It’s finally here. After a few delays, much concern over whether it would ever be released and debate over if this game could live up to Irrational Games’ legacy of System Shock and BioShock, we finally have one of 2013’s most anticipated games. Talk all you want about GTA 5, The Last of Us or even the upcoming next generation of consoles, when Ken Levine is making a game, we’re all going to stop and take notice.

Fortunately, everyone agrees that BioShock Infinite lives up to the hype and the legacy of its predecessors.

Joystiq (5/5): While the end of 2013 will be filled with talk about a new generation of video games, BioShock Infinite’s narrative will stand out as an achievement, helping put a cap on a generation that propelled narrative as a focus for the industry. Undoubtedly the finest game crafted by Irrational Games, BioShock Infinite is one of the best told stories of this generation. It simply cannot be missed.

Game Informer (10/10): Infinite is more than a new setting, story, and characters; those elements are seamlessly integrated with complex themes, a mysterious plot, and entertaining combat to create an amazing experience from beginning to end.

IGN (9.4/10): BioShock Infinite is a brilliant shooter that nudges the entire genre forward with innovations in both storytelling and gameplay. It trips over itself in a couple of spots, but not in any way that should keep you from embracing it with your utmost enthusiasm.

GameSpot (9.0/10): BioShock Infinite isn’t afraid to magnify the way religious and racial extremism inform our culture and change lives. It isn’t afraid to depict a less-than-holy trinity diseased by power, deception, and manipulation. As the story circles back on itself, you’re left wondering whether redemption cleanses us of our atrocities, or simply invites us to commit greater ones. Once the finale comes, you will want to play again, watching each event and image through the lens of information you can never un-know. BioShock Infinite is more than just a quality game: it’s an important one.

VideoGamer (8/10): BioShock Infinite might just be one of the most compelling games of this generation. For all its flaws, it has an odd power, an insistence that players find out how the story concludes…  The finale is sure to be debated for years to come – in both positive and negative senses, but the end of the game is merely the beginning of a cycle: I wanted to play it all over again, despite its flaws. If that’s not a recommendation I don’t know what is.