Bathysphere



The bathyspheres of Rapture are very small, comfortable submersibles, allowing travel between the city's different areas. They are part of the city's transportation network, the Rapture Metro, created by Anton Kinkaide. The Airshell 2 design, the model used in 1960, was built by Fontaine Futuristics.

After Rapture society collapsed into Civil War, Andrew Ryan prohibited the use of bathyspheres by anyone outside of his inner circle. Citizens protested at the bathysphere station that linked the bathyspheres to Rapture, and demanded to be allowed out. Obviously, their demands were not met.

BioShock
Throughout BioShock, the bathyspheres are used by Jack as a mode of transportation to travel around Rapture and its "abandoned" city sections. It is revealed that Jack can use the bathyspheres only because his genetic signature is close enough to Ryan's that the security system doesn't deny him access. Sullivan clearly states in one of his Audio Diaries that, because of the unreliability of the Bathysphere locks, "Sisters, cousins — anyone in the ballpark genetically will be able to come and go as they see fit." This also applies to Sander Cohen as it also allows Andrew Ryan's inner circle to use them, which explains how he appears in Olympus Heights later on in the game (if the player didn't kill him in Fort Frolic)

BioShock 2
In BioShock 2, bathysphere travel has been replaced by use of the Atlantic Express. Although the genetic lockdown has been lifted, Sofia Lamb torpedoes any unauthorized bathysphere travel in order to maintain Rapture's secret. However, in the multiplayer the bathysphere in the player's apartment serves as a means of access to the game's matches.

Minerva's Den
Charles Milton Porter's private bathysphere is the ultimate means of escape from Rapture.

BioShock Infinite
After going through a tear to escape the Songbird and finding themselves in Rapture, Booker DeWitt and Elizabeth use a bathysphere at the Welcome Center to reach the surface and access the Lighthouse. However, the lockdown is already in effect at their arrival and it is not explained how they bypassed it.

Behind the Scenes

 * The concept of Rapture's bathyspheres was inspired by the historical, unpowered submersibles of the same name. The real-world bathysphere was invented by Otis Barton and John H. J. Butler in 1928. Instead of free/tracked travel, it worked by use of a crane lowering it from the surface.