This thread is getting odd for those of us who haven’t played the game and dare not open the spoiler boxes.
DON’T open the spoiler boxes. Saying they spoil the game is like saying the carton of milk you forgot in your trunk three weeks ago might be a “little off”.
Not opening spoiler boxes. Also not opening trunk.
Just beat the game.
Ok, I’m going to throw this out there in the vaguest terms possible so that I don’t enter spoiler territory: the ending does not answer everything, but it sure gives you a helluva lot to think about. I’ll probably end up playing through the game a few more times in order to get a better handle on the plot, but overall I’ll give Irrational due credit for crafting a narrative that could only exist in a video game.
So that said, where does Infinite stack up in the series? After having beaten it, I still stand by my earlier post: BioShock 2 is still the best game in this franchise. Don’t get me wrong, there are a lot of things that Infinite does extraordinarily well, but a handful of dimwitted design decisions - I’m looking at you autosave - coupled with a fundamentally less interesting setting than Rapture makes Infinite slightly inferior to its predecessor.
To me, so much of what makes this series so special are the environments in which the games take place, and on that level Columbia just does NOT stack up to Rapture. It’s a very intriguing setting, sure, but several times during the game I’d be playing and suddenly think to myself, “damn, I wish this had been set in Rapture.” One of the things that really bugged me story-wise is that they don’t spend nearly enough time as they did in BS1 describing the origins of the city itself. There’s a brief description of the technology that keeps the city afloat, but little else.
That said:
[spoiler]My favorite moment of the ending was the brief part that actually took place IN Rapture. Big props to the developers for finding a way to include Rapture in the game while still being able to honestly say, “no, Infinite takes place in a separate universe from the first two games.” In retrospect, that assertion is absolutely true, though they are stretching it a little bit.
Also, as much as I’d love to see another game set in Rapture - which, honestly, I DO think will happen eventually - they’ve kind of obligated themselves (with the ending of BSI) to tie the next story in the Rapture universe into the greater BioShock mythology that Infinite established. Whenever that happens, it’ll be fascinating to see how Rapture will be able to be linked to Columbia, and vice versa.[/spoiler]
Okay, so what’s everyone’s favorite pop culture reference? So far, I like:
The CCR reference. Somehow I don’t think Fortunate Son would be tolerated in Columbia.
I liked Bioshock 2 and think it’s easily as good as its outstanding, genre-defining prdecessor, but personally I think Infinite is, by astronomical units of measurement, the better game.
I really liked Rapture but the game felt so empty. We know the city is huge; there must be parts of it that aren’t completely wrecked, yet across two games we only saw a fraction of it. I just felt there was so much left unsaid and whilst I loved the games, they were ultimately quite depressing in many ways.
Columbia, on the other hand, despite being as implausible as Rapture (Science!, kids!) felt more alive, more vibrant, more colourful. I liked being there, unlike Rapture where I was fascinated and wanted to explore - but I didn’t want to stay there like I did with Columbia.
I agree it would have been nice if they’d come up with a better explanation than “Quantum Physics” and “Because” to explain how the city stayed afloat (and exactly how Vigours worked - Bioshock at least had something about mutant sea slugs or something) and the autosave system was extremely annoying.
It’ll be fascinating to see what sort of story-driven DLC they release for BSI, that’s for sure.
For me it was probably The brief glimpse into Paris c. 1984, with “Revenge of the Jedi” on the theatre marquee and Tears for Fears’ Everybody Wants To Rule The World blaring from a stereo somewhere
Having said that, the 1910/1920s-style covers of “modern” songs, including the version of Everybody Wants To Rule The World that plays over the end credts were pretty cool too.
Which infusion are you folks preferring: health, shields or magic?
Do the sidequests usually require backtracking? I missed the first one because once I got what I need for it, I thought: “Well of course a non-free roam game that’s properly designed won’t force you to backtrack for one little thing. The story will have me swinging back by the location to complete the sidequest.” Alas.
Sometimes, when I’m low on something, Elizabeth will resupply me with it. At other times, no such luck. Aside from needing health/ammo/salts, are there other conditions to fulfill to trigger her care package?
I prioritized shields, then salt, then health. My reasoning was that the shield regenerates and so an infusion spent on that is multiplied by all the times it regenerates in combat. Salts are powerful enough that they’re more a priority than health at that point but not so much that they trump shields for me.
You typically have to backtrack, but not very far. I think it usually only takes a couple minutes if you run.
You have to be in combat. I thought she’d only toss you something if she hadn’t recently given you something else. I’m not sure about that, though.
So I originally balanced my infusions. I did that for the first few I got. (Not counting the very first one which gives you shield and you have no choice on it.) However, I got to battleship bay and after screwing around the beach I happened to look up a strategy guide for infusions and I realized I missed the one in Monument Island. It also mentioned something about how infusions should be allocated, and it made a bit of sense. So I figured I’m earlier in the game, and I understand the mechanics of it better from experience, so I restarted. Unlike the first time I played where I had died a handful of times before getting to Battleship Bay (including in the first fight), I’m now back there and haven’t died at all this time around (both times I’ve played on Hard). So why am I more successful this time around. In order of decreasing importance:
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I understand the mechanics of battle more. In Bioshock 1, headshots were much easier to pull off, and the weapons in the beginning were more powerful. This pistol is weaker but fires faster. The crits from headshots are nice, but you come out ahead firing more often into the body than trying to aim for crits. Granted, if the enemies aren’t pressing you, feel free to aim for those crits. But ammo is plentiful. I haven’t run out yet. Also, the first time around in the first fight I ran forward. Never run forward. This game moves at the speed of plot and if you take your time the enemies aren’t too bad in limited numbers. I also learned how to use vigors better. Speaking of vigors…
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Infusions into salt. This is key. On hard, I’ve found it much easier to pump all my infusions into my salt. Because when the enemies come hard and fast, your guns aren’t strong enough to take them out before they cause you massive damage. That extra shield won’t help once they’ve smashed through it since you have to wait to recharge and that won’t happen when they try to surround you. Ditto the extra life. But the vigors allow you to both distract and damage. They are far more important in this game than the previous ones. I rarely find myself running out of salt now.
e.) Amazon.com was late at getting the bonus pack code out. I have the boots that allow you to strafe faster. This game is slow at strafing. Granted, I’ll probably ditch 'em for better gear later, but it works for now.
So yeah, infusions into Salt meter. Salt is the most important thing out there. The containers that replenish your salt work on a percentage of the meter, so the larger the meter, the more the containers are worth.
I usually did 2salt->2shield. I felt that I got more salts exactly when I started to need them at that level, while avoiding being too horrible squishy.
For infusions, I first went with Shields and Salts in a 3:1 ratio then the same for Salts and Health when I maxed the Shields. Anyway, finished it.
[spoiler]Glad we got to see Rapture again, however briefly. ‘Securis’? Where do I know…Rapture! Had a good look around outside to try and figure what time we’d arrived in - obviously after the riots, but no other clues. Half-expected to see the plane sinking or Subject Delta wandering on the seabed.
Anyone else feel a bit sorry for Songbird? He didn’t deserve that; he saved my bacon a few times on that last fight which really came down to the wire. Plus I was hoping for a boss battle with him.
Everyone’s already covered the ending…not sure what I was expecting, but it still defied expectations. Only thing I was a bit surprised about is that there was only one ending compared to two in 1 and six in 2. [/spoiler]
I took down a zeppelin from inside. I had to evacuate it. I feel that my method of desperately running around on either side and eventually crashing and dying is suboptimal. Do you just have to be quick to bug out and find a rail?
How do you prefer to take down handymen? I’v found that Murder of Crows does a good job of allowing me to launch 2 rockets or some other powerful weapon. I still end up respawning 2-4 times every time I meet one though.
So I’ve beaten the game, and have had a few days to think on the experience.
I think the story, and the ultimate conclusion/resolution is probably one the best Sci-Fi narratives, in video games, in recent memory. I’d give it a 10. However, in terms of gameplay mechanics, and the pacing, this is absolutely a second place behind the original Bioshock.
Infinite felt much more on rails than Bioshock as the level of exploration just wasn’t up to par. With the exception of one large area towards the end of the game, I felt a lot more engaged in finding new areas to explore in Bioshock, and also a lot more rewarded for doing so. The pacing also suffered in infinite. It was like a constant roller coaster ride, I found myself with very little time to digest the weight of important narrative events, making them feel shallow.
The pacing and mechanics of combat were also disappointing. In Bioshock the weapons and their upgrades all added their own important flavor to the combat, and to the tactical possibilities that were available to you. The plasmids too all offer distinct powers that provided a ton of options when it came to dealing with enemies and other obstacles. I remember often changing weapons to overcome different types of enemies and to maximize my returns when employing particular tactics. In Infinite, I pretty much rolled with the same two vigors and weapons the entire game.
The big daddies were also an entirely different animal in Bioschock, which helped to add to the variety of combat, and diversified it’s pacing. When you encountered one of those guys, you observed. You planned. You often went back to grab something that might help you, then, when you took one down, you felt powerful, smart - it was an incredibly rewarding experience. The Handymen, on the other hand, pretty much come out of nowhere at you and proceed to slam the bejeesus out of your character. Like almost every encounter in Inifnite, there is never any planning, or much tactical combat going on. Like, for mos of the game, you feel you’re mostly just going along for the ride.
There are a few set pieces where skyrails, and the tear options from Elizabeth, as well as the particular mix of enemies and the circumstances of the battlefield all combine to make something that is a lot more like the original. But these are few and far between, IMHO.
So, when the story is a 10, but most of the game in between is closer to a 7.5, does the game deserve a 10?
I don’t think so.
I agree with this but I don’t hold it against Infinite. In the original Bioshock, you were exploring a place that was “dead” and had time on your side to a greater extent. In Infinite, you’re a hunted person trying to escape a hostile living city. You don’t get the luxury of slowly planning your battles, you’re just fighting to survive and keep moving ahead to your destination.
Oh I agree that it fits the narrative. I just think it also affects the gameplay. And when it comes to games, what’s more important?
Isn’t THAT just the question of the day on a thousand forums and comment sections? 
I personally didn’t have any issues with the game play. I didn’t mind the two-weapon limit, the repeated enemies or the other stuff a lot of people apparently did mind. I’ll let everyone have their own opinion and if someone thinks the shooting was way worse than [Game X] that’s no skin off my nose. To be honest, unless something is exceptionally egregious (say, insta-respawn FC2 checkpoints) I probably won’t notice them as a flaw. I just modify my game play and keep going. In a game like this, “game play” is the stuff I do to actively move the plot forward and provided it hits a minimum level of entertainment, I’m satisfied.
I thought the pacing fit the story and was satisfied with it. I’ll agree that the same stop-and-rush pacing would have likely annoyed me in Borderlands or the “pushed” combat would have been a detriment in Stalker: SoC. But from a strict gameplay perspective I’m probably not the person to ask.
I have been stopping reading some posts that seem to be about to edge into spoiler territory. I may have been wrong about that but I didn’t want to take any chances. I wanted to reiterate that we should still be spoiler boxing spoilers in this thread.
Hmm, I tried my best to keep story spoilers out of my review above, but some elements of gameplay might be considered spoilerish… unfortunately it’s been long past 5 minutes. Sorry!
What are your top two vigors and weapons?
I found myself using possession, bronco, shotgun and carbine most of the time.
During the generic, the staff each write a short message. Is there any place where they can be read at one’s own pace?
[spoiler] What Slate said was that Cornstock was never at Wounded Knee, correct? Slate kept saying that Cornstock was trying to usurp his repution and try to pass of Slate’s accomplishments as his own. What’s the meaning of that?
Cornstock was said to be a high-ranked commander whereas Dewitt was only an enlisted, right?
What happens based on whether you choose the cage or the bird? Head or tail?
What happens based on whether you spare Slate or kill him?
What’s with the handymen telling me to please leave?
[/spoiler]
I guess Comstock was taking credit for Slate’s accomplishments. I think Slate is confused because he doesn’t know Comstock is Dewitt and yet Comstock seems to know an awful lot about what went down.
Bird or Tail - doesn’t matter.
Spare/Kill Slate - death is the better choice. You later see him tortured and crippled into unresponsiveness if you let him live.