Bioshock: Infinite (2013)

Once or twice a year, I end up playing a game that I just can't bring myself to write something witty/funny about. Infinite is definitely one of them.

"Bring us the girl, and wipe away the debt."

It's been 4 days since I finished it, and the OST (more specifically, 'Will the Circle be Unbroken') and ending just keep swirling in my head. I honestly have no jokes - that feels like belittling the great story that Infinite boasts of. 

All the time - despite the gorgeous visuals (dated for many, but I enjoyed them) - I believed it was going to be just another Bioshock game. But the ending ties in all the threads neatly - it's a delight to watch everything come together on the screen - that one magical moment when things fall into place, a puzzle piecing itself together in front of you when you didn't even realize that you were staring at one all the time.

I found the ending to be tragic and perfect at the same time - although it left me asking a lot more questions than any other Bioshock game. I won't go into plot details and spoilers - it's a case of 'the-less-you-know-going-in-the-better' with Bioshock Infinite - but I will say that the idea of parallel universes and timelines interacting with each other is explored in a tasteful manner here. 

There are quite a few new features - the most prominent one being the Sky-Line - but you can also spot the parallels between the items found in Rapture versus the ones you come across in Columbia (the setting of Infinite). Salts resemble Eve and Vigors resemble Plasmids - among other things.  

The environments are richly detailed, from posters on white superiority to religious propaganda and a ton of other items. There is the usual collectible - your audio tapes. Infinite brings in a new idea of ciphers - coded messages that require you to find another object, such as a book, to decipher them (which further lead you to a hidden location with generally a ton of supplies and an audio tape).  

You can't go wrong with Bioshock Infinite - I feel having played the previous instalments is also not mandatory for one to enjoy this title, although it would certainly enhance the experience, and certain portions of the ending. Definitely an addition to my list of story-rich favourites. 

"City at the bottom of the ocean? Ridiculous."