Bioshock Infinite is easily one of the greatest games I've had the pleasure of playing.

Graphically, it ushers in a new standard for the PC. Set in a backdrop of a 1930s city, the environment is vibrant and colorful, but not distracting towards gameplay, although the same cannot be said for the heroine Elizabeth ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°). The textures and intricate details put into the surroundings and characters allow for a spectacularly immersive experience, all the while being well optimised and running smoothly for most mid to high end computers.

Just like its predecessors, the storyline for Bioshock Infinite is fairly dark. This certainly does not seem to be the case at first when you enter the idyllic, utopian city in the sky that is Coloumbia–it appears nothing like the dingy underwater city of Rapture in the past two games. However it soon becomes evident that there is much more than meets the eye.

Instead of the generic, faceless protagonist in many FPS games, you play as Booker Dewitt, a man with his own agenda, motivations...and regrets. Tasked with retrieving a girl named Elizabeth from the city of Coloumbia, the two develop a complicated bond as they rely upon and learn about each other in their bid to escape from Coloumbia. There is very strong character development in both Booker and Elizabeth as the story progresses, on par with a well-written novel. The plot also progresses at a enjoyable pace with many twists along the way. Although the story is linear, there are moral choices that the player has to make along the way, and you are constantly reminded of that choice for the rest of the game. Despite several plot holes, the story was one of the best I have experienced for a video game, to the extent that I feel that the game would have remained a masterpiece even if combat gameplay was removed and it was made into a visual novel with the same cutscenes.

Therein lies the only mediocre aspect of Bioshock Infinite: the actual combat. Although there are some fairly innovative features, such as shooting while moving along aerial rails at high speed, much of the FPS elements fail to leave a big impression. The weapons and abilities that you can use feel largely similar, just as most of the enemies that you fight. There seems to be little variation in tactics involved, the player simply guns baddies down from one area to the next. This is further limited by the fact that you can only have 2 weapons and 2 active abilities at a time.

Combat is also hardly challenging with little disincentive to dying. On death the player respawns at the location, with only the surviving enemies from the past engagement healed–already killed enemies do not respawn. This means that you could just slowly try to kill an enemy one at a time before dying if you are having difficulty in a fight, rinse and repeat until you manage to clear it.

Despite these drawbacks, I feel that Bioshock Infinite has redefined videogames and the FPS genre as a storytelling medium, and I certainly look forward to replaying it again. (In fact, this lengthy review was written in a bid to stave off that feeling of dejection that one gets after clearing a really good game/book. I hope that stands as a testament to how brilliant this game is.)

10/10

Bioshock Infinite is easily one of the greatest games I've had the pleasure of playing. Graphically, it ushers in a new standard for the PC. Set in a backdrop of a 1930s city, the environment is vibrant and colorful, but not distracting towards gameplay, although the same cannot be said for the heroine Elizabeth ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°). The textures and intricate details put into the surroundings and characters allow for a spectacularly immersive experience, all the while being well optimised and running smoothly for most mid to high end computers. Just like its predecessors, the storyline for Bioshock Infinite is fairly dark. This certainly does not seem to be the case at first when you enter the idyllic, utopian city in the sky that is Coloumbia–it appears nothing like the dingy underwater city of Rapture in the past two games. However it soon becomes evident that there is much more than meets the eye. Instead of the generic, faceless protagonist in many FPS games, you play as Booker Dewitt, a man with his own agenda, motivations...and regrets. Tasked with retrieving a girl named Elizabeth from the city of Coloumbia, the two develop a complicated bond as they rely upon and learn about each other in their bid to escape from Coloumbia. There is very strong character development in both Booker and Elizabeth as the story progresses, on par with a well-written novel. The plot also progresses at a enjoyable pace with many twists along the way. Although the story is linear, there are moral choices that the player has to make along the way, and you are constantly reminded of that choice for the rest of the game. Despite several plot holes, the story was one of the best I have experienced for a video game, to the extent that I feel that the game would have remained a masterpiece even if combat gameplay was removed and it was made into a visual novel with the same cutscenes. Therein lies the only mediocre aspect of Bioshock Infinite: the actual combat. Although there are some fairly innovative features, such as shooting while moving along aerial rails at high speed, much of the FPS elements fail to leave a big impression. The weapons and abilities that you can use feel largely similar, just as most of the enemies that you fight. There seems to be little variation in tactics involved, the player simply guns baddies down from one area to the next. This is further limited by the fact that you can only have 2 weapons and 2 active abilities at a time. Combat is also hardly challenging with little disincentive to dying. On death the player respawns at the location, with only the surviving enemies from the past engagement healed–already killed enemies do not respawn. This means that you could just slowly try to kill an enemy one at a time before dying if you are having difficulty in a fight, rinse and repeat until you manage to clear it. Despite these drawbacks, I feel that Bioshock Infinite has redefined videogames and the FPS genre as a storytelling medium, and I certainly look forward to replaying it again. (In fact, this lengthy review was written in a bid to stave off that feeling of dejection that one gets after clearing a really good game/book. I hope that stands as a testament to how brilliant this game is.) 10/10