Ludic Dreams

Bioshock is really everything I wanted it to be. The creators have crafted a true masterpiece, and my god I give them all the credit in the world.

Expansive, interesting weapon system? Endless (but simple!) customization? A death system that rewards persistence and strategy? Yum. However, the shining jewel is the sense of morality in the game- I will do my best not to spoil it, but what I am going to say is nothing you don’t learn within the first five minutes, or the Demo, so please continue to read.

In the game, they have genetically altered little girls to harvest ADAM ( a sort of stem- cell cocktail) from dead bodies- the little girls can navigate the various tunnels of the city, Rapture. The Little Sisters are guarded by Big Daddies- the quintessential ‘badasses’ of the game- they are basically giant bastards in old-school scuba tanks. Using a combination of firepower, and fire powers (along with Ice, Tornadoes, Anger, Electricity, fucking bee’s…. I mean, seriously) you can take down the giant bastards. What happens next is really the terrible part.

There is a moment in the game where you learn the fate of these little girls. They are just plain ole’ stuffed with ADAM. You can extract the ADAM in one of two ways- you can ‘rescue’ them- it removes the parasite from them, and you recieve a bit of ADAM in the process. Or, you can Harvest them- a painful procedure that forcibly removes the parasite from them, gaining an abundance of ADAM. ADAM allows you to further edit your genetic code, allowing for more powers, tonics, etc. Fun Fun Fun.

So, what do I choose?

I was sitting in my room with a good friend of mine ( some would say my ‘best’) and we where watching the scene in front of us; a little girl, easily no older than 8 or 9, crying, scurrying away from us. A man on the radio was telling us to ignore the physical appearence- “These aren’t little girls anymore!” – while the very creator of these little bastards is telling us to save them. On either side of the Little Sister, there is a button, with a label underneath. X for harvest, Y for Save.

And we waited there.

I discussed it with my friend- the game had drawn us in, and I took a moment to think as my friend spoke.

My plane had crashed in the middle of the ocean.

I descend a random sea-bound lighthouse, looking for a phone.

I end up in a submarine, a Bathysphere, and find a fucking mutant killing someone in front of me.

Some guy tells me it is up to me to save his family, and that I should trust him.

And now, the very thing that will give me the edge in this battle is wriggling around in front of me.

My eyes grew dim, and my brow furrowed profusely.

I held down X very hard, and my friend stopped speaking.

“Whoa, can you go back?”

I could.

“I won’t.”

As the little girl writhed in my arms, the screen went green with a muted scream. As it cleared up, the ADAM meter clicked upwards, and the game continued.*

“You wouldn’t really do that, dude?” My friend asked, not looking at me.

It’s a really good thing, too.

Because he would have seen me nodding.

This game has put me into this state of mind, one where my normally lofty morality is replaced by cold, hard, truth. Besides, my Savior is telling me to kill them, whereas the crazy bitch who spawned the demons is telling me to listen to her? No thank you.

Bioshock is a really good game.

Here’s to hoping you are braver than I am.

-F9

*Some of you might be a little disgusted; well, fuck you. I am playing the game for the first time, all the way through, on hard mode. So there.