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- Publisher: 2K Games
- Release Date: Mar 26, 2013
- Also On: PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
User Score
Generally favorable reviews- based on 6224 Ratings
User score distribution:
Positive: 5,334 out of 6224
Mixed: 355 out of 6224
Negative: 535 out of 6224
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Mar 26, 2013The graphics are so mesmerizing, I almost forget to move on with the game play. The setting, the story, the way Elizabeth interacts with you--I am stunned and in awe--This game was fun without being frustrating in combat and challenges-- PERFECTION--PURE PERFECTION A eloquent way to say good-bye to this generation of consoles. Kudos
Apr 6, 2013Bioshoke Infinite is a good game. It is also overated, over-hyped and someone less than the coming-of-the-Messiah it pretends to be. Infinite has wonderful ambience and atmosphere. The city of Columbia was built with passion and care. The art STYLING is brilliant. Likewise the main characters are sublime. Certain set-pieces are BRILLIANT. Yet finally this game does not stand up as a product that is worth $60. It is far too short and the shooting/exploring elements are far too limited, a kind of theatrical filler between the numerous set-pieces of this scenic railroad. Good though it is, this is a game to wait for. Wait till the hype blows over and get it when it hits its true value of around $20. The combat is fun but not challenging. Enemy AI is weak. The game is also far too linear and NARROW in terms of both player progress and narrative. The game finally exposes its true weaknesses, after many great moments when the plot falls to pieces at the end with one of the most head-scratching (in a negative sense) and RIDICULOUS conclusions you will ever see in a game. The ending is not deep. It is not a philosphical marvel. It's an incoherent mess that will have you wondering what the team at Irrational Games have been smoking for the last FIVE YEARS. While the anti-American Exceptionism is fairly amusing is is also over-played. Doesn't Ken Levine understand the word subtlety? Bioware Infinite is definitely a game to be enjoyed when the price comes down. I understand the desire of users to praose any game to the heavens. It happened also with Skyrim, which simply was also not very good. Keep waiting boys and girls, a true 10/10 game will get made eventually. Enough dudes are working at it.… Expand
Mar 26, 2013I really don't understand why are people so overwhelmed by this game. Lets see first thing is graphics, well this is such a clever ruse, all that bloom, fog and light shafts are well placed to cover poor models and textures in general(and I am not a person who praise graphics but this simply couldn't be overlooked). Next thing is horrible collision zones, at first it was not a big deal but it became more and more annoying. Also difficulty is pretty low i cannot even imagine how easier the game could get on lower difficulties. Story and characters are mix up of several clichés with several ups and downs and for once finally useful sidekick on the contrary enemy AI is quite poor and you will see big number of enemies stucked in some obstacle. There is also that unpleasant fact that this game embrace only checkpoint saves. So not being a fanboy nor hater i have to say Bioshock Infinite is pretty average game with tremendous hype, I'm glad i got my copy free because otherwise i would be really really angry at myself for wasting money. P.S. for all the people that say Bioshock is best rated FPS in history just check Half Life 2 and see for yourself… Expand
Mar 26, 2013I fell for the hype and bought it because of all the rave reviews but didn't like it at all. A mediocre shooter at best with dated graphics and uninteresting setting and story.
Mar 26, 2013Would you kindly play this game? This by far is one of my favorite games of the past 5 years of gaming. When I walked out of that capsule and those lit candles with the soothing music behind it I knew this game was going somewhere. This is art this is what this generations needed for a ending of this generation consoles. I can now say this is added to the list of great games made by a genius company. Great job irrational games. Every bit was worth playing this game.… Expand
Mar 26, 2013I might not mind the ZERO choice, on-rails, gameplay if the story-line made any kind of sense or if I cared the least about the main character, but he goes from being an idiot to being a bigoted genocidal maniac. Maybe I should have played the previous bioshock games for this to make any kind of sense.
As-is this just looks pretty, but the gameplay is so linearly on-rails it's tormenting. You can genocide everyone in your way (for no apparent reason), or just run past them all, your actions have zero impact, you never get to make any real choices and should you somehow fail you get seemingly infinite immediate retries.… Expand
Mar 26, 2013I must say this game has some great moments but is being hyped way too much and probably because of the lackluster games as of late. So I can understand people clinging to this like the second coming when a half way decent game pops up. I get it! Let us get one thing straight though. This game does not top the original Bioshock in any aspect for me personally. The mechanics are the same with some refinements but nothing mind blowing. The sky hook is a gimmick IMHO. Really had more emotion with the little girls in the original Bioshock. Columbia is trying to pull the "oh we went there!" with the racism card. This is Bioshock rehashed but without heart and full of hate hidden throughout the world. To those who missed the first Bioshock then I understand why you think this is a masterpiece. There is a reason why originals hold their place in our hearts compared to sequels. Nothing Irrational Games does will capture the heart of Rapture again! Infinite is a great shooter just not as great as the one from 2007. Be realistic and don't let the hype machine fool you!… Expand
Mar 26, 2013Bioshock Infinite is the definition of mediocre. The combat is weak, the story is complete nonsense, the characters have no personality, the graphics are poor up close, the choices don't impact anything or anyone, it is the most linear game i have played in a long while and it feels more like a shooting gallery at times and the magic or whatever its called is not needed. It just tries to copy Call of Duty to much with its gameplay and fails miserably. The ending is the worst thing about the game because it retcons System Shock 1&2 and BioShock 1&2 and is just stupid. The world however looks nice and it is very detailed, only if you look at it from far away. I'm getting the idea that a lot of these "Reviewers" have finished the game. Plus the game is more of a "You should feel bad if you are a white person" kind of game.
Tl;dr Just buy any CoD4 or Half life 2 its basically the same but with more re-playability, strategy, creativity and mod-ability, better writing, better characters, memorable guns and Multilayer. On a side note, Hi "Irrational Games" marketers.… Expand
Mar 26, 2013BioShock Infinite is a reinforcement of drugs such as degenerating into the world of gaming. What a wonderful world of storytelling rest on coercion scripts.Striking narrative or cinematic QTE scenes to make the story does not need an elaborate construction.This game is a masterpiece, a masterpiece
Mar 26, 2013Absolutly outstanding game, this is a new benchmark for game developers to strive for... have no hesitation if you are considering wether or not to buy this game... this is pure art expressed masterfully
Mar 28, 2013I must say im a little confused. I didn't play the original Bioshock as the subject didn't appeal. However, ive was gifted a copy of this one and was looking forward to it based on his praise. The subsequent guilt caused by what im about to say isn't enough to told my tongue!
Why is this game scored so high by so many people? i don't get it. The game is a simple run and gun with ugly graphic, poor animations, and weak linear level design. Horrible style mash-up, poor UI, and clunky controls. Aliens: Colonial Marines got ripped apart last month (By myself included) for being a very average game with a big set of boots to fill. However i wouldnt say this game is technically any better. It feels like a very average last gen game to me. I prefer gameplay to graphics but i found this game lacking in both. I am genuinely confused by the gushing reviews of "perfection" this and "masterpiece" that.
It was a constant race toward the reason to switch it off. Between the boredom and the motion sickness caused by the poor mouse sensitivity settings, i got no enjoyment from this title at all. The motion sickness piped it in the end and i gladly quit after only a few hours ....probably forever.
For goodness sake play a demo! I guess this game is love it or hate it. P.S. If someone wants to pay me a large amount in used notes, i will say its great aswell!… Expand
Mar 26, 2013While this game is short, I feel that if it was longer it would have detracted from the experience. If you do not play this game, then at least watch a friend play it. This is an amazing game beyond what I expected from any game in 2013. The only problem I see is that games now have to live up to this standard.
Mar 27, 2013Best game for last 5 years. Good Music, good and beauty graphics, perfect gameplay and amazing story with best ending i've seen ever! 10/10. And i think, I found my love. Elizabeth
Mar 27, 2013Bioshock Infinite does a lot of things right. Elizabeth is one of the best characters to ever appear in a game and the world is beautiful; unfortunately many little things keep the game from the level of greatness a lot of people are laying upon it. Pacing is inconsistent, many abilities feel completely similar with only cosmetic differences, and the lack of save anywhere is inexcusable, especially when both previous Bioshock titles allowed it. Lastly, while beautifully realized, the world of Columbia just isn't as interesting or as "real" as Rapture from the previous Bioshock games.
The game is still very good but it's still disappointing because it could have been truly great.… Expand
Apr 4, 2013This game is absolutley stellar. The graphics are fantastic(they are not photorealistic, they are highly stylized). The gameplay is spot on. You are always finding new abilities and new ways of doing things. Lots of action. If you like bioshock, heck if you love video games get this! The only thing I would say that is apparant in some negative reviews is that if you are a HARDCORE shooter fan that only enjoys photorealistic graphics and games that are similar to call of duty then this may not be for you. It isnt the most serious shooter in the world. But if you play things other than call of duty then get this! you wont be dissapointed. Looks amazing on a good gaming pc! Easily one of the best games of 2013!… Expand
Mar 31, 2013A bad shooter with a bad narrative. A high budget babysitter for the undiscerning consumer.
-Limitation to two weapons leaves combat incapable of being as varied as in previous bioshock games or any decent shooter. -Regenerating shield turns any challenging combat into a glorified game of peek-a-boo
-Major reduction in passive character building (dozens of tonics vs the selection of character upgrades)
-Removal of hacking
-Removal of research
-Simplification of powers system (no separate currency to purchase, no upgrading)
-Melee mechanics designed to emulate those with cerebral palsy
And, on a more subjective level
-total reversal of atmosphere
-robotic, mostly non-interactive NPCs
-a moderate improvement over the originals, but still awful animations, just more noticeable with more NPCS
-Boring moral "choices" with no impact
-Mostly, though, it's poisoning the shock series even further with time-hopping infinite universe wankery. A bad Bioshock game, for sure, but a bad game on its face, mechanically and especially narratively.… Expand
Mar 26, 2013The BioShock franchise and the team in Boston redefine gaming once again with BioShock Infinite. The original game was a masterpiece upon release, it still aged very gracefully.. I know this more appropriately now because I just slammed my way through both BS1 and BS2 before tonight's midnight launch. And no, I have not finished Bioshock Infinite. However, I am going to review this game based on my 5 hours of gameplay... why? you may ask? Because the first 2 HOURS of gameplay were more enjoyable than the entire BioShock series. It sucks you in, immediately, and never let's go. If you bought this game on launch for $60 give yourself a pat on the back. You truly made a strong purchasing decision that just helped the gaming industry as a whole. This game just paved the way for what we expect in our next gen titles!… Expand
Apr 7, 2013They've invested a whooping $100 million in 'marketing', look it up. This is written off against tax.
Nevermind the product, we have to keep the ball rolling.
Because from an artistical and a technical point of view, this is nothing but child-oriented junk.
Mar 26, 2013Awesome game! Cool graphic design and perfect soundtrack. Love it very much. Action is very dynamic and the story is interesting so far. A graphics itself feels kinda old, but light effects are awesome, so i don't have any complaints. It's a little bit laggy on ultra 1080p on my GTX 560, but i hope they'll fix it later.
Apr 4, 2013This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Gameplay will never change. There is this mass illusion in the game industry that each game has mechanics slightly more polished than its predecessors. While you can tweak it a bit, the shooter formula has reached its apex, and while Bioshock Infinite does improve superficially on both the vigors and the guns, especially in the latter category (gunfire and recoil more realistic), it's really what it doesn't do that the game needed more of. Some have complained about the lack of RPG elements (with the exception of gun and vigor upgrades), such as inventory or map screen. I found this to be a huge improvement. There is no menu interaction to slow the pacing and you're always on the move. I thought the tone of the game world would have felt more immersive with the lack of a HUD, much like the first gameplay demo Irrational Games released several years ago. But all of the above are personal opinions and design choices. What left a sour taste in my mouth wasn't anything you can experience in the game itself. No, you could only experience this bittersweet regret if you had watched, in eager anticipation, all of Ken Levine's interviews, only to realize you had just witnessed the biggest cop out in gaming history.
Expectation #1: An actual floating city, complete with physics.
After the first demo that was released (which is never shown in the game), we see one of the massive, orange balloons tethered to the corner of a belltower deflate suddenly and the massive structure starts to pivot towards the ground, the bell flying loose from its moorings only to come grinding to a stop inches away from your feet, the cobblestones buckling under its weight and shooting off in every direction. Later, Ken Levine commented on the instablity of the city, how the tech team had made it pulse with life, and hinted that you'd be able to topple the city around you. This fell short on both accounts, the only undulating architecture in the game appearing during the first half, and after you're solidly captivated by the world, these stellar sights give way to more mundane gameplay (street shootouts and interior combat). It never feels like their main selling point is really taken to its full potential.
Expectation #2: Watch the city tear itself apart (pre-Rapture)
This is the big one. I want to be as harsh as possible when I say that this was a blatant lie. We were supposedly going to 'watch the city fall apart before us'. We were told that there would be moments where you would have to interact with citizens on the street, such as pointing a gun at a potential mugger to send him scrambling, or intervening in a local execution (both of which are shown in the same demo). There are maybe three moments in the entire game where you feel this sort of weight behind your actions, and they are as superfluous as they are dull. You can't change the overall outcome of anything, although watching the colorful, Independence Day style utopia burn slowly is captivating in its own way. I would have preferred a little more interaction, hence replayability.
Expectation #3: A decent resolution.
This one is debatable. And the main reason for the spoilers tag. Let's get the big one out of the way, the resolutions to each storyline. Both Daisy Fitzroy and Jeremiah Fink are shadowbox characters that bleed out of the story as quickly as they pop in. Slate is one of the more interesting characters but doesn't feel fully fleshed out. Don't get me started on Comstock. Let's face it, time travel was both the protagonist and antagonist here. It solves everything (most levels are going back and forth through the area in different time periods), and also helps ease along the ruthlessly shoehorned ending. But despite all of this, the ending was emotional and relatively significant enough to make it feel as if it 'belonged'. It was the gamer in me that made me want to slap Ken Levine. Songbird becomes your best bud and then you get to watch him drown in two seconds. Apparently the Bioshock story will never change because even with its fairly restricted narrative parameters, it's the doorway to infinite worlds just like it with new coats of paint (so we can expect this disappointment forever). Oh, and my personal favorite: The final boss is three waves of the easiest enemies in the game. No Handyman. No Songbird. Fail.
But aside from all the things they promised and didn't deliver, this is a bittersweet shooter, with some amazingly satisfying gameplay regarding the vigors and gunplay, but some equally frustrating inconsistencies in the pacing and storyline. Oh, and this game tries desperately to emulate Disney (and doesn't do a bad job), but it's so obvious in parts it's almost painful, especially if you're like me and find the overall 'girl in a tower' concept a little overused and cheesy.
Still, if you're a fan of shooters or Bioshock in general, you owe it to yourself to see how far the series has come.… Expand
Mar 26, 2013Simply AMAZING. I can't get enough of this game. It's perfection. Or near perfection at least. It's so beautiful, clever and fun. Stunning job from the guys over at Irrational. Good job!
Mar 26, 2013Every once in a while a game comes out that blows your socks off. This game goes above in beyond in all areas. Superior story telling, combat, atmosphere, music. You feel immersed in the world and unable to quit playing. The details in the areas show the care given by the development team. This game was not rushed and will serve as proof to what games can accomplish. This game accomplishes what Half-Life did for its time period. I think Ken Levine said it best when referred to games as a better medium than movies and books because you pilot them. You get to participate and experience them. This is nothing short of a masterpiece and should be purchased by everyone.… Expand
Mar 27, 2013An absolutely beautiful game. The graphics are stunning, and the overall mood of the game is fantastic. Also the music changes dynamicly if your in battle, and it makes the battles very intense. The levels are full of secrets, locked doors and collectibles. The world is very beautiful. I often find myself just exploring the world outside of where I'm supposed to go, because it's so beautiful. It also helps that I always find secrets when exploring. Fantastic game!… Expand
Mar 26, 2013This is more than just a great game, it is a great work of art. The game is executed in a way that only can be done through video games. If this were a movie it wouldn't work. This is the game that may bring respect to videogames as an art form.
Mar 26, 2013I had doubts before preordering the game, but I gave it a shot, since I loved the bioshock games from the past, and I always liked the atmosphere which is unique to this game, no game has this kind of graphics, and sounds, and environment.
The gameplay, as always, fun to play, and not to easy, but possible, (not like those games that you die a thousand times to move on).
In addition to that, you have a unique companion, that aids you in many ways, Elizabeth will through you a coin she found, or a shotgun when you are out of ammo, also, her character is something I never saw, she moves along with you, not after you, she interacts with the world, like it was real, she would tell you her opinion or just go around and look.
If you love singleplayer games, and are looking for something fresh that no other game can offer, give this a shot, you won't be disappointed.… Expand
Mar 26, 2013This game is a masterpiece. You have to love a game that is built not to please everyone, or to appeal to the biggest demographic of the lowest common denominator. Bioware Infinite is about a development team trying to realise their creative vision. This is a very fun shooter, but by no means is it the kind of shooter that is going to inspire thousands of hours of shooting.
May 9, 2013Formulaic 'waves' of enemies in set areas ruin this otherwise beautiful game. Gone is the sense of freedom, exploration and choices that made the first two Bioshocks so much fun. This is, instead, a repetitive shooter with little to draw you in, and even less to keep you there.
Mar 27, 2013I liked the original Bioshock games but wasn't a huge huge fan of them like some people. I wasn't super hyped for this game (no unrealistic explanations of "OMG GUYS, this is going to be the best game ever!!") but I was definitely excited. Just finished this morning after staying up all night and wow. Wow, was it worth it.
Very unique gameplay. Incredible sound design (there is something that just draws you in about the sound: all of it is very realistic and well done), great setting, great characters, great story. One of the first games that I've felt was actually worth its initial box price in a long, long time.… Expand
Mar 26, 2013One of the worse use of DirectX9 ever. Abusive HDR and bloom, VERY VERY small FOV texture are ok when you are far, but as any game on Unreal Engine 3, texture look's really ugly when you try to enjoy close-up in the game.
Most confusing game ever, hard to follow the story too.
Tons TONS of good features got removed from it, (even hacking system like it had in Bioshock 2. Multiplayer)
They tried to make an semi open world game, it failed totally, very confusing, not clear at all on where you need to go.… Expand
Mar 26, 2013This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I mean, if nothing else the game certainly looks nice, the visual aesthetic is great. That being said, the rest of the game is pretty bad compared to Bioshock 1 and is absolutely wiped out by SS2. There are three different variations on a machine gun and three different variants on a grenade launcher alone. I actually feel like I'm playing Halo in the sky with this one move from one wide-open area with obvious cover and spawning generic enemies to kill, then move to the next and repeat. Oh, and don't forget Elizabeth, who you either have to comfort every ten minutes or who throws you health and ammo like nobody's business because god forbid there's a little bit of challenge. Not to mention the needlessly complicated time travel 2deep4u plot with, guess what, a twist halfway through the game! Oh man, it's almost like we didn't see this coming because Ken Levine hasn't put this in two famous games already! Why Halo 4 has a 6.9 user score but this has a 9.0 is beyond me when they both suffer from the same problems. Oh, and I almost forgot to mention the completely subtle message of Booker immediately becoming a racist dick upon being baptized. Nice job with the subtlety, Ken.… Expand
Mar 29, 2013Graphics are excellent and the setting is fantastic. I also really enjoyed the story and thought the characters were interesting and having Elizabeth as a partner was very fun and worked really well. Points deducted for repetitive combat and repetitive enemies. The powers are not very inspired and have a simplistic "fire at enemy or lay a trap". The game stutters when loading new areas even with solid 60fps (gtx 570, settings on med/high) and thus breaks the immersion. You can only carry two guns which is disappointing and I pretty much went the entire game with raven power, shock power, sniper rifle and machine gun. I very rarely changed tactics and progressed easily with this setup. Was also dissapointed to find med kits had been removed and you cannot carry additional salts to power up your abilities when running low (have to rely on Elizabeth or the surrounding area). Was a good solid game, however the original Bioshock is still my favourite.… Expand
Mar 26, 2013This game sets a new bar for the fps genre, it reuses the unique formula of the previous bioshock games and implemented it well. And I'm glad Irrational games and the crew took the time to polish the game. This game is a great experiences and it is possibly one of the stronger contestants for Game of the year.
Mar 28, 2013Four hours into the game and I am still not convinced. Loved the trailers and hoped for a great experience, but it still feels awkward, somehow untouchable. For me, it's like walking and fighting through a picture which has a cartoon-ques look with brutal content and no soul, no vibe, no grounding, just a lot of details. I will not complain about the rosebushes made of "concrete", the birds who are able to fly under water and through statues or the washy pixels when you get closer to walls or any other objects. The graphics are not sensational, but OK. The disturbing part is, that they are supporting the strange atmosphere of this game by blocking you to immerse into it. I hope for the better in the hours to come, but I have little hope that I will warm up. What a shame.… Expand
Mar 26, 2013Normally I would never give a game 10/10, but Bioshock Infinite ticks all the boxes. Just like the first game did. Infinite has exciting gameplay, with various ways to approach encounters. You have Elizabeth there to help. She gives you ammo, salt and health when you need it. She can also open rips in the world to give you the edge in combat. The graphics are amazing, mixed with excellent use of lighting and sound. the world is truly amazing. I love the way that it is specifically a different experience to the previous games. There you are stuck in Rapture, a claustrophobic, dark and broken city. Here we have a huge open beaming world, with light. It's still terribly evil though All that aside this game is absolutely amazing and If a game is better than this in the next 2 years I will be very surprised. GOTY for sure.… Expand
Mar 26, 2013This is an amazing game. It deliveres everything that other shooters do not. 1. An amazing Story which i will not spoil. 2. Amazing graphics that fit the atmosphere perfectly. 3. NO BUGS SO FAR!!! Never thought the day would come when i would play a game on release without any bugs. 4. Superb gameplay: amazing levels, weapons, means of transportation so on and so on. I could go on but i desperately want to continue playing. And 2k was nice enough to give me Bioshock 1 and xcom: enemy unknown for FREE!!!!!… Expand
Mar 27, 2013I am going to keep this short. OMFG. Bioshock 1 was my favorite game of all time and this is surpassed it and I am only half way done. Enough said. Go buy and support this amazing game. These is the kind of games that keeps me playing. I am 28 years old and I have not felt this strong about a game since the first Bioshock. Go buy this now. If you do not you will do yourself the biggest disservice to your gaming. This is why I game. And this is why I am a gamer. MASTERPIECE.… Expand
Mar 26, 2013Well I can start by saying. It is a very unique and artistic setting. The visuals are great. To be quite honest it isn't as good as the game deserves. I found it too be a run and gun. The enemies were not that exciting and the game itself was very easy. Gameplay hours ran me about 6 hours in total. In terms of gameplay itself the only unique thing about it was the skyline which was fun to use. The rest of the game itself just didn't feel that great. Looking out in the distance and looking at the view and the world that they created was awesome. One thing to expect is repetitive gameplay. You will find all the missions to be the same. You will be running from map to map running and gunning. There were no unique quests. Even after finishing I felt as if it was extremely liner and have no desire to return to this game. The only thing this game has for it was its super awesome voice acting and its stunning visuals. The skyline added a very unique system but it was a bit disappointing. All in all I gotta rate this game a 6.5/10. Due to the weird plot twists, uninteresting enemies, repetitive gameplay. If this game would improve its maps. Making everything more like its original. This game would easily make my top of the list. It all came down to its average gameplay and linear story. The game was incredibly easy. I toned it up to hard and still found my self sprinting through the game.… Expand
Mar 26, 2013This game is fantastic. The awe never stops, from the moment you launch the game, til the moment you complete it. This is by far the best FPS ever made. I don't see how anyone could hate this game or dislike it. I don't believe it to be possible. I didn't buy into any hype, but even with all the hype around the game, it will still blow you away. Words cannot express this game. It has to be played. Of course on PC it has way better visuals, but I wouldn't let that deter console players. It would be an injustice to yourself not to experience this game.… Expand
Mar 30, 2013This game is absolutely overwhelmed. The graphics is mediocre, even in max settings. The low res textures and poor models are a shame. The story is complete nonsense, the characters have no personality. I hate it.
Apr 10, 2013I have been a gamer for 20 years. This is my first review. Nothing is perfect. If everything was a 10 there would be no need for new games at all... I'm giving this a 10 because there are some reviewers giving it less than 9.5 and I need to make up for that. Likely they're blinded by their own genre and gameplay tastes, which Bioshock Infinite may not perfectly align with. Look past that and see a work of stunning beauty.
It is a compelling, wildly creative story that draws you in from its first moments. Anyone who says they saw the end coming is lying to themselves. They might have wondered but they didn't KNOW.
Play the game and enjoy everything that games can be… Expand
Mar 31, 2013I almost never play games twice. However, upon finishing Bioshock Infinite, I rebooted and started again straight away. The characters, setting and plot are fantastic. The combat is interesting and tight, though I agree with others who suggest there might have been a bit too much of it. The sound track is outstanding I want to buy it.
I know I'm gushing, but I think this is my favourite game ever. It's plot and characters are as good as, or better, than any film or book I've seen or read. To an extent, I feel like this is a new level of story-telling in gaming.… Expand
Mar 26, 2013"The lord judges, I act."
This is a spoiler free review. I won't touch the story-line it's epic and I'll end it at that.
I'm loving Infinite so far. But as a long time BioShock fan I must say the graphics are mildly disappointing. Especially if you lurk around in every corner of the game. The flowers, the fruits, walls etc. just look like they were rushed up during development. That's the only part which is bad about the game.
The guns, they are so well balanced. For every different heavy hitter you WILLL need a different technique. I found out that the hard way, haha! The Vigor combos and Vigor Gun damage combos are epic. The Vigor themselves don't feel OP so you'll constantly have to use different ones at different times.
I played the Industrial revolution, and well I personally feel that the rewards, specially the early 500$ you get from completing IR will give you an edge early on as you can quickly buy health kits, salt and ammo. But that's ok.
Music is just mind blowing. Literally mind blowing.
Elizabeth and here gossips are epic. Don't consider here a fancy-dandy superwomen without brains, she's bloody smart, and helps a lot.
Still think they could have done the game graphically a bit much better.
Anyhow that probably shouldn't keep me from giving BS: Infinite a 10/10.
Also, any idiot voting 0s or 1s is probably trolling around without having actually played the game.… Expand
Mar 26, 2013Occasionally, a game comes along that truly takes my breath away. Like my first runs through Half-Life 2, BioShock, and Fallout 3, I was at a loss for words from start to end with BioShock Infinite. Let me start this review with the only negative I can possibly attempt to give it- the middle is slightly blurry with a couple of quick transitions that only make sense after you have completed the game. However, the combat during that time completely makes up for it. I really want to keep this review short, so I'll get straight to the point. 1. Buy this game. 2. The atmosphere, combat, story, visuals, characters, and much more, combine together to make one of the most enjoyable fictional (beyond just video games) experiences I have ever encountered.… Expand
Mar 26, 2013the most awesome shooter i've played since Half-Life 2. I enjoyed every minute of this game...
Great story, great art design, great characters, great ending.
Game of the year 2013
Mar 26, 2013Now, I've played all the Bioshocks and beaten them. This is the best one. With more freedom than previous titles, I cant find anything wrong with this game. Aside from all the obvious ones, graphics are awesome, gameplay is phenominal, the music and environments are 2nd to none. The game is very immersive. I catch myself getting tense sometimes and I'm like "Wow, its been a while for that!"
Jun 14, 2013The great grandson of the legendary System Shock 2 is a sobering example of how even venerated IP's can end with a whimper, not a bang. Gone is the atmosphere of tension, solitude and slow, cloying fear, of being a rat in an alien maze, desperately fighting the machinations of a near-ubiquitously powerful, intelligent enemy who hates you more than anything else. Gone is the rapidly blurring dichotomy of you and the warped genetic monstrosities you fight against. Gone is the sprawling, labyrinthine level-design that made you feel a stranger in an even stranger land.
Instead, brightly coloured setpieces tower above poor-quality environmental textures plagued by pop-in effects and graphical errors. All pretensions of atmosphere disappear in a neo-Americana hell, populated by a number of identical racist caricatures whose threat towards you is as laughable as their suicidal and stupid combat AI. What tropes of old remain, like the strange powers you and an illogically small proportion of NPC's possess, the garish, loudly coloured vending machines, are not given even the merest pretensions of logical existence in a world that remains true to the 'Shock series in barely more than name alone.
The satisfying gunplay of Bioshock is replaced with something that seems two steps back guns feel like they lack weight and impact, melee combat has gone from having some of the most visceral and brutal force to an insufficient, chaotic slugfest. Each blow of the wrench in Bioshock 1 felt like the fist of an angry God compared to the mess that is Infinite's hand to hand combat. Weapon upgrades feel tacked on, (gone are the tactical uses for each weapon: You will rarely require to change between two.) lacking the incredibly unique feeling and game-changing add-ones of Bioshock that added striking visual components to your weaponry.
Gunplay itself is almost parodic your limited selection of weapons, when the gimmicky or inferior are pared away, leave you to fight against generic waves of identical enemies with your iron sights and in what feels like a near slap in the face, _regenerating shields._
Plasmids (or 'vigours') feel similarly superfluous, despite an obvious attempt to broad the range of options both between and within them. Their use feels as unsatisfying and generic as the gimmicks of many other mid-quality FPS offerings that the Shock pedigree should stand above. Environmental uses for vigours are easily missed and of limited use. Contrast the feel of the fire power in Bioshock and Bioshock Infinite. In the former, a click of the fingers instantly set an enemy ablaze. It was fast, punishing and conveyed the utter power of ADAM, at the expense of your own body. It was a standard fallback for many players for good reason, for it was ubiquitously useful, but not overpowering. In the darkness of Rapture, the flames you ignited with a snap of your fingers were immediate reminders of power.
In Infinite, the clunky, slow moving projectile feels more like a grenade. Enemies who rush at you wildly in chaotic, rarely tactical combat make efficient use of the power difficult, and the flames themselves seem ineffectual, difficult to use when other powers are simpler and easier to use. Environmental uses like conveniently placed oil-slicks are rarely of any real value. The use of almost any vigour seems a waste of resources. Unsatisfying, unrewarding, unpolished.
The story itself is a decidedly average mess, riddled with plot holes and uncompelling characters. Your constant companion is, while relatively likeable and useful, not something I expected from a franchise that made it's name on the back of well-crafted atmospheric tension.
Gone too are some of the rewarding RPG elements, replaced by a bizarre 'gear' system that seems more at home in a Borderlands game than Bioshock. Not a few hours into the game and you are furnished with a pair of trousers that allow you to punch people from three-times the distance away, (often launching you off the edge of the city to an untimely, undeserved death) or another item of clothing that inexplicably causes opponents you strike in melee to spontaneously burst into flames and burn to skeletons before your eyes. A hat it was, I think. What were they thinking?!
This is of course rhetorical. It is obvious what they were thinking. A combination of changing appeal to a casual audience and rushed production values, Infinite is the death-knell of the 'Shock series. What's worse is that the this same audience of 'gamers', too captivated by their understanding of (actually visually average, but disguised by gross amounts of bloom and fog) setpieces that the developer literally drags your attention to as 'good graphics', (which is what a good game is all about, right?) who purchase an identical Call of Duty game EVERY year, are lapping titles like Infinite up.
Rest In Peace. We hardly knew ye.… Expand
Mar 29, 2013This isn't Bioshock- It's pretty, it's nice, the art style is fantastic. But this is not Bioshock, this is incredibly dumbed down linear cut and dry with the name Bioshock slapped on it.
No lockpicking, no hacking, no puzzles, no upgrading. Furthermore it's JUST a game, enemies will shoot you when they can't see you. Run randomly to outflank you when they have no idea where you are they will run THROUGH your bullets to take 'cover' they randomly simulate what a person would do in a firefight.
It's terrible, any hope you have of being immersed is constantly stolen from you. As you are constantly reminded not only is this a game- it's JUST a game. As a movie this would be fantastic, as an adventure game even better. But as a FPS with the Bioshock name on it? Absolute nonsense.… Expand
Mar 26, 2013This is great stuff. Imaginative. Creative. Textures tend to be muddled, but the art direction is inspired and beautiful. Ditto for the sound design; the Beach Boy's "God Only Knows" is turned into a haunting, Sinatra-esque mantra. Absolutely fun. Absolutely worth the simoleons, imo. Ken Levine is a blessed genius. This game does not exploit multiplayer, which is a minus in my book. A game this great should have comparably singular multiplayer. Still, worthy, and quite the experience.… Expand
Mar 26, 2013A true work of art, Kev Levine's background in drama shines through and takes you on an incredible journey. I did not think they could top the atmosphere and story of the first game but they've succeeded and in many ways surpassed. Anyone who gives this game a negative review likely hails from the "CoD era" of shooters, unable to appreciate this game for what it is. No it does not have the polished combat of some games but it does not need it. This is not something to be rushed through in as short as you can, you must be willing to sit back and explore, listen to the diaries, learn the history and indulge into the story. Only then will you see how perfect this game is.… Expand
Mar 26, 2013Bioshock Infinite, when announced, left me sadly skeptical about how well it could live up to the prior game's, more specifically of course the first Bioshock. upon starting this game for this first time I was astounded by the visuals, everything is absolutely beautiful. beyond the fact that they have removed hacking from the game, which left me quite sad. The vigors are unusual and even when theyre similar to those found in Bioshock 1 and 2 they differ in key ways. everything about this game is enjoyable and original Bioshock customers should love this as much as the first.… Expand
May 3, 2013In my 29 years of gaming I have never felt more engaged by a story and a setting. This game has changed my expectations permanently. I have never been so immersed in a gaming experience.
Mar 26, 2013If it was possible to give a game an 11/10 then this would be it. Unlike Bioshock 2 this game is extremely original. It's also made by the same team who made the original Bioshock (aka highest rated FPS of all time). The game is polished, emotional, engaging and just breath taking. Just walking around the environments feels nice. Not only is this game of the year material, but it's also literally the best video game I've played in the past 5 years.… Expand
Mar 26, 2013I wasn't a massive fan of the first Bioshock (its still a good game), but when I first saw the gameplay for Infinite a few years back I fell in love with it almost strait the way. And now I get to play one of the best games of this generation. When you first step into Columbia it feels like the first time at a theme park, the atmosphere is something no hardcore or casual gamer should miss out on. The combat has improved since the first game, using the Skyline is a great addition to the combat and of course getting around. Elizabeth is a character you want around you, and never gets in your way or does annoying things to hinder combat (take note Capcom). I haven't finished the game yet, but to me its a game you don't want to ever end, the experience is that good! I understand certain people won't like this game, every game in existence has players that won't like it, but come on, people who give 0's to a game like this is just trolling! @ciuchina82 How is multiplayer a joke? There is no multiplayer! and to allow your son of 4 years old to play this then I review your parenting a 0/10.… Expand
Mar 26, 2013Gunplay is fun, controls are responsive, the art direction is engrossing, the enemies are original, the characters are intricate, the story is deep and the powers are fun, it's pretty much everything you could want in a run and gun shooter/adventure game. Pretty close to perfect, very reminiscent of Half-life 2 in how well realized the world and the characters are. Game of the year so far.
Mar 26, 2013Absolutely perfect game. Single-handedly the most beautiful game ever made in terms of graphics. Tons of side-things you can do to keep yourself occupied and you can really tell that a lot of time was put into making this game. 10/10.
Mar 26, 2013Einfach nur genial dieses Spiel. Es ist beeindruckend in Punkto Grafik, Gameplay, Story, Storytelling, Musikalischer Begleitung, KI, Leveldesign und Abwechslung. Selten hat mich ein Spiel so gepackt und nicht mehr losgelassen. Hinzu kommt, dass Bioshock Infinite nach 5 Stunden Spielzeit KEINE Bugs gezeigt hat und ich als Vorbesteller auch noch den 1sten Teil und xcom: enemy unknown GRATIS bekommen habe. Noch nie war ich glücklicher darüver 50 Euro ausgegeben zu haben.… Expand
Mar 30, 2013An extremely captivating gaming experience. The gameplay is good, the story is wonderfully told and the world is worth the purchase alone. In a market saturated by "HOORA AMERICA"shooters (Battlefield, Call of Duty, Homefront, Medal of Honor), it's refreshing to see a game tear American Exceptionalism apart. While the gameplay is pretty solid, the real stars are the story and the world. The developers took a lot of big risks in this game, with a lot of decisions that could have easily backfired and ruined the whole experience. The fact that everything works so well together is remarkable in its own right. I think calling it "The greatest game of all time" like some other reviewers are is kind of a stretch, but certainly I don't think anything else coming out this year will even approach the quality of Bioshock Infinite. If you liked the first Bioshock, you probably already have this game, but if you don't you owe it to yourself to get this. If you felt that the gameplay was dull in the original Bioshock or that that lack of subtlety in dealing with broader philosophical and political concepts was problematic, you're going to find the same issues here. However, I absolutely loved the experience.… Expand
Mar 26, 2013Take THAT Half Life 2! Seriously, that game doesn't deserve it's score or praise, but this game does, finally, nice to see some justice in the world. Bioshock has always been a series for absurd creativity, and this entry is no different.
Mar 26, 2013This is a crowning achievement for this cycle of games which is defined by life cycles of consoles. As gaming and other software begins to explore the use of cloud technology and rapid solid state memory, more intense graphics will become the standard along with perfected sound. This game, however, already has those. As a preface, to truly appreciate this game I think you have to enjoy story telling. This game is HEAVILY story driven with fantastic writing. I spent at least an hour in the chapel after landing in Columbia. Needless to say I have not finished the game yet but I am savoring it. I am playing on hard as suggested by PC Gamer because most story centric games have little replay value but this game's story is deep and rich enough to deserve at least another replay. I know I will replay it with the 1999 option after hard so that I can see how I might end without a winnable ending. This is a game about the journey. To rush through it is to completely miss the substance of the game. This is not an ADD friendly game. While the combat is exhilarating and amazingly fun (much like but improved over the original Bioshock) you do have to use tactics and planning to survive. I also appreciate that on the non-1999 version you are not overly punished for screwing up and experimenting. The voice acting, the graphics, the atmosphere, the sheer creative genius of this world inspired me to buy a season pass as I would love more of this game. Ken Levine and the entire Irrational Games team should be given a well deserved standing ovation. I hope that Irrational will take their time, but not as much time, developing their next game. A return to a cyberpunk world would be wonderful, perhaps as a System Shock 3? Take a well deserved break Mr. Levine come back refreshed and let that genius flow again into yet another wonderful experience.… Expand
Mar 30, 2013the game would have been better if it just didn't have a plot, but the "PLOT" which was written by a few english majors who got high and read wikipedia leaves a pretty bitter aftertaste in your mouth to what was already a mediocre run and gun game with okay visuals
Mar 26, 2013If you hated everything about the original BioShock, don't bother with this game, it's very similar in many ways. However, once you get that out of the way, it's a much better version of it than the previous two. For example, while combat is still the same setup (replace plasmid with vigor) and enemies still can feel a little bullet-spongy (I recommend turning off health meters in the options menu, as well as most other HUD notifications), most encounters take place in these big open areas that are also densely packed with cool tactical options. The result is some thrilling and crazy combat moments that in most games would be heavily scripted. No more "electrocute-wrench" through the whole game. Graphically, you can sometimes see some flat textures up close reminding you that this is a game that has been worked on for 6 years, but on the whole it is quite gorgeous. Nice to play an FPS that doesn't look like a brown and grey modern military shooter or a future space war that might as well be a military shooter for how it looks.
On that note, this game has the best storytelling since Half-Life 2. No sitting through pre-rendered cutscenes full of people spewing exposition at you. Just exploring the environment explains what's going on in the world and hints at some weird stuff behind the surface. This game also deals with racism and religious fundamentalism in a far less heavy handed manner than you would expect. Nice to play a game that doesn't treat you like a moron who can't follow a simple story.
So in summary: Yes, if you go into this game expecting it to be the industry-changing miracle some people are making it out to be, you will be let down. But if you go in expecting an FPS that is far more immersive, original and entertaining than 95% of what you've played in the last few years, you'll get it. Hell, it's basically a 10-hour escort mission with a character you still care about by the end and never get annoyed with. That alone deserves some kudos.… Expand
Mar 26, 2013Long and short of this: This is my game of the year already. The game is a ton of fun and extremely beautiful with such rich and detailed areas. The voice-acting is just top-notch and the story itself, well, it takes you in little by little and lets you experiences the story as a outsider and really draws you in. My gun-play with the new power system is old enough to be nostalgic but just fresh enough to be a fun experiences. If you are new to Bioshock and enjoy story and shooters, A MUST PICK UP.
If you are familiar with Bioshock, YOU WILL ENJOY THIS.
The middle is a bit padded but this game is easily one of the best games I have every played. It is up with my favorites and thats a hard bar to reach. GOTY already and its only March folks Do yourself the favor and pick up this absolute gem of a game.… Expand
Mar 27, 2013Bioshock infinite is very beautiful. The gameplay is smooth and fun, the atmosphere is so detailed, and the theme is mature. Alot of effort has been put into this game and it shows. Easily deserves its critical acclaim.
Mar 26, 2013Absolutely unebelievable. The graphics/pacing/story/voice acting... its like you're in your own little world. I've never felt such wonder and awe before when it comes to a video game. And like several of the reviews said.. .there is no way a movie could have given you this feeling.
Mar 26, 2013What is bad about the game:
1. The weapon ironsights forces you into toggle mode. You cannot switch it to "on hold" mode, which is incredibly aggravating. The same is true for sprint and crouch. Where is the customization? It's a crime this feature was left out of the PC port.
2. Forced to edit .ini files. The mouse aiming is atrocious on default. It wasn't until I read that mouse smoothing and auto-aim was enabled by default that I was able to fix this problem. Again, there are no settings in game to toggle these. You have to dig around in .ini file to turn them off manually. 3. You can only carry 2 guns. The hell? Who thought this was a good idea? In both prior incarnations of the game you had the freedom to choose any gun available for the situation. Now you are pigeon holed. Decreasing the amount of choice in a game is simply bad design.
4. Bloom and DOF covers up incredibly low poly-count models, extreme polygon warping in many animations due to poor skeletal/mesh weighting (contorted necks and arms are the most obvious areas), and low quality textures even on the highest setting. Don't look too close at anything our you'll be sorely disappointed.
5. Main character talks to himself... a lot. I wouldn't mind too much if he actually had something interesting to say, but the self-monologuing of stupid quips gets old fast.
6. No player choice. The game is completely linear and "on-rails." This is not the direction AAA games should be going. As a gamer I want more freedom, not more restriction. What's even more insulting is the developer try's to trick the gamer into thinking he has choice by giving him binary: pick A (evil act) or pick B (good act). However, no matter what you pick (I've tested each so far) results in the exact same resulting cut-scene and outcome. What is good about the game:
1. The detail of Elizabeth (you're sidekick) is incredible. The artists did an absolutely fantastic job on bringing this character life. The animations are gorgeous, the voice acting is superb, and the interaction in combat feels good. If there's one reason to play this game, its to experience this character truly come to life throughout the story. Bravo.
2. The level artists also did a fantastic job. The vistas in the game are simply breath-taking, just don't look too closely at anything and the visage holds up.
3. Fascinating story. Not the best, but worth a look. I personally feel the developers tried too hard to be controversial here, by blatantly throwing racism and gender inequality in your face at every chance they can get. However, there are some nice subtitles that are spread throughout the game which was a pleasant surprise.
Worth playing. It's definitely not game of the year (Tomb Raider has locked up tight imo), but if you don't mind paying for an interactive movie, and overlooking the inherent console restrictions, this is worth picking up. Even though flying through the city on rails at high speeds is quite fun the first few times, there's really not much else in terms on innovation to the FPS genre.
Hope this was helpful,
5/10… Expand
Mar 26, 2013I don't really get the hype here. It plays like a low budged clone of Dishonored. The story is ok (I'm half way thru), the setting is nice (althou repeats the Rapture), but the gameplay is meh. AI sucks, guns suck, vigor is optional and also sucks. The actual gameplay seems to be a filler between important scenes. The mehest game this year. Maybe this game will mesmerise me in the second half, but for now... meh.… Expand
Mar 26, 2013I rank this game up with half life standarts, from beginning to end it is phenomenal, elizabeth is not only a extremely loveable character but also the best sidekick that ive had in a long time, AI is amazing! I dont want to spoil anything or give any hints, just get the game, believe me. There is nothing left but a ten...
Apr 6, 2013This game is absolutely amazing. You can tell that there was an enormous amount of thought put into every detail, down to the very last corner. Bioshock Infinite is my favorite game to date, no question about it.
To start, the art direction is very good. Everything is arranged to be very appealing, and the colors are very balanced. I loved just walking around the city and soaking it all up. There are 1912 style shops to go into, and they are all populated. In one area, there is even a good, three-minute quartet that you can just sit and listen to. I was very impressed with the magnitude of everything. Seldom are you placed in a small, dark room or hallway. Most of the game is set in colorful areas with large statues and airy buildings.
I liked that it didn't actually put you in the dark, but gave a dark feeling when it was appropriate. As per the Bioshock games, some of the events are quite dark-- and I liked the uneasy feeling without the dark corridors of Rapture.
Combat is a step up from other games in the genre. The introduction of "skylines" allows you to jump quickly from place to place, making everything very fast paced. I didn't quite like the inventory management as much as in the original Bioshock, however. I found it much harder to deal with my Vigors, mainly because you couldn't just scroll through them like in the other game. Still, you get used to it-- that's a fairly minor gripe.
I can't really say much about the story. If I told you what was so great about it, I'd spoil it for you. I can say that it puzzled me, and it was a few hours after finishing the game that I worked everything out. I felt like some of the points were repeated too much though. I get that they try to help everyone understand it well, but I'd rather just have it all thrown at me-- that way it's more fun to work out on my own.
Overall, Irrational Games has gone above and beyond what anyone expected. The only way you'd find this game worse than the original is if you're somewhat nostalgic. Even if you didn't like the first or second game, I really suggest that you still give Bioshock Infinite a try. As a side note, there are a few things that you won't quite understand if you skip the first game. They are little details, but in a game like Bioshock Infinite, it's those little details that really count.
This game is worth every cent. If you can't afford it, you can get it off the grey market for an earbud or so (about $35).… Expand
Apr 8, 2013This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I wanted to love this game, I really did. The original Bioshock is my favorite game of all time, this game had me longing to go back and play it. It's been said over and over, yes, the game has a beautiful landscape, other than that, it's a flop.
First, there is no lock-picking, puzzles, and very limited upgrading. I remember playing the original Bioshock and you could hack turrets, camera, etc. You have one vigor (lame excuse for plasmids) that can take control of turrets. It will fire on your enemies for 10 or so seconds then turn back on you. There is no way to fully take control of them and you find yourself just blowing the thing up as soon as possible. This brings me to my next point. I only used shock jockey once acquired, there are seven or so other vigors but use up too much salt and are pointless. They have a new clothing system but only two or three items are useful.
The weapons could have been interesting but they give them all to you right out of the gates. You can upgrade them easily and they are readily available. Usually you get better weapons as the game progresses, they just seem to throw them at you whenever. You can only hold two at a time. I never found myself really getting to like a certain weapon and upgrading it. You just pick stuff up, fire it till empty, and some other gun will be lying next to you.
There is only one real boss fight, (lady Comstock) all of the other characters are killed via cut scene. This really make for anti-climatic missions. The last mission is very mundane and ends up feeling like the previous quest. I beat this game in probably six hours on hard.… Expand
May 16, 2013Bioshock Infinite takes everything we know about linear gameplay and does it all right. With an unrivalled plot, the likes of which overwhelm all but the 'A-est' of the A-list Hollywood movies, The most compelling efforts of the writers is to convey the underlying themes that don't become apparent until late on in the story and with a beautifully devious twist of an ending, it certainly leaves the player wanting to get on the wiki site ti learn more. Bioshock Infinite is certainly one to be remembered, and with the nourishing level of detail, forgetting the beauty (and ensuing chaos) of Columbia will prove difficult for any gamer. With the physics engines and graphics cards of 2013, Infinite leaves us thinking "Damn, if only Rapture had looked this good."
If anything could be said against the game, it would be Irrational's lack of effort towards creating a fully function AI society. Whilst the player is indeed submerged in a city with non-aggressive AI to bolster the feeling that you are in a real human settlement and not just a war zone, Irrational struggles to do this improvement over the game's predecessors any real justice with the lack of interaction between the AI and the player itself. One finds themself questioning the difference between taking stuff from a chest of drawers and taking stuff from a chest of drawers with the word 'steal' at the bottom of the screen, demonstrating the scripted incidents carried out by the competely robotic artificial intelligence.… Expand
Mar 28, 2013I can't help but wonder: If we took the Bioshock name off the title, would it still be receiving such praise? Frankly, most of the elements that were unique to BioShock have been utterly stripped from this title. There's still plasmids (Vigors) and a steampunk setting but that is where the similarities cease. The hacking elements are gone, lockpicking is taken away from the player and given to an AI, the research camera is removed, and paying attention to health has been replaced with the all-too-generic "regenerating health" mechanic. BioShock's "Big Daddies" are replaced with "Handymen" who are seen far too infrequently, and "Motorized Patriots" which are overused. The vast majority of the enemy AI are merely footsolders who are easy to defeat (and completely stupid) even on the hardest setting. The shooting mechanics have never been particularly strong in the BioShock franchise but BioShock Infinite strips it down further, allowing players to carry only two weapons at any given time like any other stock FPS title. In addition, the vigor powers themselves are lackluster and chances are you'll go through the entire game running with Possession (the hacking "replacement") and Bucking Bronco or Murder of Crows (the two Vigors which have the most effect on enemy mobs loss of control and stun+damage, respectively). We get Vigor powers like "Shock Jockey" (the name should tell you what it does) and the game points out how we can use it to power up devices but then we only get one particular device to use it on and little reason to use it again. So this leaves us with the story which seems to be getting the most praise. However, the story itself is a series of walking cliches and tropes about multiverse theory and time-space manipulation and, frankly, has been addressed better elsewhere in countless science fiction novels, movies, TV shows, and even comic books. When the game explains the concepts of "constants and variables" in the multiverse it feels more like they're attempting to justify why the game took such a hard 90 degree turn away from previous gameplay demos in order to proffer this metaphysical theme. Where, for example, is the Elizabeth AI we were shown where she fought along side of us? Gone and replaced with a cowering AI that gets in the way and offers little help but tossing us items from time to time. Where, for example, were the critical moments in the game shown during gameplay demos of E3's past? Gone and replaced with overly cerebral tropes about quantum mechanics and multiple realities. Where, for example, are all the examples of how the sky-rail plays a critical role in the game? Just gone, entirely. Don't get me wrong, the story is heads and shoulders better than MOST games these days and the attention to detail is second to none. For those reasons alone the game should be experienced at least once. It's just the story isn't nearly as new OR earth shattering as many claim it to be and, if I didn't care about spoilers, I could point out how Infinite almost perfectly parallels the story of Walter and Peter Bishop from the TV show Fringe. While the story is better than most it really doesn't make the shortcomings of the gameplay easier to bear. Finally, for a game which was designed exclusively for single player, the game is very short, clocking in at a total of 14 hours on the hard difficulty setting with most of the collectibles obtained. Given the fact that many elements were chopped out of the gameplay videos, I can't help but wonder how much is sitting on the cutting room floor, or if key parts were stripped in order to push out fast DLC. There's no reason this game shouldn't have been AT LEAST 20 hours in length, especially given how linear it is designed. All in all, it's a decent game but painfully average in terms of gameplay and only barely above average in terms of story. Levine spent so much time on the metaphysical that it feels like he and the development team forgot that it was all of the elements, combined, that made BioShock so distinct and enjoyable. It's worth playing at least once to soak in all the wonder but, sadly, you won't really be going back to play it again since nothing (except difficulty) changes between play throughs.… Expand
Mar 27, 2013I don't know how else to put it. But this is probably one of the best games I have ever played. I didn't really know what to expect, with how games that come out now are unfinished to the point where it isn't even playable (See: SimCity). But man I was blown away by this. The story is incredible, and the atmosphere is so immersive. I can't explain it better than the other reviewers already have. Every positive review about this game is true.… Expand
Mar 27, 2013Just finished the game and I'm speechless. I don't know what to say. A Masterpiece? The fire Prometheus gave to Man? Just truly amazing. If you have any interest in any quality story-telling and amazing art direction, you are obligated to experience this game for yourself. If you want a more elaborate review, look up Adam Sessler's from Rev3Games on YouTube. He says it all perfectly. This game easily gets an 11/10… Expand
Mar 28, 2013I have a new Favorite Game. Bioshock Infinte is better than i have think. Great Story and Gameplay. Tons of Weapons and Ways. It's the Best Game ever. Like first time playing Half Life or like first time see The Matrix. Bioshock Fans and FPS Player Buy It. Bioshock Infinte show you a World that you never have seen before. The Reviews saying it "Unforgettable" and "it'll blow you away" This Game will Reborn you. Welcome to the Sky. halleluja* 10/10 GOTY 2013… Expand
Mar 30, 2013OK. Personally I can't see what the massive review scores are for. The graphics are really average. Shocking textures covered up with massive amounts of HDR & Bloom. It's just a corridor shooter, holding your hand wherever you go. This is not a groundbreaking 96% game like it's currently rated on metacritic. It's not a patch on Far Cry 3 in terms of visuals and immersion. I don't give a sh*t about Booker at all. The fact you seem to be this wanted man, that no one seems to recognise, until you have walked past them opened a specific door then they are like 'oh that's probably our dude'. You're the only person in the whole world who carries a gun except the Police, no one seems to bat an eyelid you're wielding a shotgun with a hole in your hand. Maybe I had too high expectations.… Expand
Mar 26, 2013Absolutely stunning piece of artwork, it shows that single player games are in fact alive and well. Irrational has yet to make a bad game in my opinion.
Mar 26, 2013One of the best games I have ever played and a fantastic continuation of the shock series, which has yet to really disappoint. It is a return to form after Bioshock 2, and with the lack of multiplayer and a more intricate singleplayer experience that is quite evident.
Mar 26, 2013I got this, along with Bioshock (previously owned, never completed), Bioshock 2 and apparently a code for xcom enemy unknow aswell, for 45$, needless to say I have gotten more than full value for the money here. Having been sucked into Infinite's universe (having been mesmerized for up to 7 hours), I can say that I will finally finish 1 and start playing number 2 aswell, as soon as I have played infinite, once or twice, or thrice. This game is so good it beggars belief, just get it. The only thing I can point fingers at is the texture work, it could use a loving hand to be honest. Other than that, the atmosphere, the sound score, the gun play, the vigor play, the connection gameplay wise with Elizabeth, the story, the aesthetics and graphics (other than texture work) are all top of the line.
Until now I thought Tomb Raider would run with the game of the year title, it is a contender, but I have a slight feeling that this will run with it. It is definitely the better game in my book, although it is most definitely worth it to own both! And you should, own both.… Expand
Mar 26, 2013All I gotta say is its breathtaking with a rich imagination.
Not to mention Irrational take risks that few other companies take.
It's nice to see a company recognize history accurately.
Mar 26, 2013This game is a perfection in just about every department. The story inspires a variety of emotions, it is complex and controversial but avoids many mistakes that others before have done in this genre. The graphics and artwork create an amazing atmosphere to make you feel like a part of the world and the changes in the story are perfectly reflected in the environment. The gameplay is nothing special, but it is functional and very balanced. All powers and weapons have their strengths and weaknesses, making you actually have to plan what to use rather than zerg everything. All around this is one of the best games of all time and will probably remain at the top for a long time.… Expand
Mar 26, 2013Must say I was losing hope with all the crap being bought out recently. BioShock Infinite is a great game. Very few titles are bought out at this standard. It is a must buy, not matter what these trolls rate it. For all the dimwits giving a 0-3, you have no idea. For the guy crying about graphics. Maybe you should go into option and learn how to set it up. Not only that maybe get a upgrade for that lawnmower you call a computer.… Expand
Apr 26, 2013There should really be a rule about people not being allowed to write a review for something if they HAVEN'T PLAYED THE DAMN GAME. Seriously, some of the stuff in these comments is ridiculous. The setting is "unimaginative"? What? How can you complain about a steampunk, floating city being "unimaginative" when there are games like Call of Duty and Battlefield getting farted out that use a brown, dust filled desert-industrial environment which seems to be a sort of basic formula for games nowadays. Anyway, the setting IS imaginative, and the story IS good, anybody who is saying the story "made no sense" probably just didn't understand it because they have the IQ of a coconut. The story made sense perfectly fine to me, and to 98% of the other people who played the game, as well. That said, if you don't like exploring, and just prefer to shoot people, don't buy this game and then complain that it was too well paced and you didn't spend 100% of your time killing other humans, because there is a big emphasis on exploration in this game, gear, money, and voxophones, which flesh out the story really nicely are all found by exploration. Also you get to see more of the city and experience the graphics design, because it is spectacular. Basically, it has everything good that the first Bioshock had, fast paced and exciting combat, amazing, albeit very different, atmosphere, an emphasis on exploration and a great story, without the redundant binary moral choice system. Also Elizabeth is a really nice addition to the game, one of the best support characters since Alyx.
Basically, if you haven't played it, and are here to write a bad review because you watched TotalBiscuit's WTF is? video, then go away. If you DID play it, and didn't enjoy it, fair enough, but don't criticise something simply because of its genre. Yes, it didn't have any puzzles or stealth. Do you know why? Because it's an FPS, you moron. Anyway, if you enjoyed the original, you'll love this, it's definitely a Bioshock game, I'd say it was even better than the 1st. The worst thing about it was the soundtrack, and that's just because I can't remember anything about it, and I finished the game yesterday. Great combat, great story, great atmosphere, great pacing, great graphics, it did everything well. I'm giving it a 9 because of a few things I didn't like. The vigors are a bit unoriginal, except for the Bucking Bronco and Murder of Crows, and even that is basically just a repackaged Insect Swarm from B1. I preferred the gun upgrade system in B1, and the upgrades for that were much more original than the ones in this, which pretty much consist of "damage increase", "clip size increase", "recoil decrease", and "accuracy increase". It's a fantastic game, but there ARE a few things that stop it from being a 10. I would give it 9.5 if I could, but there is no 9.5, so it gets a 9. I loved it, and will definitely buy the DLC planned.… Expand
Mar 27, 2013Everything beautiful, needs no words even. Just wanted to make 10/10, really titan work made. Its the game of year and century and even more. Best of the best.
Mar 27, 2013You are absolutely absurd. You down rate the game for such reasons as you don't like the thematic, it's not realistic enough, or just to be a troll. Do you realize how many years ago this game started to be advertised, and yet here you are having bought it, IF you don't like these kinds of games why do you buy them in the first place. Take for example, I don't like Guild Wars 2, I don't play it, but most people say it's an excellent game...why am I going to go troll about it and give the game a bad rating since I already know beforehand I am not going to like it? Moreover, if you want a game that's tailored to your every need and desire, why don't you go make your own game? exactly! You don't have to sit here and be a troll and ruin it for others who would have probably liked the game. They weren't making the game only for you, like your very own personalized version or something like that. You do not gain anything by trolling, if a person want to buy the game they will do it regardless of what you post here, because it is their choice that they can make, and no matter what some troll on the internet says is going to stop them ok. By have a nice day.… Expand
Mar 31, 2013This is a story-driven game with good gameplay mechanics. It makes the active choice to repeatedly deny you any story-related choices in the game, making it more like a film with breaks of first-person shooting. Which leaves me conflicted because ultimately a story-driven game without choice needs to have AAA level story to be compelling and lead to a satisfying conclusion. That's where the major flaw lies in this otherwise well-polished and enjoyable action game. The story fails to deliver the satisfactory climax, or even a satisfactory epilogue. Instead, it goes out with a whimper, like a failed film-student project. Still, the beginning is a well grounded start to what could have been game of the year, with characters that start off believable and interesting. Too bad it steers off course and never reaches full promise. Merely a "good" game when all is said and done.… Expand
Mar 30, 2013Mid level combat ,mid level scenario,completely uninteresting rail combat,vigors.A modern classic of modern big game industry's click and watch the movie, style game.
Mar 29, 2013This game is not very good if you actually like enjoying game process instead of watching poorly animated NPC, engaging frustrating half-assed combat and exploring boring railed levels without any glimpse of interactivity. It's a fun watching people saying how good this game is without saying what actually was good (Hint: NOTHING). This game is very mediocre shooter with sorta good, but inconsistent graphics (good fx, somewhat limited models, ugly foliage, terrible animation).… Expand
Apr 7, 2013This game has been referred to as a "work of art" by many, and I don't disagree at all with this. The setting is incredibly imaginative, the (outdoor) graphics are gorgeous, the plot is semi-brave, mostly fleshed-out and very suspenseful. I adored the plot, I adored Elizabeth, and I adored the sky city of Columbia. So why do I have no choice but to give this a highly negative review...?
The game is an interactive movie more than it is, well, a game. Every single-player campaign and story released today cannot truly qualify as a game. Everybody who picked up this game would have been grossly unimpressed by the shoddy and thin "core" gameplay elements here, had this game been released in the era of real games (80's to the 00's). Given the outstanding reviews, I expected either a retro game experience or a revolutionary one, and got something that would probably be best described as a diluted version of Call of Duty's gameplay. Now, don't bite my head off for that one. It's clear that all FPS games today borrow from the core formula used in "modern warfare"-type shooters, like the ability to carry only 2 guns, the recoil physics, the *very* specific ammo types, the realistic iron-sights, cover-and-heal mechanics, 'hit' indication on your reticule, checkpoint saves, etc. etc. Newer gamers take these for granted they are really just annoying little copy-cat additions all the latest FPS games have. The point is, the actual gameplay borrows from a modern shooter and yet feels as clunky and unsatisfying as a previous-generation shooter, failing entirely to be either one.
The guns are *extremely* unimaginative and generic (shotgun, burst-gun, sniper rifle, non-sniper rifle...), and some of them are completely useless. This is a highly redundant and annoying system. For example, since you lack alternate firing modes, you literally have to switch to a burst-gun and use exclusive burst-gun ammo instead of using an SMG and switching it to burst fire, saving you one ammo type to collect.
There are plasmids in this game, now relabeled as "vigors" for some reason. You get several types, each with a very amusing short tutorial video, silent-film style. Unfortunately, though useful and somewhat creative, they are often ineffective and expensive to use.
Item collection is erratic as hell. You will find 'vigor ammo' ("salts") all over non-combat scenes but extremely sparsely placed over areas of prolonged combat. For this reason, you usually find yourself maxing out your relatively small "salts gauge" and unable to collect additional salts for half the game, while being unable to use any vigors for the other half of the game because you have no salts left! The same thing applies to ammo, which is made even worse because you can hold very little ammo of any type, and there are far too many types in the game due to the inflated number of generic guns available.
Thankfully, however, a very pleasant-looking NPC supplies you with a bit of health, salts and ammo during battle to compensate for the awful item placement. She will give it to you in the nick of time, but if you run out again, you're screwed you have to wait a very long time to get anything else from her. It works to balance out the poor level design, but it is just a patch on an ugly gameplay wort.
For a game with such an enormous graphics budget, some of the characters look very cartoonish while others look human. There are also *very* few face models in this game. Columbia is populated almost entirely with Generic Male NPC #1 and Generic Female NPC #1. I understand the need for face model recycling, but when you have three clones of the same woman in front of you with different voices, it gets ridiculous. There are also many invisible walls, which become apparent when you try to shoot around obstacles or jump on crates. And for the love of The Prophet, don't look at background details too closely! The bag of apples is literally a JPEG of a pile of apples stretched over a bag and what's worse, the designers put full-3D apples on top of them for the player to collect. The graphics are *very* far from being fleshed-out in any way here.
The best weapon is a melee hand-held slicing thingy, kind of like the painkiller (if you can even remember that game...) You use it to bash enemies' heads in, and you can perform overly gruesome finishing moves with it. There is *no* reason to use these moves, unless you like seeing heads explode, and the little indicator that tells you when to activate them is not easy to find in a pinch. Also, every time you melee, the camera gets fixed in the attacking direction, meaning if you melee multiple times, your character is thrown between enemies and you're essentially just button mashing at that point, because you can't see what's going on. The number of enemy types is also slim and uninteresting.
In short, play this game for the story. It's a pretty good one, but if you were expecting a fun game, look elsewhere!!… Expand
Mar 27, 2013The game is a disappointment. It was hyped so much that in the end it just shatters before succeeding in what it is trying to do. Bioshock 1 was a lot better than this. I really don't understand why are people so overwhelmed by this game. Lets see first thing is graphics, well this is such a clever ruse, all that bloom, fog and light shafts are well placed to cover poor models and textures in general. Next thing is horrible collision zones, at first it was not a big deal but it became more and more annoying. Also difficulty is pretty low i cannot even imagine how easier the game could get on lower difficulties.
I bought this game mainly for the story and characters, but it is not that good, and are mix up of several clichés with several ups and downs and for once finally useful sidekick on the contrary enemy AI is quite poor and you will see big number of enemies stucked in some obstacle. There is also that unpleasant fact that this game embrace only checkpoint saves.
This game is quite average, and people need to start thinking for themselves and not pay attention to "Professional" reviewers, who are always biased, and have a hidden agenda with their reviews. Look at IGN for example they had the "exclusive" review, so they obviously wont rate it with less than a stellar review.
Professional reviews suck, and that is just the plain truth.… Expand
Mar 29, 2013If BioShock was the original rock band, BioShock 2 was the patchy break up album, which just leaves BioShock Infinite the poor man's cover band. I'll just list what I dislike to save time... Dislikes. Terrible F.O.V. and poor mouse settings. Constant reminders"Are you sure you want to go to the area you just pressed yes to go to?" etc. Elizabeth is one of the most annoying 'buddies' in a game ever, walking in front when trying to shoot enemies, talking inane crap whilst walking around you like a fly in your peripherals, not to mention her clattering shoes,(Jesus).
There's way too much money and ammo lying about, and that's on the hard setting, this just ruins any sense of tension there could of been. Pathetic A.I., you could have replaced them with potatoes and it would of been just as challenging.
Ken Levine lookalike N.P.C's? Maybe this is just me, but one of the male head models looks the spitting image of Ken Levine. I'm cool with a little 'in house' fun, but when there's only about four head models in the whole game it gets a bit tedious.
Bad collision detection. The invisible walls around lots of objects is laughable.
A talking protagonist. This doesn't work for me, but this is a personal thing I guess. As the games progressing, I don't want to be told what my characters thinking or feeling as it just destroys any sense of immersion. The Graphics are no better than a 2007 game, with bells and whistles on. Not that graphics make a game, but the masses that seem to be praising this pale imitation tend to think it's visually stunning. On the whole, it's just a terrible reproduction of the first BioShock but set in the sky for novelty. It's difficulty is so easy a child could finish it, (perhaps this explains the high scores,) and the story just feels like something a first year student would write an essay about after their first spliff. (Heavy man).
Oh I forgot to mention the Willy Wonka lift at the beginning! HaHa, that was so funny, oh it wasn't meant to be..?
3 stars for the sky-lines.… Expand
Mar 26, 2013We now have a metacritic title that is tied for first place of all time; I hoped for this prior to the release assuming in this day and age more people would flock to purchase the masterpeice, I nearly cried when Ken Levine of Irrational stated he went to frat houses and asked who knew or had played bioshock and nobody raised their hand.
After 6 hours with the game; I can give the game a confident 10/10. I do not know where to start but on Ultra with max FoV and the alternate DX11 Ambient Occlusion the game is stunning graphically with art design that shows each artist literally put his or her soul into every area of each set piece. The Plasmid's feel great and are much more unique; I dig throwing people up in the air with the bucking bronco then using murder of crows while using my carbine to pick them off with ironsights. Another thing that feels A+ especially compared to the original, Gunplay; Ironsights are perfect are is the crosshair option.
I suggest binding right mouse to Iron Sight if you are familiar with FPS gaming, and if you have a thumb button that is where I have my "Use Plasmid" bound.
Health and Vigor restored by food/health packs and cigs/potion/salts can no longer be stored up in the inventory and at first I was looking for how to chug a potion while getting beat up a bit on Hard mode; once I adapted to not being able to use this option in combat I was able to dominate the "New" Bioshock feel.
As for the two greatest highlights aside from Graphics as we can all see it is astonishing (especially buttermilk smooth on SLI 680's) and that the story is incredible (I've fallen in love with Elizabeth already) is the revolutionary AI behind Elizabeth. She becomes a living breathing character that you are able to actually MORE than enjoy the company of. She becomes a friend, a love interest and her innocence makes her that more fragile while her ability to rip tears in time (Spoiler: the first time you see her do it its in the future to a paris premier of RETURN OF THE JEDI). Her AI is absolutely incredible with no problems.
The Skyhook system is flawless and fun; it is like a controllable rollercoaster and it is jaw dropping to Leap off a rail and decapitate a guard down below; it makes you feel powerful but not overly powerful as you'll still get your ass handed to you during portions on HARD mode making you react like FPS gamers should rather than have your perfect plasmid/gun combination always work your way; you'll miss sometimes and Liz will help out as much as she can.
I just wanted to state that I spent 2 hours before any combat came in the game searching around and in awe at the city and the art put into every area. To my surprise I've found my favorite "Minor" moment in a game ever.
A barber shop Quartet is singing "Music from the Future. Now" due remember this is 1912; and the Quartet is singing a gorgeous rendition of 'The Beach Boys' astonishing song "God Only Knows" off of their revolutionary 'Pet Sounds' album. Being a music geek and a gaming geek perhaps that is a small sign of exactly what Bioshock Infinite is. To music what petsound was at release; Bioshock Infinite is to gaming present day.
-- If you'd like to check out the quartet singing this GORGEOUS RENDITION please click here.
http://www.ign.com/videos/2013/03/12/bioshock-infinite-god-only-knows-barbershop-quartet… Expand
Mar 27, 201310/10
Just amazing! The world feels so alive, the gameplay is fun and the exploration and story telling is unforgettable! I was drawn right in from the beginning listening to the unimportant AI to the amazing story telling audio logs. I can't really say much more than this game was amazing! Good job Irrational! Hope to see another in the series just as good or even better!
Mar 30, 2013Nothing bad to say about it! Lots of fun and great storytelling. Only annoyance is Elizabeth flipping a coin to you every 30 seconds while in the middle of combat, but she is quite helpful anyway. Graphics are really nice, and the game is full of detail. 9.5
Mar 26, 2013i dont like first-person shooters. For me Bioshock Infinite was like giving a second chance to a genre that i usually dont touch with a stick. It promised stuff like nice story and appealing, unique graphics and it looked less violent and morbid than your usual shooters. i gave it a try and wasnt disappointed. Like in a great mystery book, nothing in story made sense for most part of the game, but in the end... lets just say i became permanently stupid. my brain is now damaged by the shocking ending. i've read lots of shocking books with crazy twists, but experiencing this in a first person shooter game? wow. damn.… Expand
Mar 26, 2013I have been highly anticipating this games release and it is finally here! Sat down last night and all I can say is WOW! Hats off to the developers on this one as it is just a masterpiece! The hype was worth it. If you love Bioshock you are going to love this game even if you haven't played Bioshock before you should get this game. The gameplay and visuals are astounding I cannot fault this game as I said all I can say is WOW!… Expand
Apr 13, 2013Bioshock Infinite have a lot of really strong points. The graphical design in the game is absolutely amazing and the environments you are in are absolutely gorgeous. Not only that they also just oozes with the atmosphere that goes hand in hand with the Story. And the story is great and it contains a lot of interesting subjects and characters. The game also manages to tell its story through the environment and audio logs just as in the previous games in the series.The only complaint i have regarding the story is that it lacks player interaction both in general and in interaction with characters in the game. But this game is a first person shooter and you are going to spend the majority of your time shooting stuff. The exploring is still there from the previous games but its not as fleshed out in this game since there are less stuff to find and the maps are more linear. Now the shooting is alright. Its is by no means terrible buts its not especially good either. The enemies are unvaried and feels like bullet sponges which makes the whole combat feel dull and unresponsive. The two-weapon limit is a total buzzkill and it doesnt help that the weapons in the game is nothing out of the ordinary. The vigors can be quite enjoyable but the meat of the combat is the shooting which is not that great. There are also some quite annoying boss battles in the game. Now the railways in the game are fun to use and the big open combat arenas in the game with height differences, tears, railways and turrets are where the games most enjoyable fights takes place. Sadly too few areas are like this and the combat can never really escape the fact that the basics arent all that great. it doesnt help that the combat is quite unvaried. Its not that i wish for bloody turret-sections every hour to spice things up but if you are going to make the player constantly shoot stuff the entire game (took me 11 hours on hard) then the shooting should be good enough to carry the game. And in this case the combat is not able to do that. Its hard to rate this game since the combat is average while everything else is pretty much amazing. But i do recommend this game despite its problems simple because how well they managed to pull of the everything besides the combat.… Expand
Apr 1, 2013Worst disappointment in years. But still, not that bad. Graphics: very nice, although I've seen better. Sounds: fine, but not top of the line. Soundtrack: annoying. The music was great, but it's just that when there is zero original music and you already have all the soundtrack's classical songs on CD, you don't want to hear them in a game like this. It destroys the atmosphere and gets old really fast. It's fine to use a popular song a couple of times in a game, but not all the time. For those who want to buy the soundtrack... how about just buying the original records? Controls: mediocre for a PC game, but nothing seriously wrong. Plot: a mixed bag. I felt like the writing was both imaginative and lazy at the same time kind of goes with the general idea of the game... I was disappointed in the end, however. You know the feeling you get when a story ends in "...but it was all just a dream" that's almost the feeling I got from the ending. Then there is the action: mediocre at best. Boring enemies, mostly boring firefights, generic shooting most of the time. Hide behind crates while loading your shields, shoot waves of brainless enemies pretty much just running towards you and throw in a couple of spells (vigors) if you have mana (salt). Sound original? Not really. How about a cyborg (handyman) every now and then so that it kills you instantly after you respawn, because you happen to respawn at its feet. Sound like fun? Not really. I played on hard difficulty level, and most of the game was quite easy, but suddenly there were scenes where you died a few times in a row, which did not feel that well balanced as a gaming experience. Years after finishing them, I'm still thinking of how great games Bioshock 1 and 2 were, how smooth and fun the action was, how good and crazy the characters and story was. I just finished Bioshock Infinite an hour ago, and I can't really think of any interactive scenes worth remembering. If you are new to the series, definitely go for the previous two rather than this. If you are a Bioshock fan, try this one out but ready yourself for disappointment.… Expand
Mar 26, 2013Bioshock Infinite is hands down the greatest campaign I have ever played. Beautiful graphics, the best combat I have ever experienced in an FPS, and characters that you really really care about.
Mar 27, 2013I love system shock 2 and I used to be a major thief fan as well, but Ken Levine has let me and other fans down by taking infinite's lazy route. By lazy, I don't mean that he and his company didn't work hard at all, I'm sure they did in many regards, but overall the product they chose to create was not original in the least. Despite what you'll read in all of these other super glowing reviews, Infinite is a cop out because it basically just takes bioshock and puts it in the sky but with none of the things that made that game phenominal. The story... Bioshock was about a city underneath the ocean but that was at least somewhat believable. You might be able to believe in that, but a city floating in the clouds? My first gut reaction to that was the same one I'm having now despite the fact that I convinced myself otherwise. I told myself that I probably would like it just as much as bioshock 1 even though its setting is beyond stupid but I was wrong. The game is just not believable. There are several plot holes and inconsistencies that ruin the experience. Here's one example. Booker notes early on that the skyhooks must be magnetized and that's why he jolts over to them and connects to them with ease and never falls to his death as would really be the case. That's great... Here's the problem... He then jumps off of the magnetic rails easy as pie over and over again against the very same force that supposedly is powerful enough to lift him up 20 feet for the initial connection. There are more logic defiers in the game, but we're supposed to forget about that, right? Because the story is so good... Except it's not. The story is just terrible. It feels lame someone made an imitation game of bioshock and just made it in the clouds intsead of under the sea, and it fails just as it sounds like it would. I just can't by any of the characters that I'm supposed to care about. Comstock is a lame version of Andrew Ryan who is not believable. The leader of the rebels against his city is equally lame and has a "forced" feeling to her, as if the decision was made to put this certain character in here to relate to a target audience but instead she just feels entirely fake. And Elizabeth... I knew all along that a permanent NPC tagging along the entire game would ruin it and she does. She never shuts up and she gets in the way when you're trying to run somewhere. I don't care if she has hundreds of lines of dialogue because she points out obvious crap and I don't care about her. I feel like I want infinite to be about me and my exciting adventure in the floating city, but instead it's about this annoying character's feelings all the way through. Her behavior is disgustingly predictable. First she likes you, then she goes through an omg I hate you phase, and spazes out and knocks your character out (because you're too stupid to handle yourself even though you're capable of slaughtering 500 enemies...) I'm about 50% to 75% of the way through the game but I seriously have no interest in continuing. Why should I? The story will obviously be a let down and it's playing out like a bad action movie. There are no amazing villains like Andrew Ryan or Fontaine, or Shodan. No. Instead you're supposed to fear and respect an old dude with a beard. Oh and he's a racist. Wow, let's just hit all of the stereotypical bad guy traits on the checklist. So yeah, if he's that generic and he's supposed to be the antagonist, yawn-o-rama. Mr. Levin, you SHOULD have made this game in the future in the same vein as system shock 2. I was irritated when you did the whole bioshock back in time crap to begin with but I learned to like it because you made the story worthwhile. That's not the case with this Weird.... Thing.... *sighs* Infinite brings down the original bioshock just by carrying on its name and crushing the potential a true sequel could have realized. This thing is just an easy copy paste of bioshock with a much weaker generic story in the sky instead of under the water. It's not believable, it's not interesting, scary or heart wrenching, it's just boring. And that is the worst sin a game can commit. Please don't make another bioshock game set before 2000 AD Seriously... Enough with this old timer music and bizarre fetishism for the 1900s 1950s. It's not that appealing.… Expand
Jun 5, 2013Play BSI slowly, relish the moments and don't rush to the end. It's certain that you will have lived one of the richest gaming experiences that, as far as narration, lyricism and story are concerned, will take a lot of time to forget! [May 2013]
May 7, 2013A very solid, but not revolutionary shooter in an amazing setting, with a story that struggles to convey its authors' ambitions and is only seemingly complex. The vision is less focused than in previous Bioshocks and it does a worse job on binding the plot with gameplay. [CD-Action 05/2013, p.46]
May 1, 2013Problematic plotting and excessive amounts of poorly balanced combat apply friction to what is otherwise one hell of a rollercoaster. [May 2013, p.80]