1
00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:05,066
[MUSIC]

2
00:00:07,299 --> 00:00:08,099
Would you kindly?

3
00:00:08,533 --> 00:00:09,800
A Bioshock retrospective.

4
00:00:11,833 --> 00:00:13,633
Read and written by Gardiner Bryant.

5
00:00:14,633 --> 00:00:16,133
For more content just like this,

6
00:00:16,133 --> 00:00:17,366
you can head over to The

7
00:00:17,366 --> 00:00:20,100
Bryant Review, gardinerbryant.com.

8
00:00:20,600 --> 00:00:22,600
We do gaming retrospectives,

9
00:00:22,600 --> 00:00:23,833
we do developer interviews,

10
00:00:24,233 --> 00:00:25,433
we deep dive into ethical

11
00:00:25,433 --> 00:00:26,666
tech and a whole lot more.

12
00:00:27,000 --> 00:00:29,233
So check it out, gardinerbryant.com

13
00:00:29,966 --> 00:00:35,266
[MUSIC]

14
00:00:37,433 --> 00:00:39,566
In 2007, we saw titles like

15
00:00:39,566 --> 00:00:41,866
Super Mario Galaxy, Halo 3,

16
00:00:42,466 --> 00:00:43,733
Rock Band, Gears of

17
00:00:43,733 --> 00:00:46,066
War, Portal, Half-Life 2,

18
00:00:46,266 --> 00:00:48,266
Episode 2, Mass Effect,

19
00:00:48,399 --> 00:00:50,533
Command and Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars,

20
00:00:50,533 --> 00:00:53,133
The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion

21
00:00:53,133 --> 00:00:54,233
and Peggle.

22
00:00:54,399 --> 00:00:58,066
[MUSIC]

23
00:00:58,433 --> 00:01:00,799
Yet in late August, amongst a frenetic

24
00:01:00,799 --> 00:01:02,000
year filled with some of

25
00:01:02,000 --> 00:01:03,333
the most legendary titles

26
00:01:03,333 --> 00:01:04,866
of any console generation,

27
00:01:05,433 --> 00:01:08,133
we were also graced with Bioshock.

28
00:01:08,933 --> 00:01:14,633
[SWEEPING, EMOTIONAL MUSIC]

29
00:01:16,400 --> 00:01:18,133
On August 21st, Bioshock

30
00:01:18,133 --> 00:01:20,266
will be turning 19 years old,

31
00:01:20,400 --> 00:01:21,366
and it feels like a

32
00:01:21,366 --> 00:01:22,866
product of a bygone era,

33
00:01:23,366 --> 00:01:25,633
when quality was the goal and physical

34
00:01:25,633 --> 00:01:27,133
media was still the norm.

35
00:01:27,933 --> 00:01:30,033
A spiritual successor to System Shock 2

36
00:01:30,033 --> 00:01:31,166
and helmed by Ken

37
00:01:31,166 --> 00:01:32,833
Levine of Irrational Games,

38
00:01:33,366 --> 00:01:35,266
Bioshock told a compelling narrative,

39
00:01:35,733 --> 00:01:37,000
one that warned of a world

40
00:01:37,000 --> 00:01:38,933
dominated by men who exploited

41
00:01:39,033 --> 00:01:40,433
technology to justify

42
00:01:40,433 --> 00:01:41,799
their fitness to be king.

43
00:01:42,266 --> 00:01:43,633
[MUSICAL STING]

44
00:01:44,133 --> 00:01:46,066
It was the kind of story that only a

45
00:01:46,066 --> 00:01:47,133
video game could tell,

46
00:01:47,433 --> 00:01:49,233
and an irony only a ludo

47
00:01:49,233 --> 00:01:50,633
narrative could illustrate.

48
00:01:50,966 --> 00:01:53,299
On the level of a prophet's admonition,

49
00:01:53,299 --> 00:01:55,099
one might find in scriptural proverb.

50
00:01:56,099 --> 00:01:57,233
But I'm getting ahead of myself.

51
00:01:57,833 --> 00:01:59,066
This episode is all

52
00:01:59,066 --> 00:02:00,799
about the story of Bioshock,

53
00:02:01,200 --> 00:02:04,433
the story behind Bioshock, I should say.

54
00:02:05,133 --> 00:02:07,966
So let's get into it.

55
00:02:08,566 --> 00:02:08,599
[MUSIC]

56
00:02:08,599 --> 00:02:11,833
[Andrew Ryan] I chose Rapture.

57
00:02:13,433 --> 00:02:15,099
[MUSIC]

58
00:02:16,000 --> 00:02:17,233
The city where the

59
00:02:17,233 --> 00:02:18,666
artist would not fear sense,

60
00:02:19,099 --> 00:02:20,233
where the scientists would

61
00:02:20,233 --> 00:02:22,133
not be bound by any morality,

62
00:02:22,400 --> 00:02:23,833
where the great would not

63
00:02:23,833 --> 00:02:25,599
be constrained by the small.

64
00:02:25,666 --> 00:02:29,199
And with the sweat of your brow,

65
00:02:30,000 --> 00:02:33,433
Rapture can become your city as well.

66
00:02:34,133 --> 00:02:34,833
The early days.

67
00:02:35,566 --> 00:02:37,699
Our story begins with Irrational Games,

68
00:02:38,133 --> 00:02:39,400
a little studio based in

69
00:02:39,400 --> 00:02:40,433
Westwood, Massachusetts.

70
00:02:41,099 --> 00:02:41,833
They had just published

71
00:02:41,833 --> 00:02:44,233
their first game, System Shock 2.

72
00:02:44,866 --> 00:02:46,033
Early on, the title was

73
00:02:46,033 --> 00:02:48,033
intended to be an original story,

74
00:02:48,033 --> 00:02:48,966
but after Electronic

75
00:02:48,966 --> 00:02:50,533
Arts signed on as publisher,

76
00:02:50,966 --> 00:02:52,800
the decision was made to set the game in

77
00:02:52,800 --> 00:02:53,966
the System Shock universe.

78
00:02:54,633 --> 00:02:56,866
System Shock 2 told the story of a

79
00:02:56,866 --> 00:02:58,633
cyberpunk future for humanity.

80
00:02:59,233 --> 00:03:00,733
Set aboard the starship Von Braun,

81
00:03:01,133 --> 00:03:02,166
you play as the sole

82
00:03:02,166 --> 00:03:03,766
member of your military unit.

83
00:03:04,300 --> 00:03:05,900
You wake in a cryo tube well

84
00:03:05,900 --> 00:03:07,466
after your unit has perished,

85
00:03:07,833 --> 00:03:10,066
your body modified while in stasis with

86
00:03:10,066 --> 00:03:11,866
an illegal cyber neural interface.

87
00:03:12,566 --> 00:03:13,833
A friendly voice, that

88
00:03:13,833 --> 00:03:15,566
of Dr. Janice Polito,

89
00:03:15,566 --> 00:03:16,633
instructs you to meet her

90
00:03:16,633 --> 00:03:18,066
on deck four of the ship,

91
00:03:18,266 --> 00:03:20,466
but that proves to be an arduous task.

92
00:03:21,066 --> 00:03:23,033
Most of the Von Braun's crew is either

93
00:03:23,033 --> 00:03:24,666
dead or hideously mutated

94
00:03:24,733 --> 00:03:26,733
into malicious, zombie-like creatures.

95
00:03:27,433 --> 00:03:29,066
As you finally reach deck four,

96
00:03:29,333 --> 00:03:31,333
you find Dr. Polito dead and you're

97
00:03:31,333 --> 00:03:32,633
confronted by Shodan,

98
00:03:33,266 --> 00:03:34,400
the rogue and malevolent

99
00:03:34,400 --> 00:03:35,466
artificial intelligence

100
00:03:35,466 --> 00:03:37,333
from the previous title, System Shock.

101
00:03:38,166 --> 00:03:40,133
System Shock 2 was met with near

102
00:03:40,133 --> 00:03:42,133
universal critical acclaim,

103
00:03:42,533 --> 00:03:43,533
which was quite

104
00:03:43,533 --> 00:03:45,699
puzzlingly followed by weak sales.

105
00:03:46,333 --> 00:03:47,233
The game was written and

106
00:03:47,233 --> 00:03:48,366
directed by Ken Levine,

107
00:03:48,666 --> 00:03:51,333
and it has a distinct Lavenian style.

108
00:03:52,300 --> 00:03:53,133
1. Compelling

109
00:03:53,133 --> 00:03:54,599
characters with clear motivation.

110
00:03:55,199 --> 00:03:56,800
2. A fleshed out world

111
00:03:56,800 --> 00:03:57,933
brimming with atmosphere.

112
00:03:58,533 --> 00:04:01,300
And 3. A clever, challenging story that

113
00:04:01,300 --> 00:04:03,733
uniquely leverages gaming as a medium.

114
00:04:04,900 --> 00:04:06,733
In retrospect, many critics have

115
00:04:06,733 --> 00:04:07,966
recognized not only how

116
00:04:07,966 --> 00:04:09,233
amazing the story was,

117
00:04:09,566 --> 00:04:10,533
but how influential

118
00:04:10,533 --> 00:04:11,966
the gameplay had become.

119
00:04:12,599 --> 00:04:14,533
Subsequent titles, both from Irrational

120
00:04:14,533 --> 00:04:15,866
Games and other studios,

121
00:04:15,933 --> 00:04:17,766
drew heavy inspiration from

122
00:04:17,766 --> 00:04:18,966
System Shock 2's mechanics,

123
00:04:19,533 --> 00:04:20,100
its storytelling

124
00:04:20,100 --> 00:04:21,666
devices, and its setting.

125
00:04:22,633 --> 00:04:24,800
Without a doubt, System Shock 2 laid the

126
00:04:24,800 --> 00:04:26,300
groundwork for its younger brother,

127
00:04:26,766 --> 00:04:28,466
Bioshock, and prepared Levine

128
00:04:28,466 --> 00:04:30,466
and company for the work ahead.

129
00:04:33,199 --> 00:04:34,800
That's not to say that there's a straight

130
00:04:34,800 --> 00:04:36,399
contiguous line from the

131
00:04:36,399 --> 00:04:37,833
release of System Shock 2

132
00:04:38,033 --> 00:04:38,833
to the launch of

133
00:04:38,833 --> 00:04:40,899
Bioshock nearly a decade later.

134
00:04:41,533 --> 00:04:43,266
In the intervening years, Irrational

135
00:04:43,266 --> 00:04:45,666
shipped numerous titles, from real-time

136
00:04:45,666 --> 00:04:46,733
tactical games like

137
00:04:46,733 --> 00:04:48,033
those found in Freedom Force,

138
00:04:48,600 --> 00:04:51,233
or their unique entries in the tribes and

139
00:04:51,233 --> 00:04:53,333
SWAT franchises in the mid-aughts.

140
00:04:53,866 --> 00:04:55,733
Along the way, Levine and the rest of the

141
00:04:55,733 --> 00:04:58,066
Irrational team were honing their craft,

142
00:04:58,533 --> 00:05:00,666
developing their most ambitious title

143
00:05:00,666 --> 00:05:02,933
yet, all behind the scenes.

144
00:05:03,666 --> 00:05:05,600
Initially, the core gameplay had three

145
00:05:05,600 --> 00:05:08,199
functions, drones, whose job it was to

146
00:05:08,199 --> 00:05:09,566
collect a valuable resource,

147
00:05:10,100 --> 00:05:12,166
protectors who would defend those drones,

148
00:05:12,600 --> 00:05:14,566
and harvesters who would try to steal the

149
00:05:14,566 --> 00:05:15,733
resource from the drones.

150
00:05:16,866 --> 00:05:18,800
If that sounds familiar, it should.

151
00:05:19,199 --> 00:05:20,666
The resource, Eve, is what

152
00:05:20,666 --> 00:05:22,399
everyone wants in BioShock.

153
00:05:23,000 --> 00:05:24,466
The drones became the Little Sisters.

154
00:05:25,033 --> 00:05:26,800
The protectors became the Big Daddies.

155
00:05:27,133 --> 00:05:29,100
And the harvesters were everyone else.

156
00:05:30,366 --> 00:05:33,133
A prototype existed for the original Xbox

157
00:05:33,133 --> 00:05:36,699
as early as 2003, but the initial setting

158
00:05:36,800 --> 00:05:38,033
for the proof of concept

159
00:05:38,033 --> 00:05:39,766
didn't resemble the retail release.

160
00:05:40,399 --> 00:05:42,233
In fact, this demo took the spiritual

161
00:05:42,233 --> 00:05:43,633
successor to System Shock 2

162
00:05:43,633 --> 00:05:45,733
angle quite literally, going

163
00:05:45,733 --> 00:05:48,233
so far as a space station setting that at

164
00:05:48,233 --> 00:05:49,466
one point was also

165
00:05:49,466 --> 00:05:50,966
underwater, and you faced

166
00:05:50,966 --> 00:05:52,633
off against cartoonish monsters.

167
00:05:53,199 --> 00:05:55,266
But it looked a lot like a space station

168
00:05:55,266 --> 00:05:55,966
and everything was

169
00:05:55,966 --> 00:05:57,333
really clean and Star Trek-y

170
00:05:57,399 --> 00:06:00,033
and the monsters were of like the

171
00:06:00,033 --> 00:06:01,399
Scooby-Doo variety, it was

172
00:06:01,399 --> 00:06:02,800
all over the place as far

173
00:06:02,800 --> 00:06:03,466
as aesthetics.

174
00:06:04,100 --> 00:06:06,000
Said Sean Robertson, lead animator.

175
00:06:06,666 --> 00:06:08,266
The demo's protagonist was quite

176
00:06:08,266 --> 00:06:09,100
different than what we got

177
00:06:09,100 --> 00:06:10,533
in the final release as well.

178
00:06:11,100 --> 00:06:13,966
He even had a full name, Carlos Cuello.

179
00:06:15,000 --> 00:06:17,333
Levine described Carlos as "a cult

180
00:06:17,333 --> 00:06:19,166
deprogrammer, a character

181
00:06:19,166 --> 00:06:20,699
who had been hired by a senator

182
00:06:20,766 --> 00:06:23,300
to deprogram his daughter who had been

183
00:06:23,300 --> 00:06:24,800
caught up in a lesbian cult."

184
00:06:25,500 --> 00:06:26,100
When I first learned that,

185
00:06:26,100 --> 00:06:27,899
<i>I was quite shocked</i>.

186
00:06:28,399 --> 00:06:28,933
<i>Pun intended</i>.

187
00:06:30,866 --> 00:06:32,866
The studio, however, was finding it

188
00:06:32,866 --> 00:06:34,033
challenging to sell the

189
00:06:34,033 --> 00:06:35,399
game to any publishers.

190
00:06:35,966 --> 00:06:38,033
The weak sales of System Shock 2 had

191
00:06:38,033 --> 00:06:39,133
cemented this type of

192
00:06:39,133 --> 00:06:40,899
game as a non-starter.

193
00:06:41,500 --> 00:06:43,733
The Irrational team, frustrated by the

194
00:06:43,733 --> 00:06:45,266
lack of publisher interest,

195
00:06:45,399 --> 00:06:47,033
were about to call it quits on the

196
00:06:47,033 --> 00:06:48,366
project until the

197
00:06:48,366 --> 00:06:49,833
gaming media got wind of it.

198
00:06:50,366 --> 00:06:52,399
Various outlets were reporting on a

199
00:06:52,399 --> 00:06:53,966
follow-up to System Shock 2.

200
00:06:54,300 --> 00:06:56,366
The buzz was so enormously positive that

201
00:06:56,366 --> 00:06:58,566
the team decided to regroup and rebuild

202
00:06:58,566 --> 00:07:00,066
the title from the ground up.

203
00:07:01,500 --> 00:07:02,899
By 2004, they had

204
00:07:02,899 --> 00:07:04,833
secured a publisher, 2K Games.

205
00:07:05,433 --> 00:07:07,399
In fact, the co-founders of Irrational

206
00:07:07,399 --> 00:07:08,399
had decided to sell

207
00:07:08,399 --> 00:07:09,866
the company to Take Two.

208
00:07:10,600 --> 00:07:13,000
2K had agreed to publish based solely on

209
00:07:13,000 --> 00:07:14,133
the drone protector

210
00:07:14,133 --> 00:07:15,800
harvester demo, and they left

211
00:07:15,800 --> 00:07:17,399
everything else up to a rational.

212
00:07:17,933 --> 00:07:19,399
However, the issue was now the

213
00:07:19,399 --> 00:07:20,500
"everything else" part.

214
00:07:25,066 --> 00:07:26,500
Designing Over and Over Again

215
00:07:28,866 --> 00:07:30,433
The original concept of the game came

216
00:07:30,433 --> 00:07:31,733
from a highly detailed

217
00:07:31,733 --> 00:07:34,066
212 page design document.

218
00:07:34,300 --> 00:07:36,800
It covered every aspect of Bioshock, from

219
00:07:36,800 --> 00:07:37,833
the controls to the

220
00:07:37,833 --> 00:07:38,899
scripting components for

221
00:07:38,933 --> 00:07:39,800
designers to use.

222
00:07:40,433 --> 00:07:41,966
But once the team had implemented the

223
00:07:41,966 --> 00:07:43,533
design dock to spec, they

224
00:07:43,533 --> 00:07:45,266
found that the result was

225
00:07:45,266 --> 00:07:46,433
not what anyone wanted.

226
00:07:47,666 --> 00:07:49,399
So we all had to come step back from that

227
00:07:49,399 --> 00:07:51,600
and say, well, you know, what am I wrong?

228
00:07:52,766 --> 00:07:53,699
So that was a low point.

229
00:07:54,133 --> 00:07:55,633
Said Chris Klein, lead programmer.

230
00:07:56,199 --> 00:07:58,733
He continued, we changed our process to

231
00:07:58,733 --> 00:08:00,033
be more of an

232
00:08:00,033 --> 00:08:01,466
iterative one where programmers

233
00:08:01,500 --> 00:08:03,266
were working very closely with designers

234
00:08:03,266 --> 00:08:03,833
and saying, well, what

235
00:08:03,833 --> 00:08:04,500
are we trying to do right

236
00:08:04,500 --> 00:08:04,766
now?

237
00:08:04,766 --> 00:08:05,433
What's this experience

238
00:08:05,433 --> 00:08:06,133
we're trying to make?

239
00:08:06,600 --> 00:08:07,300
How do we do that?

240
00:08:07,300 --> 00:08:09,100
What is the minimal set of tech we need

241
00:08:09,100 --> 00:08:10,333
to make that happen?

242
00:08:10,333 --> 00:08:12,733
They had even built up a number of RPG

243
00:08:12,733 --> 00:08:14,333
mechanics, complete with

244
00:08:14,333 --> 00:08:15,933
complex trees of prerequisites,

245
00:08:16,433 --> 00:08:18,399
which severely hampered what the player

246
00:08:18,399 --> 00:08:20,433
could do in the early stages of the game.

247
00:08:21,066 --> 00:08:23,199
As we started getting

248
00:08:23,199 --> 00:08:24,266
these systems working,

249
00:08:24,466 --> 00:08:25,199
we were just like,

250
00:08:26,133 --> 00:08:27,600
gamers have to do way too much

251
00:08:27,600 --> 00:08:28,566
to get to the cool,

252
00:08:28,566 --> 00:08:29,933
fun stuff in this game.

253
00:08:29,933 --> 00:08:30,500
So we just started

254
00:08:30,500 --> 00:08:31,800
stripping all of that away

255
00:08:32,566 --> 00:08:35,500
and it got more and more at its heart.

256
00:08:36,000 --> 00:08:37,766
The heart of the shooter kept bubbling

257
00:08:37,766 --> 00:08:38,866
more and more to the top.

258
00:08:46,100 --> 00:08:47,833
The making of a spiritual successor.

259
00:08:50,833 --> 00:08:51,766
I often find myself

260
00:08:51,766 --> 00:08:53,766
wondering what makes a good sequel,

261
00:08:54,066 --> 00:08:55,500
let alone a spiritual successor.

262
00:08:56,200 --> 00:08:58,266
It requires identifying the essential

263
00:08:58,266 --> 00:08:59,299
components of the work.

264
00:08:59,766 --> 00:09:01,366
The creators have to boil down the

265
00:09:01,366 --> 00:09:02,600
essentials of the original,

266
00:09:03,233 --> 00:09:05,166
then re-implement them into an

267
00:09:05,166 --> 00:09:06,600
unmistakable approximation

268
00:09:07,166 --> 00:09:09,866
that can also somehow stand on its own.

269
00:09:10,466 --> 00:09:12,000
For a game, that may be

270
00:09:12,000 --> 00:09:13,299
the setting, the story,

271
00:09:13,799 --> 00:09:15,766
the controls, or the unique mechanics.

272
00:09:16,633 --> 00:09:18,299
In the case of System Shock 2,

273
00:09:18,700 --> 00:09:19,666
the team at a rational

274
00:09:19,666 --> 00:09:21,566
coalesced around the psionic powers,

275
00:09:21,833 --> 00:09:22,966
which became plasmids.

276
00:09:23,700 --> 00:09:25,166
Stealth and slower pace of gameplay.

277
00:09:25,933 --> 00:09:27,266
Storytelling through audio logs

278
00:09:27,266 --> 00:09:28,500
distributed throughout the world.

279
00:09:29,066 --> 00:09:30,366
One-way communication from

280
00:09:30,366 --> 00:09:32,200
NPCs over a radio system,

281
00:09:32,700 --> 00:09:33,566
and the general

282
00:09:33,566 --> 00:09:35,500
commitment to a deep, immersive,

283
00:09:35,700 --> 00:09:37,100
and otherworldly atmosphere.

284
00:09:38,466 --> 00:09:39,433
However, the setting

285
00:09:39,433 --> 00:09:40,966
couldn't be more different.

286
00:09:41,399 --> 00:09:42,833
Instead of an isolating,

287
00:09:42,833 --> 00:09:44,299
oppressive, zombie-filled

288
00:09:44,299 --> 00:09:45,766
futuristic space station,

289
00:09:46,200 --> 00:09:47,566
the player in Bioshock

290
00:09:47,566 --> 00:09:49,266
is placed in an isolating,

291
00:09:49,299 --> 00:09:49,700
oppressive,

292
00:09:50,166 --> 00:09:51,899
zombie-filled underwater utopia.

293
00:09:53,166 --> 00:09:55,200
But Irrational didn't land on the

294
00:09:55,200 --> 00:09:57,200
dilapidated art deco aesthetic until

295
00:09:57,200 --> 00:09:59,000
development was deeply underway.

296
00:09:59,933 --> 00:10:00,533
Once they did,

297
00:10:00,533 --> 00:10:02,166
however, they leaned into it.

298
00:10:03,500 --> 00:10:05,000
Throughout the process of realizing

299
00:10:05,000 --> 00:10:06,299
Bioshock, the studio

300
00:10:06,299 --> 00:10:07,799
experienced growing pains.

301
00:10:08,500 --> 00:10:10,433
Ramping up production by hiring on new

302
00:10:10,433 --> 00:10:11,966
staff members will have that effect.

303
00:10:12,533 --> 00:10:15,333
A team of six had grown to 60 in just a

304
00:10:15,333 --> 00:10:16,666
few short years to take

305
00:10:16,666 --> 00:10:17,700
on the extra workload,

306
00:10:18,233 --> 00:10:20,033
reflecting the ambition of the title.

307
00:10:20,799 --> 00:10:22,733
But this naturally led to strife.

308
00:10:23,399 --> 00:10:25,233
Various departments, from level design to

309
00:10:25,233 --> 00:10:26,533
art direction, were finding

310
00:10:26,533 --> 00:10:27,966
it difficult to work together.

311
00:10:28,533 --> 00:10:30,166
Levine himself was wary of

312
00:10:30,166 --> 00:10:31,733
some of the new hires' egos,

313
00:10:32,166 --> 00:10:33,799
often fighting himself having to

314
00:10:33,799 --> 00:10:34,966
passionately advocate

315
00:10:34,966 --> 00:10:36,966
for his vision of Bioshock,

316
00:10:37,366 --> 00:10:38,433
what the world was and

317
00:10:38,433 --> 00:10:39,366
who the characters were.

318
00:10:40,100 --> 00:10:41,966
To compound this internal conflict,

319
00:10:42,333 --> 00:10:43,666
tension was brewing with 2K.

320
00:10:44,066 --> 00:10:45,700
The publisher was worried about marketing

321
00:10:45,700 --> 00:10:47,566
the game as a first-person shooter

322
00:10:47,566 --> 00:10:48,833
role-playing hybrid.

323
00:10:49,299 --> 00:10:51,233
They were demanding that Levine instead

324
00:10:51,233 --> 00:10:53,266
market the game solely as an FPS.

325
00:10:54,166 --> 00:10:56,399
But worst of all, 2K was upset over the

326
00:10:56,399 --> 00:10:57,399
game's ballooning budget.

327
00:10:57,833 --> 00:10:58,566
Just months from the

328
00:10:58,566 --> 00:10:59,866
game's initial release date,

329
00:11:00,200 --> 00:11:02,100
Crunch was instituted to get Bioshock

330
00:11:02,100 --> 00:11:03,100
over the finish line.

331
00:11:04,466 --> 00:11:05,433
Crunch, Noun.

332
00:11:06,200 --> 00:11:07,700
Compulsory overtime during the

333
00:11:07,700 --> 00:11:08,633
development of a game.

334
00:11:09,366 --> 00:11:12,000
Crunch can lead to work weeks of 65 to 80

335
00:11:12,000 --> 00:11:14,399
hours for extended periods of time,

336
00:11:14,666 --> 00:11:16,166
often uncompensated beyond

337
00:11:16,166 --> 00:11:17,366
the normal working hours.

338
00:11:17,933 --> 00:11:20,066
It is often used as a way to cut the

339
00:11:20,066 --> 00:11:21,733
costs of game development.

340
00:11:22,166 --> 00:11:24,033
It's also known to cause extensive

341
00:11:24,033 --> 00:11:25,866
deleterious effects on the workforce.

342
00:11:27,733 --> 00:11:31,333
[Music]

343
00:11:31,500 --> 00:11:32,399
Tech and gameplay.

344
00:11:32,766 --> 00:11:36,000
[Music]

345
00:11:36,233 --> 00:11:37,166
Bioshock was built

346
00:11:37,166 --> 00:11:39,766
using Unreal Engine 2.5,

347
00:11:39,766 --> 00:11:42,533
with a few of UE3's features backported

348
00:11:42,533 --> 00:11:43,566
for use in the game.

349
00:11:44,166 --> 00:11:45,233
This included some

350
00:11:45,233 --> 00:11:46,466
lighting and water effects,

351
00:11:46,766 --> 00:11:48,566
but Irrational put extra work

352
00:11:48,566 --> 00:11:50,533
into their own water shaders.

353
00:11:51,000 --> 00:11:52,166
And rightly so, the

354
00:11:52,166 --> 00:11:53,566
water effects in the game,

355
00:11:53,866 --> 00:11:55,733
critical for the setting of Bioshock,

356
00:11:55,733 --> 00:11:57,133
were universally praised.

357
00:11:58,066 --> 00:11:59,033
But many aspects of the

358
00:11:59,033 --> 00:12:00,133
game's tech were unique.

359
00:12:00,666 --> 00:12:02,766
The game's gunplay, carried out in the

360
00:12:02,766 --> 00:12:03,933
player's right hand,

361
00:12:04,333 --> 00:12:06,266
was complemented by the far more

362
00:12:06,266 --> 00:12:08,333
fantastical powers called plasmids.

363
00:12:09,600 --> 00:12:12,833
[Music]

364
00:12:19,366 --> 00:12:21,633
This pairing of two-handed gameplay meant

365
00:12:21,633 --> 00:12:23,966
the title needed to tread outside of the

366
00:12:23,966 --> 00:12:25,433
traditional controller setup.

367
00:12:26,133 --> 00:12:28,299
Granted, Halo had popularized the left

368
00:12:28,299 --> 00:12:29,033
trigger to throw

369
00:12:29,033 --> 00:12:30,333
grenades with your left hand,

370
00:12:30,766 --> 00:12:32,766
but Bioshock took this a step further.

371
00:12:33,333 --> 00:12:34,766
With the press of the left trigger, the

372
00:12:34,766 --> 00:12:36,833
player character would seamlessly switch

373
00:12:36,866 --> 00:12:38,833
from wielding his gun to summoning

374
00:12:38,833 --> 00:12:40,100
lightning from his hand.

375
00:12:40,733 --> 00:12:42,766
Holding left bumper would call up a

376
00:12:42,766 --> 00:12:44,399
radial wheel of your plasmids.

377
00:12:44,866 --> 00:12:45,566
Same with right

378
00:12:45,566 --> 00:12:47,166
bumper, but for your weapons.

379
00:12:47,766 --> 00:12:49,766
While this menu was visible, the action

380
00:12:49,766 --> 00:12:51,133
would slow to a crawl,

381
00:12:51,133 --> 00:12:52,966
giving you a moment to breathe and the

382
00:12:52,966 --> 00:12:54,066
focus to select the

383
00:12:54,066 --> 00:12:55,333
most strategic weapon.

384
00:12:56,166 --> 00:12:57,799
And of course, Right Trigger would just

385
00:12:57,799 --> 00:12:59,133
as quickly re-equip your

386
00:12:59,133 --> 00:13:00,799
weapon in the right hand.

387
00:13:03,766 --> 00:13:05,700
In many ways, Bioshock's control scheme

388
00:13:05,700 --> 00:13:08,166
was a pioneering effort that was mimicked

389
00:13:08,166 --> 00:13:09,333
by countless others.

390
00:13:09,899 --> 00:13:12,100
Doom 2016 and later titles in the

391
00:13:12,100 --> 00:13:12,766
franchise worked

392
00:13:12,766 --> 00:13:14,166
quite similarly, in fact.

393
00:13:18,466 --> 00:13:18,500
Design

394
00:13:20,866 --> 00:13:23,000
Their initial design language was rooted

395
00:13:23,000 --> 00:13:24,899
in realism and practicality.

396
00:13:25,433 --> 00:13:27,299
Everything in Rapture, the underwater

397
00:13:27,299 --> 00:13:29,533
city where the game takes place, was

398
00:13:29,533 --> 00:13:31,100
built with concrete and tiles.

399
00:13:31,766 --> 00:13:34,399
It ended up being brown, dull, and

400
00:13:34,399 --> 00:13:35,266
looking like the New

401
00:13:35,266 --> 00:13:36,133
York City Underground.

402
00:13:37,299 --> 00:13:39,799
How could they believably sell Rapture, a

403
00:13:39,799 --> 00:13:41,600
city built some 30,000

404
00:13:41,600 --> 00:13:42,500
leagues under the sea,

405
00:13:42,899 --> 00:13:44,566
if players couldn't believe in the

406
00:13:44,566 --> 00:13:45,966
engineering that made it possible?

407
00:13:46,633 --> 00:13:47,500
Seafloor stabilization,

408
00:13:48,166 --> 00:13:49,133
airlocks, and the like.

409
00:13:50,500 --> 00:13:52,033
it looked like every level was gonna

410
00:13:52,033 --> 00:13:52,966
sort of feel like that.

411
00:13:53,233 --> 00:13:55,666
Eventually, we threw all that stuff out

412
00:13:55,866 --> 00:13:57,833
and decided that it's a

413
00:13:57,833 --> 00:13:58,700
much bigger impression

414
00:13:58,700 --> 00:13:59,600
to really see the city

415
00:13:59,600 --> 00:14:01,566
that sort of just sunk.

416
00:14:01,566 --> 00:14:02,933
It looks just like a city.

417
00:14:03,533 --> 00:14:05,600
And it played into the fact that

418
00:14:05,733 --> 00:14:06,566
Rapture was sort of a

419
00:14:06,566 --> 00:14:07,799
terrible idea in the first place.

420
00:14:07,799 --> 00:14:09,133
It never could have possibly worked.

421
00:14:09,133 --> 00:14:09,666
And that was the first

422
00:14:09,666 --> 00:14:10,666
time we started using

423
00:14:10,899 --> 00:14:13,066
things like carpeting, parquet floors,

424
00:14:15,200 --> 00:14:15,966
like decorative

425
00:14:15,966 --> 00:14:18,100
pillars instead of practical,

426
00:14:19,000 --> 00:14:19,899
poured concrete.

427
00:14:21,333 --> 00:14:23,500
The first thing that we had

428
00:14:23,633 --> 00:14:24,633
to get our head around was

429
00:14:25,266 --> 00:14:27,700
art deco.

430
00:14:27,966 --> 00:14:29,366
There were a number of challenges,

431
00:14:30,033 --> 00:14:31,433
subtle distinctions that the design team

432
00:14:31,433 --> 00:14:32,366
had to be able to

433
00:14:32,366 --> 00:14:33,700
immediately parse through.

434
00:14:34,166 --> 00:14:34,933
Sinclair continued.

435
00:14:35,333 --> 00:14:36,333
I was the person who

436
00:14:36,333 --> 00:14:37,366
slept through art history.

437
00:14:37,833 --> 00:14:39,700
So I can spot it.

438
00:14:40,066 --> 00:14:41,033
It took me a while to

439
00:14:41,033 --> 00:14:43,899
separate Nouveau from deco.

440
00:14:44,266 --> 00:14:45,066
There was nothing quite

441
00:14:45,066 --> 00:14:46,566
like Bioshock's art direction

442
00:14:46,566 --> 00:14:47,466
in the industry.

443
00:14:47,833 --> 00:14:49,066
It was iconic and it

444
00:14:49,066 --> 00:14:50,299
told the story of the game

445
00:14:50,433 --> 00:14:52,100
as much as the performances did.

446
00:14:52,633 --> 00:14:53,833
Every corridor, every

447
00:14:53,833 --> 00:14:55,666
room, every crack in the tiles,

448
00:14:56,066 --> 00:14:57,533
it all served as evidence

449
00:14:57,533 --> 00:14:58,833
of the rundown condition

450
00:14:59,066 --> 00:15:00,433
of a once idyllic Rapture.

451
00:15:00,866 --> 00:15:01,833
A subtle hint that the

452
00:15:01,833 --> 00:15:03,533
city's idealism was crumbling

453
00:15:03,733 --> 00:15:04,633
as it met the reality

454
00:15:04,633 --> 00:15:05,766
of the Atlantic Ocean

455
00:15:05,966 --> 00:15:07,266
on the other side of the bulkhead.

456
00:15:07,666 --> 00:15:09,000
Through the windows of Rapture's

457
00:15:09,000 --> 00:15:10,366
underwater skyscrapers,

458
00:15:10,700 --> 00:15:12,533
the murky aqua hues of the

459
00:15:12,533 --> 00:15:14,133
oppressively deep Atlantic

460
00:15:14,399 --> 00:15:16,133
were realized in brilliant detail.

461
00:15:16,433 --> 00:15:18,399
The dark silhouettes of seabed flora

462
00:15:18,833 --> 00:15:20,333
swayed in the ocean currents

463
00:15:20,333 --> 00:15:22,566
while schools of fish undulated by.

464
00:15:23,133 --> 00:15:25,833
The atmosphere was positively dripping in

465
00:15:25,833 --> 00:15:28,266
prestigious decor and leaking pipes.

466
00:15:28,899 --> 00:15:30,799
Upturned vending machines, crumbling

467
00:15:30,799 --> 00:15:32,200
brick, and burning

468
00:15:32,200 --> 00:15:33,700
furniture littered the common

469
00:15:33,733 --> 00:15:34,200
areas.

470
00:15:34,966 --> 00:15:37,066
Scars cut deep into the once-gleaming

471
00:15:37,066 --> 00:15:38,166
floors while support

472
00:15:38,166 --> 00:15:39,500
columns were riddled with bullet

473
00:15:39,500 --> 00:15:39,766
holes.

474
00:15:40,399 --> 00:15:42,200
The corridors echoed with the chilling

475
00:15:42,200 --> 00:15:44,500
nonsense of plasmid, adult zombies,

476
00:15:45,133 --> 00:15:46,233
ghostly apparitions,

477
00:15:46,799 --> 00:15:48,966
almost demonic little sisters and the

478
00:15:48,966 --> 00:15:50,299
tortured, wordless voices

479
00:15:50,299 --> 00:15:52,066
of their protectors, the big

480
00:15:56,399 --> 00:15:58,233
Speaking of, one of the more lamentable

481
00:15:58,233 --> 00:16:00,466
cuts to the game was the Slow Pro FUM,

482
00:16:00,866 --> 00:16:03,333
which stood for slow-moving projectile

483
00:16:03,333 --> 00:16:05,899
shooting F'd up melee. He

484
00:16:05,899 --> 00:16:07,433
was a third big daddy design

485
00:16:07,433 --> 00:16:09,166
that ultimately was cut late in

486
00:16:09,166 --> 00:16:10,799
development due to time constraints.

487
00:16:11,533 --> 00:16:13,000
Described as a tank, Slow

488
00:16:13,000 --> 00:16:15,399
Pro would have been deadly in all but

489
00:16:15,399 --> 00:16:17,600
medium range combat. He carried a

490
00:16:17,600 --> 00:16:18,799
shoulder mounted cannon and

491
00:16:18,799 --> 00:16:20,700
a sharp hook for melee attacks.

492
00:16:25,333 --> 00:16:26,100
the playtests.

493
00:16:27,633 --> 00:16:30,333
In January of 2007, just a few short

494
00:16:30,333 --> 00:16:31,399
months out from release,

495
00:16:31,933 --> 00:16:33,433
the team conducted extensive

496
00:16:33,433 --> 00:16:34,633
playtesting of the game.

497
00:16:35,299 --> 00:16:37,133
The results were not what Levine and

498
00:16:37,133 --> 00:16:38,233
company were hoping for.

499
00:16:38,733 --> 00:16:40,566
The feedback from their players was quite

500
00:16:40,566 --> 00:16:41,933
negative, ranging from

501
00:16:41,933 --> 00:16:42,799
the environments being

502
00:16:42,799 --> 00:16:44,433
too dark to players losing

503
00:16:44,433 --> 00:16:45,633
their way and getting lost.

504
00:16:46,566 --> 00:16:48,966
The player is also deeply mistrusted,

505
00:16:48,966 --> 00:16:51,000
Atlas, the NPC who is giving you

506
00:16:51,000 --> 00:16:51,700
instructions and

507
00:16:51,700 --> 00:16:52,766
guidance throughout the game.

508
00:16:53,200 --> 00:16:55,000
At the time of this playtest, Atlas was

509
00:16:55,000 --> 00:16:56,866
voiced by a Colonel Sanders-like,

510
00:16:57,133 --> 00:16:58,066
complete with a southern

511
00:16:58,066 --> 00:17:00,066
drawl and a lecherous attitude.

512
00:17:00,799 --> 00:17:02,466
The team took the feedback to heart,

513
00:17:02,766 --> 00:17:03,733
revamping the lighting,

514
00:17:04,066 --> 00:17:05,099
adding the quest markers,

515
00:17:05,466 --> 00:17:06,666
which saved me when I

516
00:17:06,666 --> 00:17:07,900
got lost a number of times,

517
00:17:08,266 --> 00:17:10,166
and re-recorded Atlas' lines with an

518
00:17:10,166 --> 00:17:11,733
actor performing an Irish accent.

519
00:17:12,133 --> 00:17:17,200
[Atlas] Careful now. Would you kindly lower that weapon?

520
00:17:18,366 --> 00:17:21,099
You think that's a child down there?

521
00:17:21,099 --> 00:17:25,599
Don't be fooled. She's a little sister now.

522
00:17:25,599 --> 00:17:28,133
Somebody went and turned a sweet baby

523
00:17:28,133 --> 00:17:29,400
into a monster

524
00:17:29,700 --> 00:17:31,700
Whatever you thought about right

525
00:17:31,700 --> 00:17:33,433
and wrong on the surface

526
00:17:33,433 --> 00:17:36,266
Well, that don't count for much down in Rapture.

527
00:17:36,966 --> 00:17:37,799
Much closer to release.

528
00:17:38,166 --> 00:17:41,066
Reportedly, as the game was 99% complete,

529
00:17:41,500 --> 00:17:43,166
another playtest was conducted.

530
00:17:43,666 --> 00:17:45,466
This time, the person running the test

531
00:17:45,466 --> 00:17:46,799
told Levine that the game

532
00:17:46,799 --> 00:17:48,066
was likely to be a failure

533
00:17:48,066 --> 00:17:50,066
because players felt no connection with

534
00:17:50,066 --> 00:17:52,266
the main character, known only as Jack.

535
00:17:53,233 --> 00:17:54,366
At this point, the game

536
00:17:54,366 --> 00:17:56,099
didn't have many cutscenes.

537
00:17:56,500 --> 00:17:58,333
Ken was adamantly against them.

538
00:17:58,700 --> 00:18:00,633
However, this was the moment when the

539
00:18:00,633 --> 00:18:02,766
game's iconic opening was added.

540
00:18:03,533 --> 00:18:05,266
Billed as a cheap fix to the problem,

541
00:18:05,566 --> 00:18:07,700
this intro cinematic was not simply a way

542
00:18:07,700 --> 00:18:08,700
to connect the player

543
00:18:08,700 --> 00:18:10,066
to the main character.

544
00:18:10,333 --> 00:18:12,766
It was a set piece that made a statement.

545
00:18:13,299 --> 00:18:14,866
This was nothing like any

546
00:18:14,866 --> 00:18:16,666
game you've ever played before.

547
00:18:17,466 --> 00:18:20,333
It's hard to believe that the brilliant,

548
00:18:20,333 --> 00:18:22,566
chilling sound design of the plane crash,

549
00:18:23,333 --> 00:18:25,266
fighting your way to the ocean's surface,

550
00:18:26,033 --> 00:18:27,799
swimming up to the towering lighthouse,

551
00:18:28,866 --> 00:18:31,599
the absolutely iconic Bathysphere

552
00:18:31,599 --> 00:18:33,066
diatribe from Andrew Ryan,

553
00:18:33,366 --> 00:18:34,000
voiced by the

554
00:18:34,000 --> 00:18:35,500
incomparable Armin Schimmerman.

555
00:18:35,866 --> 00:18:37,500
The sweat of his brow.

556
00:18:39,099 --> 00:18:41,266
"no" as the man in Washington, it

557
00:18:41,266 --> 00:18:42,299
belongs to the poor.

558
00:18:42,900 --> 00:18:44,933
And the gorgeous, ominous, and

559
00:18:44,933 --> 00:18:47,266
atmospheric introduction of Rapture.

560
00:18:47,833 --> 00:18:49,866
All of that was added when the game was

561
00:18:49,866 --> 00:18:53,466
99% complete, mere weeks from release.

562
00:18:54,599 --> 00:18:55,866
What an introduction.

563
00:18:56,366 --> 00:18:57,500
It wasn't my first

564
00:18:57,500 --> 00:18:58,666
impression of Bioshock.

565
00:18:59,133 --> 00:19:01,099
I had seen a few of the trailers that

566
00:19:01,099 --> 00:19:02,366
they had released previously,

567
00:19:02,366 --> 00:19:05,099
and man, I was hyped for it.

568
00:19:07,066 --> 00:19:09,299
So when the demo dropped, I left my Xbox

569
00:19:09,299 --> 00:19:11,666
360 on overnight in order to download

570
00:19:11,666 --> 00:19:13,566
this interactive preview of the game.

571
00:19:14,099 --> 00:19:15,166
My friend Mike and I were

572
00:19:15,166 --> 00:19:16,900
both seriously impressed.

573
00:19:17,366 --> 00:19:20,200
It was gorgeous, it was terrifying, and

574
00:19:20,200 --> 00:19:20,966
it was nothing like

575
00:19:20,966 --> 00:19:21,933
we'd ever seen before.

576
00:19:22,400 --> 00:19:24,366
The demo consisted of that introductory

577
00:19:24,366 --> 00:19:25,733
cutscene and the

578
00:19:25,733 --> 00:19:27,333
following tutorial areas,

579
00:19:27,466 --> 00:19:28,133
with some light

580
00:19:28,133 --> 00:19:29,900
plasmid and gunplay combat.

581
00:19:30,433 --> 00:19:31,333
And of course, the first

582
00:19:31,333 --> 00:19:32,666
encounter with Andrew Ryan.

583
00:19:33,099 --> 00:19:35,599
It had me sold instantly.

584
00:19:36,366 --> 00:19:38,566
We were so impressed, in fact, that when

585
00:19:38,566 --> 00:19:40,000
Mike's mom came over to visit,

586
00:19:40,299 --> 00:19:42,599
we couldn't stop talking about the game,

587
00:19:42,599 --> 00:19:43,900
and it piqued her interest.

588
00:19:44,299 --> 00:19:46,766
So I booted up my 360 and played the demo

589
00:19:46,766 --> 00:19:48,066
for her as she watched

590
00:19:48,066 --> 00:19:50,566
on in absolute horror.

591
00:19:51,299 --> 00:19:53,099
Later that week, I heard that she had

592
00:19:53,099 --> 00:19:55,466
woken in the night several times,

593
00:19:55,466 --> 00:19:56,500
having a nightmare about

594
00:19:56,500 --> 00:19:57,833
being trapped in Rapture.

595
00:19:58,466 --> 00:20:01,166
It left an impression and it sparked

596
00:20:01,166 --> 00:20:02,799
unprecedented interest.

597
00:20:03,166 --> 00:20:05,299
The demo was so in demand, in fact, that

598
00:20:05,299 --> 00:20:07,066
it crashed Xbox Live.

599
00:20:08,466 --> 00:20:11,766
[RYAN] ...Andrew Ryan isn't the giddy socialite

600
00:20:11,766 --> 00:20:16,200
to be slapped around by government muscle

601
00:20:16,200 --> 00:20:17,900
and with that... farewell

602
00:20:18,233 --> 00:20:19,933
or "dasvidaniya"

603
00:20:20,266 --> 00:20:21,966
whichever...

604
00:20:22,500 --> 00:20:23,666
The release.

605
00:20:24,466 --> 00:20:24,933
When the game

606
00:20:24,933 --> 00:20:27,299
released, August 21st, 2007,

607
00:20:27,833 --> 00:20:30,033
I left my closing crew job at the local

608
00:20:30,033 --> 00:20:31,833
McDonald's to drive over an

609
00:20:31,833 --> 00:20:33,599
hour to the closest GameStop,

610
00:20:34,000 --> 00:20:35,933
if I remember correctly, it was still an

611
00:20:35,933 --> 00:20:37,400
EB Games location at the time.

612
00:20:38,033 --> 00:20:39,433
I had intended to pick up the

613
00:20:39,433 --> 00:20:41,133
game at the midnight launch,

614
00:20:41,133 --> 00:20:43,099
but the store wasn't actually doing a

615
00:20:43,099 --> 00:20:44,333
midnight launch because

616
00:20:44,333 --> 00:20:45,299
I live in rural Maine.

617
00:20:45,700 --> 00:20:47,900
So I just slept in my car so I could pick

618
00:20:47,900 --> 00:20:49,166
up a copy when the store

619
00:20:49,166 --> 00:20:50,700
opened at 10 a.m. the next day.

620
00:20:50,933 --> 00:20:53,099
I was 18 at the time, so I'm surprised

621
00:20:53,099 --> 00:20:53,766
that I had my

622
00:20:53,766 --> 00:20:55,633
priorities in such perfect order.

623
00:20:56,066 --> 00:20:56,666
When I got the game

624
00:20:56,666 --> 00:20:58,133
home, it didn't disappoint.

625
00:20:58,733 --> 00:21:02,433
I played it on my Xbox 360 on a 3x2

626
00:21:02,433 --> 00:21:05,533
32-inch Sony CRT PVM, which I had

627
00:21:05,533 --> 00:21:07,099
acquired through my dad's work.

628
00:21:07,433 --> 00:21:09,099
He was a security guard at the time, and

629
00:21:09,099 --> 00:21:10,000
they had used it in

630
00:21:10,000 --> 00:21:11,733
their CCTV monitoring booth.

631
00:21:12,366 --> 00:21:14,066
It had light burn-in, so I

632
00:21:14,066 --> 00:21:15,466
got it for next to nothing.

633
00:21:16,166 --> 00:21:18,500
And admittedly, the closest thing to a

634
00:21:18,500 --> 00:21:19,866
consumer video input

635
00:21:19,866 --> 00:21:22,166
the monitor had was VGA.

636
00:21:22,766 --> 00:21:23,866
At least that was all I

637
00:21:23,866 --> 00:21:24,799
recognized at the time.

638
00:21:25,033 --> 00:21:27,833
So I had bought a first-party VGA cable

639
00:21:27,833 --> 00:21:30,266
for my 360, which yes, they did make.

640
00:21:30,700 --> 00:21:33,799
I was playing Bioshock at 1024x768.

641
00:21:34,333 --> 00:21:35,266
It might have actually been

642
00:21:35,266 --> 00:21:36,966
higher than that on my 360.

643
00:21:37,566 --> 00:21:40,599
The PVM was brilliant, unlike the plasma

644
00:21:40,599 --> 00:21:42,200
screens and the LCDs at the time.

645
00:21:42,766 --> 00:21:44,033
There was depth to the color.

646
00:21:44,266 --> 00:21:47,000
The dynamic range was as good as it got

647
00:21:47,000 --> 00:21:48,933
for the time, and it also

648
00:21:48,933 --> 00:21:50,666
added to the game's atmosphere.

649
00:21:51,400 --> 00:21:53,299
My little brothers would watch me play,

650
00:21:53,299 --> 00:21:54,766
and they were just as scared

651
00:21:54,766 --> 00:21:56,599
of the game as Mike's mom was.

652
00:21:57,000 --> 00:21:58,433
The Splicers were terrifying

653
00:21:58,433 --> 00:22:00,266
to them, and they scared me too.

654
00:22:00,766 --> 00:22:02,466
My middle brother couldn't help but keep

655
00:22:02,466 --> 00:22:04,200
watching the whole time asking,

656
00:22:04,599 --> 00:22:06,133
"Why do you keep moving forward? Just

657
00:22:06,133 --> 00:22:07,166
stay where you are, where

658
00:22:07,166 --> 00:22:08,099
there aren't any monsters."

659
00:22:08,166 --> 00:22:10,900
[Music]

660
00:22:11,166 --> 00:22:12,000
Personal reflection.

661
00:22:14,200 --> 00:22:15,400
I thought about his question.

662
00:22:15,900 --> 00:22:17,266
Despite my fears, the story

663
00:22:17,266 --> 00:22:18,799
compelled me to keep going.

664
00:22:19,166 --> 00:22:21,866
And importantly, after I beat the game, I

665
00:22:21,866 --> 00:22:23,500
really wrestled with the narrative.

666
00:22:23,966 --> 00:22:25,666
It induced the same kind of deep,

667
00:22:26,000 --> 00:22:27,599
uncomfortable dissonance I had felt

668
00:22:27,733 --> 00:22:29,766
just a few short years prior as I

669
00:22:29,766 --> 00:22:30,766
divorced myself from

670
00:22:30,766 --> 00:22:31,700
my parents' religion.

671
00:22:32,299 --> 00:22:34,866
See, as a young man, boiling over with

672
00:22:34,866 --> 00:22:35,866
the errant political

673
00:22:35,866 --> 00:22:37,700
ideology of my father's weird,

674
00:22:38,266 --> 00:22:41,566
cultish, proto-QAnon dogmatism, Bioshock

675
00:22:41,566 --> 00:22:43,400
was an indictment of everything I had

676
00:22:43,400 --> 00:22:44,933
been told to believe.

677
00:22:45,599 --> 00:22:48,066
Despite having left his church, I hadn't

678
00:22:48,066 --> 00:22:50,900
separated myself from his off-brand of

679
00:22:51,000 --> 00:22:53,066
perverted conservatism that worshipped

680
00:22:53,066 --> 00:22:55,033
violence and authoritarians.

681
00:22:55,466 --> 00:22:57,799
Nor the ideology that mistook blind,

682
00:22:58,000 --> 00:22:59,966
pseudo-intellectual confidence for merit.

683
00:23:00,900 --> 00:23:02,933
I credit Bioshock's narrative as

684
00:23:02,933 --> 00:23:05,400
instrumental to exercising

685
00:23:05,400 --> 00:23:07,133
that partisan demon from my

686
00:23:07,133 --> 00:23:07,500
mind.

687
00:23:08,000 --> 00:23:10,866
The story, the themes, the allegory, the

688
00:23:10,866 --> 00:23:12,133
setting, perfectly

689
00:23:12,133 --> 00:23:14,433
balanced and profoundly astute,

690
00:23:14,833 --> 00:23:17,266
a sprawling, masterful and effective

691
00:23:17,266 --> 00:23:19,333
critique of an ideology that was

692
00:23:19,333 --> 00:23:20,766
polluting my post-exit

693
00:23:20,766 --> 00:23:21,233
worldview.

694
00:23:25,266 --> 00:23:25,733
Reception

695
00:23:28,266 --> 00:23:29,766
Besides the impact it had on me

696
00:23:29,766 --> 00:23:31,333
personally, the game was

697
00:23:31,333 --> 00:23:33,133
met with universal praise.

698
00:23:33,666 --> 00:23:35,633
At a time where the gaming press had

699
00:23:35,633 --> 00:23:38,000
measurably more integrity, outlets

700
00:23:38,000 --> 00:23:39,200
including Destructoid,

701
00:23:39,666 --> 00:23:42,000
Eurogamer, Gameinformer, GameSpy,

702
00:23:42,266 --> 00:23:44,166
1UP.com, and the official

703
00:23:44,166 --> 00:23:46,400
Xbox magazine all gave the

704
00:23:46,400 --> 00:23:48,500
game top marks, while other outlets

705
00:23:48,500 --> 00:23:50,366
including GameSpot, IGN,

706
00:23:50,566 --> 00:23:52,299
and PC Gamer giving the game

707
00:23:52,299 --> 00:23:54,166
near perfect 9 out of 10 scores.

708
00:23:55,266 --> 00:23:57,266
But Bioshock also crossed over into the

709
00:23:57,266 --> 00:23:58,533
broader cultural discussion.

710
00:23:59,099 --> 00:24:00,966
Pete Metzinger of the Los Angeles Times

711
00:24:00,966 --> 00:24:02,966
raved, "Sure, it's fun to

712
00:24:02,966 --> 00:24:04,200
play, looks spectacular,

713
00:24:04,433 --> 00:24:06,566
and is easy to control, but it also does

714
00:24:06,566 --> 00:24:07,766
something that no other

715
00:24:07,766 --> 00:24:09,166
game has done to date.

716
00:24:09,500 --> 00:24:11,000
It really makes you feel."

717
00:24:11,466 --> 00:24:13,500
After all, aren't video games supposed to

718
00:24:13,500 --> 00:24:14,866
make us lose ourselves

719
00:24:14,866 --> 00:24:16,733
in vast imaginary worlds?

720
00:24:17,966 --> 00:24:19,200
Bioshock does, and more.

721
00:24:20,466 --> 00:24:22,033
The fact is, most critics heaped

722
00:24:22,033 --> 00:24:23,033
comparable praise on

723
00:24:23,033 --> 00:24:24,700
the title, and rightly so.

724
00:24:30,633 --> 00:24:30,733
Legacy

725
00:24:34,233 --> 00:24:35,433
Bioshock is esteemed as one of the

726
00:24:35,433 --> 00:24:36,566
greatest games of all

727
00:24:36,566 --> 00:24:38,166
time, from the art direction,

728
00:24:38,466 --> 00:24:39,500
the storytelling, or

729
00:24:39,500 --> 00:24:40,633
the twist at the end.

730
00:24:41,033 --> 00:24:43,433
In 2010, Bioshock 2 launched under the

731
00:24:43,433 --> 00:24:44,733
auspices of 2K Marin.

732
00:24:45,233 --> 00:24:47,066
The game was less of a critical darling

733
00:24:47,066 --> 00:24:48,266
but stood on its own

734
00:24:48,266 --> 00:24:49,700
merits with a decent story.

735
00:24:50,266 --> 00:24:52,066
It was an evolution of the mechanics of

736
00:24:52,066 --> 00:24:53,333
its older brother, and it

737
00:24:53,333 --> 00:24:55,166
provided a mostly satisfying

738
00:24:55,166 --> 00:24:56,666
experience for fans of

739
00:24:56,666 --> 00:24:57,666
the Bioshock universe.

740
00:24:58,299 --> 00:25:00,633
Then Irrational followed up with Bioshock

741
00:25:00,633 --> 00:25:02,033
Infinite, a game set

742
00:25:02,033 --> 00:25:03,900
in 1912 aboard a city

743
00:25:03,900 --> 00:25:04,633
in the sky.

744
00:25:05,166 --> 00:25:07,033
When Bioshock Infinite was announced,

745
00:25:07,033 --> 00:25:07,900
many derisively took

746
00:25:07,900 --> 00:25:09,266
to calling it Skyoshock,

747
00:25:09,533 --> 00:25:11,799
but it immediately caught my attention.

748
00:25:12,233 --> 00:25:13,733
But the story of Infinite will have to be

749
00:25:13,733 --> 00:25:14,633
saved for another

750
00:25:14,633 --> 00:25:16,666
episode, which I just might

751
00:25:16,666 --> 00:25:17,733
pen sometime soon.

752
00:25:18,566 --> 00:25:19,299
If you'd like to see that,

753
00:25:19,566 --> 00:25:20,400
make sure you get subscribed.

754
00:25:25,433 --> 00:25:25,866
Impact

755
00:25:28,166 --> 00:25:29,766
Bioshock was intended to be a spiritual

756
00:25:29,766 --> 00:25:31,500
successor to System Shock 2.

757
00:25:32,033 --> 00:25:33,333
I'd say it was, and

758
00:25:33,333 --> 00:25:34,666
quite successfully so.

759
00:25:35,133 --> 00:25:37,299
Not because it was a critical darling and

760
00:25:37,299 --> 00:25:38,633
a smash hit, but because

761
00:25:38,633 --> 00:25:39,799
of how it was similarly

762
00:25:39,900 --> 00:25:41,166
able to trigger a

763
00:25:41,166 --> 00:25:42,599
seismic shift in the industry.

764
00:25:43,299 --> 00:25:45,133
Much like Doom, Half-Life, and Halo

765
00:25:45,133 --> 00:25:46,566
before it, the games

766
00:25:46,566 --> 00:25:48,566
industry can be inspected through

767
00:25:48,566 --> 00:25:50,533
a pre and post-Bioshock lens.

768
00:25:51,333 --> 00:25:53,766
In fact, I'd argue that Bioshock might be

769
00:25:53,766 --> 00:25:54,733
the last truly

770
00:25:54,733 --> 00:25:56,700
profound, even revolutionary

771
00:25:56,766 --> 00:25:58,033
title for the industry.

772
00:25:58,533 --> 00:26:01,166
One that had a lasting and importantly

773
00:26:01,166 --> 00:26:02,966
positive impact that

774
00:26:02,966 --> 00:26:04,566
shaped all other games that came

775
00:26:04,566 --> 00:26:05,133
after it.

776
00:26:05,333 --> 00:26:06,833
I already mentioned how the game's

777
00:26:06,833 --> 00:26:08,466
control scheme solved the

778
00:26:08,466 --> 00:26:10,400
problem of Bioshock's unique

779
00:26:10,966 --> 00:26:12,000
mechanics, but it was

780
00:26:12,000 --> 00:26:13,866
influential in other ways too.

781
00:26:14,633 --> 00:26:17,033
While titles like System Shock 2, Deus

782
00:26:17,033 --> 00:26:18,799
Ex, and others had mixed

783
00:26:18,799 --> 00:26:20,466
action and RPG mechanics

784
00:26:20,533 --> 00:26:22,966
before, it was Bioshock that hit the

785
00:26:22,966 --> 00:26:24,233
sweet spot and set the

786
00:26:24,233 --> 00:26:25,266
standard going forward.

787
00:26:25,833 --> 00:26:27,066
At least as far as I'm

788
00:26:27,066 --> 00:26:28,666
concerned as a mainstream gamer.

789
00:26:29,433 --> 00:26:31,166
Upgrade trees that lent a sense of

790
00:26:31,166 --> 00:26:32,200
progress while not gating

791
00:26:32,200 --> 00:26:34,033
off the fun, a sense of growth

792
00:26:34,166 --> 00:26:35,333
and the accumulation of

793
00:26:35,333 --> 00:26:36,400
power throughout the narrative.

794
00:26:37,133 --> 00:26:38,766
Similarly, the game's storytelling

795
00:26:38,766 --> 00:26:40,133
prowess caused many

796
00:26:40,133 --> 00:26:41,866
other games to step up their

797
00:26:41,900 --> 00:26:42,266
narratives.

798
00:26:43,033 --> 00:26:44,866
I would be curious to see an alternate

799
00:26:44,866 --> 00:26:46,099
reality where Bioshock

800
00:26:46,099 --> 00:26:47,166
had never been published.

801
00:26:47,733 --> 00:26:49,766
How would that have negatively impacted

802
00:26:49,766 --> 00:26:51,033
games like Uncharted 2,

803
00:26:51,266 --> 00:26:53,066
Heavy Rain, or even Portal

804
00:26:53,233 --> 00:26:53,466
2?

805
00:26:58,666 --> 00:26:59,266
Would you kindly?

806
00:27:02,000 --> 00:27:03,933
While games like Halo 3, Super Mario

807
00:27:03,933 --> 00:27:05,333
Galaxy, Gears of War,

808
00:27:05,566 --> 00:27:07,433
and yes, even PEGL all have

809
00:27:07,433 --> 00:27:10,033
their own merits, Bioshock stands apart

810
00:27:10,033 --> 00:27:11,400
from the other absolute

811
00:27:11,400 --> 00:27:12,833
giants released that same

812
00:27:13,033 --> 00:27:13,133
year.

813
00:27:14,133 --> 00:27:16,533
Even today, some 18 years since its

814
00:27:16,533 --> 00:27:18,633
release, the game feels fresh,

815
00:27:19,099 --> 00:27:20,200
innovative, and important.

816
00:27:20,700 --> 00:27:24,099
No microtransactions, no cosmetic DLC, no

817
00:27:24,099 --> 00:27:25,099
online multiplayer,

818
00:27:25,633 --> 00:27:27,066
just a man, a lighthouse,

819
00:27:27,700 --> 00:27:28,166
and a city.

820
00:27:29,266 --> 00:27:31,666
The game is relevant today for its combat

821
00:27:31,666 --> 00:27:32,733
and stealth mechanics,

822
00:27:33,033 --> 00:27:34,233
its strategy, and all

823
00:27:34,233 --> 00:27:37,166
that jazz, but most especially, Bioshock

824
00:27:37,166 --> 00:27:38,700
is relevant today for

825
00:27:38,700 --> 00:27:40,266
its prophetic admonitions

826
00:27:40,366 --> 00:27:42,066
against mistaking loud,

827
00:27:42,466 --> 00:27:44,633
provocative idealism for merit.

828
00:27:45,866 --> 00:27:48,466
Ultimately, Bioshock is a cautionary tale

829
00:27:48,466 --> 00:27:49,433
that demonstrates

830
00:27:49,433 --> 00:27:51,066
precisely what happens when

831
00:27:51,066 --> 00:27:53,866
we let technology undermine trust and

832
00:27:53,866 --> 00:27:54,766
social understanding.

833
00:27:55,666 --> 00:27:57,033
What happens when we let those at the

834
00:27:57,033 --> 00:27:58,633
very top spend money,

835
00:27:59,033 --> 00:28:00,966
enact violence, and weaponize

836
00:28:00,966 --> 00:28:03,433
technology to ensure their superiority?

837
00:28:04,366 --> 00:28:07,333
It's all so sadly, deeply relevant.

838
00:28:11,133 --> 00:28:13,666
Technology is a tool, one we could

839
00:28:13,666 --> 00:28:15,400
harness to improve and make

840
00:28:15,400 --> 00:28:16,766
better lives for ourselves

841
00:28:16,900 --> 00:28:17,566
and our neighbors.

842
00:28:18,400 --> 00:28:20,299
Bioshock teaches us that, if left to

843
00:28:20,299 --> 00:28:21,533
their own devices, the

844
00:28:21,533 --> 00:28:23,066
people at the top will use

845
00:28:23,066 --> 00:28:24,333
those tools of liberation

846
00:28:24,333 --> 00:28:26,766
to oppress and divide us.

847
00:28:28,033 --> 00:28:30,666
So, would you kindly help me depose the

848
00:28:30,666 --> 00:28:31,766
Andrew Ryans and the

849
00:28:31,766 --> 00:28:33,366
Frank Fontaine's of our world?

850
00:28:51,666 --> 00:28:53,166
This has been Would You Kindly?

851
00:28:53,166 --> 00:28:55,466
A Bioshock Retrospective, an article that

852
00:28:55,466 --> 00:28:56,400
was originally posted

853
00:28:56,400 --> 00:28:57,799
on The Bryant Review,

854
00:28:58,366 --> 00:28:59,333
GardinerBryant.com.

855
00:29:00,033 --> 00:29:01,566
This is an article I had an

856
00:29:01,566 --> 00:29:02,833
absolute pleasure writing.

857
00:29:03,433 --> 00:29:05,766
If you liked this article, you can check

858
00:29:05,766 --> 00:29:08,099
out tons more stuff just like

859
00:29:08,099 --> 00:29:10,233
it over on GardinerBryant.com.

860
00:29:10,599 --> 00:29:12,099
I'm not the only writer there.

861
00:29:12,099 --> 00:29:13,333
We have other writers,

862
00:29:13,333 --> 00:29:15,700
including Dash, Karl Chocensky.

863
00:29:15,900 --> 00:29:16,933
We have my girlfriend Emily.

864
00:29:17,566 --> 00:29:19,333
All of us are writing over there, and we

865
00:29:19,333 --> 00:29:22,933
have usually about one article a day, and

866
00:29:22,933 --> 00:29:25,166
they're all just as cool as this one was.

867
00:29:25,466 --> 00:29:27,066
Thank you so much for enjoying this

868
00:29:27,066 --> 00:29:28,766
episode, and I will see

869
00:29:28,766 --> 00:29:30,366
you guys in the next one.

