BioShock is clearly in a state of change, as there has been no new offerings since Burial at Sea in late 2013. With new developer Cloud Chamber taking on the huge task of following up what is one of gaming’s best trilogies, it has to separate itself from what has come before. The influence of BioShock is clearly felt in games like Prey and We Happy Few, but all these years later the success of the series may be a source of its downfall. To escape the huge shadow of its predecessors, BioShock 4 needs to push the boat out and try something new with its combat.
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Bioshock Infinite’s Boring Battles
Despite Vigors and Salt replacing Plasmids and Eve, BioShock Infinite couldn’t replicate what made the original so beloved. The story is great and its conclusion is iconic, but there was something missing in the eyes of some fans. The dense, unsettling walls of Rapture are replaced with the euphoric, dream-like setting of Columbia, which turns out to be far from what initially meets the eye. The tone lacked any sense of horror, and with the levels being more open and less claustrophobic than before, the fights feel far less desperate than they are in the city under the sea.
In truth, BioShock Infinite isolated a lot of existing fans because the enemy encounters felt very simplistic. Vigors are largely useless, and ensuring that the equipped gun has enough ammo is the primary concern for players. It removed so much of the charm of the series, and as the anticipation around BioShock 4 continues to build, it’s clear that it will have to reach further back in the series for combat inspiration. In fact, placing less emphasis on combat entirely would only help make it stand out in 2022, with only a handful of first person games presenting a combat system that isn’t gun-centric.
Never Understate What the Plasmid Did
It’s learned when players initially reach a Gatherer’s Garden in BioShock that Plasmids are not only intrinsically woven into the story, but offer truly innovative gameplay that emphasizes the importance of environmental awareness and fast-paced strategy. Releasing a torrent of angry bees on an unsuspecting splicer or using Incinerate to set a nearby oil spill ablaze is essential to surviving the harrowing journey through Rapture. The obsessive nature of the city’s inhabitants made Plasmids more of a survival tool than a weapon to inflict damage.
BioShock 4 should understand this. Leaning into a combat component that’s both mechanically and narratively experimental by nature was one of the best things about the original, and gives the franchise the opportunity to further submerge itself in the unique. Jack is never the aggressor and so very rarely has control over a situation, so Plasmids do well to even the playing field. Compare this to Booker in BioShock Infinite who always feels like he’s comfortable with a firearm, and the experience feels far less tense. Prey, Ghostwire: Tokyo, and even Dishonored have taken the mantle from BioShock, and if the latter wants to have the same impact as it did in 2007, it will surely have to be even more weird.
Despite never reaching the highs of its first entry, BioShock is facing a huge issue with its fourth release. Expectations have skyrocketed in nine years, and it would be all to easy to buckle under the weight of the series’ previous successes. A change in setting is a likely course of action, but replicating the combat of BioShock Infinite won’t be enough to save it. In the pursuit of avoiding common first-person shooter traps, BioShock 4 should go the opposite direction and, like the crazy inhabitants of Rapture, do something truly experimental.
Bioshock 4 is currently in development.
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