Bioshock Infinite

[Nihal]

If anyone here finished it keep your spoilers inside spoiler tags. ;3

I'm not a fan of FPS games. I decided to play this one just to have a peek at a steampunk game. So many reviewers have been talking so well about it that I decided to try it just for a change, even if I've not played the previous games.

I finished it recently. I must say... I'm still stunned. As the ending credits rolled up I the end just sat there, dazed. It took me some days to decide if I liked the game or not, hahaha! I think I liked it and now I've been finding some little ester eggs that only make the game more interesting.

I'm used to hate any NPC I must escort around–that wasn't the case with Bioshock, it has the best "escort mission" I've played so far, not only because the escorted NPC is useful, but for the bond formed between them actually makes sense, in my opinion it didn't feel forced and fake.

So, anyone else here already played it? Are you still playing? What are your impressions?

 

[Ophiucha]

I haven't finished it because my laptop is not the ideal place to play the game, but I have no other computer for the time being so I am trying anyway. It is a gorgeous game, and I am in love with the setting. It's not as perfect as the reviews lead it up to be, and I swear I am going to punch someone in the face the next time I hear about how "amazing" it's handling of racial issues is, but it is really very interesting from a worldbuilding perspective and I am in love with Elizabeth. The music is great - I've been listening to the soundtrack on YouTube while working on my story. I really love their acoustic version of "Will the Circle Be Unbroken".

And 100% agree on the escort mission. I knew I would love this game the moment I saw this screencap:

 

[Nihal]

Hah, when I saw it I was "Hmmm... Good.". When she started to help me I was "OMG I love you!". In truth I didn't read the reviews, I'm aware of the high rating people have been giving to the game, but that's all. I don't really trust reviews made by random people from famous sites, that's not how I pick my games, heh.

Now, about the racial issues... They play a big role in the game, even if the plot doesn't revolve around them. I don't know how far you went into the game, but you'll see this point being more developed as you progress. I liked how the game doesn't try to teach any blatant moral lessons; the game presents the situations–often strong, and there are a plenty of them–, show how the characters react to them and that's all. I think that if they tried to delve the racial issues any further it would be forced, acquiring "educational" undertones.

I played on a laptop too, but in my case my laptop is better than my PC.


P.s.: There are some musics hidden inside the environment BG. It's an easter egg, so you may wish to not hear it until you finish the game when it makes more sense, although it doesn't really spoil anything. Do not read the youtube commentaries!

Spoiler: Hidden Music!

1000% speed -0:00
800% speed - 1:00
100% speed (it's what you hear in-game) - 2:00

Reversed, the BG and the music are exactly the same thing.

 

[Feo Takahari]

I can't help but notice that every single news article about this game that isn't either a review or a critique of how the game approaches violence has a giant spoiler warning at the top. It's unsurprising that discussions of the ending have spoiler warnings, but I've also seen them in all the articles on how the game approaches religion, how it handles the concept of race, and what role Elizabeth plays in the narrative.

From what I've heard, I'll wait for this to drop below $30 before I buy it.

 

[Nihal]

Well, this game received its age rating for a reason. I flinched at some scenes because it's just not my taste, yet I can bear them for in my opinion they only added to the story.

This game is not a fairy tale. They purposely included some dreamlike, sunlit scenes to contrast them with bloody, "the ugly reality" scenes. You soften the violence when you're making something for youngsters or it doesn't fit the story. It's not the case, it's a grim story, you're killing people and I feel like the developers wanted to make sure you got it straight, that you didn't banalize the act as it happens with so many video games.

I believe this level of violence and it's consequences played a big role in the story, it wouldn't have the same impact of the killing was rose-tinted.