10 Brilliant Video Games That Surprised Everyone - Commenter Edition
2. Bioshock Infinite
Bioshock Infinite's departure from the original titles' doomed underwater setting was an understandable cause for concern for many of the series' fans.
Despite the fact that Bioshock 2 was a lazy, surface-level rehash of the first game which fundamentally missed the point of the series, the decision to set Infinite in the opposite setting - a city in the sky - was unwelcome. Coupled with rumours of a trouble development cycle and meddling from publisher 2K Games, it seemed bound to fail.
On the contrary, Bioshock Infinite was an outstanding title and the perfect true successor to the peerless original. Irrational Games built upon the mechanics they had at their disposal and created a game that was distinct from, yet complementary to its predecessor.
The tense survival horror was replaced with a swashbuckling action epic, and tight, claustrophobic environments made way for large open arenas with opportunities for fast-paced, highly mobile combat - something that was in short supply in 2013, when just about every shooter was a plodding military yawn-fest.
Infinite's story was also a step up from the original Bioshock. Deuteragonists Booker and Elizabeth lent a solid emotional core to the experience, and their ultimate fates were simply heartbreaking.