An experience of the ages and a testament in the world of gaming.
BioShock Infinite is a stunning game and a testament in what a game can accomplish. Its amazingly realized and developed world makes it an experience of the ages, something to just get lost in and forget the world outside of the game. Its mind-bending, but original story is carefully crafted and exceeded my expectations, which were high as the sky Columbia soars in.
- Scoots (Team Achievement 360)
The story is so superb, that I'd rather not give away much other than the basics. The game takes place in 1912 and you play as Booker DeWitt, a Pinkerton and veteran of the 7th Calvary. You are sent on a mission to find a girl in the flying utopia of Columbia. Columbia is so well realized and so beautiful, that it is an artform in itself. The city feels alive and getting lost in its majesty is something easy to get caught doing. The game even deals with heavy themes like racism, religion and industry, yet doesn't force its beliefs on you. It shows you the reality of the situation at hand and leaves you to interpret it. The game is presented very well and you can tell lots of love went into it. As I stated previously, Columbia feels real and is a technical feat in itself. Your first time exploring the city is extremely memorable and easily one of my most treasured moments in gaming. Simply going off the beaten path and listening to Voxophones (voice logs with diary entries in them) reveals more and more about the incredible world Irrational Games created. There was never really a time that I didn't know where to go in the game, due to its great conveyance and Dead Space inspired objective marker. The presentation is done almost perfectly.
It would be hard not to talk about Elizabeth in this review, because of how great of a character she is. Irrational Games spent lots of time making Elizabeth's AI and animations and the effort definitely shows. Her movement has this amazing flow to it that I really haven't seen in a game. It makes her feel less like an AI partner and more like a living entity. At one point, she stopped and gave me an explanation of a mechanical puppet show's history and its popularity. This moment really shocked me and made me realize how much work had been put into her. Her voice actor, Courtnee Draper, does a perfect job at bringing Elizabeth's emotion to unparalleled heights during climactic times in the narrative. She is a stunning achievement and ends up making you feel for her, which makes her one of the main stars of the experience.
The game's visuals are very unique, with lots of curves and glowing colors. Everything from the environments to the characters radiate creativity and despite the Xbox 360's aging hardware, everything flows excellently. Still, that's not to say that there isn't texture pop-up or some clipping in the environments. It's the amazing art and animation that overshadow these small inconviences and the experience doesn't feel anywhere near hampered.
Something Irrational Games really wanted to focus on was having sound design that further brought the world to life. The sound design is so close to perfection that I can't think of any other game that performs better in the sound department. The music is haunting in a sense and enlightening in the other. There are a lot of old-timey tracks from the time period and even some nudges to the Beach Boys and Creedence Clearwater Revival that are later explained in the story. However, it's the original score that steals the show. Garry Schyman, the composer of the game's score, did a fantastic job at making moments in the game memorable through beautiful music. If they were to release this game's soundtrack, I would buy it in a heartbeat.
The story, visuals and music would be nothing if it weren't for great gameplay. BioShock Infinite is indeed a shooter and a darn good one too. So many game mechanics in this game go above and beyond most series in the genre, mostly since so many of the game's ideas are unique. Of course, there are guns and there are a fairly good amount of them to. As in the first game, there's biological powers that are now called Vigors and they work very well with your firearm arsenal. You can stack Vigors to create devastating effects that will obliterate your enemies. Using different Vigors on different enemies can yield different results and certain enemies show weakness to certain Vigors. The smooth gunplay, in partnership with the Vigors, make the game feel unlike anything this genre has to offer. That's not even mentioning the Skyhook and the skylines.
Booker is able to use the Skyhook as a melee weapon that tears apart enemies that get too close. Weakening an enemy and then ripping their face to shreds using the hook is satisfying beyond description. The skylines, massive rails that twist and turn above Columbia, can be used to get around or wreak havoc upon enemies below. Booker can ride the skyline and shoot simultaneously, making for some seriously fast paced and exhilirating moments. You also have the ability to dismount from the skyline and dive down onto an enemy, usually killing them in the process. Some people critiqued the original BioShock for having very linear and non-vertical combat, but Infinite literally soars above this. The amazing sense of verticality when using the skyline is breath-taking and makes many of the combat scenarios memorable experiences.
While Elizabeth plays a large role in the story and game world, she also plays a big role in the gameplay. Elizabeth will scavenge the battlefield for supplies and toss them to you in the midst of battle. When the notification pops up, all you do is press a button, turn to her, grab the item and go right back into shooting. There was never a time when this mechanic got me killed or even took me out of the action, because it throws you right back in after you take the item. Elizabeth also has the ability to alter time and space using her tear powers (explained in the story). She can summon things into the battle depending on what is avaliable in the area. This adds yet another set of choices, because you can only have one tear open at a time. Sometimes these tears saved my life in a bad situation, but they never felt cheap at all. Elizabeth can also pick locks using lockpicks you will collect on your journey. Lockpicks are fairly scarce and you are taking a risk when you open a door or safe, because some loot is better than others.
Simplistic enemies are something common in shooters these days. Facile soldiers who are just waiting to be shot apart. In Infinite, your enemies are varied and there are numerous foes you will be fighting aside from the average gunman. Heavy Hitters are boss-like enemies who will attack in the midst of battle and complicate the player's strategies. They replace Big Daddy fights from the first game. These enemies are very fun to fight, but they also are a challenge for the player to overcome. On the harder difficulties, these baddies seriously halted my progress and fighting them was just as hard as it was rewarding. Mechanical George Washingtons with miniguns, called Motorized Patriots, were my favorite Heavy Hitters. Normal enemies function great too and they will ride the skylines after you and take cover when necessary. I'd rather not give a further rundown of the enemies, because they are introduced very well and their weaknesses are best discovered on your own.
All of these different elements aren't forced onto you at once and you have a bounty of choices to make on how you approach situations. Unlike the original, you can now only carry two weapons. I expected this to be restricting, but it makes the player have to strategize with the two weapons they are carrying. The first game allowed you to upgrade your arsenal and so does Infinite, but in a different way. BioShock had several unique places where you uprgraded certain things, while Infinite uses vending machines. The vending machines of Columbia allow you to upgrade your weapons and Vigors using money you find. Since money isn't the most abundant thing in the world, buying an upgrade is an investment and you will onlybe able to purchase a few upgrades before the game concludes. Booker also can find Infusions, which give you the choice of upgrading either your health, shield or salts. If I had to complain about one thing, it's that you will have to make some unnecessary moral choices in the game. These moral choices don't really affect anything except for some cosmetic things and they distract you from the experience. Yet, that's a minor gripe and for the most part, everything works perfectly. All of these gameplay choices, along with the different ways to approach battles and Elizabeth's abilities, make the game highly replayable.
The whole experience lasts about 10-12 hours depending on how much you deviate from the main objectives. Sometimes side quests will pop up when you find a key and you'll need to find the chest it opens. These side quests are completely optional, but usually reward you well if you take the time to explore the area and complete them. You also can find collectible Voxophones that contain interesting stories about the city of Columbia. Infinite has multiple difficulties that range from Easy to 1999 Mode. 1999 Mode mocks the feel of System Shock 2, one of Irrational's older games. Ammo is scarce, enemies are much more difficult to fight and you really feel a sense of hopelessness. 1999 Mode is a crushingly difficult experience, but I also found it very rewarding and fun. Once I completed 1999 Mode, I had a great sense of accomplishment (and lots of Gamerscore). Lots of choice, side-quests, upgrades, collectible Voxophones and multiple difficulty levels make this game a very complete package. BioShock Infinite is a game of the ages and one of the best games of this generation. It raises the bar high, much like its predecessor did. The city of Columbia is amazing and its inhabitants are itriguing. With gameplay this stellar, art direction this original, awesome sound design and a beautiful score; you must purchase this game. It is one of those few games that gets just about everything right.
The Good: Stellar story, deep and well-developed world, amazing characters (especially Elizabeth), unique and vibrant visuals, tip-top sound design, amazing musical score, superb game mechanics, lots of customization, challenging enemies, 1999 Mode, 10-12 hours of gameplay, lots of replay value.
The Bad: Some unnecessary moral choices, a few visual quirks due to the Xbox 360's aged hardware.
- Scoots (Team Achievement 360)