TheBioShockfranchise is known for its incredible stylizations, from the atmospheric views of Rapture to the colorful powers of the Plasmids and Vigors. This level of care is just as apparent in the franchise’s characters, specifically its handful of terrifying enemies. There are few gaming icons as recognizable asBioShock’s Big Daddy, and withBioShock 4in the early stages of development, there’s no telling what the team at Cloud Chamber is going to whip up for the franchise’s return.
IfBioShock 4is looking for inspiration on new enemies, it could look toward the most recent entry in the series.BioShock Infinitedid a lot of things differently from the previous two games in the franchise, in that it brought players out of the sea and into the sky, as well as introducing concepts like time travel. Between all of these new features,BioShock Infinitealso brought in some new enemies for the setting of Columbia. Developer Irrational Games toyed with a lot of enemy ideas for this new locale, and while some of them got cut because they didn’t fit the game’s final vision, they could find a new home inBioShock 4.
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Claw Daddy
One of the main staples of theBioShockfranchise is monstrous enemies that tower over the player. The first game started this with the menacing Big Daddy, and there were a number of similar concepts thatBioShock Infiniteplayed around with. One of them was known as the Claw Daddy, conceptualized as a person in a massive crab-like exoskeleton with giant claws. It never made it into the final version ofBioShock Infinite, but its design did eventually evolve into the Handyman that served asInfinite’s surrogate Big Daddy-type enemy.IfBioShock 4were to return to a Rapture-like setting, it could bring back this concept.
The Magician
TheBioShockseries has never been afraid to deal with the supernatural, and many ofBioShock Infinite’s cut enemies leaned into this. The Magician enemy type is one of the biggest indications, as this enemy would have used telekinesis to manipulate the environment and hurl objects at the player. It would also create minions in the middle of battle, motivating players to take out the Magician first so they don’t get overwhelmed. Compared to most ofInfinite’s other cut characters, this one is the most open to stylistic changes, so it might not be too difficult to bring it intoBioShock 4.
The Resurrector
On top of its supernatural tendencies, theBioShockseries is largely known for its horror and suspense elements.BioShock Infinitemoved away from this slightly, but there was one cut enemy that really would have made a chilling addition to the final game. The Resurrector was a character that lived up to its namesake, as it would use blood flowing from its hands to resurrect the dead to fight. Concept art showed that this would have been one of the more disturbing enemies to see in action, but it could fit withBioShock 4if it leans intoBioShock’s horror roots.
There isn’t a whole lot that’s known aboutBioShock 4as of this writing, so there’s really no telling what the game’s enemies will look like at this point. Cloud Chamber should be in good shape considering part of its staff worked on the originalBioShockgames, but it could useBioShock Infinitefor inspiration all the same. The game is already potentially doing a lot of new things, withBioShock 4’s reported move toward an open-world RPG style, so fans will have to wait and see whatBioShock 4has in store when more news is ready.
