By Luke Kirby
Bioshock fans rejoiced last week as Burial at Sea Episode 1 was released, taking fans to an all-too-familiar yet alien setting.
I’m sure most are aware that Burial at Sea allows players to roam around Rapture prior to its demise and before it became hell, a thousand leagues below the surface. When I found out this was a feature I was undeniably excited and during the first section I found myself completely ignoring both Elizabeth and my waypoint to have a look at Rapture during its prime. Irrational Games have done a great job placing us into an environment that, up until now, we have only been able to imagine.
Bioshock fans rejoiced last week as Burial at Sea Episode 1 was released, taking fans to an all-too-familiar yet alien setting.
I’m sure most are aware that Burial at Sea allows players to roam around Rapture prior to its demise and before it became hell, a thousand leagues below the surface. When I found out this was a feature I was undeniably excited and during the first section I found myself completely ignoring both Elizabeth and my waypoint to have a look at Rapture during its prime. Irrational Games have done a great job placing us into an environment that, up until now, we have only been able to imagine.
While being the complete opposite of Columbia’s utopia, Rapture is just as equally beautiful in its own right. Aesthetically everything just seems natural about Rapture, nothing feels out of place. The art style fits in amazingly with this world, factors such as the 1950's vibe work brilliantly with the environment and characters.
Elizabeth’s character has changed noticeably from the main game as she is a lot more assertive and now leads, rather than tagging along in a timid fashion. This much is apparent from the very beginning with her waltzing into Booker’s office, speaking of debts and jobs and starting the story. As far as other characters are concerned there isn't much to say. I would have liked it if the NPC's were more engaging, you’re lucky to get a word or sentence out of some them but for the most part all your greeted with is a turn of a head.
When exploring Rapture there are areas that seem like they should be accessible but are not; refusal of entry or maintenance work halts players in their explorations. This is somewhat disappointing as there’s not too much to explore in Rapture, if you played like I did and looked in every shop and moseyed around taking in everything that there is to offer you’ll only eat up roughly 30 minutes of game time.
You don’t get long to linger in the glory of civilised Rapture; soon enough you and Elizabeth find yourselves in splicer territory and the action begins.
The combat in Burial at Sea differs from the guns-blazing attitude that your adventure in Columbia had. Ammo, eve and money pickups are a lot scarcer, meaning that before engaging in any combat I found myself assessing situations on what my best course of action would be. Therefore the majority of the time I’d do my best to try and sneak up on enemies and hammer the melee button so I could save my ammo and eve for when it was necessary. There’s a nice balance between the original Bioshock and Infinite giving a more survivor-horror feel to it.
While being a short piece of additional story content it’s satisfying. Fans of the Infinite story will almost certainly take a liking to it and enjoy it. I was just happy to get some extra time with characters I love in a universe I’m very fond of. Left on the mother of all cliff-hangers it’s safe to say I really enjoyed Episode 1, making me eager to get my teeth into the next episode and seeing how the story further develops...
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