5 Background

4 The War’s Major Players

The two key figures in the war were Andrew Ryan and con artist Frank Fontaine, the latter of whom planned to seize control of the city from Ryan. However, Fontaine eventually staged his own death to let Ryan think he had won.

The war was initially fought between Ryan’s security and Fontaine’s growing syndicate. The latter also exploited Ryan’s neglect of the working class to get them on his side. He disguised several of his criminal businesses as charities, partially to win over impoverished citizens but also to irritate Ryan, who saw charity as a violation of his philosophy. This changed with Fontaine’s apparent death. His followers were imprisoned in a building that was separated from the city and sunk deeper into the ocean.

In actuality, Fontaine still lived. Not willing to give up his ambition, he adopted the identity of “Atlas” – a character designed to be relatable to the working class. Playing the role of a revolutionary allowed him to rally together Rapture’s citizens under false promises for equality. This angered Ryan, who saw Atlas as a parasite. The result was a series of bloody riots.

3 The War Established the Little Sister/Big Daddy Dynamic

2 Responsible for the Massive Population of Splicers

1 How It Could Have Been Prevented

Ironically enough, Fontaine didn’t actually object to Ryan’s philosophy. If anything, he embraced it. What Ryan did not expect was someone beating him at his own game. Fontaine rose to power by exploiting the free market structure of Rapture, while Andrew Ryan stood by. Several people tried to warn Ryan of Fontaine’s plans, while Ryan ignored them because Fontaine was technically playing by Ryan’s rules.

Ryan argued several times that trying to shut down another man’s business, even one that posed a threat, would violate the mentality on which he had founded the city. He dismissed, remarking that people who objected to Fontaine should “offer a better product”. The lack of regulations made it easy for Fontaine to cut corners to get ahead, and to get rid of competition through coercion or outright murder.

Ryan only took action when Fontaine posed a direct threat to him personally. By that point, Fontaine had gained too much power. Had he listened to earlier warnings, Ryan could have stopped Fontaine sooner and prevented the war altogether.

NEXT: Next BioShock Game Will Be Open-World, According to Job Listing