Monument Island

"CAUTION&mdash;Closed! Off Limits&mdash;By order of the Columbia Police Authority"

- Warning signs scattered across Monument Island

Monument Island is a major area in BioShock Infinite. It is the primary location sought by Booker DeWitt as he begins his adventure in Columbia. The towering statue on the island is home to Elizabeth, who has been held there her entire life. It serves as one of the main landmarks of Columbia.

Monument Island Gateway
Having just come from the Comstock Center Rooftops, Booker enters the Monument Island Gondola Station. Although it has long since been closed to the public, he finds it heavily fortified by the Columbia Police as it serves a valuable purpose to the floating city. The ticketing offices have some valuable materials to him.

The Sky-Line
Advancing outside towards the gondola, he is informed by the automated driver that the gondola passage has been shut down, but that workmen can proceed by using the Sky-Line. Booker recalls the police using the line to travel back at the raffle and figures it's worth a shot.

Booker leaps onto the Sky-Lines to a Monument Tower Maintenance depot and looks through the Telescope on the platform. He then leaps on again to find freight crates in the path, but clears the track using the Sky-Line Control. The third point leads to a ransacked hotel, where the area is being patrolled by a unit of Founders agents discussing the Vox Populi. When the ones on the ground are taken out, some emerge on the hotel balcony. On the balcony, Booker can either take the line directly or cut through the ransacked room which contains some supplies, including a random piece of Gear.

The Tolling
The only way forward to Monument Island is the Sky-Line above, but Booker needs to reach a higher point to access it, so he heads towards the adjacent clock tower. Zachary Hale Comstock suddenly orders his forces to stand down over a PA system and they kneel to pray. Booker enters the tower and rides a lift to the top unopposed. As he does, Comstock addresses him from a giant monitor attached to a Security Zeppelin, revealing that he knows who Booker is and his mission before warning him to leave. Booker heads towards the rooftop access to the Sky-Line, but the zeppelin sideswipes the building. He boards the vessel, wipes out the armed guards, and enters the bridge to steer the airship to Monument Island. The control room is empty, save for a female pilgrim in white robes and a habit praying at a candle-lit shrine. Booker calms her, stating he won't hurt her and takes the helm. Comstock suddenly appears aboard a fast-moving gondola, says a brief prayer, and flies off at which point the woman lights herself and the dirigible ablaze, forcing Booker to jump ship.

Monument Island Station
As the zeppelin explodes, Booker reaches the Sky-Line and lands at the Monument Island Station as the ship falls out of the sky. He then ascends to enter Monument Island.

Monument Tower
Booker crosses the courtyard, hops the fence, and enters the facility. Placards warn visitors not to touch or approach the specimen (Elizabeth) and indicate that the site is under the control of the Columbia Science Authority, but the area seems abandoned and has an uneasy quietness about it. Booker passes through the check-in rotunda and arrives in a research area. A diagram on the wall charts "the specimen's" growth while, further along, a large piece of high-voltage equipment marked "Siphon" performs experiments on three test subjects. Further along are a series of rooms. A screening room and photo lab reveal that the scientists have been spying on the girl for years. The photo lab displays photos taken of the girl (even in instances where she is dressing up). The projector in the screening room shows clips of certain activities, such as painting, dancing, lockpicking, and cracking the Vox Cipher. In an adjoining operating room, Booker finds collections of blood, hair, and nail clippings. Booker continues into a room with a massive Siphon that seems to be drawing in and materializing a immense amount of energy while emitting some other-worldly sounding music (actually Elizabeth humming "Everybody Wants to Rule the World") and feedback. The blackboard in the room indicates that the facility is too hazardous for research to continue. Ignoring the warning signs, Booker boards an elevator and heads up.

Specimen Observation
Booker passes through a series of observation rooms where the scientists at the center secretly spied on Elizabeth through one-way mirrors in her bedroom, conservatory, bathroom, dressing room, dining room, and library. Through these mirrors, Booker finally spots his target and gets a troubling demonstration of her powers.

Statue Exterior
Booker finds Elizabeth in the Library, the only way forward is exit onto the very side of the statue and climb towards the head. Booker re-enters, only to come crashing into the library. Elizabeth is understandably terrified at the presence of this unknown intruder, but then intrigued. The Whistler in a statue announces that the two have company and Elizabeth insists that Booker leave. He offers her the key to the tower and they both flee. While running, Elizabeth is horrified as she sees the observation rooms and realizes that she's been secretly watched. Before explanations can be given, Booker has his first encounter with Songbird as the creature tears the structure apart trying to get at the pair. The two escape to the top of the statue before being flung off. An intense ride on the Sky-Line ensues as Songbird darts through the air. Suddenly the monument collapses and a large part of it breaks the Sky-Line apart. Booker and Elizabeth tumble through the air before landing in an ocean. Songbird tries to follow, but can't take the water pressure.

New Enemies

 * Songbird

Voxophones

 * 1) Zachary Hale Comstock - Another Ark for Another Time
 * 2) Ty Bradley - Tiger by the Tail
 * 3) Ty Bradley - To: R. Thompson Re: Fuses
 * 4) Zachary Hale Comstock - A Reward Deferred
 * 5) Rosalind Lutece - The Source of her Power

Kinetoscopes

 * 1) Uncanny Mystery in Columbia

Bugs/Glitches

 * When Booker enters the dining room Specimen Observation Room, if he steps forward just enough so that the automatic door does not come down and looks back, the walls will disappear showing the sky background around the level.
 * Occasionally, if you jump on the hovercraft from the platform outside the Monument Island Gateway, you will lose all of your shields and half of your health.
 * When you arrive at The Tolling and Comstock orders the soldiers to stand down, very rarely their guns will still continue to fire even after they have set them on the ground and begun to kneel.

Behind the Scenes

 * When the enemies stop to pray, they become totally vulnerable. Attacks like Murder of Crows, which is really more of a diversionary tactic than offensive strike, will instantly kill a person. However, it is pointless to kill the agents as they do not attack you and cannot be searched; therefore, it's just a waste of ammunition or Salts unless you melee them with Sky-Hook.
 * When crossing the Monument Island courtyard, the actual tower appears to be a fair way away in the distance, considering the fact that the player is technically "at the base of it". In truth, it should be much closer and therefore much, much, larger.
 * As you are walking through the Specimen Observation booths, Elizabeth can be heard singing/humming "Will the Circle Be Unbroken", a song she later sings as an Easter Egg in Shantytown.
 * During the time that the Tear to 1980's Paris is opened, the song "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" by Tears for Fears can be heard playing in the background. An anachronistic version of the song can be heard on a phonograph in Albert Fink's Magical Melodies studio.
 * "Revenge of the Jedi", the sixth (at the time, the third) movie in the Star Wars franchise can also be seen in French playing at the movie theater to the right, as evidenced by the bright signs advertising the movie.
 * "Revenge of the Jedi" was actually the working title of Return of the Jedi during its production. But it was changed, since Jedi aren't vengeful. In 2005, Revenge of the Sith was released.
 * In the operating room, there is a room with a chair in it. This chair seems to be an exact copy of the chair Booker was strapped to in the rocket.
 * As Elizabeth is suggested to have spent her entire life inside the tower, it is unknown why such a room is needed. The blacklight room and the projector room are for the research of the scientists. The operating room seemingly would require Elizabeth there as well if it were to be used. Other than the visible signs of Elizabeth (hairs, nails, etc.), objects the room (including the chair and some other fairly intimidating devices and tools) seems to serve no purpose whatsoever if Elizabeth (or another patient) is not there to be operated upon. It could be assumed that Elizabeth was occasionally taken down here (perhaps drugged) so the scientists and researchers could take samples from her. This is supported by the sign in the room requiring a sedative to be applied to the subject to avoid exposure.
 * In Elizabeth's bedroom on the wall hangs a poster featuring a singer named Yvette Guilmont. This is based off off of a person in real life called Yvette Guilbert , who is a French singer.