![]() ![]() I understand that more than the violence and the idea that we might have some hand in it, it’s often the game-y mechanics that will be even more off-putting. I’ve had much experience with trying to show videogames to people who generally don’t touch them (yes, they still exist) and I would have taken a very different approach to our little play-test. The first was very excited about discussions of morality and the idea of how transient and impermanent death is in these virtual worlds, whereas the other couldn’t wait to escape. I was sitting at a desk with two friends (who happen to be Christian ministers), as one tried to show the other something of the world of videogames by showing him the original Bioshock. For many, the idea that it’s an arena of simulated violence where we must keep watch over a health bar and ammunition count is enough for them to disqualify it from having anything interesting to offer. I would argue that more than the ultra-violence, more than that first act of violence and that policeman’s face and more than the juxtaposition of clean air and bright skies against the bloody themes, it is the health packs (pineapples, whatever) and littered ammunition that hold Bioshock back from reaching that specific potential. But maybe, just maybe it needs to stop being a game. It could have been the game to give validity to our pastime in the eyes of many “non-gamers”. Kirk Hamilton puts it well in his article on the violence in Bioshock Infinite. Despite what many have said, I found the combat engaging with plenty of strategy and there are several scenes which will stay with me for life, but after trying to show someone else the wonder of Bioshock, I came to realise a few things. ![]() nurture, faith, baptism and redemption is playing out around us. We’re playing I Spy for ammo when an interesting narrative built around Quantum Physics, oppression, nature vs. These are stat checks in a shooting gallery. It’s easier to see how such visually impressive, aurally interesting and thematically powerful set pieces are let down by the fact there are “bosses”, shields health from garbage and all the other videogame tropes we know and (don’t always) love. But more than that, Bioshock Infinite opened my eyes to the current limitations of the medium. ![]() I was engaged by the world, the lore and the loopholes. Got it? Good.īioshock Infinite spoke to me in a way that games haven’t done in a while. Bioshock Infinite – Telling People About Videogames – Hey, Listen ![]()
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