Bioshock Infinite - the $200 million 6 hour literally on rails interactive movie with guns thread

[MadMaxHellfire]

silly or unnecessary plot? it's ok. retarded? no. never. especially in science fiction, is the worst capital sin possible.

 

[Zombra]

Having just completed Infinite I can say for sure that the game would have been much more enjoyable if it were utterly broken from ambitious design than the empty polished turd that was delivered.

Thanks for this post. I was toying with the idea of playing it again to see if it was as poor as I remembered. Good reminder it's not worth the time.

 

[<3sRichardSimmons]

Having just completed Infinite I can say for sure that the game would have been much more enjoyable if it were utterly broken from ambitious design than the empty polished turd that was delivered.

Thanks for this post. I was toying with the idea of playing it again to see if it was as poor as I remembered. Good reminder it's not worth the time.

Like I said in the post I made while in progress: the only reason to play it is to ogle the pretty environment art. The last quarter of the game (Comstock House on) is some of the worst design and writing I've ever seen in a computer game. I seriously have no idea how there is enough Doritos and Mountain Dew in the world for this game to have been reviewed positively.

In more masochistic news: I completed part 1 of Burial at Sea. It basically sucked in all the same ways the base game sucked, and I am struggling with the decision of whether or not I should play Part 2 or just take a hammer to my nuts. Rapture is pretty though.

 

[<3sRichardSimmons]

So I completed Burial at Sea part 2. I'm not going to lie, my primary motivation for doing this was my OCD completionism and a strong desire to uninstall Bioshock Infinite without a lingering desire to reinstall it somewhere down the road to check on the content I missed.

The good news is that Burial at Sea part 2 is hands-down the best content that IG put out for Infinite*. The bad news is that it still kind of fucking sucks. The best part of BaSp2 is that someone on the design team had the good sense to realize that gameplay in the base game and Part 1 was basically irredeemable shit. By some coincidence that person was also clearly playing Dishonored and had the clout to mandate that this DLC just be a really pretty Dishonored knock-off shovelware with substantially worse level design (to be clear, I'm not being sarcastic here; Burial at Sea part 2 verges very close to being a total conversion mod for Dishonored, and, regardless of what you think about Dishonored, it's gameplay is multiple magnitudes superior to Bioshock Infinite's)

The plot is even worse than the base Infinite plot. I hated it. The writing is the most masturbatory and self-satisfied garbage I've ever seen in a videogame. It's a bunch of somber over-written and under-thought shit.

One of my favorite parts was when Elizabeth realized Atlas was actually Frank Fontaine, and for a brief second I thought there might be some cosmetic C&C, but nope, the script just played out as though she'd never realized this.

My thoughts on it still aren't particularly coherent because I'm just still generally filled with rage and stupidity, but if anyone reading this is thinking "Should I (re)play Bioshock: Infinite?" the answer is a resounding overwhelming "NO". God what a piece of shit.

*I know Zombra likes Clash in the Clouds, but... I'm just done with this fucking piece of shit, so I can't comment there.

 

[lightbane]

The best part was how fucking slimy Levine decided to off Elizabeth, likely infuriated on how everyone wanted to waifu her when it was "his", so here comes the end of BaS, after Eli kills her own protector in a deadly city for inane reasons.

 

[racofer]

Now with surprise DRM mechanics: https://steamcommunity.com/games/BioShockInfinite/announcements/detail/3335500006865769805

Edit: this was also included in Bioshock 1 Remastered and Bioshock 2 Remastered.

Bio 1:

Bio 2:

 

[Sodafish]

lol pirates win again.

Well, "win" is a relative term here as this game is dogshit either way.

 

[Fargus]

Last time i played their "remaster" of Bioshock 1 i almost gave up on finishing it due to crashes, it was a miracle i played it through the end. True rogue-like experience.

But thanks for adding some shitty store, cunts. I hope the 2k kikes choke on monkey pox dick.

 

[Baron Dupek]

apparently you can skip the new launcher by directly using the game executable from game files. So if this broke the game on linux for you (or you just don't want to deal with crap like this) try using that instead.

 

[Gargaune]

Now with surprise DRM mechanics: https://steamcommunity.com/games/BioShockInfinite/announcements/detail/3335500006865769805

This is what you get when you live your life as an online service. You all wanted your automatic updates, you wanted your cheevos, you wanted your shelves free of that "antiquated" physical media, well you got it. And until authorities start cleaning up and regulating the Wild West that is the IT industry's "licensing" model (any day now, guys, it's right up there with Star Citizen's launch date), you're gonna keep getting it, and you're gonna get whenever they want it and in every hole they want it. You might wanna buy license some lube.

And hell, why stop at software, e.g. BMW now wants you to pay subscriptions to use the seat heaters they already built into your car - so you buy the car, but you rent the heaters, why not? Go on and look forward to the glorious day your sweater comes with an EULA.

 

[Spukrian]

So, Bioshock Infinite. I played it.

The combat is too easy. I couldn't see any option to turn off respawning either. Sure, I died a few times but that's to be expected. The only thing that I had trouble with and had to replay a couple times was the end when you have to defend the skyship engine.

The levels are more linear, I would've liked some more exploration and the ability to backtrack to some extent.

The story... well, I feel everything wrong with the story has already been expressed by others much better than I can do it. I just wanted to say I find it very annoying when things like time travel rules and parallell universes work inconsistently because "the plot demands it".

The interactions between Booker and Elizabeth were fine, I guess. I just wish that Elizabeth was less of a "bait". There are a few interesting side characters though. I really like Columbia as a setting, but I feel it's a bit underused. Sad we won't ever see it again.

I played through both Burials At Sea. They upped the difficulty, great! Somehow I managed to play through the entirety of Part 1 without realizing that I could carry more than two weapons, hehe. The story... well, I didn't like it, loads of retcons and everything felt pointless in the end.

So did I like it? Well, overall I don't think the game is shit, I didn't hate it, I had some fun while playing it. It's just a bit "meh" maybe. On the other hand, I enjoyed Bioshock Infinite more than Deus Ex Human Revolution.

In the future I might go back to it and check out this 1999 difficulty I unlocked.

 

[kangaxx]

Given some of your (correct IMO) complaints about BI I'm a bit surprised you preferred it to DXHR.

I restarted Infinite a few months back, but ended up uninstalling after about 20 minutes.

 

[Fargus]

True. I played Infinite on hard it wasn't difficult except for the flight ship fight, that was really annoying. But at the end i had trouble with ammo for some reason and i had to scrounge.

The game is shit and generally i didn't enjoy it as much as Bioshock 1. I didn't enjoy the boring schizo plot about parallel universes or found it deep and "muh evil whiteys" scenes only made me chuckle ironically. And i never bothered with dlcs.

 

[Ryzer]

The only thing I like about this game is the 19th century America setting which unfortunately is not exploited in video games.

 

[Spukrian]

Given some of your (correct IMO) complaints about BI I'm a bit surprised you preferred it to DXHR.

I restarted Infinite a few months back, but ended up uninstalling after about 20 minutes.

I didn't like DXHR for various reasons.

A few of them:
*It's popamole (coverbased shooting, coverbased stealth)
*It's awsum buttn (press context button to see cutscene)
*It's not systemic (it's scripted)

 

[DeepOcean]

Main problem of Bioshock Infinite is that they abandoned any pretense of making a game that played like you were walking on a real place, it is basically a cinema set where you are the camera man following the main character, Elizabeth AND after all that, to add salt to the injury, the very story they sacrificed so much to tell is a complete dog turd that fail even the basic logic tests of a normal human being.

 

[kangaxx]

Main problem of Bioshock Infinite is that they abandoned any pretense of making a game that played like you were walking on a real place, it is basically a cinema set where you are the camera man following the main character, Elizabeth AND after all that, to add salt to the injury, the very story they sacrificed so much to tell is a complete dog turd that fail even the basic logic tests of a normal human being.

My main gripe was that the encounters are so heavily telegraphed and repetitive that it becomes boring quickly. I was using the same tactics for about 90% of the game (spam the completely busted crow ability.. profit). The story is bad as you say, but if the gameplay was good then it could at least have had something going for it.

 

[Gargaune]

Main problem of Bioshock Infinite is that they abandoned any pretense of making a game that played like you were walking on a real place, it is basically a cinema set where you are the camera man following the main character, Elizabeth AND after all that, to add salt to the injury, the very story they sacrificed so much to tell is a complete dog turd that fail even the basic logic tests of a normal human being.

Actually, I'd say Infinite's biggest failure is the lack of failure. Catchy take?

Here's the thing, in spite of the game's many inadequacies, it managed to sell me on the Disney princess thing. The gameplay was utterly shit, but I set it to easy mode and decided to soldier on to see what the story was about. Around the same time, I played The Last of Us and I couldn't help but compare two minor pieces of feedback - Ellie's (admittedly systemic) reaction to the protagonist murdering people amounting to "Shit, Joel!" versus Elizabeth's setpiece when she first witnesses Booker shooting those disguised tellers. That latter scene sold me Elizabeth, even knowing it was all scripted as I gave chase with her calling me a monster and screaming for me to leave her alone. It was a beautifully human reaction, the sort that videogames often gloss over, and I wanted to believe.

But Ken had other ideas. Because you quickly become aware and accept that Elizabeth is effectively invulnerable. It makes sense, escort missions are atrocious and you wouldn't want to make an entire game into one. At a narrative level, however, you can still contextualise Elizabeth's situation in that she's only safe as long as you, the protagonist, are there to protect her and lead her out of Columbia. Except Ken can't let go of his Vita Chamber obsession and you soon also discover that when you die, instead of respawning in a glass jar, you respawn in a corner with Elizabeth pulling you to your feet.

So... Elizabeth is safe as long as Booker is around. And Booker's safe as long as Elizabeth is around. Convenient and perfectly circular. So the game has no fail state and I don't need to give a shit about any of it, right? Levine, in his tedious crusade against the Load button, managed to use gameplay to torpedo the narrative that he sacrificed gameplay for in the first place. In eschewing failure, Levine managed to achieve the ultimate failure, and it's truly inspiring.

 

[Cat Headed Eagle]

Main problem of Bioshock Infinite is that they abandoned any pretense of making a game that played like you were walking on a real place, it is basically a cinema set where you are the camera man following the main character, Elizabeth AND after all that, to add salt to the injury, the very story they sacrificed so much to tell is a complete dog turd that fail even the basic logic tests of a normal human being.

Actually, I'd say Infinite's biggest failure is the lack of failure. Catchy take?

Here's the thing, in spite of the game's many inadequacies, it managed to sell me on the Disney princess thing. The gameplay was utterly shit, but I set it to easy mode and decided to soldier on to see what the story was about. Around the same time, I played The Last of Us and I couldn't help but compare two minor pieces of feedback - Ellie's (admittedly systemic) reaction to the protagonist murdering people amounting to "Shit, Joel!" versus Elizabeth's setpiece when she first witnesses Booker shooting those disguised tellers. That latter scene sold me Elizabeth, even knowing it was all scripted as I gave chase with her calling me a monster and screaming for me to leave her alone. It was a beautifully human reaction, the sort that videogames often gloss over, and I wanted to believe.

But Ken had other ideas. Because you quickly become aware and accept that Elizabeth is effectively invulnerable. It makes sense, escort missions are atrocious and you wouldn't want to make an entire game into one. At a narrative level, however, you can still contextualise Elizabeth's situation in that she's only safe as long as you, the protagonist, are there to protect her and lead her out of Columbia. Except Ken can't let go of his Vita Chamber obsession and you soon also discover that when you die, instead of respawning in a glass jar, you respawn in a corner with Elizabeth pulling you to your feet.

So... Elizabeth is safe as long as Booker is around. And Booker's safe as long as Elizabeth is around. Convenient and perfectly circular. So the game has no fail state and I don't need to give a shit about any of it, right? Levine, in his tedious crusade against the Load button, managed to use gameplay to torpedo the narrative that he sacrificed gameplay for in the first place. In eschewing failure, Levine managed to achieve the ultimate failure, and it's truly inspiring.

What you said is made much more patent about the game design priorities when you remember Elizabeth was meant to be a mute and that an important part of the game was dedicated to try to guess what the fuck she was trying to communicate. Even in the version of the game that had her closer to what we finally saw, she was pretty active in combat, not just a walking medkit. Ken Levine ruins everything in the end.

 

[Gargaune]

What you said is made much more patent about the game design priorities when you remember Elizabeth was meant to be a mute and that an important part of the game was dedicated to try to guess what the fuck she was trying to communicate. Even in the version of the game that had her closer to what we finally saw, she was pretty active in combat, not just a walking medkit. Ken Levine ruins everything in the end.

Interesting, I didn't know that. Levine seems to have this design tendency of if you can't model it with verisimilitude, don't model it all, but it's kind of hit-or-miss. Yeah, human behaviours and conversations might be difficult to make believable, but absolutely everyone in Rapture being a fucking lunatic who attacks you on sight wasn't an improvement.

 

[Cat Headed Eagle]

What you said is made much more patent about the game design priorities when you remember Elizabeth was meant to be a mute and that an important part of the game was dedicated to try to guess what the fuck she was trying to communicate. Even in the version of the game that had her closer to what we finally saw, she was pretty active in combat, not just a walking medkit. Ken Levine ruins everything in the end.

Interesting, I didn't know that. Levine seems to have this design tendency of if you can't model it with verisimilitude, don't model it all, but it's kind of hit-or-miss. Yeah, human behaviours and conversations might be difficult to make believable, but absolutely everyone in Rapture being a fucking lunatic who attacks you on sight wasn't an improvement.

Elizabeth even looked different.

Her design was much more appropiate to the timeframe of Infinite. Then she was changed to the contemporary model, but with a bowlcut and a bit more boobage, that was before Levine changed it because it used to upset feminists.

The bit with everyone on Rapture being mad makes a bit more sense though. The city was in ruins, and everyone who was there was damaged beyond any sort of help due to the consumption of not-crack. I keep going back at the bit where Levine was the guy who wanted the ship in SS2 to resemble an actual vessel with the ammount of bathrooms and all, but I think he was too quick to get drunk with power. I don't doubt he might have great ideas from time to time but he's not a project leader, that's for sure. You never get the creatives to lead your projects if you want to retain your sanity.

 

[Gargaune]

The bit with everyone on Rapture being mad makes a bit more sense though. The city was in ruins, and everyone who was there was damaged beyond any sort of help due to the consumption of not-crack.

Still, it was definitely a case of writing justifying a design limitation, Levine just didn't want to bog himself down with "social" gameplay, instead opting to dispense all the character drama at a non-interactive level, with radio and audio logs, like in SS2 before. It chafes a bit more though, because splicers aren't mind-controlled mutants and we do see them working in groups, meaning they retain some level of human relational ability. I get it, Bioshock's a shooter so you shoot things, but the whole "why can't I talk to the monsters?" meme does tickle something in the back of your head in this case.

 

[Morgoth]

Elizabeth even looked different.

What the hell, Ken?

Or was Anime Liz 2K's idea?