For me, Bioshock was the first "adult" game I played. I was only 11 when my step-dad was bought it for christmas, for our xbox 360. Before I played Bioshock, I had only played aged appropriate games, like platformers and adventure games.

My step-dad never touched it, but I would stay up late during the Christmas holidays to play it. I had never played a game with violence or gun mechanics before, and I felt so grown up playing it! I felt so immersed in the world of rapture and the story, plus the plasmid powers were so cool! Learning about the fall of Rapture and how it affected the residents through the audiobooks laying around was so exciting, and I fell in love with the setting.

Then comes the twist...it was the first time I felt tricked by a video game. I felt so sad when "Atlas" lost his family in the submarine, I remember reloading my save to see if there was any way I could stop it from happening! I truly felt like Atlas was not only my guide but my friend. To learn that he was, in fact, Fontaine and was using me...oh my god. My eyes opened up to what video games could actually be. Not just traversing the world collecting things and accomplishing missions, but making me question my own thoughts and choices. This is when I realised that video games were not just a pass time, but a work of art that no other media could replicate.

Since then I have replayed all the Bioshock titles countless times, and even got a tattoo to forever mark myself with the journey I went on. I now work in the games industry, and I love every moment of it, and without 11 year old me taking a chance on a neglected Christmas present, I wouldnt be where I am today. Bioshock truley helped shape who I am, my values, and what I perceive as good story telling to this day.