Elizabeth Is a Shark: Ken Levine on BioShock Infinite

Really Enjoyed it!

I know this is way after the fact, but I wanted to point out that Jeri Ryan was married to Jack Ryan (who was a pervert whose disgrace led to Barack Obama running unopposed into the US Senate), not Paul Ryan. Otherwise, that post was really, really good.

I don't want to call Levine a hack, since even moderately talented writers are so rare in video games. I would say that his views on history are simply consistent with what can be expected from someone coming out of an American public (read: state-run) school... purposefully incomplete and often factually wrong.

Just as one example, when Booker comes across one Columbia citizen early in the game that says "Don't worry, I'm not like the others; I'm a PROGRESSIVE!" it is obvious that they're saying that Progressives = Non-racist good guys, and in turn equating the word "Founders" with racist white people. It's not hard to piece together that Levine views limited-government, constitution-supporting Americans who often quote the "Founding Fathers" as racists. Of course he does, that's what he's been told again and again by talking heads every day on the news before going into work on his video game. Conveniently he probably doesn't bother to look up people like Alan Keyes, Thomas Sowell, Allen West, Star Parker or Clarence Thomas. That might rock his myopic progressive world-view boat.

Considering the fundamentally racist philosophies of "great" influencial progressives like Woodrow Wilson and Margaret Sanger, it's hard to take any historical allusions in the game seriously after that point. But Jeff and Patrick aren't going to challenge any of that, they think (or rather avoid thinking) precisely how they were raised to; by the Department of Education.

"Bring up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it." - I found that quote in Bioshock Infinite very, very ironic coming from Levine.

You're basing your entire opinion on someone and their beliefs by a fictionalvideo game.

You cite "Mainstream education sucks" but history proves it itself, America was founded on racism, Native Americans were driven out and slaves brought in. This game nowhere in my recollection ever tries to take a stab at constitutionalism but rather at the very idea of a "Perfect Republic" and it's inherent flaws. If someone is loyal to a Republic that was founded on hate (and hasn't progressed ethically) your disdain seems misguided. In that scenario, which IS the scenario in the game, the "progressive" would be the "good" character. You're projecting your own fear and worry when really, who is even going to perceive the game in a way in which their current political beliefs are affected by it? (Aside from those who are looking for strawmen.)