Ken Levine: Ascending the Throne
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More than any other game that Ken Levine has worked on, BioShock is very much his creation. This is his Citizen Kane, the game that will vault Ken Levine towards the stratosphere of masterful game designers. BioShock is a perfect storm of elements: hardcore action, amazing graphics, plotting, sound, music, set design, interactivity and gameplay. It represents the very best of what the industry can do, delivering an experience that single-handedly destroys Roger Ebert's claim that videogames aren't art. Ken Levine has created a fascinating game world that is built upon the work of Ayn Rand, philosopher and literary giant known for Objectivism and her two powerful novels, The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged, both of which tell the tale of individuals against the concept of collectivism. While a lot of this will be lost on people not familiar with the work of Ayn Rand, I've seen many references throughout the game that clearly indicate Ken's passion for her work. For instance, the world of Rapture was created by an industrialist named Andrew Ryan, which is eerily similar to the name Ayn Rand. Andrew Ryan was born in Russia, just like Ayn Rand. Your helper throughout the game is called Atlas...Ayn Rand wrote Atlas Shrugged.
Will BioShock suffer the same fate as System Shock, wherein the critics love it but the consumer passes it by? Not a chance. This time, Ken has overwhelming hype on his side. More importantly, gamers have evolved in their tastes and are far more prepared for the experience that BioShock will deliver. Just like a character in an Ayn Rand novel, Ken has been tilting at windmills for years but his time has finally come.
