BioShock Infinite: Burial at Sea

Lore & Background

Burial at Sea is set after the events of BioShock Infinite, which spanned several alternate realities. Whereas Infinite takes place aboard the floating city Columbia, Burial at Sea primarily takes place in the underwater metropolis Rapture before the events of the first BioShock game. The game features Booker DeWitt as a private detective, and Elizabeth as a femme fatale who employs Booker's services. Episode One begins on December 31, 1958, with Elizabeth asking Booker to investigate the disappearance of a young girl named Sally. The pair confront the artist Sander Cohen, who tells them Sally is in the Fontaine Department Store, which was sunk and cut off from the rest of the city by Rapture's founder Andrew Ryan to serve as a prison for followers of his believed-dead competitor, Frank Fontaine. Within Fontaine's, Booker finds Sally turned into a Little Sister, and has flashbacks revealing he was once Zachary Hale Comstock, founder of Columbia, who stole the infant Anna (Elizabeth) from an alternate universe Booker, leading to Anna's accidental death. Comstock was sent to Rapture, lost his memories, and reassumed his identity as Booker DeWitt. Elizabeth rebuffs his apology, and Comstock is killed by an armored Big Daddy.

Reader's Guide

Burial at Sea is significant as a narrative and gameplay coda to Irrational Games' work on the BioShock series. Reception to its two episodes was mixed: the return to Rapture was generally praised, but Episode One drew criticism for its short length and lack of differentiated gameplay. Reviews for Episode Two were more positive, with multiple critics calling Burial at Sea a fitting swan song for Irrational's work on BioShock, as the studio reorganized. The expansion mixes gameplay elements from BioShock Infinite and earlier BioShock games, reclassifying Vigors as plasmids and reintroducing the weapon wheel for carrying more than two weapons. Episode Two shifts to stealth-focused gameplay as Elizabeth, adding new mechanics like the Peeping Tom plasmid and a crossbow with non-lethal options. A '1998 Mode' challenges players to complete Episode Two using only non-lethal methods, a callback to Irrational precursor Looking Glass Studios' 1998 stealth title Thief: The Dark Project. The expansion's plot connects directly to the events of the original BioShock, with Elizabeth's final vision showing Jack's arrival in Rapture and the subsequent events of that game.

Did You Know?

• Burial at Sea was developed as downloadable content for BioShock Infinite, with work commencing immediately after finishing the main game.
• The expansion's setting of Rapture was recreated with very little reuse of assets from the original BioShock, using them only as reference for new three-dimensional geometry.
• Episode Two includes a '1998 Mode' that challenges players to complete the episode using only non-lethal methods, referencing Looking Glass Studios' 1998 stealth title Thief: The Dark Project.
• The Old Man Winter plasmid, which freezes and shatters enemies, was created from a concept by fan and graphic designer Joe Trinder.