BioShock Infinite

 PC
User Score
8.6

Generally favorable reviews- based on 9926 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8,187 out of 9926
  2. Mixed: 1,100 out of 9926
  3. Negative: 639 out of 9926
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  1. TitaniumDragon
    May 2, 2014
    7
    Bioshock Infinite is a decent game which suffers from pacing and gameplay issues. The story is decent enough, but a let down compared to the first game, and not nearly as clever in its commentary about the world or video games. The best part of the game is your sidekick, Elizabeth, who is a sidekick done right and uses a very clever mechanic to make herself useful and meaningful, but theBioshock Infinite is a decent game which suffers from pacing and gameplay issues. The story is decent enough, but a let down compared to the first game, and not nearly as clever in its commentary about the world or video games. The best part of the game is your sidekick, Elizabeth, who is a sidekick done right and uses a very clever mechanic to make herself useful and meaningful, but the game itself failed to make itself dynamic enough for her to be used to her full potential.

    The story of the original Bioshock is what really made the game special. Unfortunately, this game's story is not up to the level of the first game's story; you don't feel the same drive onward, and, unfortunately, because of the first game's twist, it is more obvious that there is going to be a twist in this one, which somewhat bothered me as I saw the twist coming from the very start of the game.
    Unlike in the previous games, in Bioshock Infinite, your character, Booker DeWitt, has both a name and a personality. Booker speaks up throughout the game, talking to the various NPCs, and especially to his sidekick, Elizabeth.
    The best and worst part of the game is the various transitions between realities; not only do you draw things between worlds, but you actually travel between worlds at various points in the game, to realities where things played out differently, including (eventually) a reality wherein Booker died after coming to the city.
    The problem, ultimately, is that the game never really delivers on the story; it is alright, but it isn't spectacular, and the world-skipping, while a neat idea, never really ends up having the punch that it should, as well as making it so that what we did earlier didn't really matter in that particular world (or maybe it did - who knows?). The whole "dead in one world, alive in another" thing is never really properly explored or followed up on, even though it was built up in significance, and the end result is that while it advanced the plot it really failed to make the game awesome.

    The ultimate weakness of this game lies in its gameplay. Bioshock Infinite is every bit the sequel to the previous Bioshock games, and this isn't a good thing - the gameplay is very similar to what it was in previous games, and while the enemy variety is a bit better in this game, there's nothing quite as exciting as some of the Big Daddy fights were in the first game. The Handymen are alright replacements for them, and make for reasonable enough fights, and your first fight against the various new types of enemies is neat enough, but as with the previous games, the lack of real bosses hurts the game a bit.
    The normal soldiers who are running around in most of the game are not terribly difficult or interesting enemies to fight, and while some of the battlefields are very interesting and dynamic and make good use of Elizabeth's powers, many of the fights are the opposite - very static things where you just hide behind cover and shoot the enemies, gradually grinding your way through the group without changing what you had summoned into the fight with Elizabeth at all. Elizabeth's powers are really neat, but without a reason to run around during the fight (something some of the special enemies provided at times, especially the handymen, as well as some of the more interesting environmental setups) they often didn't end up very interesting as they just were a piece of whatever I summoned in at the start to help me, rather than something I brought in mid-fight to swing things in my favor.
    The actual weapons in the game were very standard for a FPS, with the usual assortment of weapons, and unfortunately the upgrades system really encouraged you to try and stick to as few weapons as possible so that you could make the most use out of your upgrades - this is one of the major flaws of upgrade systems, in that they actually frequently reduce the variety of gameplay by encouraging you to not use a variety of weapons. Some of the weapons were also vastly better than others, and by the end of the game you pretty much had your pick of which weapon to use most of the time, rather than giving you a scavenging feel.
    The vigors are supposed to help mix things up from the usual FPS point of view, and it is nice to have weird weapons in a game, but ultimately I only ended up using a small number of the vigors - really, the only good ones were the ones which temporarily incapacitated foes, including the one that gave me a free ally for a bit, and as a result I pretty much only used three vigors through most of the game. They also didn't fit into the world at all thematically.
    All in all, the gameplay didn't really match the ambiance the story seemed to be trying to create, and the gameplay was too slow for the game itself - the game would have been better if it had avoided making you run around looking for change all the time.    … Expand
  2. Metalsand
    Apr 21, 2013
    9
    While not perfect, this game is nearly a perfect blending of story, immersion, and game play, the latter of which is it's only flaw, albeit a minor one. Not since Skyrim and the original Bioshock have I been so immersed within a game world, and been surprised at the twists and turns of such a unique game. The world is fleshed out, the characters have emotion (something somewhat lackingWhile not perfect, this game is nearly a perfect blending of story, immersion, and game play, the latter of which is it's only flaw, albeit a minor one. Not since Skyrim and the original Bioshock have I been so immersed within a game world, and been surprised at the twists and turns of such a unique game. The world is fleshed out, the characters have emotion (something somewhat lacking in Skyrim, made up by a massive amount of lore), and the game play...well it's not bad. I liked it in fact, but I've had better. Unlike Fallout 3, or Skyrim, I would not play BioShock Infinite again anytime soon. The story was amazing and so were the characters...but that was it. The game play, and therefore the replay value was somewhat bland.

    In the original Bioshock, they offered the ability to hold ALL of the weapons, so you could switch to whatever weapon was appropriate for that situation. In Infinite, not only are you restricted to two weapons, but your companion will GIVE you ammo, health, salts when you run low. Not once did I have to rely on my abilities or a unique strategy to handle a boss, I just had to press 'F' to succeed in whatever category I was in danger with rather than adapting to the situation. Sure, it was nice to have a companion that wasn't useless, but it could have been done so much better. For instance, maybe she could offer only pistols (since how the hell do you carry a rocket launcher under that dress)? Or maybe she can carry health and salt remedies when you run low, sort of how you did in the original Bioshock but with a companion?

    Long story short, Bioshock executed good game play, great story, and excellent immersion, while Infinite made decent game play, excellent story and great immersion, and I'm glad they made it, since it makes up for Bioshock 2 deviating so far from Bioshock 1.    … Expand
  3. BadlyBrowned
    Mar 30, 2013
    10
    In every way a worthy successor to Bioshock, Bioshock Infinite has a case to even be a better overall game as well. It has a great combination of gameplay, imagery, plot, and characters. The game is simply beautiful and proves that you don't always need more polygons to make a good looking game. The imagery and art design is excellent and really makes me want to argue that video gamesIn every way a worthy successor to Bioshock, Bioshock Infinite has a case to even be a better overall game as well. It has a great combination of gameplay, imagery, plot, and characters. The game is simply beautiful and proves that you don't always need more polygons to make a good looking game. The imagery and art design is excellent and really makes me want to argue that video games truly are art. Throughout the entire game I wanted to explore every nook and cranny for all the subtle details in the art and environment.

    The gameplay mechanics are not wildly innovative from previous Bioshock games, with Vigors now replacing Plasmids, but more polished. You same combination of firearms and powers is still as fun in Infinite as it was in Bioshock. However, Infinite boasts sky hook lines, which are sort of rail lines that you can attach yourself onto to travel around a level faster and jump/attack down onto enemies. Furthermore, your ally, Elizabeth, can open tears, which are portals into other dimensions, and bring in stuff from those worlds: such as health, ammo, or allies to help fight your enemies. I should also note that although you are escorting your AI partner Elizabeth throughout most of the game, she never becomes a burden to watch over. Once the shooting starts, Elizabeth knows how to take care of herself so you can focus on fighting the bad guys, and she will even throw you health packs, ammo, or Salts (magic potions essentially) throughout the battle when she sees you are getting low.

    Storytelling and character wise, this is up there with the likes of the Half Life series in setting the tone on how to tell stories in a first person shooter. Booker is excellent as the Player Character, but it is Elizabeth who really steals the show as the story's protagonist. She is one of my favorite video game characters of all time now, Irrational Games succeeded and creating a likeable, personable, strong character in Elizabeth. Gender aside she is simply a great character. From racism, working class struggles, religious extremism, violent revolutions, and metaphysics, Bioshock Infinite covers a whole lot of ground with their themes, and I personally never felt it was too overwhelming. However, the metaphysical aspect is certainly a subject that I could see getting confusing, especially if you have been rushing through the game and not picking up voxophones and other subtlties that realy add to the story telling. It's not until many hours into the game when you discover just why it's called Bioshock "infinite." However, unlike some other recent games I did not feel the twists or the ending soiled the game. In fact by the time I got to the end it felt like the logical conclusion. All in all Bioshock Infinite is a triumph of art and storytelling in gaming. Words like "magnificent," "spectacular," and "amazing" come to mind. Simply put, PLAY THIS GAME.    … Expand
  4. SSH83
    Apr 3, 2013
    7
    10 for originality. 8 for story. 7 for interesting tear and vigor. 5 for overall combat fun. The combat is fun the first few times. Though as game goes on, the combat design got lazy. Bigger enemies start to become plain invincible to most of your abilities, which means gameplay actually devolve into shoot-n-run-to-cover just like COD. 4 for over-hyped Elizabeth which is actually10 for originality. 8 for story. 7 for interesting tear and vigor. 5 for overall combat fun. The combat is fun the first few times. Though as game goes on, the combat design got lazy. Bigger enemies start to become plain invincible to most of your abilities, which means gameplay actually devolve into shoot-n-run-to-cover just like COD. 4 for over-hyped Elizabeth which is actually just scripted banter and cutscenes, and close to zero interactivity. I felt more connected to Bioware characters.… Expand
  5. emacinnes
    Apr 7, 2013
    5
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Bioshock Infinite, building off the largely successful BioShock, and the repetitive Bioshock 2, failed to recapture the sense of wonder, interesting game play and engaging storyline of the original. Firmly placed in the "trying too hard" category, Bioshock Inifinte plays out like a mad mix of Fringe, Deadwood and Looper, except not anywhere near as balanced or well thought out as any of those. Then it was steeped in so much unrelatable Americana that it, for me, caused a disconnect between the the story and the player. The worst part, and that sounds overly dramatic, because it implies it was bad, when merely average is the result, is the combat, which, while technically well implemented, got so boring and uninteresting that I placed the game back down to Easy difficulty to just "get through it quicker", to see if it was going to go anywhere worthwhile, and it didn't, with easy-to-guess time travel results at the end, partly because a twist is expected and therefore everything is taken with a pinch of salt early on, partly because the story devolves so quickly, with such a strong desire to confuse, that it really only leaves one option left to explain it, and partly because the gameplay itself provided insufficient distraction from the story to allow the twist to remain more hidden.

    Tehcnically, it's all well implemented, generally fine graphics, player controls are responsive and clear, good animations, nice textures, generally good aesthetics, stable with no crashing, with only one standout occasion of blatantly recycling a location for four fights, which was disappointing.    … Expand
  6. Oldelpaso
    Mar 26, 2013
    9
    Bioshock Infinite is a huge relief in an industry whose releases are saturated with non-inspired and recycled crap in order to make a buck or two. It's not perfect downsides include tedious looting, easy combat and some pacing issues towards the last third of the game. But Infinite shines in its artistic direction, and really pulls you into its environment with so much rich attention toBioshock Infinite is a huge relief in an industry whose releases are saturated with non-inspired and recycled crap in order to make a buck or two. It's not perfect downsides include tedious looting, easy combat and some pacing issues towards the last third of the game. But Infinite shines in its artistic direction, and really pulls you into its environment with so much rich attention to detail. Columbia really is something to behold. The set pieces are massive and will leave you in constant awe of what you just saw.

    It's definitely on par with Bioshock 1 and might even edge itself ahead. Definite GOTY contender. You can't miss this one.    … Expand
  7. TheRisingRefuge
    Mar 28, 2013
    10
    This game truly captures what an amazing video game can be. The world itself leaves you wanting to explore more and see what else there is to offer. On top of the world the level design is brilliant, with various sights to see, reasons to explore and the urge to see what Elizabeth will find or point out. The graphics are stunning as while you walk down various parts of the game the sunThis game truly captures what an amazing video game can be. The world itself leaves you wanting to explore more and see what else there is to offer. On top of the world the level design is brilliant, with various sights to see, reasons to explore and the urge to see what Elizabeth will find or point out. The graphics are stunning as while you walk down various parts of the game the sun glare and just various reflections make it to be a highly immersing world. The combat is very enjoyable, and enjoyable enough that after beating the game twice it still has a lot of entertainment value left in it. Possibly one of the greatest aspects of the game though is it's story, and the themes it touches on. The story mixed in throughout the world always leaves you wanting to know just a little bit more. The development of the story throughout though at a perfect pace where you don't feel bored or rushed through any part of the game. It all coming to a climax at the astounding ending, leaving you left to think deeply about the game, as well as drawing you back into it to play it again. Also Elizabeth, one of my most memorable characters to see in a video game, all credit to the Liz Squad at Irrational for making her feel real. This is an experience I haven't had in a video game in I can't remember how long and is probably going to hold the spot of one of the best video games I've ever played, if not the best. All the praise and credit they are getting is well deserved for this journey that you have to experience for yourself.… Expand
  8. timeknight
    Mar 28, 2013
    10
    This game is amazing. Really, I don't know how else to explain it. Irrational games has done it again. Compelling characters, enthralling story lines, engaging gameplay... Where did they go wrong? For those who loved the plot twists and engagement of Bioshock 1 and for those who loved the world beauty of Bioshock 2, this game combines the best of both to create an entirely new experience.This game is amazing. Really, I don't know how else to explain it. Irrational games has done it again. Compelling characters, enthralling story lines, engaging gameplay... Where did they go wrong? For those who loved the plot twists and engagement of Bioshock 1 and for those who loved the world beauty of Bioshock 2, this game combines the best of both to create an entirely new experience. Though I was controlling the character, I found myself often stopping and looking at elements of the game, not just breezing through areas. They made this game for users to experience it, not just to enjoy it. Amazing! I hope Irrational continues to make these quality games.… Expand
  9. GameZoneXtreme
    Apr 20, 2013
    7
    I hate to do this to one of my favorite franchises around, but i must. This is not an awful game by far, it just doesn't meet with Bioshock 1 standards. Graphically not better than the first. Story not even close to the first. Gameplay... hmmm not better than the first but not terrible. Overall just a fun game and ok story line, nothing great. I'm a bit disappointed
  10. hiddenpheonix
    Dec 7, 2013
    2
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. The FPS is completely a train ride. The story and level seem to drag out longer than necessary while leaving characters purpose unexplained. The ending makes the whole story meaningless.… Expand
  11. BoTheMastaOfAll
    Aug 21, 2013
    6
    Alright all you fanboys and Inception worshipers I'm about to school you hard in why this game is completely 100% basically ok and nothing more. I think I'll rip on the combat first.

    In Bioshock 1 you could carry all your guns at once. Ammo would still be tough to come by for certain guns, but that was ok because you could carry your gun until you found or bought ammo for it. This is    Alright all you fanboys and Inception worshipers I'm about to school you hard in why this game is completely 100% basically ok and nothing more. I think I'll rip on the combat first.

    In Bioshock 1 you could carry all your guns at once. Ammo would still be tough to come by for certain guns, but that was ok because you could carry your gun until you found or bought ammo for it. This is why it made sense to upgrade weapons you weren't currently using. The upgrade system in B1 made sense because you always had access to the guns you upgraded. The upgrade system in this game is completely stupid because of the 2 weapon limit. I want to use the guns I spent money on upgrading, not be forced to discard them because I can't find ammo. The game also has several variations of the same gun for some reason. Why are there 3 different machine guns when clearly the original machine gun is the best one? These only serve to water down the chances of finding a the machine gun variant I upgraded. This still would have been ok if it were possible to upgrade all weapons in the game to full by about the 1/2 way mark, but you only have enough cash to upgrade a few guns by end game. If you hit a stretch in the game where you can't use your upgraded guns, too bad sucker! You wasted money, and you have to use sh*t tier weapons now.
    Despite this combat has a good feel to it... until you rescue Elizabeth. Don't get me wrong, she is the ideal escort mission, but right then is when the game starts to go from swashbuckling adventure fun to typcial brown/grey modern shooter. There's even health regen. Imagine that.

    Right when you go to the poor district of the city is when the game finally says "screw it, I'm a modern shooter, sort of" and goes complete corridor shooter. You still have magic, but it's not as well developed as I expected it to be from Bioshock 1. B1 had obvious issues with plasmids but I expected them to be rectified, not worsened. You never see the sun for the rest of the game btw. Everything is brown/grey, and color schemes like this for several hours really kills the mood of any game.

    Time for the story. It feels like all the writers were in the middle of writing a story set in a world about Nazi Germany (Everyone is basically Nazis. Hell, they're even all blonde and blue eyed) mixed with the French Revolution when some nutter ran in saying "Hey everyone guess what! I just discovered this great game called Half Life 2! LETS RIP IT OFF!". And so they did. They even have the Gman, except there's two of them, and they're British.
    The game sets up a compelling and organic world about revolution, racism, and showing the folly of violent uprisings. Or at least, it sets itself up to tell this story really nicely. Before it can get to that part, it decides to interject alternate reality scifi nonsense that obviously tries too hard to be deep. The worst part is though, is that the game expects me to be surprised at its plot twists. Imagine watching a gamer who says he's the best in the world, but then you watch him turn on god mode. That is what alternate realities are to stories; They are the story teller's equivalent of god mode. They declared open season on their own story and said to their audience "I can do anything now!". Because of this, I was able to predict every single plot twist. I knew that because the game devs activated god mode, they would try to pull the weirdest sh*t they could get away with, which was anything. None of it surprised me. It was as if a magician gave me the schematic to a trick, then expected me to be surprised even though he gave me the tools to predict the ending.

    Speaking of the ending, it totally sucks. It's some completely forced surreal ending ala Mass Effect 3 or Inception. It makes no sense, but it has to make no sense, because the game set itself up early on to have the ending make no sense. For lack of a better phrase, during the last 30 min of the game, the story goes up its own ass.

    On a side note, something I find really hilarious though is that all the reviewers who say that this story wrapped itself up in a nice neat bow, also called Halo's storyline convoluted.

    This isn't bringing into question the complete lack of relation to B1. There is one part where they make a nod to Rapture, but Andrew Ryan isn't here. I expected Ryan to interject to want you to kill Comstock because he's totally screwing up Columbia, but that didn't happen. I expected Elizabeth to relate to the Jewish doctor from B1, but that didn't happen. There are no ties to Bioshock 1, other than a glimpse of Rapture, but that's it. That scene basically served as a reminder to say "Remember, this is Bioshock". None of the B1 characters were even involved at all.

    Here's what I recommend: The ME3 remedy. Play the game until it starts to get really weird. Then stop and pretend that it ended in a sensible, satisfying way that makes sense for you and coincides with the world setup.    … Expand
  12. Strider
    Apr 4, 2013
    10
    This is by far one of the best single player experiences in recent memory. The gameplay is fun, the story is fantastic and well executed, and you actually care about the characters. That's rare in games these days, but Bioshock Infinite pulls it off wonderfully. I am a fan of the Bioshock series in general, and now after playing though Infinite, and again in 1999 mode, I can honestly sayThis is by far one of the best single player experiences in recent memory. The gameplay is fun, the story is fantastic and well executed, and you actually care about the characters. That's rare in games these days, but Bioshock Infinite pulls it off wonderfully. I am a fan of the Bioshock series in general, and now after playing though Infinite, and again in 1999 mode, I can honestly say this is my favorite of the trilogy. I am an older gamer, of the Atari generation, and still a hardcore gamer to this day. I have played so many games over the years that I am no longer easily impressed or engrossed by a game anymore. So I have to give kudos to the devs on Bioshock Infinite, they did it. An easy 10 out of 10.… Expand
  13. TheMaximalist
    Mar 27, 2013
    10
    An excellent FPS that freshens up the genre like it's 2 predecessors did. This is a work of art that excels in every area, a must buy for action game fans.
  14. RippedCurtain
    Mar 27, 2013
    10
    The Greatest game I have ever played. This made me so happy to play, every step the story took was better than the last, it did nothing wrong. Both Booker and Elizabeth are written perfectly, the game-play is fresh and exciting especially the skyline fighting. This blew me away, I'm speechless. Thank-you Ken and thank-you Irrational Games!
  15. Rockman9
    May 17, 2013
    7
    BIOSHOCK INFINITE gives you far fetched plot, so so gameplay, good art style combined with some unbelievably bad textures.
    Overall, just a mediocre game with stunning art style. A must buy but absolutely overrated.
  16. Tannhauser
    Dec 9, 2013
    2
    3 hrs in so expect minor spoilers.
    This game is not only supremely boring and linear, it's also aggravating and repulsive from a story point of view. So there's this beautiful city in the clouds, where people live in (seeming?) harmony, and my job is to... kill everyone?! Violently and indiscriminately? Seriously, why would I do that? Because they're devout Churchgoers (not a big fan of    3 hrs in so expect minor spoilers.
    This game is not only supremely boring and linear, it's also aggravating and repulsive from a story point of view. So there's this beautiful city in the clouds, where people live in (seeming?) harmony, and my job is to... kill everyone?! Violently and indiscriminately? Seriously, why would I do that? Because they're devout Churchgoers (not a big fan of religion myself btw)? Or because they haven't achieved race equality yet? Now how about changing these things through political and social means, you know, bringing about enlightenment and humanist thinking by educating people? But no. The only way to progress in this game is through mass-murder. Now if this was GTA I'd find that fun, too, but
    this game seems to be wanting taken seriously.
    Apart from that, it's just a very linear shooter with mindless enemies, repetitive gunfights and poor animation. Last night I actually fell asleep while playing go figure.
    A few points for the beautiful flying city, though.    … Expand
  17. Andrew5
    Mar 31, 2013
    10
    Bioshock Infinite is a masterpiece. You can clearly see a lot of time and effort was put into this game with all the small details in the environment and people. The graphics are amazing and runs silky smooth on my PC. The gameplay is fun with fast paced action and using powers called Vigors similar to Plasmids in the original Bioshock. The story is amazing and you will have to playBioshock Infinite is a masterpiece. You can clearly see a lot of time and effort was put into this game with all the small details in the environment and people. The graphics are amazing and runs silky smooth on my PC. The gameplay is fun with fast paced action and using powers called Vigors similar to Plasmids in the original Bioshock. The story is amazing and you will have to play through this game yourself to find out.… Expand
  18. Mudpooch
    Mar 30, 2013
    10
    Im gonna keep this short.

    Its game like Bioshock that make you happy to be a gamer but more importantly its experiences such as Infinite that make you grateful to be alive... P.S Listen to all those people that give this game a low score, read their reviews take it all in, think about it, take them seriously and then when you've done that buy the game and then you can see for    Im gonna keep this short.

    Its game like Bioshock that make you happy to be a gamer but more importantly its experiences such as Infinite that make you grateful to be alive...

    P.S Listen to all those people that give this game a low score, read their reviews take it all in, think about it, take them seriously and then when you've done that buy the game and then you can see for yourself just how extremely wrong those people are...    … Expand
  19. Zudeare
    Mar 31, 2013
    10
    By now it should be obvious how good this game actually is. everything in this entire game is perfect! its setting, graphics, narrative, game-play and it's mind bending ending, without spoiling anything, i can tell you that the ending is pretty hard to wrap your mind around. and i can't write this review without mentioning Elizabeth at least once, because she is without a doubt the bestBy now it should be obvious how good this game actually is. everything in this entire game is perfect! its setting, graphics, narrative, game-play and it's mind bending ending, without spoiling anything, i can tell you that the ending is pretty hard to wrap your mind around. and i can't write this review without mentioning Elizabeth at least once, because she is without a doubt the best sidekick you'll ever see in a video game! not only is she a well written character, but she is so useful throughout the entire game, in combat she'll give you supplies without it even bothering you. you owe it to yourself to buy this game, even though i got only 13 hours out of it, you won't regret it!… Expand
  20. feistin
    May 15, 2013
    7
    The game looks absolutely beautiful but it just is repeating itself from earlier Bioshock games. And it ain't half as intriguing or exciting in my book. I had hoped the developer would have come up with some new concepts but it is rather lacking in innovation in comparison to the first one. Where is big daddy..?! Competent game but not a GOTY. Kinda like Diablo 3 from last year.
  21. TheLivingVirus
    Mar 28, 2013
    10
    A piece of art through and through.
    The amazing art style, the graphics, the narrative, the story, the characters, the gameplay just everything are in perfect harmony.

    One of the best shooters of all time!
  22. Shigawire
    Apr 23, 2013
    7
    I love Bioshock 1, System Shock 2. Bioshock Infinite has an incredible atmosphere, but then again, that's all it's got going for it. The game is absolutely playable. But it is a completely generic first person shooter. All problems in the game are solved in 1 way. Brawns, not brains.. Shoot with guns, take cover, use a tonic, take cover, jump on a "skyline" (gimmick to move from place toI love Bioshock 1, System Shock 2. Bioshock Infinite has an incredible atmosphere, but then again, that's all it's got going for it. The game is absolutely playable. But it is a completely generic first person shooter. All problems in the game are solved in 1 way. Brawns, not brains.. Shoot with guns, take cover, use a tonic, take cover, jump on a "skyline" (gimmick to move from place to place) etc.

    I'm not sure what Ken Levine meant with the "1999 mode" because there is NONE of the depth of System Shock 2 in this game. In this, I am disappointed in Ken Levine. He started some of the most seminal works in gaming, including the Thief games, System Shock 2, and Bioshock. Now Bioshock 1 was already a "step back" from System Shock 2. But having read about the "1999 mode" I naively assumed this game would move the opposite direction away from dumbing down the gameplay. But really, 1999 mode is just a difficulty setting, that's all it is.

    If you haven't played or been exposed to as many classics as I have, then I'm sure this will live up to the hype for you. But know that something 'better' has been made in the past, by the same man.

    7/10 some incredible atmospheres, sceneries, great art direction as always.. but... Gameplay is king. And it is this game's weak spot unfortunately.
    Gameplay>Story>Art>Tech>    … Expand
  23. Scrove
    Aug 8, 2013
    6
    The game was stylish and had a decent story (but the ending was filled with holes), other than that, it was a very average game. Overly repetitive, dull upgrades, extremely linear, the environment wasn't interactive, and a terrible final boss fight.
  24. KingMob4313
    Aug 23, 2013
    6
    Incredible presentation, an interesting commentary on a the nature of US politics and American exceptionalism with gorgeous visuals, tight voice acting and an compelling plot...

    ...That is completely ruined by actually PLAYING the game. Having gameplay that hasn't improved much since the days of System Shock 2 is simply not acceptable nearly 15 years later. The combat is boring,    Incredible presentation, an interesting commentary on a the nature of US politics and American exceptionalism with gorgeous visuals, tight voice acting and an compelling plot...

    ...That is completely ruined by actually PLAYING the game. Having gameplay that hasn't improved much since the days of System Shock 2 is simply not acceptable nearly 15 years later. The combat is boring, clumsy and mind numbingly easy. This lack of responsiveness and the horrific violence in the game makes it more seem one step up from a quicktime event style execution game. It also feels more like filler in an already brief game. It is inferior to the previous two Bioshock in the manner of it being a game.

    If the game wasn't so stellar in every other way, it wouldn't be much higher than a 4 and you'd be better served catching the highlights on youtube.    … Expand
  25. alireza0fa
    Mar 27, 2013
    10
    On of the best games ever made...for me is the best First Person ever played...when you playing Infinite,YOU hate any other games...
    10 for Bioshock Infinite...
    Thank's Irrational Games...& Thank you Mr Ken Levine ____________________ with this code you can play Bioshock Infinite On "MOD 1999": Xbox 360/PC Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A PS3: Up, Up, Down,    On of the best games ever made...for me is the best First Person ever played...when you playing Infinite,YOU hate any other games...
    10 for Bioshock Infinite...
    Thank's Irrational Games...& Thank you Mr Ken Levine
    ____________________
    with this code you can play Bioshock Infinite On "MOD 1999":

    Xbox 360/PC Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A

    PS3: Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, O, X    … Expand
  26. TheDevilHunter
    Mar 28, 2013
    10
    Bioshock Infinite: The best pc game of 2013, I am 100% sure of it. Story is brilliant, even though the ending takes some time to settle in, once you dig into it, it all makes sense. The setting is perfect, even though I was a bit suspicious about moving away from my beloved Rapture. Enemies are superb, well thought through and some are a bit challenging at times. This game follows up theBioshock Infinite: The best pc game of 2013, I am 100% sure of it. Story is brilliant, even though the ending takes some time to settle in, once you dig into it, it all makes sense. The setting is perfect, even though I was a bit suspicious about moving away from my beloved Rapture. Enemies are superb, well thought through and some are a bit challenging at times. This game follows up the good Bioshock series by keeping the game mechanics and the good feel, unlike most other new games coming out nowadays (See Far Cry 3, DmC, Tomb Raider, Dead Space 3, Hitman Absolution and so on..) The graphics are so-so. At a distance the graphics truly shine and some of the effects are just beautiful, but at close some items and textures are really poorly drawn, but nothing big. Here might be my favorite part: No quicktime events. I was really scared this game would follow up to the usual crap new console ported games come with, but Bioshock Infinite didn't bring anything awful from the consoles, it all worked very well on PC. No multiplayer however, unlike in Bioshock 2, but it wasn't really needed, even though it worked perfectly in Bio 2. My only complain about this game is that, it's too short. 15 hours of gameplay and it left me feeling like there should have been more gameplay with the Vox Populi for example. I hope the game developers decide to make tons of future dlcs for this game, as it needs more content. All in all, a fresh breath from all the crap we've seen come out in the last few years. Bioshock Infinite has all the major aspects put just where they need to be. 10/10.… Expand
  27. TheCrystalShip
    Apr 4, 2013
    10
    Great game, really intense, i wish this game would have last longer than 15 hours!
    The City looks great, the character are "belivable", the soundtracks just awesome!
    And the End... Ah this end...
  28. Revalations92
    Mar 26, 2013
    10
    From the very beginning I was blown away by the visuals, not simply the quality of the graphics themselves, but how every little detail of the world is fleshed out. From the posters and newspapers, to radio broadcasts and NPC conversations, Infinite really make the world feel real. I felt like I was presenting an E3 demo for the first few hours, as a walked around slowly taking in everyFrom the very beginning I was blown away by the visuals, not simply the quality of the graphics themselves, but how every little detail of the world is fleshed out. From the posters and newspapers, to radio broadcasts and NPC conversations, Infinite really make the world feel real. I felt like I was presenting an E3 demo for the first few hours, as a walked around slowly taking in every bit of atmosphere. Gameplay wise, I'd give it a solid 8.5/10. Its not revolutionary, but there are quite a few things that freshen it up, including impeccable pacing, and the wide open aerial sequences. Last, but certainly not least, it story. Story is the reason this game is such a masterpiece. It's aided greatly by the game world, as you'll hear NPCs having interesting conversations, and the environments themselves are constructed in a way that the player begins to ask questions. As in the original Bioshock you pick up recordings, which fleshes out the story even further. Elizabeth herself however is the greatest attraction. I felt as if she came out of a Disney movie, with an expressive face, flawless animations, and a curiosity that can clearly be seen. By the end of the game you really do care for her, which is a hard thing to do in a video game. In conclusion, the game really is perfection. Stop reading this and go buy it. Now. It will take you on a journey that few games can come close to.
    PS: Don't rush through it. Take your time and enjoy the little things. You'll be glad you did.    … Expand
  29. dakoslug
    Mar 29, 2013
    10
    Warning to everyone. Pay attention to the story details if you desire to understand such a complex ending. The game has to be the best first person shooter in quite a long time, it is definitely going to be the best one this year. The scenery and level design has to be praised here. The game is by no means linear however with a simple press of a button, you get a clear direction on whereWarning to everyone. Pay attention to the story details if you desire to understand such a complex ending. The game has to be the best first person shooter in quite a long time, it is definitely going to be the best one this year. The scenery and level design has to be praised here. The game is by no means linear however with a simple press of a button, you get a clear direction on where to go. Yet you can still venture off to a room where you can loot some ammo or search for voxaphones (audio tapes that give you tidbits of background information.) My favorite character is Elizabeth, she's smart and in the beginning of the game she lightens the whole mood. You see her grow as a character, as she learns more about her parents and her whole predicament. It's really great to see the main protagonist and Elizabeth become almost partners. Religion and racism play a huge role in Columbia, this adds a whole different type of realism. It's almost like they are trying to recreate America before it's civil war. Irrational games, thank you for such a gem.… Expand
  30. Purgatory1
    Mar 27, 2013
    10
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. The atmosphere of this game is just stunning, the graphics, music, voices and so on just perfectly fit together. I've never been bored for a single second playing this game and you definitely have to fall in love with Elizabeth.

    There's really only very little to criticise, the gameplay overall is fantastic. The only thing I would change is the weapons system since you can't really focus on your favorite weapons because you need to change your weapons pretty often. That's because you either run out of ammo for your weapon or because you need to adapt your weapons to the tougher enemies.

    The story is very complex, maybe too complex for some people. Yes there remain unanswered questions after the ending and there's room for interpretations and it doesn't have a classic hollywood happy ending but that's one reason why Bioshock infinite ist outstanding. And in fact the game does reveal all important secrets about Booker/Comstock and Elizabeth/Anna, where they come from and what their motivations are. But I have to admit that I did like the Bioshock 1 and 2 endings a little more.

    However there is no such thing as a perfect game but Bioshock Infinite is as close as you can get, that's why I gave this game a score of 10.    … Expand
  31. behastie
    Apr 4, 2013
    10
    Great game, groundbreaking story. It's difficult to talk about why the game is so great without going into spoilers, but I'll say this: The gameplay is very fun (though not innovative). The story is awesome. Play it through to the end.
  32. IsNotATerrorist
    Mar 31, 2013
    10
    This was truly an unforgettable experience. I was positively captivated by the storyline, the aesthetics, Elizabeth especially, and rather enjoyed the games combat mechanics-- the weapon variation was vast, as were the powers (granted a few were mechanically similar) giving you the opportunity to apply some means of premeditation to every combat situation and a deserving arsenal should youThis was truly an unforgettable experience. I was positively captivated by the storyline, the aesthetics, Elizabeth especially, and rather enjoyed the games combat mechanics-- the weapon variation was vast, as were the powers (granted a few were mechanically similar) giving you the opportunity to apply some means of premeditation to every combat situation and a deserving arsenal should you choose to ignore that and run in head first guns blazing.… Expand
  33. 5monkeez
    Apr 5, 2013
    10
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Having played Bioshock 1 and 2, I found the gameplay experience very familiar, since Irrational did not forget what made the first two games successful. The new setting and 1st person perspective are extremely positive--even my wife likes the visuals of Columbia. What I was not prepared for was the ending--it took me completely by surprise and left me feeling... well.. a little sad. Now that's good story telling. And yep, I'm playing it a second time.… Expand
  34. Scales01
    Mar 26, 2013
    10
    Right let's get one thing straight... I loved original bioshock, and number dissapointed to no end. Bioshock Infinite is good: 1. Gorgeous graphics 2. Average gameplay not overwhelming amount of effort has gone in to making the gameplay positive though at no point was it bad or unplayable, plus seen no glitches in full play through on day one since release. 3. Very short, very very shortRight let's get one thing straight... I loved original bioshock, and number dissapointed to no end. Bioshock Infinite is good: 1. Gorgeous graphics 2. Average gameplay not overwhelming amount of effort has gone in to making the gameplay positive though at no point was it bad or unplayable, plus seen no glitches in full play through on day one since release. 3. Very short, very very short only about 8-10 hours of play is a bad point so know that it won't be a game that will last. 4. Most importantly the story of this game is absolutely out of this world this game has the best story of any game released in recent history not to say it could easily trump most highly appraised games of old as well. So all in all if you are looking for a game with a lot of shooting and killing and such go back to playing COD kid this is a game for those of us who love a great narrative frankly I think this game could be the best game I have ever played, when it comes to story at least, and few games match the beautiful graphics that are jaw-dropping for even the most jaded players. If anything give it a look and if you are not interested in playing it at least watch someone play through the thing so you know the story as it is worth seeing cuz it is amazing… Expand
  35. unstabLe_
    Mar 26, 2013
    10
    I just had to create an account for this game. I couldn't resist. I never played the first two Bioshocks (however, friends of mine are huge fans of Bioshock 1), but after going back and forth with myself on whether I should pre-order, I convinced myself. I don't regret it one single bit. This game is by far one of the most outstanding games that has come out in the last decade. I don'tI just had to create an account for this game. I couldn't resist. I never played the first two Bioshocks (however, friends of mine are huge fans of Bioshock 1), but after going back and forth with myself on whether I should pre-order, I convinced myself. I don't regret it one single bit. This game is by far one of the most outstanding games that has come out in the last decade. I don't believe in giving 10's. To me, a 10 shows that the game is perfect. And this game is perfect. The graphics, the setting, the story, the gameplay, everything feels amazing and plays amazing. Not to mention that, in my opinion, this game just set a new bar for FPS games to reach. It's new and innovative, and everything works so well together that it immerses you into its amazing world without letting you go. Elizabeth is a very lovable character, and for once, you don't have a companion who's a bullet sponger. She doesn't even take damage during combat, but you'll FEEL the need to protect her, or at least that's how I felt. If you're hesitant in this game, don't waste another second. Grab this game ASAP because it will completely blow you away. This game is worth the $60 price tag that I paid for alone, not to mention that I also got a copy of XCOM: Enemy Unknown and the first Bioshock, two games that are both amazing as well. My congratulations to Irrational games for creating an amazing masterpiece. I look forward to more great games such as this. Other developers? Take notes, because this is how you make a masterpiece.… Expand
  36. Ravenshadows
    Mar 26, 2013
    10
    Giving it 9.5 out of 10, but going to click 10 to offset the mindless reviewers who give it 0 because supposedly the 'graphics are horrible.'

    Forget what they say: The graphics are so good you'll feel like you've died and gone to the sky city of Columbia; lighting and water effects reach a new high in this game, creating the effect the world is alive before your eyes. Never has a    Giving it 9.5 out of 10, but going to click 10 to offset the mindless reviewers who give it 0 because supposedly the 'graphics are horrible.'

    Forget what they say: The graphics are so good you'll feel like you've died and gone to the sky city of Columbia; lighting and water effects reach a new high in this game, creating the effect the world is alive before your eyes.

    Never has a game world been crafted so magnificently, and so memorably; it's everything you expected and a whole lot more. While the setting of the game is in a fictive sky-city, it's historical roots are presented with great fidelity and you'll feel like you've gone back in time to 1912.

    The production values are out of this world; for example, you'll find yourself wanting to stay on the menu screen for an unnaturally long time because it is so beautiful. This is more than a game, it is art living and breathing art that unfold luxuriously before your eyes which will water with awesome overload.    … Expand
  37. Juiposa
    Mar 27, 2013
    10
    Easily one of the best games I've ever played. Incredibly deep story, rich gameplay, while not compromising the features that make it distinctly BioShock. Definitely recommend.
  38. simulacra5000
    Mar 27, 2013
    10
    10. Enough said. 10. Enough said. 10. Enough said. 10. Enough said. 10. Enough said. 10. Enough said. 10. Enough said. 10. Enough said. 10. Enough said. 10. Enough said. 10. Enough said. 10. Enough said. 10. Enough said. 10. Enough said. 10. Enough said.
  39. SJurczak
    Mar 28, 2013
    10
    After playing the original Bioshock game with it's incredible plot and themes I thought I had experienced the pinnacle of story-telling. However, Bioshock Infinite easily makes any game before it seem primitive. This is not so much a game with a background, but a living story told by the characters and the player together. What drives you to complete the game is not the first personAfter playing the original Bioshock game with it's incredible plot and themes I thought I had experienced the pinnacle of story-telling. However, Bioshock Infinite easily makes any game before it seem primitive. This is not so much a game with a background, but a living story told by the characters and the player together. What drives you to complete the game is not the first person shooter aspect of it (although that too is truly unique and incredible) but the NEED to know what happens next in the story. The plot is nothing I would have ever expected in the most wonderful of ways and it made this possibly my most enjoyable gaming experience. The final moments of the game were incredibly emotional; joyful, confused, sadness, horror, and vindication. This game is unlike anything I have ever experienced before, and I urge everyone who wants to play (which should be EVERYONE) not to spoil ANY part of the plot. The way you learn it through the game is a work of art; much like the game which is a masterpiece.… Expand
  40. gokule
    Mar 28, 2013
    10
    Game of the year. Incredible story line, if you're a fan of the Bioshock series, this is definitely going to rock your world. Graphics are astonishing, lighting is incredible and voice acting is superb.

    I did miss some of the "creepiness" of the other series, but i have to see beyond that in this masterpiece of a game. I think it might have been the best game I've played in a loong    Game of the year. Incredible story line, if you're a fan of the Bioshock series, this is definitely going to rock your world. Graphics are astonishing, lighting is incredible and voice acting is superb.

    I did miss some of the "creepiness" of the other series, but i have to see beyond that in this masterpiece of a game. I think it might have been the best game I've played in a loong time, and I've played a lot.    … Expand
  41. prebel85
    Mar 29, 2013
    10
    Had to sign up just to respond to this one idiotic comment. The guy that's offended thinking it's racist to have a white and black person together? Are you living in a cave? Wow just wow, some people make my brain want to explode. I'm glad you wasted 60 bucks, serves you right.
  42. ruupert
    Mar 29, 2013
    10
    I liked this game alot. This has the feel of previous Bioshock but in a completely different setting. Waiting eagerly for the next Bioshock. The graphics of the game were unbelievable. I would like to see this game again further on with a better graphics card. This game supports playing with three monitors. On the older Bioshocks you had to use a hotkey to adjust the fov so that it looked good.
  43. epicci
    Apr 5, 2013
    10
    One of the best games I have EVER played. Story was fantastic, graphics were amazing, gameplay was fun. Sometimes it has too much shooting scenes but it's not that bad thing. I just fell in love with this game.
  44. ProgramThis
    Apr 10, 2013
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I usually keep silent, but I can't with this. I'm a game love and a programmer, so I always appreciate the gameplay and also the game construction. Graphics and story aside. I would barely call this a "modern" game in a time when player personal experience is key.

    First play, I was easily able to get through the came on difficult level. There was such scene control for User Interface that it was more like playing a movie than a game. Modern games should be more than just a game you play once. I've heard the halflife argument and I'm a huge fan of Halflife, but this is what halflife had this doesn't: Replay-abililty! Even when Halflife was done, I would replay "fight" sequences on halflife over and over, trying different tactics. I think the game creators of bioshock INF. knew this, which is why the game seems for force you onward, not giving you a chance to replay your favorite fight sequence, because you won't have one.

    I also played the game through twice, chose all different options in the game, and it had no effect on gameplay. Terrible choice to put the game in a racially charged environment, asking the player to make a racial choice, then that choice has no effect. In a world that publicly pelts interracial couples, which side you are on makes a difference. It's insulting to have the game start with such a powerful personal choice that makes no difference! Take this as a foreshadow for the whole game whether you make careful choices or sleep you way through, the game give no greater reward. So don't bother searching you soul here, just click a choice, forget it and move onward.

    This is also reflective of the 'quantum' concept as well. They use the premise that all realities exist and therefor changing one reality can have no effect because in another reality it will happen, which is why no matter what you do doesn't stop the main character. And what was the game designers solution: change reality. What? Stopping baptism in one life doesn't stop it in another, as so stated by the game itself!

    They set up the potential that they could create a game with choices that made a difference on gameplay, yet in the end, all players end in the same place, which would feed to their quantum concept that you can't change the outcome because all outcomes exist. It almost feels like the story writers and game designers weren't working together. Like the maps and characters were make here, and the story somewhere else, so when they were put together, the story is vast and wide, and the gameplay narrow.

    They created a beautiful world with a super-charged environment, and all they had to do was create a few alter-characters that would talk to you if you made this choice or that, and that little effort would have made the game worth playing again, and choices worth making. Instead, they chose a homogenized experience in a polarized world.

    It's like a mediocre high budget film. You'll love it for the effects, find holes in the story, and in the end best waiting until you have a slow weekend and it comes out on video to see. Ultimately, I recommend that people wait till the cost comes down, and then play it once, have fun, and expect to not want to play it again.    … Expand
  45. Scorpion_AZ
    Apr 11, 2013
    5
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Well, the game is graphically amazing with interesting game play and it starts out with an intriguing story. Unfortunately, the game has the same ending as any Bioshock game, with the hero undermined by one he saves. It is not like you saw it coming as the story is dreadfully full of holes and it felt like the developers of the game just didn't know how to finish the story, so the reached back in the Bioshock box and said 'that will do pig, that will do.'

    The story line is also hampered by the too few guns in inventory, too few vigors (magic powers) to choose from in the UI, and way too little money to upgrade everything. You get to the end of the game and about 20% of your guns are upgraded, and forget about upgrading your vigors as there is hardly any coin for that. Maybe the plan is to give the 'Season Pass' some teeth to enhance your character further don't know don't care. I doubt I will get the pass, simply because the character is 'dead' at the end.

    So if you are looking for a game with great graphics, an immersive world, a B in plot, a C- in congruent story logic, with a F- crappie ending, invest your $60 patriots into this beast.

    By the way, who at 2K Games has a fantasy for experimentation on demonic children with an embitterment toward organized religion? Three games now with the same basic theme. Did we scrape the creativity bucket clean with Bioshock, or did someone have a nasty childhood growing up?    … Expand
  46. Sir_applepie
    Apr 27, 2013
    6
    Why do people find this game so great? it does not deserve the 9.5/10 score it has. Pretty graphics (even tho graphics doesn't make a game), The game. Is short, you do the same thing over and over again, still a descent game. Once again, I have no idea why people love this game so much. It has one of the highest score on metacritics.
  47. SilentNinjaMick
    May 4, 2013
    10
    Easily one of my favorite games, Bioshock Infinite doesn't fail to please. Its gripping gameplay and intense storyline make it a game everybody should play.
  48. Nunyer
    Jun 7, 2013
    3
    Wow...way over-rated, first time post, doubt that anyone will read this under the weight of the accolades from some.
    Nothing THAT special about the graphics, and they were the reason I went as high as I did.
    The gameplay? Not as good as Bio-shock, and that's a fact. Made item, health and salt pickup pointless, for instance. The story?...Great, except I knew who Comstock was long before    Wow...way over-rated, first time post, doubt that anyone will read this under the weight of the accolades from some.
    Nothing THAT special about the graphics, and they were the reason I went as high as I did.
    The gameplay? Not as good as Bio-shock, and that's a fact. Made item, health and salt pickup pointless, for instance.
    The story?...Great, except I knew who Comstock was long before their (Dewitt and the girl) "encounter" at Comstock house...and the end...then this is a time bubble...all this occurred, including Elizabeth's life only it didn't, NONE OF IT. or did it?..end result, instead of not caring at the end, (bad enough) I actually wanted to slap whoever thought it up...    … Expand
  49. aufkr
    Nov 28, 2013
    7
    It's linear, the combat is repetitive and the small amount of choices you're allowed to make have absolutely no impact on the overall storyline. Overall though, its a pretty entertaining game to play, with well written characters and a well designed world. It's not really worth a second playthrough though.
  50. BreinFubar
    Dec 19, 2013
    1
    go shoot, and that's the whole game, no deposit, I do not understand what it all like?
    I dont reccomend that, i got it on steamgifts, its not a game//
  51. Nabeelchutkae
    Feb 2, 2014
    2
    This game was not made for me. I found it to be very boring, with the same rinse-repeat shootouts without much of a break. The story line and themes were incredibly convoluted. What a shame, considering I really like the first and second Bioshock. I will however, play it a second time on a higher difficulty to see if that makes any sort of difference. I really was hoping to enjoy this.
  52. vahn
    Jan 10, 2014
    9
    This is one hard game to judge and to review, because it has so much but at the same it has so little. But I want to be clear from the start: yes, it is a good game. Yes, it has a very good story. Yes, it is a better shooter than normal. No, it's definitely not a masterpiece that everyone assume: it has flaws and those flaws are huge that cannot be avoided, especially considering I LOVEDThis is one hard game to judge and to review, because it has so much but at the same it has so little. But I want to be clear from the start: yes, it is a good game. Yes, it has a very good story. Yes, it is a better shooter than normal. No, it's definitely not a masterpiece that everyone assume: it has flaws and those flaws are huge that cannot be avoided, especially considering I LOVED the original (especially System Shock), and I was expecting so much from this game, but when I heard of thecontent they had, but later removed, I just waited for a discount. Something that I didn't do for the original.

    What's good in it:

    1)The story is the best part of the game and despite confusing at first...it will be still confusing later on, until you end the game, and hardly any game nowadays is able to do hook you like this game, especially an fps game. I won't spoil the story, but it's interesting and very engaging. Is it flawless? No, but it's still good. And that's what counts.

    2) The combat, while being a shooter, is actually pretty good although not very innovative, but if we have to compare to other "modern" fps game this is way higher on the scale: the vigors, while being not exceptional comparing to the original Bioshock, it still gives some variation on the fight and combined with your weapons (I'll talk about it) and also the sky-line fights, it gives some good combat now and then
    and it was ok and enjoyable. Only downside is that the fights are far too easy (I played on normal) so unless you want a challenge, you'll have to fight on highest difficulty, especially since your partner (Elizabeth) will provide support now and then. Not perfect, but definitely better than the average fps.

    3) I finished the game in about 10 hours, doing the most I can and trying to gather most of the powerups I could get (the pots), so even on length it's pretty good too considering most of fps nowadays, if you're lucky, will last about 5 hour or so, even less if you like to rush on the game. Sure the game will last less than 10 hours if you rush but, once again, if we have to compare to other fps, it's pretty lengthy. On its own, it's good enough: not too long, not too short.

    What's bad in it:

    1)You can only carry 2 weapons at once and, unless you find the weapon somewhere, you'll be stuck with the two you've got; this alone will make most of the weapons useless, because you'll focus on just 2 weapons most of the time and only them for the rest of the game: a pity because not only the original you could carry all of the weapons, but each one was useful (even the wrench, with the right upgrade!).

    2)You can use all of the vigors at once but it's so badly implemented (you hold Q to show the screen of vigors; in Bioshock it was bind to your F1 keys) that you will often forget them and just use two all time (since it's also very easy, it won't matter).

    3) Passives are gone and are replaced with clothes that you have to find and once you use them, you can replace with another until you find another. General upgrades also are dumbed down, with potions upgrade for health, shield and salts, and money for the other upgrades (instead of a specific revenue, like the ADAM in Bioshock)

    4)Too few exploration and lack of choices....and those few choices will lead you to nothing, since the game ends the same everytime. Also, the game is extremely linear despite the game will try to give "different paths", but the game will always force your way through one way only.

    5)Vigors are extremely dumbed down and not all of them are very useful and not worth upgrading at all. And some powers aren't here, like Telekinesis... (I would have LOVED to throw them away!!!!)

    There are probably other issues that I could mention, but all in all this game is very good and it was enjoyable to play through...but yes, this game, together with Portal 2 and maybe some CoD games, is one of the most overhyped games ever, because of the amount of things they have promised to deliver just scrapped later for giving us, in few words, a "linear shooter with story elements". I won't say it's bad because it's linear (I mentioned it had some exploration), but after Bioshock I expected sooooo much from this game and, to this day, I still consider that game a masterpiece (although that game is too easy too). But yes, I highly recommend this game to give it a try, ESPECIALLY if you find it on discount, because it has a good story (but hard to follow), one of the most reliable and interesting partners I've ever had (and more games should take inspiration from her!), and has an unnoriginal yet good fps mechanic that works, but really begged for more innovation (Ok, the original game was more clunky on using both of your powers....)

    A tough score for me, but I think a 9(.5) is a very well deserved to this game.
    Very good, but very flawed as well.    … Expand
  53. Schuback
    Feb 26, 2016
    2
    Was duped by high ratings everywhere. The fact is, this game is heavily scripted. A linear corridor shooter. Could've watched the whole thing on youtube. Am I playing the game or is the game playing me?... (You get what I'm saying).

    The graphics and art style is alright but overall, I really can't recommend this game. It's downright boring!! I played like 4 hours and it's still boring!!    Was duped by high ratings everywhere. The fact is, this game is heavily scripted. A linear corridor shooter. Could've watched the whole thing on youtube. Am I playing the game or is the game playing me?... (You get what I'm saying).

    The graphics and art style is alright but overall, I really can't recommend this game. It's downright boring!! I played like 4 hours and it's still boring!! I guess many people don't like challenges or games that requires your creativity on how to approach situations. Just follow, bam bam the bad guys, talk and follow again. Rinse and repeat. It's a first person game but it's not you, you are controlling someone else. Wut?? The npcs are talking to this guy who who happens to be you and you see him like it's you yourself but it's not you.... WUT???? OMG. Anyway, this makes you care less for everything cause you can't immerse yourself in this game. Nothing hits you or connect to you in a personal sense.

    So if the story campaign is bad what about the online segment? Well, there's none. Just a short linear single-player fps. Hmm....

    SO WHY IS THIS GAME 10/10 EVERYWHERE?? It's a 2 for me. 1 point for graphics, 2nd point for 'it's not the worst game I've played). Totally overrated.    … Expand
  54. SittinginBasket
    Jul 27, 2013
    6
    A disappointing game, although that is somewhat expected. I've come to expect the content and gameplay concepts of pre-release gameplay demos and trailers to not be present in the game.

    To start off, the story is above average. The storytelling is below average. The concepts behind the story are intriguing, and also link back to the previous games. The depth of the story through the    A disappointing game, although that is somewhat expected. I've come to expect the content and gameplay concepts of pre-release gameplay demos and trailers to not be present in the game.

    To start off, the story is above average. The storytelling is below average. The concepts behind the story are intriguing, and also link back to the previous games. The depth of the story through the game's backstory, which is often shown through audio logs, or "voxophones", lets you piece together the story, and helps with the eventual "epiphany" at the end of the game, as if the game was some sort of mystery/corridor shooter where you get thrown information, and while you are trying to figure this out, the game continues to tease you with the fact that there is going to be some sort of twist at a later part of the story. However, the fact is that you cannot figure it out until the twist, and the fact that you expect the twist for the majority of the game. Unlike the previous games and also many other works of fiction, the content of the twist itself may be a complete surprise, but the existence of the twist is completely expected, so instead of truly being surprised by the twist because it's so unexpected that you had never even thought of there being a twist, or that the twist was what it was, you simply think "Oh, so that's the twist.". Other works of fiction have genuinely surprising twists in both aspects of a twist that I have mentioned, for example in the first Bioshock. The twist(s) in that game come as a complete surprise, and are much more well done.

    In terms of the story through characters, the characters themselves have a decent degree of depth to them, but every character in the game simply seems flat and uninteresting. Even Elizabeth, a companion that you spend time with throughout much of the game, seems completely uninteresting. I found that I barely gave a damn about her until the closing parts of the game. There simply is not enough character development and interaction. Elizabeth speaks occasionally throughout the entire game, and the conversations between Elizabeth and Booker are simply short and meaningless. Their attitudes towards each other seem quite static at times, and even when they seem to suddenly change, they immediately change back and you are left asking yourself "What the hell was all that about?". This is essentially the same with all major characters as well, they are simply 2D characters that do the things they do simply because, and they stay the same way. Elizabeth essentially felt like some sort of AI pet who just follows me around and serves as an extension of my will. If Booker was given the power of opening tears, picking locks, and randomly finding ammunition, health, and salts in the middle of nowhere and Elizabeth simply followed me around, it would have been the exact same experience. With literally every single other character in the game, whether it be a major character or not, there simply is not actual interaction except for a few lines of scripted events and dialogue here and there. Whatever miniscule amount of interaction you have with those characters seems to have no repercussions, and whatever it is that you do, you'll simply not give a damn and forget about it. The E3 gameplay demo for Bioshock Infinite had more character development that the actual game (excluding the ending and twist).

    Now the gameplay is nothing shabby, but it really isn't anything amazing either. Based off of the early E3 gameplay demos and gameplay details, the gameplay had such great potential. However, the actual result was essentially the opposite of what was shown and expected. Levels were "massive", but closed and segregated. A level was essentially divided into tiny little section. You can only ever choose to be extremely aggressive and militant, as hostile attention will always be drawn to you no matter what you do. The skylines are mostly pointless decoration that is limited to what is essentially a total area of 20 meters cubed that you can completely play without other than a few parts of the game where you simply must use them to reach point B from point A. Most of them also do not make any sense in an actual logical manner, as if they were placed there just so Booker can swing around and fight on them if he wants, and not because the city planners thought it would be of actual use, which it seemed to have been in the early parts of the game. Miniscule gameplay elements like the gate-lifting, stealing, powering machines with the shock jockey, and so on are introduced in the beginning and then completely forgotten, never to be seen again. And the only vigor that enemies use are the Devil's Kiss by the firemen and the shock jockey by a single mid-game boss. Oh, and vigors are useless.

    I could go on, but the character limit won't let me. However, I definitely believe that Bioshock infinite is simply a highly overrated game that is just disappointingly mediocre.    … Expand
  55. Rigel86
    Aug 30, 2013
    6
    What so many people see in this game? I'm so disappointed based on all this hype I bought it,expected something fantastic, played for some hours, and... stopped. For me, that's a boring game, average,
    Yes, devs lost time and energy working on it and i respect their work. But these critics with scores of average 96... There must be something wrong with me, I guess...
  56. Lanky14
    Oct 15, 2014
    7
    I quit this game about halfway through. It was boring. It was just a first person shooter with some right-click flare.

    The above was a mistake. The story really took off at roughly 30 minutes of gameplay after where I quit. This game is no gameplay masterpiece. Some of the guns are satisfying, some are frustrating. Stealing stuff from every drawer in sight is always somehow    I quit this game about halfway through. It was boring. It was just a first person shooter with some right-click flare.

    The above was a mistake. The story really took off at roughly 30 minutes of gameplay after where I quit.

    This game is no gameplay masterpiece. Some of the guns are satisfying, some are frustrating. Stealing stuff from every drawer in sight is always somehow entertaining. Zipping around on tram lines is also fairly fun. The real win for this game, though, is the story. I would recommend this game to anyone who likes a good story and is happy shooting anything that moves in the dull moments.    … Expand
  57. Abaleth
    Mar 29, 2013
    9
    Mechanically, I think BioShock Infinite is actually superior to BioShock. I found the first game to involve a considerable amount of shooting the same baddie, to the point of tedium. In Infinite, this happens occasionally, but normally it makes more sense. There aren't any tiny mobs which just take hours to kill.

    Story-wise, it's pretty strong, the inclusion of a focus character, and    Mechanically, I think BioShock Infinite is actually superior to BioShock. I found the first game to involve a considerable amount of shooting the same baddie, to the point of tedium. In Infinite, this happens occasionally, but normally it makes more sense. There aren't any tiny mobs which just take hours to kill.

    Story-wise, it's pretty strong, the inclusion of a focus character, and the inclusion of lots of random people walking the streets make the world feel alive, and the characterisation's generally pretty good. I get the feeling that the plot in Infinite, although engaging, isn't quite as well thought out as in the first one. All in all, this is an excellent game, which after about 7 hours, I'm enjoying far more than I did BioShock. Well worth buying, especially if you like the other games in the series.    … Expand
  58. Kevin-V
    Apr 28, 2013
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Re-skin of Bioshock 1. The story is OK, I wanted to complete it to know the story, i was really interested. And since I was spoiled about the end by the THOUSANDS of spoilers around the internet, it just got me more interested in the story. So I decided to give it another try. Got up to the part where Elizabeth kills Daisy Fitzroy. Story is average till now. I REALLY want to know the whole story, but I'd rather watch a 'Bioshock Infinite The Movie' then grind through the God-awful gameplay. Skylines are an attempt to try and give you a break from the awful combat. The re-named Vigors are just plain ol' copies of powers from various games, including Bioshock 1,2 and Dishonored. Elizabeth was interesting, and at least kept me interested enough to keep playing. Gameplay: 4/10. Graphics: 9/10. Story: 7/10.Enemy design and AI: 2/10. Originality: 3/10. Protagonist 1/10. overall: 6/10.

    I'd advise anyone to play infinite if they don't have any other game to play and have played EVERY SINGLE game in their collection. If they are bored and have nothing to do. you over-hyped users who gave false reviews and made me lose my 60 bucks.    … Expand
  59. bjaz
    Jan 10, 2015
    6
    The main story was good
    But the expansion(Burial at sea) leaves me at disappointing side,It could't complete well with the main story
    I can't give high rating for good graphics,musics
    I felt that the game could be better if it was tps instead of fps
  60. lucasla
    Jan 3, 2014
    6
    This game sucks because it tries to be an intelligent game, but only in the history, in the gameplay, is just a generic linear and repetitive shooter, where you never have to think or use your brain. I mean, Portal 2, Braid, Half-Life, are examples of intelligent games because the history in these games is good and intelligent, and the gameplay too, you need to think in these games toThis game sucks because it tries to be an intelligent game, but only in the history, in the gameplay, is just a generic linear and repetitive shooter, where you never have to think or use your brain. I mean, Portal 2, Braid, Half-Life, are examples of intelligent games because the history in these games is good and intelligent, and the gameplay too, you need to think in these games to advance, they have puzzles.

    Bioshock Infinite is a stupid game disguised as a intelligent game, because when gives the control to the player, it treats the player like a dumb person that dont need to worry with anything beyond shoot the enemies. The scenarios are linear, the game have no puzzles, and you have even a button that draws an arrow on your feet pointing to the right direction for you to follow (as if it was necessary, the game is linear!).

    Elizabeth is nothing special too, is just a character with fixed interactions with the scenarios, that help you in combat just like Elika in Prince of Persia (2008) and Alex Vance in Half-Life 2, but is not better than anyone of them.

    My 6 score is because the art of the game is great, and combat is cool too, but nothing so special.    … Expand
  61. BakaGamer
    Mar 29, 2013
    9
    This game is truly amazing! A must buy! The visuals in this game are truly amazing. I haven't seen something so amazing in a really long time! Just every detail in there is truly breath taking and wonderful. Further you go in the story the more confused and interested you get in it. No it's not confused in a bad way but more of a mystery. As you progress things go deeper and you're left toThis game is truly amazing! A must buy! The visuals in this game are truly amazing. I haven't seen something so amazing in a really long time! Just every detail in there is truly breath taking and wonderful. Further you go in the story the more confused and interested you get in it. No it's not confused in a bad way but more of a mystery. As you progress things go deeper and you're left to wonder what the hell is going on here and you just feel the need to progress and they explain but only so much that they want you to keep going to the end. It's really well told! The gameplay is pretty much the same except for the Skyrail which is a very amazing addition. Challenge is up to you. I selected Hard for my first play through and holy crap was it Hard. I found myself dying often as the AI overruned me. Length is about 9 or 10 hours if you spend it looking through everywhere yet I still somehow missed some things. I also think that's due to how many times I died. I will be playing this game a second time and I want to see the bad ending myself. So this game is truly amazing and shines in dark times of this horrendous gaming industry. Great Job Irrational Games, 2K Marin, Human Head Studios, 2K Games. You gave IG as much time as they needed and it shows in this masterpiece. This game just barely shys away from a 10 due to almost no changes in the combat from previous BioShocks but it still lands a 9 because of... well everything. This will always be in my collection and it should always be in yours!… Expand
  62. JLee66
    Apr 1, 2013
    9
    As others have said, this game is a masterpiece, but like most masterpieces it's not without flaws. The first thing you will notice is that it is visually stunning. I found myself in awe of its beauty over and over as the story progressed through various environments. The portrayal and development of characters was superb. The game unfolds like a road movie- you're on a greatAs others have said, this game is a masterpiece, but like most masterpieces it's not without flaws. The first thing you will notice is that it is visually stunning. I found myself in awe of its beauty over and over as the story progressed through various environments. The portrayal and development of characters was superb. The game unfolds like a road movie- you're on a great journey with a companion, and your relationship has its ups and downs. Elizabeth is so convincingly brought to life that you'll find yourself talking to the screen, and when the journey is over you'll miss her. The gameplay is great fun. The weapons and character abilities are innovative and a blast to use. They are simple to use but difficult to master, and you'll want to replay the game once you get the hang of things. In many ways, this game raises the bar for game developers. The team that created this obviously poured out their heart and soul and it shows at every turn, but having said that, it's not perfect. You don't get to choose or design the character you play, the part is thrust on you. A lot of times I felt that I was playing the role of a bit of a jerk. The biggest flaw in the game is that it's linear and you really can't make any meaningful choices in how things eventually play out- you're basically along for the ride. It tells a story, and once you learn the ending it doesn't get any fresher in subsequent play-throughs.… Expand
  63. Troianman
    Apr 22, 2013
    10
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I absolutely loved this game and the overall experience so much that after playing it on hard (didn't know that you could unlock 1999 mode without playing it through) I started it again on 1999 mode (hardest). Given that 1999 mode turns off navigation help and will not allow you to continue through death if your wallet is at $0 I feel it could have just been hard instead of a setting beyond that but as that is a relatively small non-issue it didn't affect my rating at all.While the combat can be tedious at times and most of the opponents are overused and underwhelming, the story and the characters (I am including the setting as a character) more than make up for that. Additionally, the combat areas that contained skylines were definitely much more fun than those that did not. Perhaps my least favorite section of the game revolved around a single boss fight that occurs three separate times in three separate locations. At all three locations there are no skylines, endless minions and relatively few options that force you into just shooting the thing in the face repeatedly until it "dies". All three of those "fights" just felt forced and unnecessary, and you even know the last location before it happens if you are paying attention to your surroundings which makes it all that much more annoying. At least the final fight in the game which takes place aboard the zeppelin contains a skyline, has a relatively decent variation of enemies, a new combat mechanic and slightly limited supplies to make that fight more interesting than many others throughout the game.

    The city of Colombia was extremely well executed and my only complaint about the city itself was that I felt we weren't given access to enough of it. From the view of the city within the clouds at various times you can tell it is huge and reaches far beyond the few main areas you travel through. Or at least it is made to look like it stretches far beyond where you go. I also felt like the skylines of a given area being confined to that given area (save for the few that took you to the next area) didn't allow you to truly explore the city as you really want to. There are sections of the city which I feel were absolute strokes of genius, Battleship Bay being one of these and the opening section of the city being another. At times I felt as if I was taking a virtual walk through an alternate version of Disneyland. While the racism could likely have been toned down I would not have enjoyed the game as much if it had. It was 1912 and Colombia was at one point a part of America which at that particular time had relatively no love for Irish people or African Americans and failing to emphasize that in this particular setting would have been an enormous mistake. The prophet's own distaste of anyone but the "white man" kind of even makes sense if you take the time to get the full story,

    The character of Elizabeth felt like something more than a stereotypical AI character in need of a permanent escort mission. The Lutece "twins" were a joy to encounter every time, from the foreshadowing they provided that might have been lost or misunderstood on a first play through to the random views of them playing baseball in various sections of the city they were brilliant additions to the cast of characters. Even Father Comstock himself becomes a brilliantly executed character when you realize just who and what he is. I would go into further detail on other characters but sadly there is a character limit.

    The overall story may not have been a ground shattering leap in narrative but it was definitely at least a small stroke of genius. In a time when gamers are demanding more choice than ever in all types of games, one that presents choices then tells you that those choices were meaningless as the outcome was not yours to decide is nothing short of both tragic and brilliant. Early in the game you are even told that your choices won't matter but as a gamer in 2013 you actively try to forget that when choices are presented. The story, the setting, the characters can all be described as both tragic and brilliant. How the city of Colombia and its inhabitants fit into the Bioshock universe alongside the city of Rapture and its inhabitants is even revealed before it is truly revealed yet it is still incredibly satisfying when that link is confirmed to make Bioshock Infinite a definite Bioshock title and not just something with the name stamped on it. However all of this and more will be missed if the player does not give enough time to the game to explore the city, to obtain all voxophones and to view all kinetescopes as not doing so will essentially skip integral parts of the story and therefore leave massive holes in your understanding of events by the end.

    Even the music was incredible, hearing a barbershop quartet sing a rendition of a Beach Boys song upon entering the city let me know very early on that the game was going to be a very unique experience and it definitely is that.    … Expand
  64. laggypancakes
    May 1, 2013
    6
    The game is a decent shooter but it's honestly pretty over hyped.

    Some talking points: Story- Honestly it started out fine but by the end the twists and illogical plot points became overwhelming. Without spoiling anything it completely invalidates the entire journey up to that point (even bioshock 1+2) as trivial and unnecessary. It was a pretty huge disappointment in my eyes.    The game is a decent shooter but it's honestly pretty over hyped.

    Some talking points:

    Story- Honestly it started out fine but by the end the twists and illogical plot points became overwhelming. Without spoiling anything it completely invalidates the entire journey up to that point (even bioshock 1+2) as trivial and unnecessary. It was a pretty huge disappointment in my eyes.

    Graphics: I've seen others complain about this and they definitely have a point. The bloom, fog, and light shaft effects are fairly shoddy looking throughout the game (noticeable right off the bat when you start in the rowboat). The actual art style itself is pretty damn good though I have to give them that... very steampunk and classic bioshock.

    Gameplay- Overall it was decent but came up lacking in a few areas. The gun selections didn't seem to matter in the slightest- there weren't many upgrades available and you could pretty much faceroll through most of the game on the standard difficulty with any of them. For instance (despite trying different weapons) I found that none of them truly mattered and ended up melee-stomping 95% of my enemies to break the monotony.

    There was little to no benefit in saving ammo, exploring, or being tactical. Elizabeth constantly refills you on salts (mana), health, ammo, money, and points out useful objects.

    There wasn't a whole lot of variation to the enemies and a lot of models were simply reused later on (under a different banner with slightly different skins). They also added an upgradable shield mechanism (like in Halo) which seemed entirely unnecessary and made the game easier than it needed to be.

    I did enjoy the gear upgrades (though they made my melee almost unstoppable) and the vigors were pretty decent. I would have liked the vigors more if they had more upgrades available and were actually necessary for survival instead of just there for fun if you wanted them.

    Overall it's a decent game.    … Expand
  65. JackBaronLIX
    Aug 20, 2013
    6
    As far as VERY linear shooting games go, this is a good one. However, I found the combat to be the biggest problem. Its repetitive and.. well... repetitive. The story is fairly well done but I guessed a big part of it half way through the game.
    Great Visuals, uninteresting characters, although I enjoyed the twins.
    I was really expecting something extraordinary but in the end, I was a    As far as VERY linear shooting games go, this is a good one. However, I found the combat to be the biggest problem. Its repetitive and.. well... repetitive. The story is fairly well done but I guessed a big part of it half way through the game.
    Great Visuals, uninteresting characters, although I enjoyed the twins.
    I was really expecting something extraordinary but in the end, I was a bit disappointed. Very over rated. Removed it as soon as I was finished and plan on not getting any DLC.    … Expand
  66. RAEDALSDI
    Jun 1, 2013
    9
    I have known the cause of اhigh appreciation for this game by the critics, of course game worth all that positive criticism it is wonderful of all Measurements more What I liked in the game is the environment which is rich in every detail also wonderful story in addition to the easy method of the control, but the only drawback that I noticed in the game is the ease though progressI have known the cause of اhigh appreciation for this game by the critics, of course game worth all that positive criticism it is wonderful of all Measurements more What I liked in the game is the environment which is rich in every detail also wonderful story in addition to the easy method of the control, but the only drawback that I noticed in the game is the ease though progress although i put the options on the hardest class
    Funny about it is I, and since the first day to play the game I wanted to give a negative criticism (so to go againstا all positive criticism), but I did not feel only over three hours to play without that I feel the time, feeling 've missed since the Assassin's Creed thanked the designers and I hope that there is another part in the future    … Expand
  67. Horcos
    May 25, 2013
    10
    So, Best story game of the year, hands down, but the combat is repetitive which makes the game hard to replay. I found myself dieing alot, because i used the wrong vigors, and wrong guns, which makes me a little sad, that you have to use possession, or Sender. We did see alot of reused vigor's fx. Murder Of Crow's which is similar to bee's. And some reused guns, but i didn't play the gameSo, Best story game of the year, hands down, but the combat is repetitive which makes the game hard to replay. I found myself dieing alot, because i used the wrong vigors, and wrong guns, which makes me a little sad, that you have to use possession, or Sender. We did see alot of reused vigor's fx. Murder Of Crow's which is similar to bee's. And some reused guns, but i didn't play the game for the combat, for the story, so the only thing not make-ing me giving this game 10/10 is the combat. a good 9/10 … Expand
  68. lolfactor100
    May 29, 2013
    9
    BioShock Infinite is a breathtaking game that has you in awe with the stunning scenery and enveloping audio. The game play is fun, entertaining, and provides a good challenge. The story leaves you guessing through most of it and leaves you wanting to play again to catch all the little things you may have missed. The only reason I don't give this a 10 is because there are a few graphicalBioShock Infinite is a breathtaking game that has you in awe with the stunning scenery and enveloping audio. The game play is fun, entertaining, and provides a good challenge. The story leaves you guessing through most of it and leaves you wanting to play again to catch all the little things you may have missed. The only reason I don't give this a 10 is because there are a few graphical and animation errors here and there.… Expand
  69. EdgyTheEdgehog
    Aug 1, 2013
    9
    From an artistic standpoint this game is one of the best I've ever played. The first Bioshock had excellent art design but somewhat ugly graphics, and Infinite tops it by keeping the excellent design work and rendering it beautifully. From the starting area, where hundreds of candle flames are reflected in pools of clear water, to the rays of the setting sun later in the game, this is aFrom an artistic standpoint this game is one of the best I've ever played. The first Bioshock had excellent art design but somewhat ugly graphics, and Infinite tops it by keeping the excellent design work and rendering it beautifully. From the starting area, where hundreds of candle flames are reflected in pools of clear water, to the rays of the setting sun later in the game, this is a beautiful world. The story is equally fantastic, a deep, rich experience that rewards stopping to take note of the meticulously detailed game world. It's a story that knows how to use video games as a medium to achieve the best possible experience.

    Ironically, Bioshock Infinite seems to suffer the opposite problem plaguing many AAA games today. While series like Gears of War are often accused of having incredibly rewarding gameplay paired with dull and tacked-on stories, in Infinite it's the gameplay which feels more dull and tacked-on than the story. That's not to say that the gameplay is universally terrible, but it's held back by obnoxious bullet-spongey boss enemies, an antiquated and confusing upgrade system, and the seemingly pointless two-weapon limit of many modern FPSes. The unique weapons and skyline combat system certainly help make things more enjoyable, but combat is not Infinite's strong point, and it would have benefited greatly from focusing less on it.

    Ultimately, Bioshock Infinite is a deeply flawed game, but then again so was the original Bioshock. Both have been called "perfect" and hailed as being some of the best games of their generation, and neither of them quite live up to this. Though they may not be impossible perfection, they are still definitely worth experiencing.    … Expand
  70. GenericGamer286
    Jul 7, 2013
    6
    More I played this game, more I scratched my head wondering what the hell are those critic reviewers talking about? Where are those revolutionary GOTY elements everybody is talking about? Is it after yet another corridor-shooting level full of dumb opponents? GOTY? More like FOTY (Fraud Of The Year). I had countless hours discussing with my friends who liked this game, but mostly becauseMore I played this game, more I scratched my head wondering what the hell are those critic reviewers talking about? Where are those revolutionary GOTY elements everybody is talking about? Is it after yet another corridor-shooting level full of dumb opponents? GOTY? More like FOTY (Fraud Of The Year). I had countless hours discussing with my friends who liked this game, but mostly because of Meta score... And thats the only thing they can say about it, really. "Did you saw the scores it got. Did you saw what the people say. Lol, you are so stupid". *sigh* Maybe I should score this game at least 7, but I cant. I m giving it the score by the amount of fun I got from it, which is even lower than 6, but at least interesting story ending mad my torture-to-stay-awake worth while... Dont you people understand? Because of Irrational's legacy (mostly because of System Shock games) I had great expectations. We have enough Call of Duty and their clones. Is this really what people wants from games these days? Such a shame.… Expand
  71. Armormew
    Sep 27, 2013
    10
    An absolute masterpiece. This is what modern video games all about! The environments, characters, and plot combined make a sublime blend of action and intrigue.
  72. Dweebo
    Aug 29, 2013
    5
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Bioshock Infinite, loved by many and quoted to be a "smart game for smart gamers". Honestly, it is nothing more than a better than average shooter. First off the graphics looked great, colorful and beautiful. the only problem with the graphics is that its "too colorful and beautiful". yea i know it sounds weird but let me get this down. Bioshock 1 graphics looks good to this day, but those graphics FIT the tone it was setting for. it looked dark and scary. It fits the tone of what its trying to achieve. when infinite does the dark settings it doesnt fit. its trying to be too many things at once, and doesnt set the mood right. now the combat is atrocious. its the same shooter we've all seen "shoot him" and then continue. It tries to change it up with elizabeth passing things to you and the portal things and vigors. but its core is what we all know the shoot him and win. and dont think I forgot about vigors. vigors have NO use in this world. It is just there because its bioshock. they are simply there for carnivals. in bioshock they went through scientific breakthroughs and were able to do things that the government wouldnt allow and it made sense why it was in rapture. vigors are there for no reason! and they generally overlap and do the same thing. the experimentation has been reduced stupidly. along with exploration, its a straight line! just shoot the people in your path and move forward. sound familiar? (COD). and now the story has a good simple premise, take the girl while avoiding the bad man. it gets terrible when it tries to be complex (im not going to go into much depth here). and the ending was a FAILURE! im not mad because the protagonist died. there are some good endings where the main character dies (red dead redemption). but its whole "paradox" thing is completely convoluted. elizabeth drowns booker and that fixes everything. WRONG, if booker dies he would still be in another parallel universe! but they cover this up by "somethings are just constant". which COMPLETELY contradicts the parallel universe theory. the most thing that baffles me is that people say "its for smart gamers". no, system shock was for smart gamers, bioshock 1 was for reletively smart gamers. because in THOSE it didnt treat you like a complete idiot. when you first go to the light house you get a card that shows you the pattern to ring the bells. so you ring the bells and the door opens.............................riveting. THERE WAS NO REASON FOR THIS! there is no excuse to why this is here. let me break this down. System shock: many doors required a code which you had to find, many doors led to ammo and nanites. but you even had to find the code to continue the story, you had to remember them. Bioshock: there were fewer doors that required a code, but you still had to find audio diaries, listen to them, remember the code, and enter it manually. Infinite: only one place where you use a code. in that scene you press X to investigate a table, find the code at the end of the cutscene and elizabeth then enters the code for you and you just sit and watch. smart right?infinite would be slightly better than mediocore. It had A TOOOON of potential but completely failed and could have done way better. it is way overrated.… Expand
  73. RdVortex
    Dec 8, 2013
    7
    Great atmosphere and rather interesting story however the story only gets interesting at the really end, before that it's OK though. Game has one major flaw though: you cannot save on your own. At worst I played for over half an hour to reach the next checkpoint even though I had wanted to quit a long time ago.
  74. GameHyena
    Jan 3, 2014
    7
    Bioshock: Infinite is a fill in game for the original 2 Bioshock games (Fan food if you will) though that doesn't make it a bad game at all. Despite its obvious irrelevance to the series, the games story is rather interesting, although at times the voice acting can go from very good to very bad in just a few short moments what really makes this game shine is that it places you into a worldBioshock: Infinite is a fill in game for the original 2 Bioshock games (Fan food if you will) though that doesn't make it a bad game at all. Despite its obvious irrelevance to the series, the games story is rather interesting, although at times the voice acting can go from very good to very bad in just a few short moments what really makes this game shine is that it places you into a world that feels very alive. Although this is not a strength in a game like Bioshock, where you play an aggressor the entire time. Having no abilities to interact with the citizens of Columbia is a major downfall, from the star of this game you most certainly do not feel like a hero. Game feel and story aside the combat can be bland and sometimes frustrating, though the sky hook is interesting it also can place you into enemy fire with ease as you will find someone flanking you without even being aware of where they came from. This aside the combat feels rewarding even after taking down the same copy pasted enemies dozens of time each encounter still felt rewarding. With beautiful graphics and wonderful visuals and for those of you dense enough to not guess the ending, a great story though despite being filled to the overflowing brim with plot holes is captivating and interesting. However the only reason I cannot give this game a better score is that it has simply no business being a "Bioshock" game. With only a slight amount of references to the Bioshock series that not only feel forced but feel completely out of place, being a game that takes place before the creation of Andrew Ryan's Rapture there is very little in this game that justifies itself as being called Bioshock. The only reason "Bioshock Infinite" was named as such was to make money off of a franchise that was guaranteed to make sales. Even if you are a giant Bioshock fan this games ending will keep you happy as this "filler episode" of a game has no relevance in the long run of the series. However if you have never played a Bioshock game, great news this isn't really a Bioshock game anyway.… Expand
  75. BoTToX
    Jun 8, 2014
    3
    the graphics are really poor, the gameplay of the past century and uninteresting story.
    The first and the second was really pleasant (the second less than the first)
    but then I took no pleasure and I had to force myself to finish this game.
  76. ClMick
    Nov 29, 2014
    7
    It's a good game. One of the best looking games graphically that I've played recently. Not because of quadrupple rendering or massive AA though, but because of the art style and level design.

    The gameplay is moderately fun: if you consider this an FPS, there are better games in that genre available. The much critically acclaimed story wasn't exactly as good as I expected either. But    It's a good game. One of the best looking games graphically that I've played recently. Not because of quadrupple rendering or massive AA though, but because of the art style and level design.

    The gameplay is moderately fun: if you consider this an FPS, there are better games in that genre available. The much critically acclaimed story wasn't exactly as good as I expected either.

    But the total package of the style, gameplay and story make it well worth playing. Just don't go in expecting an RPG the likes of Fallout or a fun shooter like, let's say Borderlands.    … Expand
  77. KingOfThBigOnes
    Oct 8, 2014
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. i REALLY wanted to like this game. like a LOT. i played through about half of the first bioshock when it came out for 360 with a friend of mine and had a blast doing it. i had heard some really good things about this game and was expecting a very fun time and when it started, i was having a blast. and then i got about 2 hours into the game and found myself, all of a sudden, totally bored. the combat didn't feel satisfying, the vigors felt either cheap and a little bit like cheating or totally useless. the game did make me laugh out loud constantly, especially the whole Founders thing, and the conversations you hear as you walk around (there's a particularly hilarious bit about an artist that you hear from a man getting his shoes shined in the beginning of the game), and the characters themselves: it was all very well-done as far as world-building and story are concerned. but the majority of the game is spent in combat, and really, isn't the combat supposed to be the driving force behind the game? great combat can support a terrible world but a great world cannot support terrible combat, though that's completely just my opinion. anyways, after 2 hours, i quit the game. i just couldn't get into it. about a week later, i decided to try again, and this time to try and really PLAY with the different vigors and weapons and the skyrail. it was actually pretty fun, for a little while. the vigors are fun to use, the weapons are a little underwhelming but they get the job done, and the skyrail was wild fun the first few times i used it.

    here's the problem though: there was just too much wrong with the game's combat for me to really enjoy what was done right with it. sprint being mapped to a thumbstick button and not being toggle-able (or is it toggle-able? i honestly could not tell because it was done so terribly) was a huge mistake, as was mapping iron sights to the other thumbstick button. sprinting from cover to cover was a disaster every time. by the way, lets talk about cover in this game for a moment: it is almost completely useless about 50 percent of the time. the moment you get behind cover you will then realize that there is an enemy right next to you on the OTHER side of the cover. you can't know where these enemies are (because the game makers decided for some reason that this game didn't need any sort of map for players?) until you're hit, and even once youre hit, it's almost impossible sometimes to figure out where the hell that shot came from. the "arenas" you move through (that's the best term i can come up with for them) are a chore, and instead of saying, "ALRIGHT LETS TEAR EM UP!!" every time you see enemies, you find yourself saying, "goddammit i wish there was a way to skip this crap". amazingly enough, the game did fulfill my wish several times: i died and then was resurrected on the OTHER side of whatever enemies i had been fighting, ready to move on to the next portion. i can't say that i didn't welcome it sometimes, but at the same time i still felt a little, well, cheated.

    the biggest problem for me with Infinite was that i simply stopped having fun after a certain point. and it wasn't because of the weird controls, clonky levels, endless waves of boring enemies or the fact that i just didn't really CARE what happened to dewitt and elizabeth.. it was all of these things together that just wore down my patience. by the time i had gotten to the final battle, SPOILER: which is a terrible tower defense stage that goes on forever, i had simply lost interest in playing. after i lost the fight twice, i quit and went to go watch the ending scene on youtube. i have NEVER been so tired of playing a game that i wanted to actually just skip the last fight altogether. i mean, even in the stages leading up to the fight, i consistently had a feeling of, "okay, i'll just keep going cuz this HAS to end soon". that is not how you should feel when playing any game, and beyond that, nothing in an action game should EVER feel like a chore, which is what Infinite unfortunately felt like all the time.

    as far as the story, it was on par with your average big-budget action movie. not amazing, not terrible, but definitely enjoyable. unfortunately it seemed like the deeper you went into the world, through voxophones, etc, the less interesting it became. at the end of the day, the whole thing felt like it was organized around the twist at the end, which is sad because neither DeWitt nor Elizabeth are the most interesting characters in the game - the most interesting one was Columbia itself. i give this game a 6/10 for the fact that it is fun and engaging for the first few hours of play. however, once the initial wow wears off, there's really not that much more to it. it just turns into a poor shooter with an average story and an incredible world that's feels only half-realized. i' d say wait for a good steam sale if you're interested.    … Expand
  78. Jeroen15
    Jun 24, 2015
    10
    more a piece of art than a shooter game. bioshock infinite is a gorgeous thrill ride with plenty of epic story lines,beautiful environments, and fun combat to keep you intrigued through the long and rewarding campaign.
  79. BoogeeFilmGuy
    Jul 15, 2015
    10
    An incredible adventure. The story is one of the best in gaming, the gameplay isn't broken or screwed, like most games nowadays, the characters are ones of which you actually care about. Play this. Just... play it.
  80. Cell1e
    Dec 26, 2013
    5
    Meh, I didn't like this game as much as I hoped I would. The story was really confusing and I didn't like ending. I'm one of the people who couldn't wait to finish this game and I am very glad it was a short one, only 15 hours.
    I did enjoy the help from Elizabeth, she was sweet and I began to get quite fond of her but every other character in the story had limited appeal. It wasn't a game    Meh, I didn't like this game as much as I hoped I would. The story was really confusing and I didn't like ending. I'm one of the people who couldn't wait to finish this game and I am very glad it was a short one, only 15 hours.
    I did enjoy the help from Elizabeth, she was sweet and I began to get quite fond of her but every other character in the story had limited appeal. It wasn't a game I felt immersed or invested in. Lots of copy and pasted people too. Lazy. Not sure why the big hype but my husband said he loved it so there you go, different strokes for different folks.    … Expand
  81. HerrJoebob
    Apr 21, 2013
    5
    Utterly gorgeous, but way too glitchy. First the controls were defaulted to XBox 360 and mouse/keyboard simply didn't work (I just spun in place). Once I google'd that problem down I ended up hitting another glitch in the carnival games entirely unable to continue this is only a few minutes in to the game, so I'm calling the rest of it as not worth trying.
  82. dovacreep
    Apr 18, 2013
    5
    logically i would put 9 out of 10 for this masterpiece, but all in all, i am in too much disappointment i'm a fan of the series. It began when I played the Bioshock2, following the first, and waiting years for sequel.
    So, i have waited for almost a month to buy this gem, held myself from reading spoilers from internet.
    Basically i'm astonished and amazed by the design of the levels, so    logically i would put 9 out of 10 for this masterpiece, but all in all, i am in too much disappointment i'm a fan of the series. It began when I played the Bioshock2, following the first, and waiting years for sequel.
    So, i have waited for almost a month to buy this gem, held myself from reading spoilers from internet.
    Basically i'm astonished and amazed by the design of the levels, so much details. yet the atmosphere is somewhat bland. At first. i was expecting some kind of dark atmosphere, horror and mysterious city of Columbia a remedy of the first and the 2nd Bioshck, or some sort, but there isn't. Maybe, the story will develop there, so I thought. But following the story, there was no horror. no eerie feeling after bloodshed, while corpses piling up, but it was no new sight in games.

    the gameplay, is somewhat linear, no revolution from the previous game. It's awesome though, the blast explosion, effect, the game engine works out wonderful. It expect us to experiment with variety of powers and guns. but encounters are predictable and filled with "meh, them again?" situation. walking through new levels, then suddenly music changes. enemies show up from nowhere. but none of the encounters really memorable nor exciting, not even the bossfight. The so called Vigors are scattered around the city, and stores, but none of the enemies using it, the AI have been given the variety of guns, but they only overwhelming when surrounding you. i'm expecting to fight the Songbird, but what just play the whistler and he will be your pet, i was like, "just damn".

    the characters besides Elizabeth are not really memorable either, NPCs are copypasted here and there. Fitzroy really doesn't have strong appearance. NPC design models are good.not great. citizens are scripted to walk in predicted path, bump 'em and nothing happen. Elizabeth partially useful, yes she's pretty, i wont say stupid, but often blocking path in a narrow hallway.

    the overall philosophy of the story is clever, complex, but morbid. the game is antagonizing an ultranationalist-racist-religious zealot character comstock. I dont feel sympathy to the antagonists, but not really empathy to Booker either. from the first playthrough, the game filled with insult, and not the kind of insult that funny to follow. then comes the use of physics references, e.g quantum mechanics. basically it's fine, most games using it. but the ending is on half part logical, and distressing as a whole. I already thought that elizabeth is Booker's daughter, the time she demonstrate the ability of tearing the energy barrier between harmonic universe. what if booker fall for her before the siphon destroyed? Booker will be, "Holy i almost f***d my own daughter". The game itself doesnt really describe the social connection between the two. In bioshock 2 eleanor called Atlas "big daddy" as Dad, and it describe the connection. but Bioshock infinite didn't. In the process of the play through we are expected to be attached emotionally to the game, to the story and atmosphere, to elizabeth, but in the end she drowned me so she could save some other billions universe i don't give a okay that's rich, but not satisfactory why games these days always wanted the player to kill himself? really? why?? as a religious and a physics major, the overall concept story in this game is a real troll. worse is, there was no alternate ending. I'd rather vouch for farcry 3 for "not killing my gilrfriend" moments.

    overall, design is complex and uniqueness 8 points. combat 6. story 7. moral lesson -1.    … Expand
  83. Ways
    Feb 3, 2014
    6
    Not bad. Decent graphics, good voice acting, boring but solid FPS combat. Worth it for the eye candy perhaps, but I won't be playing it again.

    This could have been something special: setting is very impressive and stylish with lots of attention to detail, and the developers were obviously trying to say something intelligent. Instead - the usual move forwards and kill, repeat, repeat.    Not bad. Decent graphics, good voice acting, boring but solid FPS combat. Worth it for the eye candy perhaps, but I won't be playing it again.

    This could have been something special: setting is very impressive and stylish with lots of attention to detail, and the developers were obviously trying to say something intelligent. Instead - the usual move forwards and kill, repeat, repeat. Why? Because a guy who I hear speaking sometimes is evil.

    There's more to it than that, but if you want to find out what happens at the end you need to rack up an enormous bodycount first. The other Bioshocks and System Shock had puzzles and exploring; Infinite is just about shooting everything and then finding the exit to the next area.

    Cool characters that might become Booker's allies manage to find bizarre ways of becoming his enemy so they can be added to the death toll. The sheer amount of meaningless killing (Booker pulls the trigger and Elizabeth throws him more ammo) makes situations like Booker stopping to tell Elizabeth that stealing from a tomb is wrong ("Think about what you're doing!"), unintentionally hilarious.

    The moral of the story? Gunning down hundreds of people is fine as long as they are evil, but racism is very very very bad.    … Expand
  84. Sergeant_MarkIV
    May 2, 2013
    5
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. The start of the game was a blast. The visuals and the art are really awesome and it does a great job on introducing the player into the world of the game.

    But after one hour playing, all the colorful illusion starts to fall apart. At the beginning, I got extremely excited with the non-regenerative health bar thinking that I would need to look after my health and keep always exploring that epic city looking for health items, but a dozen battles later, somebody throws me a bucket of cold water when I am forced to pick a power-up that gives me a Halo-ish regenerative shield.
    The gunplay is terrible. All guns fells weak, looks bad, have wimpy sounds, and can't kill unless you hit the head. Enemies are very static. You can hit them in the leg, in the arm, from behind, it doesn't matters. They will never react differently to your attacks. They look like motionless robots.

    There are cool melee executions, but the system to perform them is broken. I think it has a 3/4 chance of failing at it and killing the enemy with a regular melee attack. This is extremely frustrating.
    And, I can't forget to mention the extremely boring, unmemorable, and uninspired soundtrack.

    The game has some very good points. Very good visuals, Elizabeth is an excellent companion, good narrative, but I think these points are not enough to justify the aforementioned problems, and are not enough for saving this game from falling into the "generic shooter" category.    … Expand
  85. BrosefStalin
    Jul 1, 2013
    6
    There are plenty of things this game did right, and plenty that it did wrong. The plot twists and story were interesting and kept me wondering what was to come in the next sequence of the game. The setting was great and very original, at least to my knowledge. But the story is its most worth feature and is what makes the game shine to most people.

    Taking a look at the characters made me    There are plenty of things this game did right, and plenty that it did wrong. The plot twists and story were interesting and kept me wondering what was to come in the next sequence of the game. The setting was great and very original, at least to my knowledge. But the story is its most worth feature and is what makes the game shine to most people.

    Taking a look at the characters made me frown a little bit, seeing as Elizabeth is the only redeeming character in the entire game. Most of the others had very bland dialogue and boring backgrounds that had no influence to the plot what-so-ever. The only thing that made some of the characters stories interesting were there relations with Elizabeth.

    Some of the poorly done things in Bioshock Infinite include the game play above anything else. While I enjoyed the game I felt bored from time to time. The vigors were a good attempt at keeping things interesting but I felt little use for them. There are too few enemies in this game, and the special enemies only make rare appearances. The majority of enemy encounters in this game include armed men carrying Rifle's and Shotguns, making nearly every fighting sequence a long distance 'duck and cover' battle. For its time, the gameplay is very stale and needs some serious improvement.

    All in all I enjoyed the game for its practical elements like the story. It just lacked in so many other things and I feel if these things could be improved upon, Bioshock Infinite would be a much better game.    … Expand
  86. jesterx7769
    Apr 16, 2013
    6
    Summary: Game is an enjoyable play through, a must play for heavy gamers, but that does not mean it is without holes.

    Pros: -Stock graphics. While other games may be better on high end systems and modded out Bioshocks stock graphics are good and enjoyable wit a different art style -Detailed game world. There are details everywhere that immerse you in the game, if you stop by people    Summary: Game is an enjoyable play through, a must play for heavy gamers, but that does not mean it is without holes.

    Pros:
    -Stock graphics. While other games may be better on high end systems and modded out Bioshocks stock graphics are good and enjoyable wit a different art style
    -Detailed game world. There are details everywhere that immerse you in the game, if you stop by people they have conversations, if you stop by a table your companion will look at the items instead of staring off. The way the story builds throughout in minor pieces is good.

    Cons
    -Guns. You can only carry 2 guns at a time which is a big problem to me. I dont have a problem with only 2 but there is no way to switch out. you just have to randomly pick up guns as you go. While you can use the carry load excuse it doesnt help when you can carrpy as much as ammo as you want (up to a max) the variety in weapons also isnt great and you will just use the OP sniper most of time as the enemies just sit back.
    -Not many battles. There are maybe only 10 real shooting scenes in the game. and when you have the last one you don't even know its the last and isn't special at all.    … Expand
  87. Bigbry
    Apr 14, 2013
    5
    This is my first Bioshock experience and I am underwhealmed. The graphics are nice but sloppy in places. The game itself is muddled and way too easy. There are reviewers stating this is a revolutionary FPS experience. That blows my mind!! The two games I previously completed Far Cry 3 and Borderlands 2 were both far superior to this in gameplay and complexity. I did like the quantumThis is my first Bioshock experience and I am underwhealmed. The graphics are nice but sloppy in places. The game itself is muddled and way too easy. There are reviewers stating this is a revolutionary FPS experience. That blows my mind!! The two games I previously completed Far Cry 3 and Borderlands 2 were both far superior to this in gameplay and complexity. I did like the quantum physics aspect to the plot but they don't explain enough. And like I said the game world and environments are decent. Overall just an average shooter.… Expand
  88. matty_o
    Apr 30, 2013
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. From all the hype since the sneak-peek at this game in 2010, I was really expecting a masterpiece. Instead, we are presented with a game that seems to get less fun the more you play it and in all honestly, I eventually found myself playing the game as much as possible, just to get it over and done with. The graphics are fantastic, the city architecture is outstanding, but Bioshock Infinite's shortfalls are quite unappealing. Firstly, the patriot/religious theme goes from interesting to overused within the first 2 hours of the game. Secondly, the railing system is underused. You can only rail at designated locations which adds to the already extremely linear plot and does not even allow you to explore the wonderful city as freely as what you would like. This means that all the effort into the landscape and buildings is just backdrop instead of allowing it to be a reality that you can move around however you like. Thirdly, the plot of the story starts off a little shaky, but by the end of the game I had no idea what the hell was going on, and due to the ridiculous story-line and constant change in Elizabeth's behaviour, I couldn't have cared less. You would also expect your game-long sidekick to be of some use, but she never once assists with enemies at all. She has got to be the most useless side-kick of any game, only offering you extra supplies at random intervals which you need to actually take a break from shooting, look towards her, catch the supplies and then carry on. While enemies are allowed to continue taking free hits. Finishing the game gives more relief than awe. The enemies AI, although not terrible, isn't great either. The game is completely linear apart from 'optional quests' which allow you to find codes that decrypt certain messages written on walls to allow you into a secret room. The weapons are boring and not too many. The magic powers, although fun at the start, become useless later on in the game and only 3 are actually effective later on. You can collect lockpicks to unlock secret areas, however later on in the game, there are so few secret areas that you will probably finish the game with 20+ lockpicks. Did I saw wtf is up with the ending?? I really expected more from this game. Or in this sense, less.… Expand
  89. SergioEngles86
    Apr 19, 2013
    6
    BioShock Infinite looks nice, and that's about it... its is extremely over-hyped and no where close to earning a 10/10 rating. This game is a 7/10 at best and here's why.

    First off lets start with the obvious false advertising, you may have seen the awesome looking TV commercial and thought to yourself, hey this game looks cool... well too bad that the TV commercial    BioShock Infinite looks nice, and that's about it... its is extremely over-hyped and no where close to earning a 10/10 rating. This game is a 7/10 at best and here's why.

    First off lets start with the obvious false advertising, you may have seen the awesome looking TV commercial and thought to yourself, hey this game looks cool... well too bad that the TV commercial http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fbRUTSeafcc is of content that is not found anywhere in the actual game.

    Secondly there is a 2 weapon carry limit, this normally wouldn't be a problem but the ammo clip sizes are extremely small even when fully upgraded. To offset this the developers decided to put ammo-vending machines every 10 feet in the game levels so you never have to go far or out of your way... kinda lame.

    Thirdly is almost all of the vigor's found in the game are copy and paste versions of each other with the exception of two of them. There is little need to switch between any more than 2 vigor's for the entire course of the game since they virtually and literally all do the exact same thing and have the exact same secondary function.

    Fourthly there are literally no side quests and or puzzles in this game. There will be a few instances where you find a key and need to back track 3/4 of a level to unlock a treasure chest, but that is pretty much the extent of your side questing in BioShock Infinite. There are also a few doors to hidden loot that wont open with out you hitting an object with the assigned vigor power. The lack of puzzle solving and side quests makes this experience feel very underwhelming.

    Fifthly there are no major boss fights in this game, none, zero... some people will argue that you do infact participate in one boss battle mid way through the game, but I digress. At no point in this game are you faced with an "OMG I have to fight that?" moment.

    Sixth is the fact that there is no multiplayer or co-op aspect to this game at all. There isn't even a section in the main menu for solo play skill challenges or time attack type modes, all you get is a story mode, that's it no other bells or whistles.

    The average gamer will spend anywhere from 9-12 hours on normal setting. While the game may look fantastic, it is a very short ride with not a lot of replay value. The lack of any puzzles, side quests, boss battles, exploration, etc. makes this game feel very hollow and empty.

    I cannot justify giving this game a 10/10, this is the current flavour of the month as far as gaming goes, BioShock Infinite does not break any new ground as far as FPS games go, it just looks nice. If vanity is all you care about then yes I guess you could look past all the other glaring issues with this game and blindly give it a 10/10.    … Expand
  90. Doctor_McKay
    Mar 29, 2013
    10
    Completely amazing game. The story is great and Elizabeth is the most relatable video game character I've ever come across. She's not just another NPC that you drag around, she's a person who you get to know. She helps you out in battle, she talks to you, she relates with you. Elizabeth makes this game. The only (minor) qualm I have with this game is the saving system. You can only loadCompletely amazing game. The story is great and Elizabeth is the most relatable video game character I've ever come across. She's not just another NPC that you drag around, she's a person who you get to know. She helps you out in battle, she talks to you, she relates with you. Elizabeth makes this game. The only (minor) qualm I have with this game is the saving system. You can only load your most recent checkpoint, and there's no clear indication of when that was. You can't quicksave or quickload, and you can't save previous saves. This prevents you from going back to re-do an area differently or to make a different decision without outright playing the game again. Because of this, I'd give it a 9.5/10 if I could, but Metacritic only allows whole numbers, so I rounded it up to a 10. All in all, an amazing experience.… Expand
  91. Sattoman95
    Mar 29, 2013
    10
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. This game is legendary. The plot ism complex, the character's emotions and acting are something you would see in a Award-Winning movie, and the art is simply astonishing. This is one of the few games that really get you thinking...that being said, this game will have a long lifespan and will be talked about for ages to come. The A.I are absolutely brilliant! Elizabeth didn't frustrate me at all during the game, she helped me when I was just about dead or needed some salts. This game will have some controversy because it touches on subjects that no game has ever before bu that's good! This game is fresh and unique and all I can say is, THIS IS the first next-gen game. Sure there is some driver problems but that's the graphic card manufactures faults and they will release patches in the coming days. If you're reading this review all I can tell you to do is to stop whatever it is you may be doing and PURCHASE this game, Irrational deserves it. The ending is even more captivating than the game itself...That's all I'm telling you.… Expand
  92. NoBody134
    Apr 1, 2013
    7
    This game is highly overrated in my opinion for a few reasons only
    The combat system is boring, you barely have enough salts to use even your weakest spells more than 8 times.
    that and the fact that you are capable of taking with you only two weapons at every given time makes the combat in this game very weak. the storyline is awesome and the characters in this game have really likable    This game is highly overrated in my opinion for a few reasons only
    The combat system is boring, you barely have enough salts to use even your weakest spells more than 8 times.
    that and the fact that you are capable of taking with you only two weapons at every given time makes the combat in this game very weak.
    the storyline is awesome and the characters in this game have really likable personalities overall, except for booker, he was extremely generic and unappealing.
    Columbia is huge, however it's boring.
    there are some very awesome enemies in this game, but they are very repetitive and they have crapton of health, and i found this to be very irritating.
    All in All, this game is solid, however it has a lot of drawback.    … Expand
  93. Micketto
    Apr 16, 2013
    5
    I don't get it.
    So many 10's... "sets a new bar"..."amazing graphics"... "incredible storytelling"... huh ?
    Maybe it's because I finished Far Cry 3 the day before, or just exited Battlefield 3 before I installed this game, but the graphics and gameplay leave so much to be desired. The rail system was great... I just wish I had to use them more. Except for a couple times they are    I don't get it.
    So many 10's... "sets a new bar"..."amazing graphics"... "incredible storytelling"... huh ?

    Maybe it's because I finished Far Cry 3 the day before, or just exited Battlefield 3 before I installed this game, but the graphics and gameplay leave so much to be desired.
    The rail system was great... I just wish I had to use them more. Except for a couple times they are pretty much optional. Same for Vigors. I hardly used them the whole game, except for when they were first introduced and you were told to try them. Tears could have been a bit more involved, and optional... what's wrong with letting us choose to use them sometimes, even if it meant setting us back a bit..

    Half of the game was "run and gun", with low ammo weapons... other half was cut scenes or long distance hikes to go back to where you just came from. Fights were not hard considering you revive in the exact location of the fight, and your enemies were not revived much. It's just a matter of constantly shooting, no matter how many deaths it takes you to beat them.

    I was finally fighting the best battle of them all, on the airship, and then went to the longest cut scene of any game in history (with a couple of "Press 'E' thrown in to make me think I was actually controlling something, lol) only to find out that was the end of the game.

    By no means am I discounting other opinions, but I just don't see what everyone else is seeing.

    Short game, easy battles (thanks to instant revive in exact spot you died), mediocre cartoon graphics.
    But the music was great I sat in the first temple listening to the gospel choir for a long time), and Elizabeth was a great help in the game. Very clever AI with her. Sadly no "Citra" situation with her (but then we find out why).

    I overpaid at $40.... this more of a $15 game, at best.

    I had started Bioshock 1 previously, but if this is "Bioshock" I will pass on the rest and wait for Far Cry 4.    … Expand
  94. BjornarBear
    Apr 3, 2013
    10
    What a game, blew my mind. From the beginning to end, the visuals were outstanding, and what drove the game was not the gameplay but the bautiful scenery and characters. Well deserved 10/10
  95. McWaffles
    Apr 3, 2013
    10
    In my opinion, to truly enjoy and understand Bioshock Infinite, you need to play through it twice, which I did and enjoyed greatly. I was disappointed at the weapon system, but using that 8th vigor (no spoilers for you) really was great fun, the theme was in tune considerably, a city stuck onto Colonial America, etc and it really shows that, something other games that touch upon theIn my opinion, to truly enjoy and understand Bioshock Infinite, you need to play through it twice, which I did and enjoyed greatly. I was disappointed at the weapon system, but using that 8th vigor (no spoilers for you) really was great fun, the theme was in tune considerably, a city stuck onto Colonial America, etc and it really shows that, something other games that touch upon the subject water down to an extent.

    As for the gameplay, it was perfect, I'm surprised to see such a considerable amount of negative reviews myself. I think they just need to go back to Call of Duty if you ask me.

    Anyway, my point is, great game, great fun. Was worth it, you will also need to play it twice to understand the ending too.    … Expand
  96. LordofSpirals
    Apr 4, 2013
    9
    I can't recall the last time I was drawn into a game as well as in Bioshock Infinite. Even the earlier entries took me a while to really get into, but Infinite just clicked with me the minute I started it up.

    The city of Columbia truly looks amazing, and makes for a great visual contrast to Rapture. Anybody who is saying that the game has bad graphics is clearly only paying attention to    I can't recall the last time I was drawn into a game as well as in Bioshock Infinite. Even the earlier entries took me a while to really get into, but Infinite just clicked with me the minute I started it up.

    The city of Columbia truly looks amazing, and makes for a great visual contrast to Rapture. Anybody who is saying that the game has bad graphics is clearly only paying attention to the raw graphical fidelity (which isn't the best we've seen recently, but it could be far worse) and missing the great aesthetic design that has been put into this game.

    The gameplay is almost a carbon-copy of the first two games, and it works just as well, if not better in Infinite. Instead of Plasmids from Bioshock 1 and 2, Infinite introduces Vigors which work almost the same, but instead have very different effects from Plasmids, creating very good tactical mixes between them. The two weapon limit is a little disappointing, but overall the gameplay is still very solid and it lives up to it's predecessors.

    As expected of a Bioshock game, the game tells a fantastic and engaging story. Although, much of the story can be missed, as the majority of it is told through voxophones, which are Infinite's version of the previous games' audio diaries.

    Despite a few flaws, Bioshock Infinite is still one of the best games released in recent years, and well worth buying, especially for fans of the previous games.    … Expand
  97. Sizaki
    Apr 4, 2013
    9
    The graphics is the best I have seen in a while and the story brings it up to what I would call a masterpiece, but it has some minor downfalls. Looting corpses went to far and lacking of puzzles, but it doesn't ruin the game experience.
  98. keeling2008
    Apr 21, 2013
    5
    Personally, I don't see what all the critical acclaim is about. I'm an avid Bioshock fan and I thought the first one was fantastic. Second one was nowhere near as good but had some great moments and it was great for fans wanting more from the Bioshock universe. However, for all the rich storyline details and a wealth of subject matter that makes you think about the gritty details, I feelPersonally, I don't see what all the critical acclaim is about. I'm an avid Bioshock fan and I thought the first one was fantastic. Second one was nowhere near as good but had some great moments and it was great for fans wanting more from the Bioshock universe. However, for all the rich storyline details and a wealth of subject matter that makes you think about the gritty details, I feel Infinite has failed to live up to expectations in more than one area.

    I am not going to mention spoilers as the story is the strong point within a very linear product. Not that replay ability has ever bothered me, but there is zero chance of returning to this game once completed and that's not just because of the story and how it unfolds, this is due to the filler sections that are a chore to play through first time round. This, in my honest opinion makes this game worth less than the full retail price.

    Secondly, the graphics are standard. As a member has already mentioned they have filled the game with lighting, bloom and post processing trickery that tries to hide the graphical short comings. I am playing on a top spec PC and I am pisappointed when comparing Infinite to other games on offer.

    Lastly, the final nail in the coffin for me was the combat. I felt like I was back in 2007 with the only upgraded features worth mentioning being the combination of vigors and better weapon physics.

    Having just finished Dead Space 3 (an evolution for a series although many disagree), MoH War fighter (how that got 35% from PCGamer UK is beyond me) and Max Payne 3, Infinite was a game I felt I had to complete just so I could uninstall. The other games I have mentioned were a blast from start to finish and I didn't want them to end. It is hard to put my finger on what it is about Infinite I really don't like and maybe LIKE is the wrong choice of words... It's not that it is a bad game; it has all the attention and care we have come to expect from Levine and his team. But Infinite, with all its potential to be a gaming masterpiece, played it too safe for me and stuck by a formula that worked in 2007 to 2010 but today, is a storyline the only thing that pushes games forward? I personally think it a game needs to be a more balanced product that offers a good story line and good gameplay mechanics A game featuring these should be labelled as potential masterpieces.    … Expand
  99. shin0bi272
    Apr 14, 2013
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Overall I liked the game. It was a good attempt at making a bioshock game that was sandbox. It failed in that attempt but it was an attempt.

    Graphics are so-so and the engine (modified unreal3 engine) is definitely showing its age. Its got Nvidia physx but the only physx parts are some water effects, your companion's dress and some flags... almost nothing is destroyable (which is where physx really shines), and while playing at 19x12 res on the highest graphical settings this cartoonish looking dx9 game gets somewhere in the neighborhood of 35-45 fps on my Nvidia 670. It really has no reason to get that low of a frame rate since its not rendering very much and what it is rendering is average quality at best. I played all the way through crysis 3 (a dx11 title) on the same settings and dont remember having my frame rate parked in the 30's very often... maybe once or twice. What Im getting at here is for being delayed over a year I was expecting way more than the 2009 wolfenstin remake set in a floating city with a companion thrown in to hit you in the face with stuff you need almost when you need it then steal money from you when you die. Graphics and concept 2 out of 10.

    Gameplay is good except for one problem I had with the controls. I use mouse 2 to move forward and I found my character would stick going forward or not move at all if I searched a corpse and hit move forward either immediately before searching (search on the fly) or immediately after searching (search then fly). Which is a true pain in the ass when you're under fire.

    I do like the mechanic of her saving you from dying or you walking through a "celestial" door to revive but I fail to see why this should cost me money. The irony here is if you walk up to a vending machine and walk away half the time she will go hey need some cash? and fling money at you. So wait you took money from me to save me just to give it back to me later? Are you some kind of co-dependent or something? overly attached girlfriend is that you?

    Then you have the dialogue between the two main characters. I know its set in the early 1900's but your character treats her like 90% of the game then at the end he gets all attached and defensive of her. He was originally going to "rescue" her to bring her to NYC to sell her to pay off a gambling debt! Now he wants to be all buddy buddy with her in the end? Dubya Tee Eff?!

    I was playing on the hardest difficulty and while most of the game was still pretty easy I always find it funny when on the hardest diff you pick up a weapon from a guy you just barely managed to kill because his weapon almost killed you in 1 hit, and you shoot his clone with it and it takes an entire mag or more to put the guy down. I'll never understand that idea, and will always question why they dont just send more guys for you to fight on the higher difficulty levels. I guess its just laziness on the coder's part.

    Overall though the gameplay isnt horrible for a mostly rail shooter... They have all these achievements that are the only reason it doesnt feel so much like its on rails all the time. But they hardly make it worth the 9 overall score that everyone is giving it. There are very few side quests and they dont yield anything major so you scrounge around for a while finding a code book just to get a power up phial that doesnt do much when 3 hits kills you all the time. The vigors are more of a novelty than a tool and I only used them for a shield and to make a frenemy once in a while. I rarely changed clothing and the item screen was a hassle.

    Story wise though I do have to take issue with the one spot where they find a guitar and booker sits down to play it and they do a duet of "will the circle be unbroken" and take out the word God just to be PC about it. The entire game we're hearing God and prophet etc etc... and you choose to mutilate a song that says it? Really? THAT'S your big political stance? A 30 sec blurb of a song played in a back room of a basement?... That is where you had to make a stand? ooook. Also I dont know if I got a different game than everyone else but I didnt get the scene from the commercial where Elizabeth is on the horse about to be hanged and you jump in and save her. Anyone else?

    Lastly the end just made no sense to me. I get the multiverse concept but how, if originally Booker sells his daughter to Comstock, is Booker also Comstock? And if you find out that Elizabeth is your daughter all grown up at the end then killing you then wont solve anything. Plus she would cease to exist if you killed Booker/Comstock when he was a baby like they had planned to and the floating city would destroy the world since we wouldnt be there to stop it with her special powers. Which means none of the game would actually happen. I almost literally got a headache trying to figure out what they were doing. I feel weird about this game. The end wasnt cathartic at all it was just weird.    … Expand
  100. hades84
    Mar 3, 2016
    4
    I give this game 6/10. It was okay, but not the masterpiece indeed. Game is overhyped in my opinion. I could give it 7/10 if graphics weren't childish though...
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Awards & Rankings

1
#1 Best PC Game of 2013
3
#3 Most Discussed PC Game of 2013
8
#8 Most Shared PC Game of 2013

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
94

Universal acclaim - based on 68 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 68 out of 68
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 68
  3. Negative: 0 out of 68
  1. PC Master (Greece)
    Jun 5, 2013
    92
    Play 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]
  2. CD-Action
    May 7, 2013
    85
    A 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]
  3. PC PowerPlay
    May 1, 2013
    80
    Problematic plotting and excessive amounts of poorly balanced combat apply friction to what is otherwise one hell of a rollercoaster. [May 2013, p.80]
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