We experience Columbia through DeWitt’s interactions with it, and there are none more important than those with Elizabeth. In a very real sense this is her story, her coming of age if you will, and her character development is central to the work. When first encountered she is a prisoner, a bird in a gilt cage which has never seen the light of day. Even so she is knowledgeable, having a grounding in science and a natural talent for lockpicking, and possesses an odd gift: the ability to bend space-time to her will, opening tears in the fabric of reality. It’s not clear how she learned to do this, but it may provide useful. Elizabeth serves the dual-role of guide and conscience in BioShock Infinite and is a major departure from the status-quo in video game storytelling purely because she's a partner with agency of her own rather than a disembodied voice calling out over the radio.
Over the course of time Booker and Elizabeth relationship grows and evolves as they rely on each other to further their own goals – goals which are often in conflict as she soon comes to understand that Booker has a debt which cannot be repaid by taking her globe-trotting - and one of the strongest narratives tools Irrational have implemented is how Elizabeth’s demeanour and appearance changes. A recent example for comparison may be to the Lara Croft characterisation in Tomb Raider (2013) whose appearance develops around the body-breaking experiences of her fight for survival; in Infinite Elizabeth’s evolution is far more subtle, but all the more powerful for that. She begins very much as a youthful, exuberant girl and ends… well you’ll have to play for yourself to find out, but the change is performed with an excellent understanding and recreation of human body-language.
During the Victorian era spiritualism was a popular fad of the upper-middle classes and gave rise to many movements which, to varying degrees, claimed powers not of this world. Cast in this mould is the character of Zachary Hale Comstock - figurehead of Columbia, self-styled Prophet, Elizabeth’s father and primary antagonist - but with one key difference from the charlatans of old: through means mystical or technological he has tapped into powers beyond the understanding of the time.
Comstock claims to have founded his faith on the basis of an angelic visitation decades ago and has organised a quasi-religious following centred on principles espoused by three of America’s Founding Fathers: Washington, embodying strength of arms; Franklin who represents innovation; and Jefferson, a rule of law figurehead. Out of this, and the wealth he gained from it, Columbia was born with a thriving middle-class and repressed underclass. Whether by accident or design a cult of personality has grown around this Prophet, his martyred wife and their daughter (symbolically represented as the Lamb); connotations of both innocence and sacrifice are intentional.
It takes more than one man to implement such a grand vision. Jeremiah Fink is Comstock’s major partner and another city founder, taking the position of defacto head industrialist of Columbia and overall responsibility for many of the innovations which make the city-state advanced and powerful. It was his company which develop the Vigors, chemical augmentations for the common man with ample funds, and maintain the Skyway as a primary means of travelling between the floating city blocks.
Supporting roles are afforded to Doctor Lutece – the scientific mastermind responsible for the creation of Columbia – and the Vox Populi faction led by Daisy Fitzroy, towards whom the city Founders are mutually antagonistic. Uncovering their role in the events, and where possible gaining their support, will be crucial to Elizabeth and DeWitt’s ultimate fate.
Early on these cast members are presented as simple archetypes representing the conflicting ideologies of the time. As the game is fleshed your understanding will shift considerably as knowledge you gain paints them as much more than merely black and white, much like that of Atlas in the original title.
Voxophones
BioShock heavily featured brief voice clips in the form of Audio Diaries to progress the story and layer knowledge of the game world and its inhabitants. BioShock Infinite’s analogous device is the Voxophone, a self-contained audio recorder and player upon which the inhabitants of Columbia have imprinted snippets of their thoughts, feelings and day-to-day activities. Voxophones are found throughout the game, often in closed off or secret areas, and in many respects are your primary reward for exploration. They can be revisited at any time through the in-game menu, where location information is also stored.
The most enlightening recordings are those of Dr. Lutece, the scientist who has a role in the genesis of Columbia in much the same way that Dr. Tenenbaum played her part with Rapture. Uncovering her story is crucial to arraigning all the other knowledge in some sort of context, although it will turn out to be something of a mind twister.
The Kinetoscope
Kinetoscopes are historical newsreels of Columbia’s history, formulated as propaganda similar to cinematic vignettes presented during World War One. As a narrative device they’re full of flavour, but aren’t quite as important for the plot as providing context for the (often abhorrent) beliefs of the inhabitants of what might at first have appeared to be an enlightened city. More generally, they show Columbia's influence in some of the major events in the pre-war years, including the Boxer Rebellion which would ultimately lead to the city's secession from the United States.
You’ll see them dotted around the game, most often concentrated in tourist hotspots or where they’re necessary for ‘educational’ purposes.
