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Big Daddy
BigDaddy as

Series

BioShock

Debut

BioShock (2007)

Console of origin

PC/Xbox 360

Species

No information

Gender

No information

Big Daddies (originally named Protectors, and occasionally referred to as Mister Bubbles by Little Sisters) are genetically enhanced human beings who have had their skin and organs grafted into an enormous diving suit, with Alpha Series being an apparent exception to the grafting process, but still heavily spliced. Their primary purpose is to protect Little Sisters while they escort them around Rapture.

Aside from the Alpha Series, Big Daddies communicate by uttering haunting sounds similar to that of whale calls. Alpha Series communicate with low, inhuman grunts and roars. For easier interpretation (as stated in the Deco Devolution art book), production model Big Daddies have a bio-luminescent chemical substance filled into the helmet which displays what state of mind  or emotion it is in. Big Daddy helmets have three light colors: green indicates the Big Daddy is hypnotized and friendly, yellow indicates awareness but indifference to his environment, and red indicates rage towards assailants. If the first few attempts to drive away potential threats prove futile, Big Daddies will become enraged, unlike Alpha Series who always begin enraged.

Big Daddies have become a staple in the BioShock games, becoming the face of the franchise.

Big Daddy Types[]

So far, there are five main types of Big Daddy protectors, including two elite versions for only the Bouncer and Rosie. Of the five protectors, only four are functional and protect the Little Sisters, with only the original Alpha Series as non-functional protectors, with the exception of Subject Delta and Subject Sigma.

Introduced in BioShock[]

Bouncer[]

Bouncer Rendered Model

Bouncers are clad in a very distinct heavy diving suit, the entire torso of which is covered by a thick metal carapace. The head protrudes directly forward from the upper chest area, and is encased in a hemispherical helmet studded with eight lit portholes.  A large, fully-functional conical drill is attached to the right arm just forward of the elbow, and is used for powerful melee attacks. The Bouncers get their name from an attack they use, in which they strike the ground with their drills, resulting in a tremor that gives close-proximity enemies unstable footing.

Both a regular and a red striped Elite version with a harpoon-like drill appear in BioShock and BioShock 2.

In the BioShock Infinite: Burial at Sea DLC, the Bouncer could use the drill as a grappling hook to move about easier, and also to get closer to those that threaten a Little Sister. It is a new feature for that tool/weapon not seen in previous games. This is explained with a noted in Suchong's clinic stating that the the gases that project the drill make the subject unstable and to discontinue this idea.

Rosie[]

BS1RosieNeptunesBounty

Rosies are clad in a basic heavy flexible fabric diving suit, the upper torso of which is covered by a high-gauge metal carapace. The head is guarded by a thick metal diving helmet welded to the torso carapace, and has three large lit portholes. They wield a large Rivet Gun and Proximity Mines at long range, and swing the Rivet Gun for powerful melee attacks as well.

A red striped Elite version is present in the original BioShock.

Introduced in BioShock 2 []

Eight years after the events of BioShock, Sofia Lamb is in control of Rapture and she and her followers have produced new Big Daddies to help protect the Little Sisters. Bouncers and Rosies return to the sequel, along with three new types.

Rumbler []

The Rumbler is the newest type of Big Daddy, and debuts in BioShock 2. Designed by Gilbert Alexander, his

BS2RumblerSirenAlley

arsenal includes deployable Miniature Turrets and a shoulder mounted RPG that shoots non guided rockets. This Big Daddy type seems to be more mobile than the other two types, although less armored. Its combat style gives it an advantage in open spaces, unlike its two counterparts, and it seems to fare well in long to mid-range combat. Its attacks are designed to keep the player on the move, and it can quickly turn the environment to its advantage and give the player as little cover as possible. A very formidable foe to say the least.

Alpha Series[]

Alpha series

Like Subject Delta, other failed prototypes of the Alpha Series of Big Daddies survived. They have long since lost their Sisters, and have evolved into something vaguely like a Splicer. These are barely sentient monsters that attack anything near them. Like Delta, they can use Plasmids and regularly emit bursts of Electro Bolt, Incinerate!, and Winter Blast from within their malfunctioning suits. They tend to use Launchers, Machine Guns, and sometimes Shotguns in addition to their Plasmids. Their armor is similar to Delta's, but more decayed with part of the arm exposed.

Their bond was to be to a single Little Sister, with Delta being the first bonding success. Because of this, they are believed to not have undergone some of the modifications later Big Daddies have, such as the application of pheromones. There was no need due to their physiologically enforced bond to a single Little Sister. They were not fused into their suits (as Subject Delta could remove his helmet when he was ordered to by Sofia Lamb). Many of the Alpha Series subjects appear to have had incomplete or otherwise faulty bonds, so that instead of slipping into a coma after losing their Little Sisters, they simply went insane.

Lancer []

Rapturecentralcomputing bigdaddy

Minerva's Den, BioShock 2's final DLC, features a new type of Big Daddy. The Lancer is much slimmer, slightly taller, and more decorated than his counterparts. He holds an Ion Laser, and appears to be a finished version of the Deco-Rosie, as seen in concept art and as a statue in the main Single-Player campaign. This is the only type of Big Daddy the player encounters in the Minerva's Den campaign aside from the Alpha Series.

History[]

Before their conversion into Protectors, these suited cyborgs served as Rapture's maintenance workers; Rosies repaired the leaks and Bouncers drilled deep sea rocks for expansion of the city.

The "Protector Program" (the project responsible for Big Daddies becoming the guardians of Little Sisters) was the brainchild of Dr. Yi Suchong. Finding that the Little Sisters were at great risk when out on the streets gathering ADAM without protection, Suchong sought to rectify the problem. He presented his idea to Andrew Ryan. Knowing that becoming a Big Daddy would be a "one-way street", Suchong fretted about finding suitable candidates despite Ryan's assurances that it would not be a problem. Although the true identities of the candidates are unknown, many were exiled criminals, the criminally insane, and seditionists who were prisoners in Persephone. Augustus Sinclair had originally contracted volunteering prisoners out to Fontaine and later Ryan Industries as test subjects in the ADAM research labs of Fontaine Futuristics and Point Prometheus.

While the process of 'assembling' Little Sisters and Big Daddies proceeded relatively smoothly, the bond connecting them was more difficult. Although he was unaware of it at the time, Suchong succeeded in creating the Protection Bond - an automatic response for the Big Daddies to attack anything that physically harmed a Little Sister.  

After Suchong's accidental death at the hands of a Big Daddy, the Protector Program was placed under the control of Dr. Gilbert Alexander. Alexander took inspiration from the common nickname for the Protector Program candidates, "Big Daddies", and engineered a conditioned physical bond between the Protectors and their charges which would mimic the emotional bond between a father and his daughter, the "Pair Bond." The Pair Bond not only ensured that the protectors would guard their charges at all times, they would also not wander away from the girls or else slip into a coma. This breakthrough generated the first fully bonded Big Daddies: the Alpha Series. The first candidate from the protector program to be successfully Pair Bonded was Subject Delta, formerly known as "Johnny Topside". In short time, the Alpha Series protectors failed, as they would protect one and only one Little Sister. In response, the Bouncer and Rosie models were utilized to become the new guardians with conditioning for protecting any Little Sister. Pair Bonding between Daddies and Sisters was no longer necessary and the modified Protection Bonding was deemed sufficient.

As the Big Daddies were sent out on the streets of Rapture, citizens responded to them in different ways. They were referred to by many slang names among Splicers, including "metal daddy" or "tin daddy." Their intimidating appearance and aggressive nature caused fear among the populace. Confrontations with Splicers and well-meaning citizens prompted Ryan to create public address announcements that warned against approaching Big Daddies and Little Sisters. Ryan even tried to combat public dislike of the Protector Program by spinning the Big Daddies as "Knights In Shining Armor" created to protect Rapture against the "Parasites".

Gallery []

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