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Bioshock Infinite’s upcoming downloadable content is still a mystery to everyone. However, while we don’t know anything about what it might include or what effect it will have on the story, we can try to predict what it might be.
Be warned that this post does contain spoilers.
Mystery Of Rapture explained?
I noted in my blog post “Understanding Bioshock Infinite’s Ending Part II Q&A” that I thought most of the existing Rapture theories were a bit outlandish and crazy. I still stand by that statement. There is no doubt that Rapture — the setting of the first BioShock — is relevant to the story of Infinite, but I don’t think it is as involved as people are making it out to be.
With DLC on the way, the true secret and relevance of Rapture could be explained. Maybe there is some hidden conspiracy here that I’ve missed, and everyone is right. If there is, then it might be explored in the upcoming content.
There are so many theories surrounding the cities of Rapture and Columbia that I can’t possibly go through them all and explain which ones I think are most likely to be true. The bottom line is that the Infinite’s future DLC may confirm or deny what people have been saying. We just have to wait and see!
Another universe?
Having already covered the “main universe” and ended the game on a very specific note, Bioshock Infinite can’t really continue to explore the original plot while picking up exactly where Infinite’s story stopped. So what might happen? What could it even do? Well, there are infinite possibilities, right? Infinite worlds and universes equals infinite DLC possibilities.
The extra content could easily focus on an alternate universe with Booker and Elizabeth. It could let you play as Booker when he lead the revolution in Columbia. It could let you be Booker in another world, where he made a different choice and something new happened. Or the DLC could very well take us on a journey with Booker through an alternate universe.
If it is released in this form, then the content will be either really story-focused — giving us a different perspective or more insight into the game’s plot — or it will be irrelevant and concentrate on its own individual story.
Just one note: As long as Elizabeth is in it, this is cool with me.
The view of a different man (or woman)
Downloadable content often puts you in the shoes of another character, so this is a strong possibility. Infinite could let you play as some other person — and maybe completely exclude Booker and/or Elizabeth. Or, hell, we might even get to play as Elizabeth herself.
We could play as Slate, Comstock, or someone entirely new from Rapture. Who said the DLC even had to be set in Columbia? It might turn out that the add-on is more of a tribute to Rapture by letting us return there for a third (technically fourth) time.
My main issue with this proposition about it following a different character is that these types of stories are often very weak and not very good. While I’m not saying Irrational won’t do a top job with whatever content it releases, even great developers can screw up. Even though the game is awesome, the DLC isn’t guaranteed to be as impressive.
But it better be good
I’m not a big fan of DLC — not because I don’t like spending extra money (I love the idea of exploring a game further) but because most add-on content sucks.
I absolutely adore Bioshock Infinite. If the DLC is bad, I will be very upset and unhappy. It doesn’t have to be perfect, but it should at least equal Alan Wake’s DLC in terms of quality. In fact, take a good look at the original Alan Wake game and what an outstanding job it did with its single-player add-ons. They were incredibly well made, and single-player expansions usually tend to suffer because they’re so much harder to develop than a standard multiplayer mode.
But it can be done. And you better do it right, Irrational. Got it? Good. Now hurry up and give us some new details. We’re dying over here!
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