BioShock's Portrayal of Randian Ideology is More Prescient Than Ever
When Irrational Games and 2K Games first released BioShock in 2007, it made an impact for several reasons. Not only was the game a well-designed first-person shooter with a gripping story and an unsettling atmosphere, but it had a breathtaking setting with its underwater metropolis that had only an echo of its former grandeur. BioShock was a creative and engrossing ride from start to finish, and the in-depth lore of the environment and the characters that were crumbling away within it added to the polish of the entire game. Overall, BioShock was an unforgettable and undeniably impactful game that influenced subsequent titles and the genre as a whole.
But it wasn't just the nuanced and twisting narrative or visually impressive setting that set BioShock apart from its video game counterparts — it was the interaction with and examination of ideologies and philosophical issues. Although all three BioShock games tackle thorny questions and interrogate various ideological belief systems, it is through the character of Andrew Ryan and his reasons for creating the underwater city of Rapture that the developers fully explore Ayn Rand's philosophy of Objectivism. While some of these aspects are open to interpretation and players can choose to engage with them as they see fit, they are undoubtedly foundational for BioShock's setting and major characters, and represent some of the game's themes.
BioShock 4 Could Take on These Philosophies
Ayn Rand was a prominent writer and philosopher in the 20th century, known for her various works of fiction and for the development of a system of philosophical thinking that she named Objectivism. Her most well-known fictional works include The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged — books that explored
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