Things are about to get intricate. The standout title of the Bioshock series is a mesmerizing horror experience, both aesthetically and narratively. While the emotional weight of the finale resonates deeply with players, the intricate intellectual aspects of the conclusion can be truly perplexing. Here’s an exploration of the ending of Bioshock Infinite.
When they said “infinite,”they genuinely meant it
In the climax of the game, our muscle-bound protagonist, Booker DeWitt, learns that he is also the central antagonist: the obsessed leader of Columbia, Zachary Comstock. Confused? Allow me to clarify. As players know, Booker DeWitt carries a troubled history. He fought in the U.S. military during the tragic Battle of Wounded Knee, where American soldiers massacred many Lakota individuals, predominantly women and children. Although he is offered a baptism to cleanse his soul, he rejects it. He descends into despair, turning to drinking and gambling while trying to make a living as a detective. His journey begins with a mission to “find the girl and wipe away the debt.”
Or does it begin?
Interestingly, there exists an alternate timeline where Booker accepted the baptism, choosing to leave his past behind and be “born again.”He adopts a new identity as Zachary Comstock and establishes Columbia, a city dominated by zealotry. Lacking the ability to father children, Comstock resorts to abducting his own daughter, Anna, from another timeline—the one of Booker DeWitt. This is made possible through the “tears”in spacetime, a technology pioneered by quantum physicists Rosalind and Robert Lutece. In this new identity, he renames Booker’s daughter Elizabeth, raising her as his own in Columbia.
As one might guess, a group of armed religious extremists commanding a floating metropolis isn’t exactly a recipe for prosperity or happiness. Once Elizabeth regains her full powers and peers through the endless possibilities of the multiverse, she realizes that Columbia poses a significant threat across all realities. In every scenario, it ultimately leads to catastrophic destruction or explosive outcomes in the world below.
To eliminate Comstock from the multiverse permanently, Elizabeth guides Booker to a pivotal multiversal nexus—a river where he was baptized. Joined by other versions of Elizabeth from different timelines, she proceeds to drown Booker in this water, erasing Comstock’s existence from every timeline. The multiverse is salvaged, and there’s no need for The Avengers to intervene.
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