Frustrating. It's a beautiful game for sure, and I'm certain in 2013 that would have been an even bigger understatement. That being said, beyond aesthetic improvements, it consistently missed every mark. The changes to weapons, combat, and upgrade systems felt several steps backward as Bioshock 2 essentially hammered out the weak points of the First game. 2 weapons at a time felt awful, and gear felt just as bad.

While Rapture -was- Bioshock 1 and 2, Columbia was just a bunch of forgettable samey setpieces that take a back seat to the story that I found myself wanting to check out from once I hit the 30% mark.

Disappointing.

"We swim in different oceans but land on the same shore."

as much as every BioShock game is fascinating, it does feel like Infinite is on a league of its own. such an ambitious, narrative driven sequel that flips the script in every way. while i miss some of the aspects of the first two titles, it's indeniable that this is a first rate shooter still, thrilling from beginning to end.

kinda shocking how head-on this game tackles period racism and religious hypocrisy, even though it ends in a pretty centrist and non-commited position. it does bear remembering that it tells it story through Booker's eyes, and Booker's pretty far from being a good person by any means. so when he says "there's nothing different between Comstock and Fitzroy" he's pretty much conforming to his own moral deficit.

after this game, the BioShock series can be everything and anything at all, and i honestly think that's wild.