BioShock Infinite takes you to a new high

Ed Geronia Jr.

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BioShock Infinite stands high and above over its predecessors which were already great games to begin with

LEAD ZEPPELIN. The main mode of transport on Columbia are zeppelins and an overhead rail system. All images from the official BioShock Infinite website

Available formats: XB360, PS3, PC

Reviewed on: XB360

Rating: M

MANILA, Philippines – The original BioShock garnered recognition as an atmospheric steampunk shooter that had strong critical undercurrents of Ayn Rand’s Objectivist philosophy. Set in the decaying underwater city of Rapture, BioShock spawned a sequel that turned the first one on its head by making the monstrous antagonists in the first game as playable main characters. In both games, Rapture’s decrepit Art Deco buildings, claustrophobic submarine interiors, and hostile zombie-like denizens were the perfect ingredients in creating a shooter with a constant sense of dread.

BioShock Infinite sets itself apart from the previous games with a new setting and protagonist. Although thematically linked to the other games, BioShock Infinite’s biggest departure its environment: a massive floating city known as Columbia. If Rapture had elements from Jules Verne’s Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, Columbia’s literary antecedent is likely the floating island of Laputa from Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift. 

The game opens in 1912 with Booker DeWitt making his way up to Columbia after a brief rocket ride. DeWitt is an agent of the Pinkerton security firm and his mission is to search for a mysterious girl named Elizabeth who has been imprisoned somewhere in the floating city. As Columbia comes into view, the magnificent hovering skyline is an overpowering sight for first time visitors. The retro-futuristic city is held up in the sky by propellers, lighter-than-air contraptions, and fictional technology called “quantum levitation.”

TIES THAT BIND. Elizabeth’s connection to Columbia’s founder has some serious implications

DeWitt first disembarks inside a grand cathedral that seems to be the base of a religious cult founded by self-proclaimed prophet Zachary Hale Comstock. He is also the city’s founder. Before being accepted into the city, the church leader insists on DeWitt being baptized by total submersion in water. Comstock’s fictional religion is a hybrid of fundamentalist Christianity and the collective philosophy of America’s founding fathers.

As DeWitt roams its streets to take in the sights, the scenery bears a strong resemblance to Edward Hopper’s paintings. The colors are bright and vivid and surfaces have an unearthly gleam. Columbia’s citizens seem to be living in a utopia of American exceptionalism. DeWitt gets a few snatches of this exceptionalist rhetoric from conversations of people, plaques plastered on monuments, and kinetoscopes — an early type of motion picture viewer.

The illusion of idyllic life on Columbia is shattered when DeWitt becomes an unwitting participant in a street raffle game. In what is perhaps the first pivotal moment in the game, DeWitt’s “reward” is the opportunity to throw a baseball at a biracial couple suddenly revealed onstage. The game’s host explains that the couple, a white man and an African-American woman, need to be punished and humiliated for violating Columbia’s social norms. DeWitt is also given a choice to throw the baseball at another target: the game’s host. 

ANTAGONISTS BEGONE. Booker DeWitt’s powerful attacks are not to be trifled with

As events unfold, the pristine veneer of Columbia starts to crack and chip away, revealing a society founded on racial prejudice, unchecked capitalism, religious zealotry, and xenophobia. Everyone on Columbia has a chance at a better life, but only if they are not black, foreign, or poor.

After just a few hours of gameplay, BioShock Infinite turns into a socially-charged game with a transcendent antagonist. The despotic and bigoted villain, Zachary Comstock, now seems to be the least of DeWitt’s worries. He also encounters other groups trying to take over Columbia such as the militant Vox Populi.

DeWitt himself is surrounded by religious imagery. After his Jesus-like baptism, he is branded by his enemies as a false shepherd. Later on, he sustains a knife wound that goes through one of his palms. 

DeWitt’s mission takes him to the seedy parts of Columbia such as a rundown industrial complex run by an exploitative businessman and a nearby ghetto where abused workers live in abject poverty. It is in these places where BioShock Infinite’s depiction of social injustice makes it a standout above other games. Visually, the game’s late Victorian-era industrial decrepitude is only closely matched by the excellent Dishonored which has recreated one of the most convincing Dickensian dystopias in a game.

AUTOMATA NON GRATA. The Patriot is a mechanized soldier which also happens to look like a robotic George Washington

Most of DeWitt’s enemies are Columbia’s local authorities and automatons. To fight them, he can carry up to a maximum of two types of firearms such as pistols, machine guns, shotguns, and grenade launchers. DeWitt’s other offensive capability comes in the form of vigors which give him various powers such telekinesis, pyrokinesis, and electric shock. 

DeWitt can purchase additional upgrades and supplies from Zoltar-like vending machines. From time to time, some upgrades can be found in hidden or locked areas. All of DeWitt’s upgrades are always put to good use since the game often throws multiple armed enemies at him at any given time.

When DeWitt finally rescues Elizabeth, BioShock Infinite offers more surprises. As it turns out, Elizabeth is one of the best AI companions ever seen in a game since Alyx Vance from Half Life 2. Elizabeth significantly improves DeWitt’s chances of survival by giving him health and ammo during combat. She can also point out items unseen by the player and open locked doors and safes. Sometimes, she gives out clues as to what DeWitt should do next. 

Watch the trailer here:


Essentially invulnerable, Elizabeth is smart enough to stay out of harm’s way. Her most important ability however is also central to the game’s plot. Without giving too much away, Elizabeth has an ability similar to Olivia Dunham, who can move through parallel universes on the show Fringe. 

This possibility of the existence of alternate realities becomes one of BioShock Infinite’s most clever surprise. It gives the game an intellectual gravitas only often seen in a Christopher Nolan movie. All of a sudden, DeWitt and Elizabeth are thrust into a dilemma worthy of an Erwin Schrödinger thought experiment.

BioShock Infinite stands high and above over its predecessors which were already great games to begin with. Definitely one of the best games of 2013, it’s one of the finest examples of how a game can combine deep social, religious, and political commentary with a unique and intellectually satisfying gaming experience. – Rappler.com

 

Ed Geronia


Ed Geronia Jr. is the chief information officer of Sari Software Solutions. He is the former editor in chief of PC Gamer magazine and Games Master Philippines magazine, and former associate editor of T3 Philippines magazine.

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