Bioshock > A Bioshock Glossary
A Bioshock Glossary
- Accu-Vox
- A device with which the player can listen to tape-recorded messages left behind by Rapture citizens.
- Adam
- A stem-cell slurry with mutagenic properties, from a species of sea slug embedded in the bellies of Little Sisters. It is obtainable only from them in Bioshock, but also from Big Sisters and the sea slugs themselves in Bioshock 2.
- Adonis Resort
- A luxury spa for Rapture's wealthy elite. Subject Delta is awakened here. It is the first level in Bioshock 2.
- Aggressor
- See Splicer
- Alpha Series
- In Bioshock 2, one of the first Big Daddies, bonded to a single Little Sister. Subject Delta and Subject Sigma were among these. Alpha Big Daddies die or go mad when separated from their Little Sisters for too long.
- Apollo Square
- The transit hub of Rapture, which also had some of the residential quarter for the working classes. It was turned into a concentration camp during the Civil War.
- Arcadia
- The botanical quarter of Rapture, where its crops and forests were grown and which supplies it with oxygen as well as food.
- Air-Tite Archives
- A secure storage repository in Minerva's Den, whose trust was compromised by Ryan and his goons as his paranoia grew.
- Atlantic Express
- An intraurban undersea train in Bioshock 2, used by Subject Delta to travel between quarters of Rapture. It is also a level (the second) of its own.
- Autohack Dart
- A dart like a vacuum tube, shot from a Hack Tool to crack a machine both successfully and immediately.
- Autohack Tool
- A one-shot device in Bioshock used for cracking safes, security devices and vending machines. The player can carry up to five.
- Baby Jane
- A young female splicer with a pageboy hairdo, who came to Rapture as a fame-seeking entertainer. She survived in Bioshock 2 in a torn evening gown.
- Bathysphere
- A spherical vehicle for traveling in the depths of the sea between the quarters of Rapture.
- Big Daddy
- An very powerful ex-human creature, genetically modified and grafted into an old-style diving suit, and conditioned to protect Little Sisters.
- Big Sister
- A former Little Sister, grown up and encased in a Protector-like suit with built-in Extraction Tool. She is one of the defenders of Rapture in Bioshock 2.
- Blue Butterfly
- The symbol of Sofia Lamb and the Rapture Family, symbolizing metamorphosis and rebirth.
- Bot Shutdown
- A switch that the player can throw to turn off security bots. It costs R$20 in Bioshock, but is free in Bioshock 2.
- Bouncer
- A Big Daddy armed with a mining drill, who attacks by dashing into its target and boring it.
- Breadwinner
- A middle-aged male splicer in a Chicago-style business suit and fedora, who came to Rapture seeking wealth. He survives in Bioshock 2, trading his business suit for a tuxedo.
- Brute
- An over-muscled gorilla-like splicer in Bioshock 2, with the strength and endurance of a Big Daddy but a fear of being thought gay.
- Buttons
- A male programmer splicer, who is nuts for numbers and is eager to pull out your wiring. Found in Minerva's Den.
- Camera
- A device that looks like an old-style Kodak, which takes not only photographs but also genetic scans of its subject. The player used this to research enemies for further growth. In Bioshock 2 the camera becomes a video recorder with a loop reel of film.
- Circus Of Values
- A vending machine that sells food, alcohol, film, Eve, first-aid kits and ammunition.
- Civil War
- A class war, erupting on the eve before New Year's Day 1959, between Andrew Ryan and his supporters, and the disaffected working classes led by Atlas.
- Component
- Items like batteries, screws, tubes, and the like, with which the player can build ammunition, gene tonics and autohack tools at U-Invents in Bioshock.
- Crafting Machine
- See U-Invent
- Crawler
- The heavily mutated Spider Splicer, elongated in form and madly insomniac in mind, in Bioshock 2.
- Diary
- A audio-tape message left a citizen of Rapture, playable with an Accu-Vox.
- Dionysius Park
- An arts and entertainment quarter of Rapture (adjunct to Fort Frolic) in Bioshock 2. The former home of Sofia Lamb, it was flooded by a treacherous follower, only to be drained by Subject Delta.
- Dollar
- The unit of currency in Rapture (R$), used to purchase items from vending machines or as a substitute in cracking. The player can carry in his wallet up to R$500 in the first game; in the second game, the player can carry up to R$600, up to R$800 after thugs are researched in full.
- Ducky
- A middle-aged male splicer, who is the deeply paranoid remnant of Rapture's police force.
- El Ammo Bandito
- A vending machine that sells ammunition only.
- Eleanor
- The ultimate goal of Bioshock 2: The first Little Sister to bond to a Big Daddy (Subject Delta), and the daughter of Subject Delta's antagonist.
- Eve
- An Adam-derived serum that fuels active plasmids. The player can carry up to nine hypos of Eve in Bioshock, but up to five in Bioshock 2.
- A device with a long needle and hand pump, with which Little Sisters extract blood from dead splicers.
- First Aid
- A kit that improves the player's health. The player can carry up to nine First Aid kits in Bioshock, but up to five in Bioshock 2.
- Fontaine Fisheries
- Frank Fontaine's first business, part of Port Neptune, used as a front for smuggling.
- Fontaine Futuristics
- Frank Fontaine's corporate front, specializing in making Adam and its derivatives. Also manufactured electronic and industrial equipment and weaponry. It is accessible, and one of the later levels, in Bioshock 2.
- Fort Frolic
- The entertainment quarter of Rapture and the exclusive preserve of Sander Cohen. By Bioshock 2 it is flooded and unreachable.
- Gatherer
- See Little Sister
- Gene Bank
- A vending machine that allows the player to swap plasmids and gene tonics in and out of their slots. Its prelease name was Plasmi-Qwik.
- Gene Tonic
- A passive genetic substance that gives the player physical prowess, added combat strength or machine-cracking engineering skills.
- Genetic Key
- A gold card containing the genetic code of the bearer, used in Rapture as identification.
- Grenadier
- See Nitro
- Grossman, Dr.
- A middle-aged male splicer, who was once a (sadistic and not very competent) physician or scientist. He managed to survive in Bioshock 2, more sadistic than ever.
- Hack Dart
- A dart like a vacuum tube, shot from a Hack Tool to serve as a receiver to crack a machine remotely.
- Hack Tool
- A device in Bioshock 2 to allow a user to crack a machine from a distance.
- Hacking
- The ability to crack a machine to make it work for the player or to give the player added benefits.
- Harmonic Core
- A hugh geothermal electrical generator, one of many in Hephaestus, the third of which was used to magnetically seal the doors to Andrew Ryan's office.
- Heady
- A female clerical splicer who dreads her ex-boss Evelyn Klein. Found in Minerva's Den.
- Health Station
- A device for restoring the player's health, which can also be cracked to poison splicers.
- Hephaestus
- The industrial quarter of Rapture, where Rapture's electricity is generated and where Andrew Ryan has his office.
- Houdini
- A plasmid-charged splicer who can both teleport and throw balls of fire or ice.
- Ladysmith
- A middle-aged female splicer, once part of Rapture's upper class, who is as snooty as she is insane. She still is in Bioshock 2, but also remembers when she was actually poor.
- Lancer
- A Big Daddy in Art Deco armor, who shoots from an Ion Laser Gun. It can also emit a blinding Ion Flash. It appears in Minerva's Den only.
- Lazarus Vector
- An Adam-derived chemical which can bring dead plants back to life.
- Leadhead
- A tough splicer armed with a pistol, machine gun or (in Bioshock 2) a shotgun and bombs.
- Little Sister
- A female child with an Adam-producing sea slug in her belly, who processes Adam by eating food and then vomiting, or by drinking the blood of dead splicers. Unless killed or rehumanized, they grow up to be Big Sisters.
- Lockbox
- A metal box that stores items of dead splicers; the game changes dead splicers into lockboxes to conserve resources.
- Mask
- A festive mask from the New Years 1959 party, worn by splicers to hide the shame of their new condition.
- McClendon Robotics
- A company in Minerva's Den that created the security bots and turrets as well as vacuum bots and other home appliances. The company collapsed after a failed line of robotic Little Sisters.
- Medical Pavilion
- The hospital quarter of Rapture, which offered cosmetic and dental services after Adam both made hospital services nearly obsolete and began to deform its users.
- Minerva's Den
- The name of, and the first level of, the final expansion pack of Bioshock 2.
- Mini-Turret
- A portable turret used to lay out suppressing fire. It appears in Bioshock 2, used especially by Rumblers and by Reed Wahl.
- Neptune's Bounty
- The docks of Rapture, which came earlily under heavy surveilance due to smuggling activities.
- Nitro
- A splicer armed with a box of hand grenades or Molotovs. In Bioshock 2 the bomb tossing is done by Leadheads.
- Olympus Heights
- The residential quarter of Rapture for the wealthy elite.
- Operations
- The second level of the Minerva's Den pack, where Reed Wahl has his office and maintenance of the the Thinker is done.
- Parasite
- Originally someone — like a bureaucrat, lawyer, priest or politician — who does no productive work but instead lives off the labor of others; in time, a synonym for "enemy" or "evil one".
- Pauper's Drop
- The underclass quarter of Rapture, where its poorest citizens and failed tycoons lived. Ryan tended to ignore it until its inhabitants became too enamored of Lamb. The fourth level in Bioshock 2.
- Persephone
- A political prison for Rapture's disaffected, build over a deep trench, into which it can easily be dropped. Headquarters of Sofia Lamb, Eleanor's prison, and the final two levels of Bioshock 2.
- Pigskin
- A young male splicer in Bioshock, an American football player who is partially aware of has happened to him.
- Plasmi-Qwik
- See Gene Bank
- Plasmid
- An active genetic substance that gives the player powers to fight enemies or manipulate the environment.
- Point Prometheus
- The library and museum quarter of Rapture, turned into a processing center for Big Daddies and Little Sisters.
- Port Neptune
- See Neptune's Bounty
- Power To The People
- A one-shot vendor that lets the player upgrade one weapon with one enhanced feature.
- Protector
- See Big Daddy
- Rapture
- An undersea metropolis under the northern Atlantic Ocean, founded by industrial magnate Andrew Ryan on objectivist principles. The city was largely destroyed in a class war, then somewhat rebuilt years later under Dr. Sophia Lamb.
- Rapture Family
- A Gnostic cult of personality founded by Dr. Sophia Lamb and led by Father Wales to instill a spirit of community and control among splicers.
- Rapture Computing Center
- The heart of Minerva's Den, within which were the Thinker, its Operations area and the offices of Porter and Wahl.
- Rosebud
- A young female proletarian splicer, half of whose face is consumed by a rose-like tumor, on an endless search for her missing daughter.
- Rosie
- A Big Daddy armed with a rivet gun, who attacks by shooting its target. It also throws proximity mines.
- Rumbler
- A Big Daddy armed with a cannon that shoots rocket grenades. It also lays down mini-turrets. It appears in Bioshock 2, based on a rejected model called Slow Pro.
- Ryan Amusements
- An amusement park by which Ryan taught his beliefs ("Rapture good, surface bad") to children. The third level in Bioshock 2.
- Ryan Industries
- The corporate arm of Rapture, with headquarters in Hephaestus, where Andrew Ryan had his offices and control center.
- Security Bot
- A flying machine gun which attacks anyone a security camera (or, when hacked, the player) identifies as a threat. In Minerva's Den bots graduate to rocket launchers, electric prods and ion laser guns.
- Security Camera
- A cucumber-shaped camera that summons security bots when it detects a genetically incompatible intruder.
- Siren Alley
- A quarter of Rapture, originally home to its architects and builders, reduced to brothels after the Civil War. The Rapture Family has its church there. The fifth level in Bioshock 2.
- Slot
- An ability to hold a plasmid or gene tonic at the ready. In Bioshock the player can have up to six plasmid slots and up to six slots of each of the three kinds of gene tonic. In Bioshock 2 there are up to seven plasmid slots, plus eighteen tonic slots in any combination of tonics.
- Slug
- The Adam-excreting sea creature, discovered by Dr. Tenenbaum, implanted in Little Sisters, (in Bioshock 2) found wild on the ocean floor outside the City walls, or (in Minerva's Den) preserved in labelled jars.
- Smuggling
- The longing for items unavailable in Rapture — beef, real tobacco, jazz music, films, and even the Bible — led to a profitable smuggling industry that Ryan fought to suppress for fear of Rapture being exposed to the
parasites
of the outside world.
- Sphere
- See bathysphere
- Spider
- An athletic splicer who crawls on ceilings by means of meat hooks in each hand. In Bioshock 2 it is its own model, the Crawler.
- Splicer
- A violent, insane inhabitant of Rapture whose mind was destroyed by plasmid abuse. They differ by type (thug, leadhead, nitro, spider, houdini, brute), by pre-war status (in Bioshock), and by Adamic mutuation (in Bioshock 2).
- Subject Delta
- The very first Alpha Series Protector (Big Daddy) to be bonded to a single Little Sister, armed with both weapons and plasmids. Killed by Sofia Lamb, Delta was brought back to life more than ten years later. It is the protagonist in Bioshock 2.
- Subject Sigma
- An Alpha Series Protector (Big Daddy), brought back to life by Brigid Tenenbaum to take control of the Thinker and extract its core program. What Charles Milton Porter became after he was betrayed by Reed Wahl to Ryan.
- The Thinker
- A computer that controls all automatic and environmental functions of Rapture. Its creator, Charles Milton Porter, programmed sentience into it just before his betrayal. Also, the final level of the Minerva's Den pack, and the copy of Rodin's sculpture The Thinker in the lobby of the RCC.
- Thug
- A splicer armed with a club or machete for melée fighting.
- Toasty
- A young male splicer, rather well dressed, who joined Rapture's service industry looking to get laid. He survives (very much the worst for wear) in Bioshock 2 and Minerva's Den.
- Turret
- A fixed gun position consisting of a chair on which is mounted a machine gun, a grenade launcher or a flame thrower.
- Tyrant
- Originally, in Lambian psychiatry, someone enslaved to their genes, as Lamb thought Ryan & Co. were; in time, a synonym for "enemy" or "evil one".
- U-Invent
- A vending machine that uses gathered components to build ammunition, gene tonics and autohack tools. It does not exist in Bioshock 2.
- Vacuum Bot
- An automated vacuum cleaner, found in Minerva's Den, which had a habit of sucking up everything in its way. Goodies can be found by breaking them open.
- Vita-Chamber
- A glass booth that brings the player back to life.
- Waders
- A young male proletarian splicer, who reverted to Roman Catholicism after losing his mind. His model was merged with Ducky's in Bioshock 2.