14 DAY TRIAL // Ken Levine is continuing to drop information about the upcoming BioShock Infinite, this time talking about the inter-dimensional tears that computer controller companion Elizabeth will be able to open up for the protagonist to explore.
The leader of Irrational Games says the tears are very important to the story of the game, adding, “I’ve always felt that the game systems and your narrative have to be interwoven. You didn’t just find magic powers in Rapture. They were very tied in to what happened with the city.”
The connection between actual gameplay mechanics and story has always been one of the hallmarks of Ken Levine projects and, in the original BioShock, powers were used to teach players about the history and the philosophy behind Rapture.
The tears first became an important element of BioShock Infinite when Irrational Games demoed them to players during E3 2011. The game section showed Elizabeth opening a portal that pointed to a version of the 1980's, where a movie called Revenge of the Jedi was playing in cinemas.
Levine says, “it evolved into a slightly different form in the actual game, now that you’re playing the actual game. But it very quickly explained a lot to people, in a very clear way, what was going on. Some of these things are just useful for conveying information, and some of them are useful as part of a larger mystery.”
The dimensional power will not be the only one that Elizabeth has access to as she explores the island of Columbia alongside former detective Booker DeWitt.
Players will not be able to directly control her at any point during the narrative.
BioShock Infinite is at the moment set to appear on the PC and home consoles at the end of March 2013, after being pushed back twice in order to allow for more development time.