Opinion// Bioshock Infinite: Let Games Be Games

Allow me to start by saying that this article is as spoiler free as possible. Although I don’t detail any plot twist or narrative direction, it’s still better to go into Bioshock Infinite completely blind. So do that! If you’re happy to read a bit about it before you do, then enjoy:

Many of my gaming mates mark down Half Life 2 as a landmark in gaming history. They consider it a step up in artistic flair, storytelling and character representation for not only the genre, but the medium.

The truth is, when Half Life 2 was released in 2004 I wasn’t massively into gaming. I’d taken a few years away from it to focus on my drinking and general acting like a bellend. It took me a few years and an Xbox 360 to realise that I could do all three at the same time.

By then it was too late. I’d missed out on the buzz, I had already played games that were either inspired by or directly lifted form Half Life 2. The impact that game had on so many was completely lost on me.

I finally completed Half Life 2 last year and although it had been an enjoyable experience, it wasn’t a life-changing one. It wouldn’t be, would it?

So Half Life 2 has become one of my biggest gaming regrets. I felt as though I missed out one something big. It’s a game I’ve read articles about, spoken about with friends down the pub and on podcasts, but I can never raise the same emotions as the writers or friends.

That’s why I’m so happy that I was able to play Bioshock Infinite alongside everyone else.

I nearly missed out on this one too. I had played a fair few hours of Bioshock. In fact I’d played the opening about four times over but the games fizzled out for me. I never clicked with the combat and the story lost me pretty early on.

I’d played a few hours of Bioshock 2 but felt completely out of the loop and it never really grabbed me. So Infinite wasn’t even on my radar.

That was until I listened to Episode 55 of my favourite gaming podcast ‘Chet and Jon’s Reassuringly Finite Gaming Playlist’. Towards the end, one of the hosts - Jon Denton - talks so passionately about Bioshock Infinite that I was forced to sit up and take notice.

So much so that I went out and bought it that day. So this is my official thank you to that podcast. Because Bioshock Infinite is one of my favourite games of all time.

As the credits rolled my jaw was on the floor. When reviewing and discussing games it’s easy to pull it apart and focus on elements that can be compared to every other game in its genre. For me this steps so far beyond that, that it would be a little too cynical to review it in a normal way.

What I want to do hear is try and explain why I feel so strongly about this game and why it’ll stay with me for a long time.

There’s no getting away from the initial pull of Bioshock Infinite . It looks good, it introduces you to a curious new world that you’ve never experienced before and as you take your first steps in Columbia you feel like a complete outsider.

As gamers we have been introduced to new worlds constantly. Some try to tap into surroundings that you’re used to, others try and pull you out of that completely. It’s the work on the details that makes either attempt successful.

Rockstar are incredible at making you feel at home, even when their games are set in the Wild West America circa 1911. Their representation of the Western Border States were detailed to mimic every wild west film I had ever seen. From bustling bars filled with outlaws and prostitutes to dusty roads littered with con men. Despite being born 73 years after the game is set, I felt right at home.

Irrational Games, on the other hand, handles the opposite side of the coin with unbelievable precision. From the moment I walked out into the city of Columbia, I was cautious. at its heart Bioshock Infinite is a first-person shooter, but the world I was walking around in seemed completely peaceful.

Residents tipped their hats, said “Hello” and happily chatted away about a fair that was taking place that day. It puts your back up knowing that you’re going to have to enter combat at some point and that will probably involve upsetting the locals.

In fact it’s at least half an hour before things start getting hairy and the moment it does, the utopia you’ve witnessed crumbles in an instant. The twist is quick, it’s powerful and hits home at a point where you really don’t expect it to.