Bioshock infinite research

Bioshock Infinite
A Irrational Games Game
http://www.bioshockinfinite.com/home

Bioshock Infinite is a First person shooter game made by Irrational Games and released in 2013. The narrative follows the story of Booker, a man tasked with rescuing a girl from a city in the sky. 'Set in 1912, players assume the role of former Pinkerton agent Booker DeWitt, sent to the flying city of Columbia on a rescue mission. His target? Elizabeth, imprisoned since childhood. During their daring escape, Booker and Elizabeth form a powerful bond -- one that lets Booker augment his own abilities with her world-altering control over the environment. Together, they fight from high-speed Sky-Lines, in the streets and houses of Columbia, on giant zeppelins, and in the clouds, all while learning to harness an expanding arsenal of weapons and abilities, and immersing players in a story that is not only steeped in profound thrills and surprises, but also invests its characters with what Game Informer called “An amazing experience from beginning to end."' (http://www.bioshockinfinite.com/the-game/) The game features an Old American style world in the sky, with the buildings and environments having some influence from Victorian buildings. Its unique and beautiful world and characters are all strong inspirations to my work and designs.

Character Design

The character I want to look at in Bioshock for design inspiration is Elizabeth. Having a very Victorian inspired outfit and presence, she presents the perfect influence for my character design. The experimentation of Elizabeth’s clothing features long colourful dresses, conveying a strong resemblance to Victorian dresses worn by upper class women. The close up image of Elizabeth also has a very Victorian look, with the use of skin tone and flushed cheeks, with pouted lips, used in female portraiture of this era to portray the beauty of women. This style of painting and concept art is a style I will experiment with, creating a Victorian look to my female characters through the use of skin tone and expression. The final design for Elizabeth is a mixture of a Victorian style, with modern elements. This is also a style of design I want to explore with my own main character, with the concept art for Elizabeth being very inspirational to my designs.

Environment Designs

I chose to look at the environments in Bioshock Infinite as they are extremely unique and beautiful, and also create a Victorian look with a mixture of modern elements. This is a technique and look I want to explore in my own work. The exterior of the buildings have an old-fashioned look to them, with thin windows and columns, as well as beautiful designs. The high roofs with windows also creates a unique look, with the colours also resembling those used in Victorian times on their homes. With the traditional look of the house at the top of the building, the bottom features technology beyond this era, however it is styled in a way to look similar to the building and not look out of place. The interior of the buildings is also inspirational to my work, as the use of wooden beams on the walls, and patterned wallpaper create a very Victorian look. The use of furniture and colours in the interior of the house are successful in creating an old fashioned look to the buildings, which I will need to implement in my own designs of the interiors of my houses.