(2K Games)
Announced back in 2010, BioShock Infinite, the follow-up to two incredible BioShock games, had been one of the most anticipated titles of the past three years. After a few release-date pushbacks, the game has finally arrived on shelves and gamers couldn’t be happier.
But does it measure up to the first two games of the franchise?
When developers announced that BioShock Infinite would no longer be in the underwater city of Rapture like the first two games, and that it would have a totally new story and new characters, some fans paused. And with good reason.
Rapture was the perfectly beautiful post-apocalyptic underwater city, and despite how in-depth the first two games were, fans wanted to continue exploring it. Instead, the team at Irrational Games has taken us to the clouds in the floating city of Columbia (not to be confused with South American country, Colombia) for BioShock Infinite.
You play as Booker DeWitt, a former detective down on his luck now headed up to Columbia in the year 1912 on a mission to pay a debt. The mission? Find a young woman named Elizabeth and bring her back to New York City. Sounds easy enough, right?
It isn’t. After getting your bearings, you realize that Columbia is a weird and scary place run by a “prophet” filled with his own made-up religious fanaticism and racist ideals. The story of how the city came to be, how the prophet came to power and how the people (even the African-American population) ended up in the city is told throughout the game.
It’s a fascinating backstory. When you play the game, listen to the voxphones and view the kinetoscopes to get a full, in-depth history of the people and the city. Along with the stories of DeWitt and Elizabeth and the twists, turns and setbacks in the game, BioShock Infinite’s storytelling continues to up the ante for video games.
(2K Games)
The gameplay of BioShock Infinite stays true to the BioShock franchise with one hand carrying a firearm and the other hand having powers, just changing the name of it. The powers, called Vigors this time, are earned as you progress through the game, the first one being Possession where you can control machines and people to defend you in a fight. One of my favorites is Murder of Crows where I can send a flock of crows to attack my enemies (later on upgraded to where a corpse killed by my crows turns into a trap for enemies walking through the carnage).
I know, it’s morbid, but BioShock games are dark and violent and not meant for the faint of heart. You also have fire, water, electricity, telekinetic and strengthening-type powers that you collect and upgrade.
The game’s currency, Silver Eagles allows you to buy items and upgrades to your weapons, powers and health. I mostly spent the money on upgrades because there’s so much health, ammo and salt (ammo for your Vigors) lying around the city, you’re hardly ever out of it. The weapons themselves aren’t that innovative (it is the early 1900s), but they get the job done. Ranging from pistols and machine guns to sniper rifles and RPGs, the battles are meant to be a mix of firepower and Vigors. And once you do get Elizabeth on your side, her power adds another dimension to the game.
Along with the superb graphics, awesome animation and a world that sucks you in, this is one of those games that have you losing track of time. This spring has had a good handful of AAA games but BioShock Infinite should be at the top of that list.
GAME ON SCORE: 4 stars
4 stars = Get On It!
3 stars = Nice Job
2 stars = Meh
1 star = Avoid It
0 stars = Nooooo!!!
allowfullscreen>
