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Do Bioshock Infinite’s Protagonists Talk Too Much?

By on July 10, 2011

The first Bioshock had a silent protagonist, but Bioshock Infinite trades him in for two that won’t stop talking. At least that’s the case in the latest gameplay demo. They joke, tell each other what to do, and seem somewhat attached to each other. Will gamers become annoyed from all the talking, or will it make the game better?

That isn’t a tough question; it will make the game a lot better. A silent protagonist is never a good idea for a story driven game, and Ken Levine and the folks at Irrational Games realized this. I understand some gamers say it adds to immersion—but I’d argue the opposite.

What’s so immersive about someone asking you questions, only for you not to respond? Did you talk to your PC while playing Half-Life 2? If you did the character in the game wouldn’t understand anyways, they wouldn’t even hear you. See, that’s the problem with the silent protagonist, it can’t be truly immersive if they can’t respond. Games with mute lead characters need to use something like Kinect’s voice recognition software, and then you can respond and become truly engrossed (the person talking to you won’t move on with the conversation until you reply).

It’s wonderful that Booker and Elizabeth constantly talk to each other—this builds an actual relationship and eventually makes you care about the characters. And for a game like Bioshock Infinite, this is just as important as the gameplay. Imagine if Nathan Drake was mute, would Uncharted 2 still be thought of as a masterpiece?  The gameplay would stay great—but most (all) of the charm comes from Nate and how he interacts with the other characters.

The first Bioshock felt lonely. Sure, the sense of loneliness added to the atmosphere, but that was a simple trick, since you were underwater and couldn’t talk to anyone.  The sky is the perfect setting for Bioshock Infinite. Irrational Games will have to work harder to sell their atmosphere now. Since both protagonists talk they can aim for something that beats loneliness, friendship (or possibly romance). That’s cheesy, but it’s true. What do you think, do you prefer a protagonist that doesn’t talk?

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I'm DeShaun Zollicoffer, and I approve this message/bio. "26-years-old, Proud Northeast Ohioan, a Gamer Without Loyalties, an Equal Opportunity Offender, Apple Evangelist, Apple Hater, Music Lover, Anime Junkie, Little Monster, Frequent Flyer, Dexter Fanatic, Title Case Addict, and Geek Revolt's Founder and Editorial Director."
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  • Baka

    There should be a limit to wishing Infinite to be just “bioshock 3″ and like the others . We already saw with bio2 (even if by a different team) that it only leads to more of the same , slighly less interesting or good , even if still good .

    They want Infinite to have a different feel and atmostphere vi changes like visible and talkative protagonists ? So be it .

    • http://www.geekrevolt.com/ DeShaun Zollicoffer

      I’m glad they’re doing something new, I didn’t even play Bioshock 2 because I felt there was nothing else to be said. Somethings don’t need direct sequels, and I think Infinite will be another one of those games, 2K will probably get another team to work on an Infinite 2 while Irrational Games goes off to do something else. 

  • tony

    God bless Gordon Freeman…

  • http://twitter.com/squibsforsquids Bryan Reid

    I really liked the choice of having a mute protagonist in the first two Bioshocks, but – to agree with you – this one almost seems too loud and vibrant to keep up the silence. 

    The only thing that worries me about debuting a speaking protagonist is losing some of that unspoken potential. Once you add a script and a voice to a character, the player isn’t allowed much flexibility to invent their own characteristics for that character. Think how much we invent about Gordon Freeman or the protagonist from the original Doom to fill in the fact that they never speak. An important part of any script is learning when to say nothing and let the audience fill in the blanks. I really hope they get this.The trade-off will be interesting, at least. If Infinite feels anything like the first Bioshock, I’ll consider it a real success on Irrational’s behalf. If it slips into the storytelling mediocrity of Bioshock 2… well… yeah. I’ll be much less enthused in that case.