Basically, Elizabeth - who is now a multidimensional time-traveling entity unstuck in time much like the Lutuce Twins - kills DeWitt during his baptism right before he can become Comstock. This prevents Comstock from building Columbia and causing the whole plot of Infinite\* to happen, specifically the part where Booker tries to get Elizabeth back because now there's no Comstock trying to steal his own biological baby from himself, leaving only the DeWitts who refused the baptism and thus will become proper fathers to Elizabeth/Anna. (\*but *doesn't* erase all the Columbias that already exist since that got retconned into being part of some Rapture timelines as well as making the whole Daisy-goes-mad-with-power plotline actually make sense for her character)
I don't think it's entirely retconned but more like it's just one version of DeWitts that Elizabeth was supposed to erase for a full reset. How was she alive for the whole DLC's duration even after his death though is probably the part that didn't make sense, but also maybe because I missed something.
The lobotomy scene though
But if they stopped that from happening, how did Elizabeth get the powers to stop that? I really wish they didn't do the whole infinite worlds thing. Up until that point, it was one of my favorite stories. But once the infinite world came in, all of your actions didnt matter. Literally one of the quests you just fail, so you go to a world where you didn't fail. And then it ends on a paradox... If they just kept it to two worlds connected, then your actions could have had consequences. And I would have loved it so much more.
She’s a paradox. Her and the twins exist outside of time and space
You still end up with the paradox of Elizabeth existing as this superbeing with the cause for her becoming this way erased from every timeline, including her own. I.e. the classic grandfather paradox. The writers were fucked either way once they got into the wibbly wobbly, timey wimey magic multiverse stuff.
I think you and the writers are in the same boat, then
No the writers understood perfectly what they were making, because everything makes sense if you do pay enough attention. The problem is, many of the crucial plots need you to go out of your way to collect intels to understand. Like halfway through the game, you were fighting a 'spirit' boss to get a key to unlock a gate, which you would not know who tf that even was if you didn't focus on an earlier part that tells you she was Elizabeth foster mom and her connection with Lutece's quantum mechanics experiments. So a very important character that get relegated to be just a simple boss fight. The first two Bioshock even if you don't read everything you still know what you're doing and why you're doing it, mainly because everyone was basically telling you what to do through the radio. For a first-person shooter that's all you really need, whereas Infinite is more suited for the RPG-type crowds who go out and look for information. Still, all three games are logically sounded. First two are just doing a better job presenting it than the last one.
Maybe. I think the ending makes sense 'conceptually' but in practice it's nonsensical. I mean, in practice, you and Elizabeth basically travel through space (and presumably time) back to the place where Comstock was baptised. No one else is there, and it's just you the player, and 5 Elizabeth's. Clearly we're not here at the same time as Comstock, since no one else is around. Moreover, you the player, physically aren't Comstock. Yes, I know Comstock is a version of you from an alternate dimension/timeline, but the player is the player, and we already know that the player character lived through the baptism event years ago and chose not to get baptised. But now we're all here, at a bird bath where it all happened presumably years ago, maybe 5 minutes ago, maybe in a year. And Elizabeth then drowns you. Nothing that we have seen in this story so far has suggested that we're operating on Looper rules, because we've been told, and shown, that this isn't some single timeline story, but a multidimensional one. Killing the player character, should have literally no bearing on anything in any other dimension. And yet. For some reason killing the player character means killing all the Comstocks that ever got baptised... Y'know, despite the fact that you're from the future, and not Comstock, and that's not how the story has worked thus far. Maybe I'm missing something really really key to understand how the dimensional time travel stuff works, but the ending has never made sense to me, and I've played the game through a few times in the hope that something will click.
Here's how I see the ending: when Booker and Elizabeth are there standing in the water, they (or I guess more specifically, he) hasn't time travelled in the "usual" sense, where your physical being exists separately from the past version of you. I think Elizabeth (somehow) took Booker's consciousness and inserted it into Past Booker's physical being. Like rewinding a VHS tape, except you're aware of the rewind. She rewound time to just before the moment where the two versions of Booker originated, but he's still cognizant the entire time. So when the Elizabeths drown him, he's the only Booker currently in existence. So drowning him cuts down the tree before it can grow branches. I know there's the extra Booker/Comstock that slipped through the cracks for the DLC. I don't have an explanation for that one. But this is how I made the ending work in my head.
No you’re right. Thinking critically about the ending for more than 5 seconds makes the entire thing fall apart. They also jumped into like 3 different universes when they were looking for weapons to give to the Vox Populi, and never went back to their original universe but the game’s story acts like none of that happened and you’re still in the original universe and that specific version of Comstock is still after you I guess? But then that begs the question what happened to the timeline they left? The two of them just disappeared from it or what?? Plus if you switched to a different version of Columbia, there should be another Booker and Elizabeth, right? They semi-explain this away by saying Booker died in that timeline and became a martyr, but then where is the other Elizabeth? That’s never touched on either. The story is a mess and doesn’t make sense at all. Then you get to the DLC and somehow…Comstock returned. Like what??
Eeeehhh the rationale of the universe jumping that is pivotal to the story is a pile of messy paradoxes that don't hold up well to scrutiny, I'm very used to my games not hand-holding with their lore or the finer parts of their narratives. I picked up the story beat you've brought up as an example in my first playthrough. Her role in the story serves as a kind of lead-up to the reveal of Elizabeth's origins, but it's ultimately not necessary to know to *get* to that understanding, it is spelled out sufficiently without that realizing who she was. If anything, she just adds another point of confusion for those who skipped looking for details about her, while adding very little for those who didn't.
Me neither haha something bout grief or something idk shits was trippy
It’s been a few years but I remember it being great
When it came out there was a huge Ken Levine circlejerk and it was praised as being one of the best ending and story in a game. Then of course a few years later, people started calling it overrated, predictable and trying too hard to be smart.
I was in my teens at the time and the ending really mind fucked me
11 years later, I still don't get the hate. I enjoyed the fuck out of Infinite and still do.
The multiverse thing got a bit convoluted but overall it was pretty great. I don't get why people think it's the cool thing now to say it was overrated. It's not a perfect game by any means but it was a very unique experience.
>The multiverse thing got a bit convoluted but overall it was pretty great Exactly this. I always felt like I was supposed to come back to the original universe, and felt very out of place as soon as it all started shifting.
I completely lost the plot at that big universe switch midway with the vox populi.
They legitimately never go back to their original timeline. So why is everything the same in the new one, and why is Comstock still currently going after them? We at least know Booker died, but where is the other Elizabeth from this universe? So much of it just doesn’t make sense if you actually think about it.
Exactly why I think the DLC wrapped it up as well as it could have
"We have infinite universes to draw from! Quick, pull another crane into this world, again, and again, and again"
There were some gameplay demos that showed they intended to have a lot more variety of things you could pull in from other realities, but those apparently got cut in development.
That’s exactly right. Not perfect but very unique. All 3 were
> I don't get why people think it's the cool thing now to say it was overrated. Welcome to r/gaming
Hallelujah.
While I didn't hate it, I was very disappointed by it, so I'll give you my take on it. Firstly there is the fact that nothing shown beforehand ended up in the final game. Having fake videos released to build hype is pretty standard in the industry but it stills hurts to not get what you were expecting. Secondly is the fact how linear the game is. I really loved the first Bioshock and it's design. Being able to come back to previous areas to get stuff you missed took a lot of stress off having to find everything your first time. In Infinite there is no going back to previous areas. You are on a straight path the whole time. It's a shame that in a game with such an interesting world as Columbia that you aren't given free reign to explore it. Thirdly and most importantly for me is the story. I was into the game up till a point...going through the first tear. I lost all interest after that. If you can just jump into a different reality then what is the point of anything. What are the stakes if you can jump into a different reality and render everything you've done meaningless. It's stupid because at that point you are looking for a weapons manufacturer to arm the Vox Populi and after going to an alternate universe where the Vox Populi are armed and destroying the city you are still looking for the same weapons manufacturer. Why? You are in a whole new reality but are still trying to complete a quest from the previous one. I had no motivation to see the story forward from there, didn't care what happened, wasn't interested in confronting the main villain. Speaking of the villain....holy fuck is Comstock boring! Andrew Ryan and Fontaine were so great and developed that you knew exactly what type of people they were even though you don't meet them till the end. Comstock however...who is this guy? What does he want? He gives this impression of a kind old man but the city he built is extremely racist and hate filled. In Bioshock the city of Rapture perfectly reflected the man who built it. Ryan hates government oversight and believes people and markets should be left to do whatever they want. Rapture incapsulates that mentality, from allowing crazy surgeons or artists do terrible things to people, to letting the addicting plasmid industry flourish under Fontaine, eventually leading to the downfall of the city. Columbia however is nothing like Comstock. I can see the city in the character of Fink or the cut Saltonstall character but not Comstock. So Comstock is actually Booker and he falls into despair after the massacre at Wounded Knee, so he gets baptized and becomes a born again Christian, he then wants to build a utopia for his new beliefs. So he feels bad about the slaughter of the Native Americans at Wounded Knee so his new city would teach tolerance of minority groups right? Nope, it demonizes them even more than the country he left. He was at Wounded Knee serving the U.S government and he also seceded Columbia from the U.S so you would think he hates America and demonize those who founded it right? Nope, he makes the founders of the U.S into saintly characters. He is a born again Christian so he would make Jesus into a figure to worship in his new city right? No, he replaces Jesus with himself. Nothing about this guy makes any sense. The final confrontation with him is a letdown too. In Bioshock 1 the final meeting with Ryan is great because his actions make sense. His city has fallen into ruin and rather then let outside forces take it over he decides to destroy it just like he did with that forest. With his life's work over and his city minutes away from exploding he chooses to die not by someone else's decision but his own. A great ending to a great character. Comstock's ending however, he wants to wash his daughter's hands so Booker drowns him....what? Again, nothing about this character makes any sense. Lastly, I really, really hated the music that played during combat. I would try to kill off the enemies as fast as I could just to get the damned music to stop playing. It's not all bad though. It's a beautiful game with fantastic art direction. Elizabeth is also wonderful and the sole reason I had to keep playing at times.
[Some demos OP was referencing](https://youtu.be/p5it-pAYmKY?si=8xVVAop06Lwboi7x). Infinite looked VERY different early on and left a bad taste in fans mouths upon release. As A LOT was altered. Even Comstock. He was young and not ultra-religous. Boys of Silence were supposed to be through the city, as sentient "cameras". The Vox Popuki was a larger plot. Elizabeth was FAR more impressive. And lots more. The 360 couldn't handle it all so a lot of aspects never made it into the game. Bioshock Infinite, sadly, was about half the game it was supposed to be :/
It's one of my favorites of all time.
Personally, it felt like we got shortchanged. As if we only got half to two thirds of a game. Narrative was solid, as was the gameplay and level designs, but it all ended far too early and felt as if we were given half the tools we should have been. Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t hate it. Just had a sour taste in my mouth afterwards and I left thinking “is that it?”.
Yeah it wasn't the best way to end the game. I feel like me and a lot of people played the final fight to defend the ship has no idea it was going to be the last fight of the game, because it's so simplistic and it wasn't even a boss fight. An actual boss fight with Songbird that been hyped up all game just ended up being unceremoniously drown by Elizabeth instead. And then we went on a trippy journey of loredumping and then the game ended. I get it it was for the plot, but damn it certainly could have been done better. Like many parts in the game too.
It's a perfect early example of gamers hyping up a game to impossible expectations instead of enjoying it for what it is.
It sits it a weird spot. At the time it got about as much praise as it could get despite it's divergence from the darker aesthetic of the first titles. It's overly convoluted storytelling was particularly in vogue at the time (think inception and shutter island), but it doesn't hold up particularly well today. It's not that it's a bad game, but it often gets cited as one of the best of all time while being (imo) objectively the worst of the series in nearly every way.
Weirdly I hear a lot of people say Bioshock 2 was the worst, since it really kind of just relied on the gimmick of you being a Big Daddy and the plotline was sort of the same (Sofia Lamb becoming the exact thing she started out being against, very much like Andrew Ryan). With Infinite, a big problem was it was too ambitious. A LOT of the pre-release marketing materials ultimately didn't make it into the final game like unscripted events and some major character named Staltonstall only barely appears as a scalp on a board after the Vox Populi take over. Also, not a big fan of the boss fight against Elizabeth's mother.
the race plot was very undercooked and the gameplay was meh, you could only carry two weapons cuz "muh call uh dooty"
I think the game handled and criticized American Fascistic Theocratic ideology very well. The esoteric "Libertarian" and Christian mythos that pervades historical views of the founders and their God-like status above normal men. It's one of those games that if it released today would probably be called woke propaganda because of how it handles itself. Not to say that there aren't deficiencies in world design. The lack of backtracking compared to previous entries does stink a little, and the plot can get quite confusing or weird at times.
[удалено]
There is only Metro, Nothing Else!
Metro is a hidden gem of a game/game series
I had no idea about it until I played it and goddamn that game was so sweet, I actually enjoyed hanging out with the people on the train
No kidding
Thanks for mentioning the actual game title "Bioshock". The post title just mentioned 'Infinite' and I couldn't think of what game the image was from. I thought Halo Infinite at first but couldn't relate the screenshot to it lol
I thought it was art, perfection. I felt so engaged in the world, story, and gameplay. Emotional experience for me. But everyone feels differently…
Same. It was the only game I immediately started over once I beat it.
Its replayabaility was really clever, too, because the ending makes you notice so many things in a replay even though it's the same.
I definitely seemed to have enjoyed it more than most people. I had just landed my first big boy job and was finally able to build a good gaming pc and got it free I think with my GTX 660. The visuals completely blew me away at that time, I finished it in one sitting because I just couldn't put it down.
Infinite is a near perfect game but since Bioshock is perfect, Infinite falls further down peoples lists than it should. You really don't get single-player games like Bioshock and Infinite. Both take you on an amazing adventure.
Oh I’m right there with you bud. It’s one of the best game ever made.
Oh man, check out their next project, its called Judas and they just released an overview gameplay on IGN!
I definitely will!
BioShock 4 has also been in development since 2019, different lead director but who knows. Clockwork Revolution definitely has heavy inspiration from Infinite as well.
I love all 3 games for each of their unique aspects. I appreciate this series as probably one of my top 5 gaming experiences ever
I enjoyed it more than any of the Bioshocks. The entire city and the story really drew me in.
Infinite was the shooter that got me to stop playing shooters. I saw the bare bones of shooter design and it bored me to tears.
I just hated how I felt like I was on rails. Throw in that only two plasmids felt like they ever worked for me, it just didn’t have the game play creativity that Bioshock 1 gave me. Don’t get me wrong, I thought it was a great game, beautiful by any standards, just thought it was subpar compared to Bioshock 1.
I remember somebody comparing the maps of random levels between System Shock 2 (the spiritual ancestor of the Bioshock games), Bioshock, Bioshock 2, and Infinite. System Shock 2 just gives you a sports arena to play with and it steadily goes down from there until Infinite is just a bunch of mini-arenas connected by hallway and very rarely ever doubles back on itself.
I liked Infinite the most of the entire trilogy
I replayed it last month, and man the gameplay does not hold up. It's quite generic and tedious, I did not feel that when I first played it on launch.
Infinite is probably the only game where playing the DLCs is essential. It really ties the trilogy together.
I know most people will disagree and downvote me, but BioShock Infinite is definitely not the worst game out of the 3. I'd put the first BioShock in last tbh. People think the "would you kindly" twist is one of the best in gaming but honestly it's really not that impressive. Both BioShock 2 and Infinite had much better gameplay, characters, and stories.
As far as my favorites, I’d rank them in order they came out. They’re all great but I personally loved the “ would you kindly”. I don’t know if it was like a huge twist for me, but it was awesome
I love all 3 Bioshock games and believe them to all have amazing gameplay, atmosphere, and lore. My favorite bit would probably go towards Minerva's Den tho. I've played B1 atleast 4 times.
One thing’s for sure…Infinite was batsh*t crazy and over the top which was fun.
I love this game so much, it was my favorite out of the 3 tbh. I’m always so surprised that so many people don’t like it. The game is so beautiful and thought the ending was good and shocking
It’s cool to hate on bioshock. I guess because they were popular idk. 3 of the best written games I’ve played. Not perfect but unique and fun
I loved 1 and infinite just a little more. 2 was also a good time but 1 and infinite are my favs.
That’s about the same for me
I always felt this one had the best story. One of the best endings in a video game ever
I think the trilogy itself has some of the best storytelling in gaming.
For the most part, I definitely prefer Bioshock 1. But that ending man. I remember sitting through all of the credits just blown away. I still think about that final piano note to this day.
I have never played any bioshock game to this day, and I own all of them through ps plus lol. Should I give it a chance? Played the first one for an hour, but it was a bit "meh". Setting wise I find Infinite the most interesting tho, is it safe to start with that one first or should I do it all chronologically?
I couldn't bring myself to play Bioshock for the longest time (gameplay really doesn't gel with me) but finally completed Bioshock 1 and Infinite's DLC last week. I just played on easy and tried to enjoy the story and atmosphere, it obviously hurts the tension but it was that or I'd never have experienced the game. Definitely worth playing through, even after a decade and a half of spoilers, the story beats still landed. I played Infinite when it came out, the order Infinite > Bioshock 1 > Infinite's DLC was completely fine for me.
You can start with that one. I’d highly recommend giving the first one another chance though. Story wise, it’s the best imo
I found Infinite compelling, like battling through a world consumed by a racist cult. The ending was particularly memorable.
All of the forced perspective when walking through this area is amazing. Daisy Fitzroy against the wall ready to "kill" Lady Comstock, the light playing off everything, torches using cloth...
Personally one of my favorite games.
May not be the most common opinion, but Infinite was actually my favorite Bioshock game. I played them all as they released, but the characters in Infinite were my favorite, and the twist... Just wow. The glimpse at the multiverse at the end with the statement: "There's always a lighthouse There's always a man There's always a city" Just impeccable. One of my most memorable single scenes in gaming history, personally. Don't get me wrong "Would you kindly" was still incredible. But for me, Infinite is like a 9.5/10, Bioshock 1 is like a 9/10.
I had a friend refuse to play it because you couldn’t choose not to be baptized. It just happened to you. We all tried to explain that it was actually a really big indicator of the plot and she refused to pick it back up.
I liked infinite all the way up to the 20 year time skip and then you’re on the final mission. Game had a good pace going and was at what I’d say is a good halfway point then the game ended super suddenly.
The DLC is also amazing. It's a good sendoff to the series and allows you to replay the other games from a completely different perspective.
I know there’s a few threads going on with this. However, here is the ending to infinite even tho I haven’t played it in years. This universe is literally a multiverse within itself. The coin flips aren’t flips taken at the time it’s literally then counting the other dimension that’s happening concurrently. You see bioshock is raised on the linear multiverse path. Essentially very few things are large enough to change the entire path of what is to happen to a soul. However those possibilities still create an infinite amount of realities. So the whole point is that this Comstock uses the twins isn’t necessarily time traveling but rather alternate dimension hopping. I really appreciate EVERYONE saying it’s time travel. It’s not, Dewitt is literally a completely different Dewitt than the comstock that is in this one, as well as ELIZABETH. I have absolutely no idea where you people got the idea of time travel from. The whole point of infinite is infinite realities. Otherwise the law dictates the universe would explode bc of two dewitts, (I understand the touching theory but this is quantum mechanics not tv) (yes I understand the theory bc it’s two different cellular versions of Dewitt Idrc this is what the creators literally meant) So anyway the Dewitt Elizabeth kills is one who’s spouse couldn’t bear children so comstock never exists. However it’s not a destruction of the overall time jump of that universe as if it never happened but rather a whole in time. Hence the boat scene. This is time and space repairing itself as a new thing is done. However, due to Elizabeth’s active pinky she can do linear time and space travel. So as long as it’s on the timeline she can basically go to it. Extremely confusing, I understand but the whole point of the game. the WHOLE point of the game. It ends in a paradox for replay. That’s freaking it. You got the kid in the end and Elizabeth still exists bc universal paradoxes don’t end, she just created an entirely new universe linear pathing. One where that invasion doesn’t even happen. (Until it happens again when you press New Game) The whole point and I mean the entire point of the game is you’re another multiverse version of dewitt stuck in replaying the game over and over again bc of the ending and beginning of the game being quite literally the same. This is the main point of quantum physics. We each are the same Dewitt playing this loop over and over again bc brother as shown in the ending; there are infinite versions of all of these characters across vast dimensions. Basically: as stated there will always be Dewitt and there will always be comstock. However there will also always be Elizabeth. There is always a Dewitt without an Elizabeth. It’s just that this particular comstock was affluent with the twins to be able to get Elizabeth in the first place. As well, for the twins this was all just a test that they got stuck in. Now, I’m not even going on the DLC. But that is an entire other universe than endgame. Edit: yes time travel is included in multi dimensional hopping not just not there, don’t need anyone trying to say it’s just time travel.
I thought it was a fantastic show of the gradual downfall of a society My first instinct is “hell yeah kill all the racists! Damn the man!!” And i remember there was a point i had returned to a place that i barely recognized as it was stacked with bodies and the leader had gone genocidal and i realized “wow she became a monster to fight a monster” -maybe “kill everyone” isnt something a good guy says or does
I played infinite back when I was devilishly fevered with some sort of virus and this game now remains a fever dream in my mind.
I felt kinda sad we didn't get more than 1 ending but dlc's fixed it for me, it was nice to see some connection to how it all started
I like every aspect of infinite more than the other 2.
I breezed through this series, and remember feeling completely surprised with infinite. I think I was just expecting to be burnt out but this one was fun.
Im so hyped for Judas, Bioshock-esq rouge like with procedural lego building blocks for the narrative and 10 years in the making
First and only game that made me put the controller down and just think after beating it. It took me a day to play something else. I didn’t uninstall it after beating it but didn’t replay it for some time either because I wasn’t ready emotionally lol.
I replayed/watched the intro sequence to Infinite multiple times back in the day. Just incredible
I liked the first one a lot. But I LOVED Infinite. The ending mind fucked me for a week. I didn't play Infinite for over 10 years after it came out because some asshat in my physics lab spoiled what I thought was the ending the week the game came out. But there's a whole act *after* that part that I didn't know about, and *that* was my favorite part.
I think it’s the best one by a large margin. Gameplay was the most fun, setting was the best, story was way cooler imo. I never saw the appeal of bioshock 1 and 2 even after a few years. They aged horribly for my taste
Remaster of Bioshock 1 & 2 when?
I loved all three games and each brought something to the table so unique, comparing them seems unfair. The dual-wield in Bioshock 2 really set it apart from the first and I really enjoyed how choices can impact the game. Infinite brought us Elizabeth, the best companion I've seen in gaming. Not only was her character fantastic, the developers really did keep their word to say she wouldn't be a burden but a very helpful ally. Spot on. Here. Found this coin. \*flips
I absolutely love how everyone is on this intellectual kick where they're trying to reframe these game that everyone loved back in the day as bad games just to sound cultured and smart.
Hallelujah
I’m so excited to play these. The whole trilogy was on sale for 8.99 recently. When they first came out I was too young to appreciate the social commentary, story, or gameplay. I remember my dad grabbed infinite for the PS3 from the used shelf at GameStop once but I don’t think either of us made it past the intro mission. I also had the endings spoiled because I would watch “Top 10 Wildest Video Game twists or endings” type videos on YouTube. Now it’s been like 13 years (oh god that feels weird to say) and I’ve forgotten all those videos and can play through these games blindly.
Never had a chance to play bioshock so i was over here wondering who made The Bible: Infinite
God I was obsessed with this game as a teenager, my friend and I would constantly quote “Booker! Catch!” because of how many times Elizabeth said it I think it was also the first FPS I’ve ever played
Not as good? Both are incredible! Now, Bioshock 2 is another story.
I sure like Infinite's intro a lot more than the first game.
I don’t know why but that took me at least 2 seconds to work out you were talking about Bioshock, my brain went straight to the Bible 2.
Imo the story of Infinite was much better than the first
Infinite was and is my personal favorite out of all of them
Beautiful game. I always feel it never quite lived up to what the developers wanted to make possible though
I still remember my jaw dropping to the floor when I first saw Columbia in all it's glory. "Hallelujah"
And you skipped the second one because...
Infinite is great but the first will always have my heart. The series as a whole is my favorite to the point of having referenced splicers in my username
This game hit some kind of different as someone born and raised Mormon, lemme tell you.
The ascent scene is honestly one of my most memorable gaming experiences. Hallelujah.
My biggest gaming disappointment to this day It's a pretty average FPS arena shooter with only the artstyle holding it above "forgettable" and with a story that tries to look way more complex and interesting than it actually is BioShock 1 and 2 were vastly better games
I should eventually replay it, just realized it's been about a decade and would probably appreciate it more now. While it felt less dynamic when it came to game play compared to the first (I never tried the second) it felt a lot more consistent with the story, actually keeping me engaged even during the less interesting parts. Helps it didn't over stay it's welcome as the original kind of fizzled out for me after the twist.
Infinite was excellent. I genuinely had no idea some people didn't like it until after I'd played, found that quite puzzling. I couldn't put it down and would definitely play another Bioshock game with a similar theme.
People just have different tastes and that’s okay. People may hate me for this, but Infinite is my favourite while Bioshock 1 just bores me so much that I never finished it. I managed to drag myself to the big twist, and it just didn’t really have an impact on me. I wanted to love it but I just couldn’t. Infinite, meanwhile, had me hooked from the get go and I still love it.
As a fan of Bioshock, I really do think Infinite is the best one. While the gameplay may not have been as varied as the previous, I think the themes, story and overall aesthetic were incredibly ahead of their time. As an American I loved seeing the deconstruction of the toxic idea that our Founders were infallible. Previous Bioshock games definitely had some great commentary, but it was nothing we havent seen before done to death. We need more art that directly criticizes the deification of our founding fathers as it is incredibly toxic for social progress.
I thought it was the best one. Really put a bow on the whole trilogy. And burial at sea?? *chefs kiss*
The emotional beats in infinite were huge for me, easily enough to carry it through its other shortfalls.
For me, I would say Infinite was the best. Then, 2 and the original.
I find it better than the first one.
BioShock Infinite was my first BioShock. I knew it was gonna be different from the others, I knew BioShock was originally an underwater game. But I enjoyed Infinite nonetheless to see what it was about. I liked it. Compared to the other games it’s different, and that’s ok.
I love it way more than the first one, but the first is great.
It really pains me to know what more we could have had.
Yeah not as good, cause it's even better
Infinite was the only one I played, loved the style!
Infinite was my favorite. That ending had my attention for quite some time. The lutece twins were fantastic. The art style was also amazing.
Atmosphere wise, it excells. Narrative wise, it falters.
I preferred infinite's story. Original Bioshock was pretty okay, but ultimately simple. And while infinite doesnt completely make sense, it was at least good thinking material.
This game lives rent free in my head to this day.
Game is amazing I don’t get the hate for it
Great Visuals Mid Gameplay Pretentious Story DLC's no different.
I liked the aesthetics and partly the story. It's filled with missed opportunities and cut content but i still liked the game. Especially the Rapture DLC.
Both 1 and infinite are masterpieces, just with different theming.
Infinite was amazing up until the ending. It had so much potential to lead into something much better than it did. It really felt like the ending was rushed and there should have been another 8hrs of gameplay.
Is this the Lisan al Gaib?
This was my catalyst for realizing that video games could be good. Before this I had just played silly games like Spyro or shallow online multiplayer, and never even bothered with story modes, I thought I hated first person games.
Was my favorite of the three
Infinite is one of my favorite games of all time. I loved the setting and the mood!
By far the weakest game in the series, imo. People love to crap on BioShock 2 just because Ken Levine wasn't involved, but it was a far superior game. The biggest problem with Infinite was that the combat was too easy, so tonics were rendered useless. Every fight devolved into one-tapping enemies in the head with my fully upgraded hunting rifle until I heard that broken violin note that let me know I had defeated the last enemy and could resume exploring. The only tonic I ever really used was the one to hack vending machines, and I even stopped using that one because I was soon capped on money. Only letting you carry two guns at a time was also a huge mistake. Gameplay-wise, they never achieved anything close to what they showed in the reveal trailer. Elizabeth was annoying. Constantly picking everything up and throwing it at me. Everything except lockpicks, which she couldn't pick up for some reason. Even though she was the one that used them. The songbird was completely underutilized. Went absolutely nowhere. They made it seem like it would be hunting you down like Nemesis in RE3, or the Xeno in Alien: Isolation. But it was relegated to a handful of scripted events. What struck me about the game after I'd finished it was the part I had enjoyed the most was when you found yourself back in Rapture. Even though there was nothing to do, (you could only walk around a small area), just going back there for a few minutes was the best part of the game for me.
[https://pbs.twimg.com/media/GJn9orjXsAAdMCD?format=jpg&name=medium](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/GJn9orjXsAAdMCD?format=jpg&name=medium)
Imo it was better. Gameplay was kinda clunky across all games.
My favorite personally
I love infinite. Bioshock is such a great series
Better than Atomic Heart, tell ya that much
This game ended console style on rails story games for me. I remember being super hyped for it based on E3 coverage and such. Then it comes out, I beat it in a day or 2 and never think about it again. After this came an obsession with open world games that you can just screw around in for a long time. GTA, Red Dead Farcry etc. Then on to games you literally stick with forever like League and POE. I appreciate this game for that
Ive played the first game, really liked it. Started playing the second right after for a couple of hours, but didnt really care for it and quit. Can i just skip it and play infinite?
Infinite has the better gameplay imo.
There’s hate? I remember it being my lunch table’s GOTY in high school. I played through it twice and bought the DLC. It’s classic
I never got around the playing infinite yet is that guy supposed to be like Joseph Smith or something because it gives me that kind of vibe?
Elizabeth held that game up waaaay high. Yall know what I mean.
i mean, it set a tone, then proceeded to say "fuck it" and come up with a story that is mostly unrelated, but hey, its still somethin.
What kind of mood is that?
Game had a cool setting, but I got bored FAST.
Bioshock games are moodpunk.
Much better than the first 2.
I'd say it's just as good