Yes, it seems the folks over at Irrational Games really do want to stray far from the series’ roots with their latest BioShock marvel. Instead of entering the city post social-cataclysm, BioShock Infinite will drop the player in the midst of civil war.
Irrational Games boss Ken Levine has shared some details about the setting that players will find themselves in when they arrive on the floating city of Columbia. After it is discovered that the floating city is being used as an advanced warship, America disowns the city and a state coup is started. This leads to the formation of two volatile factions: the Ultranationalists and “Vox Populi”.
As an outsider, your mission is to infiltrate Columbia and rescue a girl, Elizabeth, who will accompany you for certain portions of the game. Levine divulged a little more information on this mystery woman, saying that she “is the trump card that can turn everything around”.
Levine also mentioned that the events in BioShock Infinite is somewhat influenced by current state of America’s political society.
“There’s definitely a component in America today that nationalism is extremely important to certain people – a sense that America is a separate case. It’s something I’ve always found fascinating. It’s an interesting element to divide over – where you’re born. It’s kind of an accident, right? And how porous those borders are – people who are in the same country with different ethnic backgrounds and religious backgrounds – there are a lot of ways to draw demarcations. It’s interesting to me how important those become to people and I wanted to explore that.”
BioShock Infinite is certainly a radical departure from the underwater confines of the previous two games. Ken Levine’s latest project will be available in 2012, but expect much more coverage on this sky-high game before its release.
