Time Travel discussion

For all you time-travel gamers, I highly recommend giving Bioshock: Infinite a chance. It's a stand-alone story in the Bioshock series, and probably one of the best stories I've seen in games in recent years, if not ever. It qualifies more as inter-dimensional travel/time travel, but it's a captivating piece of sci-fi/fantasy nonetheless.

It's 1912, and you play as Booker Dewitt, who travels to the air city of Columbia to retrieve a young woman, Elizabeth, who's imprisoned there. Once you find her, you and Elizabeth have to fight your way out of the city. You find out that Elizabeth possesses the ability to tear holes in space/time, and not only are her abilities pivotal to the story, but it's used in many unique and interesting ways in the gameplay.

It's a first-person-shooter, so if you don't like violence, it's probably not recommended. But it's really all about the story, and although the end is a little abrupt (and will make your head spin by all the complexities), I found myself reminiscing about it in a way I've never done in a video game before. And there are so many clues and hints throughout the game that it almost requires you to play it a second time.

The graphics, the gameplay, the story, all of it comes together in a medium rarely seen as an artform.

Give it a shot! Or shock?

Thanks Adam.

I love the first bioshock game but never saw it as a time travel story but more of a cross over parallel world story.

I actually have all three games, the second one i bought long ago but never got round to playing it and the third one i got on promotional offer. Shall i play second first or can i jump straight to third one because you make it sound so umissable!

Honestly, I would say you can skip the second one. The first 2 aren't directly related to the story, although the first one is worth playing and is a classic in itself. Without giving anything away, there's definitely parallel world/time travel elements in infinite. They do some really fun and surprising stuff with it.

Thanks Adam, I will start playing Infinite tomorrow. Just finished the first Assassin's Creed game but need a departure from that trilogy.

Infinite looks to be in the running for best game of the year (but I think it will lose out to The Last of Us).

I have clocked 13 hours of this game so far and its quite a spectacle. Not as scary as the original game but the narrative and gameplay is riveting.

Where the first game was set in an underwater city, this is set in city in the clouds where buildings float and bridge up at schedule times. Pretty imaginative with a steampunk alternate reality using a 1930s fashion and social stigma which includes racism and segregation of the times. Its quite shocking how blatant its depicting racism here to the extreme, I'm sure this might be controversial but it is serving the narrative.

Only gripe is that with all the effort to make the world attractive and detailed, why do they make all the female faces look the same and the male faces with double the range (ie two different faces). Kills the immersion somewhat.

I broke away from this game temporarily for 5 days to play and complete the newly released Last of Us on PS3 (a masterpiece, greatest game ever).

Yesterday, returned back to this game but I am so confused with the story! Its sure as hell exciting and action packed. Bloody difficult on normal level too. Finally coming up to some sort of time travel element where as up to now it has been about alternate timelines. But I am well confused about whats going on. I might need to read a script for this afterwards if I still dont grasp the plot.

Phew, what an epic, mind screwing game. Awesome. Totally deserves its game of the year nomination (Though as I said in my last post, The Last of US gets my vote as the greatest game ever.)

But the story is a hardcore time travel/parallel dimension delight that in its concept is superior to most time travel novels that we've read.

The game was pretty damn hard to finish at the end, I died a thousand times unit I finally got through the last level of mayhem.

Its the story and revelation that knocks you for six (sorry thats the equivalent of your "home run"). In terms of time travel sci fi, this will be legendary. A fantastic journey.

I was very confused about whats going on as I played the game but the ending pieces it all together in shocking style.

But the true ending comes at the end of the credits. I hope those of you that have completed the game, stayed to the end for the final scene. Very very important.

Adam, if you have a PS3, and enjoy a great story performed by high calibre actors, cinematic brilliance combined with graphics and gameplay then I highly reccomend The Last of US (not just the best game of the year but the best movie of the year too)...but alas no time travel.

The strange thing is the voice actor who plays DeBooker (the main protagonist in Bioshock), also voices Joel, the main character in Last of Us! And even more coincidentally, there is a great deal of similarity in the storyline too in terms of character drive, relationships and mission! Bizarre.

Thanks for the info, Tej. I have an Xbox360, but I've heard The Last of Us is amazing. Maybe it's time to get a PS3.

The ending was insanely difficult, I don't know how long I spent trying to beat it. Like you said, the ending was confusing, but I found a lot more clues playing some it a second time through.

Oh i didnt find the ending confusing, it was the journey that confused me. The ending, although quite condensed and quite a rush pieced it all together. But i am sure i would pick up more on a second playthrough.