BioShock's best quotes shook gaming history to its core

Spoiler alert: This article contains major spoilers for BioShock

BioShock shaped gaming history 18 years ago with his most memorable quote: “A man chooses, a slave obeys.” It's a line that has since become one of the most iconic lines in all of video games, and not just because it has an unforgettable ring to it. It is the center of the BioShocks infamous plot twist, the condensation of a moment that forever changed video game storytelling and still shakes gamers to their core nearly two decades later.

Over 18 years and at least two console generations later, BioShocks plot twist remains one of the most shocking moments in gaming history. A lot has changed in gaming since 2007, and many games have come out since then with massive twists and memorable lines of their own, but there's a reason why BioShockthe last act still hits so hard. Nostalgia may play a heavy role for those who played the game in their formative years, but the “will you please” argument is more than clever writing. It turns the very way a video game works into a statement about destiny and free will.

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Andrew Ryan's final monologue in BioShock turned video game history upside down

Towards the end of BioShockplayers finally meet the villain, Andrew Ryan, who gives a bone-chilling speech:

“In the end, what separates a man from a slave? Money? Power? No! A man chooses, a slave obeys! Do you think you have memories? A farm, a family, an airplane and then this place. Was there really a family? Did that plane crash or was it hijacked? Forced down, forced down by something less than a man, something indulged to sleepwalk through life until activated by a simple phrase, spoken by their kind master. Was a man sent to kill or a slave? A man chooses, a slave obeys. Come in. Stop, would you please? “Would you please”: powerful phrase. Familiar phrase? Sit, would you please? Stand, will you please? Term! Stop! Turn! A man chooses, a slave obeys. Kill! A man chooses! A slave obeys! Obey!”

When Ryan reframes the game's opening moments and Jack, the main character, automatically follows his orders with every “will you be friendly”, it becomes clear that Jack is not a hero who happens to come to save Rapture but Atlas' pawn, revealed to be Frank Fontaine. Even when Jack brutally kills Ryan, it is not the victory over the enemy that the players expect. It's a stark revelation that Jack, and even the player himself, is just a slave to someone else's will. It does BioShocks twist one of the best in all FPS because it turns the whole game. A second playthrough feels completely different; Jack becomes a tragic character and players question every choice they've made because they no longer seem like choices at all.

The BioShock series presents players with many moral dilemmas, but the lingering memory of the words “a man chooses, a slave obeys” throws a wrench into every debate. Do players really have a choice when they still have to choose from what the game gives them? Each time players complete an objective BioShockthey follow Atlas's orders, unconsciously driven by the phrase “will you please.” Andrew Ryan's monologue turns the mechanics into part of the story, as players can only progress by doing what the game tells them to do. Many games allow players to make choices to drive the story, however BioShock makes players an active participant in the story by drawing attention to the lack of real choice.

Bioshock an art deco glass wall in Rapture

Like any postmodern work of art, BioShock avoids making a definitive statement, but rather leaves the question open. Ryan's haunting “a man chooses, a slave obeys” speech accuses the player of having no agency, and even casts doubt on the idea of free will in a broader sense. However, BioShock is also a game about finding yourself, and Jack eventually breaks free of his bonds to kill Atlas and, depending on how the players approached the game, free the Little Sisters. But one could still argue that this ending is also destiny, and that the choices are still illusions because the game only offers so many paths. It's that endless debate that does BioShock stands out so much, even 18 years later.

Big Daddy and Little Sister get ready to attack in Bioshock

While the Ryan monologue still stands as one of the game's most profound twists, there's more to it BioShocks lasting legacy to look forward to. Multiple BioShock 4 assets have been leaked, seemingly lending credence to rumors that it will take place in Antarctica and showing off golden statues reminiscent of Andrew Ryan's giant golden bust in the first BioShocks opening sequence. It is reported that the next BioShock the game is stuck in development hell, so there's no telling when it'll be out right now, but until then, there's a lot to unpack at the end of the first game.