So, I really enjoy Bioshock 1 & 2 for multiple reasons. But for right now, I'm looking at it for stealing for RPGs. Anyone done anything?
Four ideas really come out of it:
Splicers and their Degeneration
It's easy to look at splicers (with ADAM and plasmids) as magic. Not because of the magical effects per se, but the way that common citizens get their hands on easy magical powers that alter them and watching them degenerate into drug addicts and criminals because "Hey, we have power!" Not to mention the mental/physiological degeneration. Pretty much the only magic in D&D or common fantasy that causes a downward spiral (besides Defilers and "Black Magic") so it's an uncommon trope that is sadly missing in D&D.
Little Sisters and their Big Relatives
Again, remove the specifics of ADAM, the concept of Little Sisters and their bigger relatives is really interesting. Everyone loves "creepy little children", and the Little Sisters are converted monsters that "harvest" things from people. What they "harvest" is in high demand (so it can be argued a "necessary evil"). Imagine if they were draining raw Xp, or raw magic, raw healing/divine energy - easily accessed and bottled. And of course these are related to the Big Sisters.
Meanwhile, the Big Daddies are people. People pretty much lobotomized and converted into armored zombies. To facilitate, again, the demand for what the Little Sisters are harvesting. This is so easy to facilitate in fantasy. It's even easier to consider the Warforged as Big Daddies, but instead of physical bodies, perhaps it's just the target's soul or brain or essence or whatnot that is trapped in the Warforged body.
Cities On the Hill
Typically if you have a tyrant, he's there because he's the biggest, strongest guy with the most power, and he's in charge. Rarely is it a personality cult.
Rapture is instead made by a guy (and then later a woman) with a Vision. He didn't have power until after the fact, but the entire Place is built to venerate his Ideology. Rarely do you see places that are shaped by the leader's opinions, rather than just his Goals (War/Power/Control). Rapture is intriguing because this Philosophy was built right intot he foundation - and then it fell down under the weight of the idea. So it's a contradiction and a failure, but even BEFORE then, it was built purely on a philosophy.
Exotic Environment
The exotic location of being Underwater is neat. It is intriguing. It also allows for exceeding Isolation and Control. It's Unique in the part of the World.
Rapture isn't just a "city underwater". The fact it's underwater is a constantly reinforced thing. Walking through hallways that are completely glassed, so you see the sea around you. Areas are continually leaky. Rooms occasionally burst and you have to escape the flood (or walk along the bottom of the ocean).
So it implies that if you create such a unique place that is linked to its locale and environment, constantly reinforce it. Tie that location so much to it. So it's not just "A town sitting in this funny place" but "many aspects of this funny place is incorporated into it" and "effects behavior" and a lot of other effects related to the city itself.
Final point
Bioshock 1 & 2 constantly reinforce their themes. The plot(s) are circling all the things it's created, rather than plots that barely touch them. So a site-based adventure, have the hooks and the plots reinforcing the characteristics of the city itself.
Four ideas really come out of it:
Splicers and their Degeneration
It's easy to look at splicers (with ADAM and plasmids) as magic. Not because of the magical effects per se, but the way that common citizens get their hands on easy magical powers that alter them and watching them degenerate into drug addicts and criminals because "Hey, we have power!" Not to mention the mental/physiological degeneration. Pretty much the only magic in D&D or common fantasy that causes a downward spiral (besides Defilers and "Black Magic") so it's an uncommon trope that is sadly missing in D&D.
Little Sisters and their Big Relatives
Again, remove the specifics of ADAM, the concept of Little Sisters and their bigger relatives is really interesting. Everyone loves "creepy little children", and the Little Sisters are converted monsters that "harvest" things from people. What they "harvest" is in high demand (so it can be argued a "necessary evil"). Imagine if they were draining raw Xp, or raw magic, raw healing/divine energy - easily accessed and bottled. And of course these are related to the Big Sisters.
Meanwhile, the Big Daddies are people. People pretty much lobotomized and converted into armored zombies. To facilitate, again, the demand for what the Little Sisters are harvesting. This is so easy to facilitate in fantasy. It's even easier to consider the Warforged as Big Daddies, but instead of physical bodies, perhaps it's just the target's soul or brain or essence or whatnot that is trapped in the Warforged body.
Cities On the Hill
Typically if you have a tyrant, he's there because he's the biggest, strongest guy with the most power, and he's in charge. Rarely is it a personality cult.
Rapture is instead made by a guy (and then later a woman) with a Vision. He didn't have power until after the fact, but the entire Place is built to venerate his Ideology. Rarely do you see places that are shaped by the leader's opinions, rather than just his Goals (War/Power/Control). Rapture is intriguing because this Philosophy was built right intot he foundation - and then it fell down under the weight of the idea. So it's a contradiction and a failure, but even BEFORE then, it was built purely on a philosophy.
Exotic Environment
The exotic location of being Underwater is neat. It is intriguing. It also allows for exceeding Isolation and Control. It's Unique in the part of the World.
Rapture isn't just a "city underwater". The fact it's underwater is a constantly reinforced thing. Walking through hallways that are completely glassed, so you see the sea around you. Areas are continually leaky. Rooms occasionally burst and you have to escape the flood (or walk along the bottom of the ocean).
So it implies that if you create such a unique place that is linked to its locale and environment, constantly reinforce it. Tie that location so much to it. So it's not just "A town sitting in this funny place" but "many aspects of this funny place is incorporated into it" and "effects behavior" and a lot of other effects related to the city itself.
Final point
Bioshock 1 & 2 constantly reinforce their themes. The plot(s) are circling all the things it's created, rather than plots that barely touch them. So a site-based adventure, have the hooks and the plots reinforcing the characteristics of the city itself.
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