The Lighthouse



The Lighthouse is a navigational tower located at approximately 63° N, 32° W in the Atlantic Ocean. It's the only access to the city of Rapture without a submarine, and the only landmark to the city's position. It seems to employ some sort of defense system to prevent the advance of unwanted boats in close proximity.

BioShock
Following the "tragic accident" of Apollo Air Flight DF-0301 in the Atlantic Ocean at the beginning of the game, the player controls Jack as the only survivor. The player swims to the safety of a small, nearby island that serves as a foundation for a lighthouse. Upon Jack's entering the lighthouse, the various electronics (lights, background music, etc.) seem to activate, as if responding to his presence. A hanging bust of Andrew Ryan, bearing a banner displaying the phrase "No gods or kings, only man", is visible. Down a flight of stairs is an area that houses a bathysphere which transports Jack to Rapture.

There's Something in the Sea
The lighthouse was mentioned thrice in Something in the Sea: in The Frozen Triangle by Carleton Rede (page 13), in The Spectral Sea by Jeremiah Lynch, and in Back to the Frozen Triangle by Carleton Rede. All three books state that sailors had given it the name "The Phantom Lighthouse" and this myth's origin is expounded on in Back to the Frozen Triangle. The only known vessel that managed to reach the Phantom Lighthouse and return, sparking the creation of this myth, was the Hackness, an English fishing vessel that became lost in the North Atlantic during the Icelandic/English Cod Wars.

BioShock 2
A miniature recreation of the Lighthouse makes an appearance at the end of the Journey to the Surface theme park ride, representing the riders returning to Rapture from the surface. On the Siren Alley level a painting is seen on the wall depicting the plane crash at the lighthouse which occurred in the first game. The Lighthouse is also briefly seen in the background of the various endings of BioShock 2.

Trivia

 * The lighthouse is the only playable area in BioShock that is above sea level.


 * The music that plays in the Lighthouse in BioShock is "La Mer" by Django Reinhardt


 * The lighthouse tower bears a striking resemblance to the Lighthouse of Alexandria, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.


 * During the slideshow, there is an advertisement for Incinerate. If this is indeed the slideshow that played for the new citizens of Rapture, one would think the slideshow wouldn't have existed when ADAM were discovered. Considering this, it seems odd they would have updated the slideshow set for people entering Rapture to have this.