Top 10 Moments that put the Shock Back in Bioshock
#10: The Plane Crash “BioShock” (2007)
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Where else to start, but from the top? The original “BioShock” did a lot right in terms of establishing setting and tone, and its introductory sequence was no exception. Informing players that the game is set in 1960, the scene then shifts to silent hero Jack, sitting aboard a plane looking at his personal belongings. We’re given a sense that Jack has an outside life, something that comforts him... which makes the plane succumbing to turbulence all the more startling. Jack’s subsequent struggle to swim up from the depths of the Atlantic Ocean is matched by the visual splendor of the fire-ridden debris, giving us the first taste of what to expect from the game proper.
#9: Big Sisters Approacheth “BioShock 2” (2010)
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Nothing like getting up close and personal to really size up a foe. Early in “BioShock 2”, your character – the prototype Big Daddy known as Subject Delta – comes across a lone Little Sister. It seems like a straight-forward encounter right up until the Little Sister points out a figure overhead. Thus, Delta comes helmet-to-helmet with his first Big Sister, a more agile variant of the Big Daddies and a powerful recurring foe with which to contend. The firefight that ensues shortly thereafter can’t be won, but with some effort the player can live to fight another day.
#8: Entering Columbia “BioShock Infinite” (2013)
Going up to the spirit in the sky takes on a whole new meaning here. After the requisite arrival at a lighthouse in the middle of an ocean, ex-Pinkerton agent Booker DeWitt reaches the lighthouse’s peak... and gets himself locked into a rocket pod. The terrified DeWitt is shot upward, discovering to his surprise that what awaits him is the Americana-laden floating city of Columbia. Its heavenly lighting and plethora of colourful locales stand out immediately, with the presence of religious-themed text during Booker’s descent hinting at Columbia’s more extreme elements.
#7: Playing as a Little Sister “BioShock 2” (2010)
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A change in perspective is always nice, even if it’s not one you expect. Case in point: when Delta is rendered unconscious after having his link to Eleanor Lamb cut, he’s forced to partake in a risky scheme involving projecting his mind onto a Little Sister. Thus, players are treated to a fascinating look at the world of Little Sisters – walls are clean and well-lit, fruitflies hovering over corpses are now butterflies, and everything appears to be gleaming with warmth. Acting as both a breather from the campaign’s intensity and a glimpse into a rather troubled mind, it’s a stretch of gameplay that can be appreciated on many levels.
#6: First Battle with Big Daddy “BioShock” (2007)
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To say this sets the tone for future battles in an understatement. During his journey through Rapture, Jack is told of the value Little Sisters have as sources of ADAM, a substance Jack needs to fuel his superpower-esque Plasmids. However, he’s also warned that to get to the Little Sisters, he’ll need to confront the drill-wielding Big Daddies. Jack gets an opportunity to try his luck at besting a Big Daddy when one happens to lumber into the Medical Pavillion. The player has a number of options here – pelting the Big Daddy with Plasmids, using a turret to turn the tide – matched by a relentless and hardened foe who only yields in death.
#5: The Houdini Splicer “BioShock” (2007)
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What a clever rascal. Jack’s bloody quest takes him through the greenery-laden halls of Arcadia, where a cry for help rings out. Naturally, the player is drawn to investigate and comes upon a strange wooden mask – before getting blindsided by a Splicer. The Houdini Splicer establishes himself as a trickster with this jumpscare, relying on an ability not unlike teleportation to get around and wreck havoc. Fortunately, the player is given the chance to best this troublesome enemy in a battle not long after its first appearance, making for an exciting little encounter.
#4: Return to the City under the Sea “BioShock Infinite” (2013)
While certainly brief, this detour into familiar territory is nevertheless appreciate. Late in “BioShock Infinite”, Booker and Elizabeth have put an end to Zachariah Comstock’s scheme, but are left at the mercy of the robotic Songbird. At least, until Elizabeth uses a tear to send the three of them all the way to Rapture... with Songbird left to tragically succumb to water pressure. However, Songbird’s passing grants us a short glimpse of the underwater city, in all its faded yet still impressive glory. Booker and Elizabeth walk through Rapture’s dilapidated halls, allowing the audience to once more take in a pivotal location in the series’ history.
#3: DeWitt’s End “BioShock Infinite” (2013)
Whoever he is, Booker cannot live if the universe is to survive. “BioShock Infinite” opts to follow in the footsteps of its predecessors by staging its finale as an upending of what the audience and the characters think they know. To wit: Booker is shown the true scope of the universe by a now-omnipotent Elizabeth, learning that they are but one pairing out of an endless number. Booker also learns that he is Elizabeth’s true father, that Comstock is an alternate version of himself, and that everything rides on a baptism he once refused... but other Bookers accepted. In a bid to end Comstock and all that he has harmed, Booker allows various Elizabeths to drown him, closing the circle.
#2: I Chose... Rapture “BioShock” (2007)
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No gods or kings, only men. These are the words which greet a water-logged Jack as he enters a mysterious lighthouse not long after surviving a crash. Jack then enters a bathosphere and is greeted with a projector-based presentation by one Andrew Ryan, a man left discontent with various world views. Slowly, the bathosphere pushes forth into the open ocean... and towards the underwater city of Rapture. The sheer majesty and elegance of Rapture’s art-deco sensibilities still leave players in awe to this day, while Ryan’s stated views suggest an intriguing take on author Ayn Rand’s philosophy of objectivism. Both aspects help to shape the coming experience as one layered with meaning and weight. Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions: The Conclusion “BioShock Infinite: Burial at Sea Episode II” (2014) The Raffle “BioShock Infinite” (2013) Awakening in Battleship Bay “BioShock Infinite” (2013) Sander Cohen’s Questline “BioShock” (2007) Escape from Monument Tower “BioShock Infinite” (2013)
#1: Would You Kindly? “BioShock” (2007)
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Let’s face it – nothing else would do. This pivotal scenes bring Jack face-to-face with Andrew Ryan himself, who seems quite non-chalant about his impending death. Ryan then reveals that this is because Jack’s entire life, and his purpose, are a lie. Jack’s status as a sleeper agent for Atlas, subsequently revealed to be Ryan’s rival Frank Fontaine, is cemented when Ryan has Jack kill him by uttering three simple words: “Would you kindly?” Setting aside the bruality of Ryan’s demise, this moment utterly demolishes the idea that Jack – and by extension, the player – has any agency over his own actions. And thus the game sets in stone what it thinks of the concept of individual choice. Do you agree with our list? What’s your favorite moment from the “BioShock” franchise? For more kindly-requested Top 10s published daily, be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo.com.
