I'm sitting here about to start playing my early birthday present from John, that amazing mon that he is, and I'm currently on step 3 of 4 in regards to the first-time launch process. That is, about to play Bioshock Infinite. I've been looking forward to this game for quite some time, but was actually balking at purchasing it due to the publisher deciding they were going to give Americans a huge middle finger and charge them a full $15 more for the game than the rest of the world. Not only did John solve this dilemma by getting it for me as a present, he also got it in his home country of jolly 'ol England, meaning it was cheaper. So he just wins in every regard. As usual.
This is going to be a review in progress as I go through the game. I'm currently on the start screen and tabbed out to ensure the game doesn't explode when you do that. It doesn't. It also defaulted to my native resolution, so it's certainly off to a good start. I will timestamp the rest of my entries below, so you'll basically be following right along with me. And heeeeere we go.
9:12 PM: Okay, so for starters the style of the game is really interesting. I heard that they weren't going for a realistic look to the game, and that is true. It feels very much like a fantasy, and I like it. It's very cool. The start of the game is very reminiscent of older first-person shooters like Half-Life 2, where you are basically just thrown into the game and not told anything. I like that, obviously. It has a checkpoint save system, though. Boo! But I'll survive. Also, it alt-tabs like a frickin' pro! Very well optimized and smooth in every regard so far. Hey look, a lighthouse! Also, the bible/religious references start almost immediately.
9:23 PM: Suddenly, I'm in Columbia. That was pretty frickin' awesome. The music here is a bit creepy. It almost sounds like it's "Amazing Grace", but it's not. Here's my first view of the city, from within my transportation.
9:36 PM: So many bible references. Holy hell. (Pun intended.) Note: 45 minutes in and I still don't have a weapon. I love that.
9:43 PM: I ate a hotdog and now I'm hungry. BRB. Yes, this is an in-game screenshot.
9:50 PM: Okay, so seeing huge buildings moving around and sliding back and forth between each other is quite amazing and disorienting. That's going to take some getting used to. Also, MOST DESCRIPTIVE MANHOLE COVER EVER. Below that, the one thing I love about Columbia is that everywhere you look, things just seem WRONG. You see normal stuff like this, but it's WRONG! WHAT IS WITH THAT HORSE?!
10:03 PM: That...was a barbershop quartet that just floated by me.
10:07 PM: PRE-MARITAL HANKY PANKY!
10:20 PM: The fair is a very clever way of the game introducing several things at once. First, it lets you get accustomed to the shooting aspects of the game with the air rifle shooting gallery, before giving you a proper weapon. Second, I'm -guessing- that I'm seeing at least one enemy that I'll be fighting later on, in the Freak Show. And lastly, I got my first power. THAT was weird.
10:48 PM: WHAT THE HELL IS HAPPENING? WHERE DID THAT MAN'S HEAD GO? THE FUCK? EXPLETIVE DELETED!
10:53 PM: Okay, so the story is starting to surprise me in a number of ways. I'm quite shocked that I haven't heard about all the things I'm seeing, because they are, in my opinion, very controversial. Either I did a really good job at avoiding spoilers going into this game, or everyone else is getting as floored as I am. And I'm not just talking about violence here. This game is touching upon topics that games usually avoid like the plague, such as sexism, racism, and religious fanaticism. And, yes, the game is very violent, too. Moreso than I even imagined.
I'm calling it quits for the evening, having played just a little over two hours. So far, I'm immensely happy with the game. One of the best things that I can say about it right now is that it doesn't feel rushed, and for this I have a double meaning. First that the game is polished and it feels like they put all the love into it that they wanted to do. But second, the game itself isn't rushing me. I'm not being pushed from objective to objective. It's not open world, either. It's taking Half-Life 2's approach, where you have a clear path that you need to take, but you know, you don't have to go right for it right away. Have a look around. Take in the sights. Explore. Get rewarded for exploring. That's the type of closed world game that I want. And that's exactly what I got. So kudos to them for getting that very important part of it correct.
TO BE CONTINUED.
Oh alright, just one more thing. This isn't THAT much of a spoiler. See that man below? He's beating himself to death with his own baton because I made him. It's a power. A pretty fucked up power, I'll admit, but there you go. Don't want to kill an enemy yourself? No problem! Just make them do it for you. Choices.
Okay, so a lot of the stuff I encountered at the end of my evening of playing was pretty fucked up. The game just opened up, so it will be interesting to see where things go from here. We haven't even met Elizabeth yet. I so cannot wait to see where this game takes me.
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