The finest game of a terrific 2007

The film reviewer Roger Ebert famously declared that games could not be art, whereas film could, by nature of a games’ narrative to be controlled by the player and thus not elicit the emotions suggested by the artist. Bioshock is a pinnacle of interactive design, which provides a strong counterpoint to Ebert’s views as well as being a rollicking good game.

The game sees you crash in the middle of the ocean and as your plane sinks beneath the flaming waves, you swim up to an island, enter a door and descend into Rapture – an underwater metropolis built by industrialist Andrew Ryan. All is not well in the city however, the population are mostly aggressive monsters mutated by self-inflicted DNA-altering substances and the city is in ruins. Guided only by a voice on the end of a radio, and having to mutate yourself to fight off the savage inhabitants, you have to find a way to escape.

The main narrative winds it’s way through the city, but much of the story is found in the recordings left behind by the deceased occupants, explaining the rise and fall of Rapture. The game intelligently explores the nature of politics, ethics, morality and even has some smart observations to make about the narrative control of games themselves.

A major focus of the morality of the tale is in your treatment of the ‘Little Sisters’, the possessed shells of little girls who prowl the city accompanied by their protectors, the ‘Big Daddies’ – giant diving suit clad former humans who put up the strongest show of any enemies in the game. Once a Big Daddy is defeated you can either harvest (resulting in her death) or cure one of the little sisters, one choice makes you more powerful, and thus more able to survive the decaying city and one makes you feel less like Hitler.

Not only is it’s narrative up there with the best of film and television writing, it’s convincing world could make a case to be a work of art on its own. It’s just an astonishing city to behold, at times I was actually attacked while I’d stopped to look at some particularly beautiful architecture. The ocean ripples at the windows and you see the other occupants of the city moving around the pipes that connect the buildings.

The enemies even evoke sympathy as you traverse Rapture, finding a mother grieving over her empty pram or an overheard conversation between former lovers driven mad by their addictions is quite touching for a moment – at least before they jump you. Even the protective movement of the Big Daddies is endearing as they, turn to face you if you get too close to their tiny charge. Seeing a Big Daddy, from whom you’ve liberated a little sister, pounding on the wall in frustration as he desperately tries to summon another shws the level of detail and care taken with this whole enterprise.

Put simply, Bioshock is awesome. Would you kindly buy it, thus encouraging game developers to strive for narrative, writing and imagination this good in everything they do.

PS It should also be noted that everyone should see the ranting of this talented fellow. He is some sort of genius.