Andrew Ryan and Uncle Jack
One thing that both BioShock and We Happy Few have in common is a grand, leading voice. In the world of Rapture, it was Andrew Ryan, a genius with lofty aspirations of a utopia held up by not religion and kindness but by science and art. One where the mind is the greatest asset and no god nor king will command your bidding. Andrew Ryan embodied that, exhibiting no fear of what the next man could achieve, respecting that each person had a choice, for “a man chooses, a slave obeys.”
We Happy Few’s Uncle Jack, on the other hand, is a bit of a creep. He tells stories of Joy and conformity, urging everyone to stay in line. Heaven forbid you decide to go the way of a Downer, someone free to make their own choice and risking the “perfect” world that has been put in place by your “loving” government.
The figurehead of each game carries a deeply message. While one opens you up to the possibility of true, unbridled freedom, the other condemns anything that isn’t in keeping with the norm. From these two figures the unique worlds of each game, both BioShock and We Happy Few, spring forth.
