Review for BioShock: The Collection. Game for PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch, the video game was released on 13/09/2016 The version for PC came out on 15/09/2016 The version for Nintendo Switch came out on 29/05/2020 The version for PlayStation 4 came out on 15/09/2016 The version for Xbox One came out on 15/09/2016
"Doesn't a man have rights to the sweat of his brow?" Andrew Ryan wondered in the 20s. This question, posed by a tycoon who has always wanted to grow on bread and free markets, would have been the spark that would have led to the foundation of a company far from everything else, so far from being built at the bottom of the sea: Rapture. Thus began the epic of BioShock, which after being made to wait on Nintendo Switch has finally come with its waves on the little one from Nintendo.
The series needs few introductions: the first BioShock dates back to 2007 and along with the other chapters marked an era, that of the great generational leap. The mastermind behind it all was Ken levine, at the helm of the now lamented Irrational Games. A lot of water has passed under the bridge, but the BioShock series has not lost an iota of its initial luster on whatever console it has landed, including Nintendo Switch.
The hardware of this hybrid console is amazing, and has had the opportunity to prove it: Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen is one example, but the most shining proof of what it is not to be underestimated is certainly the port of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. Added to these are a couple of 2K series, Borderlands (which we reviewed recently) and the same BioShock, one of the most anticipated of the games of the old guard. As always, those of BlindSquirrel Games have taken care of this last port: so the Ken Levine series is now on all consoles, and everyone can enjoy it.
It wasn't impossible to build Rapture at the bottom of the sea. It was impossible to build it anywhere else.
What Makes BioShock Special? History? The gameplay? The answer is both. Apparently it is a simple FPS with a steampunk taste but, letting yourself be completely immersed the charm of the series lies in its being retro-futuristic and in mixing various genres always hitting the target.
The various BioShocks are not only shooters but also have an RPG component, not to forget that puzzle and a very strong focus on history, which has its pyrotechnic conclusion with BioShock Infinite. The series is suspended between past and future, and can be seen even just by imagining an underwater colony in the fifties or even more with the aforementioned Infinite, which takes us to the clouds when the calendar marks the year 1912. BioShock has been able to win by playing with anachronistic freedom his cards - we have a striking example in Infinite: the music is from the 30s - enriching everything with philosophical, moral and economic concepts.
Let's take a rundown of the three games that make up this collection on Switch. Although the series can be said to be over (we recommend that you tackle it in order of release with the BioShock Infinite DLC "Funeral at Sea" last), there is a fourth chapter in the works even if Irrational Games is no longer involved. But let's go in order: it all starts with the first BioShock, in 2007.
In this chapter the player explores Rapture for the first time in the role of Jack who, following a plane crash, ends up falling and reluctantly discovers society in the depths of the Atlantic Ocean. Disgusted by so-called "parasites" (people who live on the shoulders of others), Andrew Ryan has reaped the crème de la crème of the surface by retreating into his utopia based on man and the free market. A characteristic of utopia, however, is that, after all, it is always a dystopia. Ken Levine draws on various dystopian readings, and is well aware that any movement based on the repudiation of injustice runs the risk of becoming the very thing it is struggling against. That's what happens to Rapture, whose plasmid race - which empowers by changing DNA, as well as being the RPG component of the game - ended up ruining the cologne on the notes of 50s songs, which give the experience a bittersweet flavor.
BioShock 2 comes with the success of the original. Levine does not participate in the project: Rapture had been told, he said, only to come back and close everything with the DLC of BioShock Infinite. 2K itself works on this second chapter, and it is considered BioShock's Dark Souls 2, which is the weakest of the trilogy because it was deprived of its creator. Despite having had the misfortune to find himself between two giants, BioShock 2 is more than worth living. The title takes us back to Rapture and delves into the figure of the Little Sisters and Big Daddies, the steampunk divers who have become the mascot of the series. The Little Sisters are child carriers of ADAM, the substance from which plasmids are created, and the Big Daddies have the task of protecting them during their travels. The title does not differ much from the previous one, but adds new features such as the Big Sister and multiplayer, without forgetting its main peculiarity, which is the possibility of impersonating a Big Daddy!
Columbia, the castle in the sky
Ken Levine and Irrational Games return to work on BioShock Infinite, which arrives in 2013. At the end of it all Levine says he feels ten years older, then 2K decides to close Irrational Games and the paths of BioShock and Levine are divided forever. Although the ending of this story is not the happiest, BioShock Infinite was and remains a marvel, the total maturation of the story and gameplay of the series. From the sea, the center of the action moves to the sky: among the clouds is Columbia, another utopian society, this time born with the aim of demonstrating what the American dream is to all those who have remained planted on earth . Among the suspended and white streets of Columbia reign not only festoons and typically American realities, but above all a religious fanaticism that belongs to the leader Zachary Comstock, proclaimed a prophet.
BioShock Infinite starts with a very captivating message that has almost become famous: "Bring us the girl, and cancel the debt". The aim of Booker DeWitt, a war hero turned private investigator, is to access Columbia and save "the girl" in order to cancel a debt accumulated due to gambling. The journey to Elizabeth - counted among the most memorable NPCs - is among the most engaging of the trilogy, and culminates with a twist that is worth a trip to the castle in the sky created by Irrational Games alone. as a farewell to the series. We are towards the end of the PS3 and Xbox 360 generation and BioShock Infinite, despite maintaining the original imprint with the Vigor, who are none other than the plasmids of this adventure, has the opportunity to offer breathtaking views and a more diversified gameplay and eventful. The skyline, a network of cable cars that connects all of Columbia, are an example: they allow you to easily turn the level of the game and start frantic fights in the air, but precisely because of this the title is more guided and less exploratory of previous BioShocks.
All three chapters are embellished by the various audiodiaries scattered between Rapture and Columbia, tape recordings made by the many histrionic personalities that tell the story of the world woven by Ken Levine and 2K. These show a good dubbing in Spanish, also thanks to well-known names such as Claudio Moneta, Riccardo Rovatti and Pietro Ubaldi, to name a few. The games also on Switch are completely localized in Spanish and of course include all post-launch DLC.
Rapture and Columbia, (finally) portable jukeboxes
Finally Levine's idea of bringing the series to a portable console has come true, only that its owner is not Sony with its PlayStation Vita but the big N with Nintendo Switch. BlindSquirrel's operation allows BioShock: The Collection to run surprisingly well on Nintendo Switch, adding it to the ranks of "miracles" with which we began the review. Given that fps go from 60 to 30 compared to other consoles, playing the three chapters - Infinite in particular - did not involve any hiccups, neither in TV nor in handheld mode. We had some doubts about the portability of BioShock: the idea of playing on a train or on a beach simply doesn't suit titles that make their immersive nature a distinctive trait. The plot must be followed because it is the true focus of the series, but the potential to bring the collection with you to bed or to your favorite room is inviting and, let's face it, strangely satisfying, also thanks to the non-existent lag. On the graphics side, which has never been the real highlight of the series until BioShock Infinite as opposed to an undoubted artistic direction, the remastered on Switch has been refined in line with the other consoles, and it goes from 1080p to 720p depending on how it was decided to play.
There are no details to report: the difficulty is adaptable at any time in all three chapters, and in the first two where the rooms of life, which allow the infinite respawn of the character, can be deactivated, the gloomy and stranded atmospheres of Rapture thus take on the potential for an almost survival horror experience. In BioShock Infinite we often found the text (to be more precise the game UI) too small, calibrated for the portable screen even when the console is connected to the TV. Unfortunately, even with the Switch's zoom function it is impossible to readjust the size of the text and information such as the money in our possession, as well as the remaining ammunition, are really microscopic data to consult. Infinite, it must be said, is also the heaviest game of the lot and requires the most battery consumption.
The last word goes to the soundtrack: those composed and original by Garry Schyman do their duty, but most of the atmosphere is conveyed by real existing licensed songs spanning the XNUMXs to XNUMXs mostly jazz genre (the pop of the time), with croaking audio and unforgettable charm, which make BioShock a journey into the history not only of music, but a necessary videogame experience.
And I say to myself "It's wonderful, wonderful ... Oh, so wonderful, my love."
BioShock is like wine: the older it gets, the better it gets. The series deserves to be included sooner or later in its videogame heritage and today, with the arrival on the Nintendo Switch, having it always with you has never been easier. The quality of the games and settings remains undisputed even today, with Rapture at the bottom of the sea and Columbia in the clouds that offer a mixture of genres with a mind-boggling story and music capable of great charm. Impersonating Jack, Subject Delta or Booker with the feeling that you are playing with the most famous consoles make this collection not without small flaws - such as the FPS that have been halved or the very stingy text size - but always tremendously fascinating. An appeal to those who have never tried BioShock… play it on Switch, “Please“ (cit).
► BioShock: The Collection is a Shooter-RPG-Adventure type game developed and published by 2K Games for PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch, the video game was released on 13/09/2016 The version for PC came out on 15/09/2016 The version for Nintendo Switch came out on 29/05/2020 The version for PlayStation 4 came out on 15/09/2016 The version for Xbox One came out on 15/09/2016
