by Mark Barley
'BioShock: Infinite' religious content altered due to fan feedback
Irrational Games head Ken Levine has confirmed that BioShock: Infinite's religious content was "highly altered" due to fan feedback.
However, Ken Levine stated that the developer would not stray away from religious content to avoid offending anyone. In a recent interview with OPM, Levine stated;
“I had some very valuable conversations. One of the characters in the game was highly altered based upon some very interesting conversations I had with people on the team who came from a very religious background, and I was able to understand they were kind of upset about something."
“What I said to them was, ‘I’m not going to change anything to get your approval, but I think I understand what you’re saying and I think I can do something that’s going to make the story better, based on what you said,’” he explained.
“So I did that, and I’m grateful for them bringing in their perspective. The last thing I wanted to do was change something because it offends somebody, but the thing they pointed out was making it a lesser story.”
While Levine confirmed that religious overtones have a place in BioShock: Infinite, the content is not the main focus of the plot. “What I said to them was, ‘I’m not going to change anything to get your approval, but I think I understand what you’re saying and I think I can do something that’s going to make the story better, based on what you said,’” he explained.
“So I did that, and I’m grateful for them bringing in their perspective. The last thing I wanted to do was change something because it offends somebody, but the thing they pointed out was making it a lesser story.”
“I think people first saw it and thought it was a game about the tea party in America, then they saw it as a game about the labourer movement. Now people are going to think it’s a game about religion,” he said.
“It’s about patriotism, it’s about all those things but I think we keep larger meanings a little closer to our vest.”
BioShock: Infinite is out in March.
“It’s about patriotism, it’s about all those things but I think we keep larger meanings a little closer to our vest.”