1. Bioshock
Shocking, we know, but was there ever really any question that the original Bioshock would stand out as the best in the series?
The premise alone stands out as one of the best in gaming. As the survivor of a plane crash, players swim towards a lighthouse in the distance. Once inside, they wander into a submersible that takes them to Rapture, a city built under the sea.
Not long after reaching the city though, they discover something is terribly wrong. The inhabitants have gone made from overusing a drug capable of giving them other-worldly powers, and with the help of an oddly cordial man named Atlus, the player needs to find a way out as fast as possible.
Everything that follows – the open-ended approach to gameplay thanks to Plasmids, the silky-smooth shooting controls, and the immersive world full of twists, turns and shocking discoveries – is so delicately crafted and well-executed that gamers new and old still flock to the title whenever it’s released on a new platform.
Not only that, but the story still stands as a pinnacle for video game storytelling. Whether players have had it spoiled over the years or not, experiencing it is still a right of passage for most gamers, and a testament to what can be done through this medium that can’t be achieved anywhere else.
Bioshock is, and likely always will be, an exceptional piece of gaming media, and one that has more than earned its status as the best in its series.
