A Review of the BioShock Franchise

I had the Flu for a week straight and had absolutely nothing to do but sit around at home. I decided to tackle my backlog of games that I’ve purchased and never touched, and so I booted up Bioshock 1, 2, and Infinite. I’m glad I finally gave these games a try

Bioshock (2007) - 10/10

This game is a rare shooter that combines worldbuilding, gameplay, and philosophy to say something meaningful about power, choice, and control.

Its worldbuilding communicates story through beautifully realized environments rather than exposition, embedding themes of free will, ideology, and utopia directly into both narrative and play. The audio design is phenomenal, and the art direction remains striking even today. Audio logs add texture to the world without interrupting momentum, reinforcing the game’s ideas rather than explaining them.

From start to end BioShock took me through a story uniquely suited for the medium it’s experienced in. The game is also just fun in its simplest form with fluid combat that has you balancing ammo management and your powers.

Years later, BioShock still stands as a pinnacle of the industry, introducing ideas that many games continue to chase but rarely match.

Bioshock 2 - 9/10

BioShock 2 is often treated as the black sheep of the franchise, but not for particularly good reason. While it doesn’t replicate the sense of discovery that defined the first game, that loss feels inevitable. Rapture was already unraveled.

Where BioShock 2 excels is in play. The combat is tighter, more fluid, and consistently more engaging, making it the most enjoyable entry to actually play moment to moment. The art direction and sound design remain excellent, preserving the atmosphere that defines the series even as the mystery fades.

The Minerva’s Den DLC stands as the strongest content in the franchise, delivering a focused, standalone narrative with genuine surprises and emotional weight.

BioShock 2 had the impossible task of following a masterpiece, and while it couldn’t recreate that first sense of wonder, it succeeds on its own terms. It’s a confident, well-crafted sequel that fully earns its place alongside its predecessor.The game is really fun when you don’t have someone in your ear saying it sucks.

Bioshock Infinite - 8/10

BioShock Infinite is the franchise’s most dramatic departure, shifting both setting and narrative in a way that feels intentionally disorienting. Where BioShock was about discovery and BioShock 2 about refined play, Infinite is about momentum and a more complex story.

Columbia, the city in the sky, is a striking and fully realized setting that contrasts sharply with Rapture’s decay. Movement through the skylines adds a sense of speed and spectacle, keeping combat dynamic and visually engaging. While the two-weapon limit simplifies loadouts, it also reduces some of the tactical freedom found in earlier entries.

The Burial at Sea DLC adds meaningful context, returning to Rapture through a noir lens and weaving Infinite more tightly into the broader franchise narrative.

BioShock Infinite doesn’t reach the heights of its predecessors, but that comparison does it a disservice. As the third entry in a series of exceptional games, it remains ambitious, stylish, and memorable in its own right.

Closing

BioShock as a franchise endures because it places the player at the centre of a compelling game that isn’t afraid to ask deeper philosophical questions. It’s an easy recommendation to make.