When it was released in 2007, Bioshock became a huge hit. It went on to launch a franchise that included two follow-up games, tie-in novels, two additional DLC campaigns, and even a canceled movie, with a fourth game currently in pre-production. The most iconic piece of imagery in the games is one particular image — not even a specific character, but rather a type of recurring enemy known as the "Big Daddy."
These were hulking figures, clad in bulky diving suits with glowing portholes for faces have basically become the mascot of the series. They were even featured as a playable character in Playstation All-Stars Battle Royale. Still, despite their well-known status, not everyone knows the deep lore of these mechanical and human marvels.
9 How Their Bonds Work With Little Sisters
The most obvious aspect of the Big Daddy, due to being a central part of Bioshock and Bioshock 2, is their tight bonds with the Little Sisters. Both are conditioned to be dependent on each other, and as such are often seen together. Big Daddies are extremely protective of the little sisters and will turn to brute force at the slightest sign of a potential threat to one.
Likewise, little sisters are shown to be dependent on their Big Daddies and are conditioned to see them as parental figures (hence the name "Big Daddy"). They will often playfully speak to their "fathers" and affectionately call them "Mr. Bubbles." The protective tendencies of Big Daddies have given them a monstrous reputation among Rapture's citizens as brutes to be avoided, fled from, or fought and killed to get ADAM from a little sister.
The first line of Big Daddies was only able to bond with one specific little sister, which also became one of their main weaknesses. The bond was so strong that the shock of losing their little sister could actually kill a Big Daddy, and those who survived were driven into a perpetual rage. However, by the time of Bioshock, Big Daddies were conditioned to protect any little sister.
8 No One Wants To Be One
Big Daddies are created through an ethically dubious process, which transforms people against their will. Because of this, subjects for transformation into Big Daddies often came from people who were looked down upon in Rapture. The city's lack of a real judicial system pretty much meant that anyone could be convicted simply for being disliked by Andrew Ryan and sentenced without any sort of trial or legal representation. Convicts were more or less turned into slaves who could be bought and sold through Rapture's free market, which offered a large pool of subjects to turn into Big Daddies.
The thought of being turned into a Big Daddy is genuinely frightening to the citizens of Rapture, especially those with a good chance of being selected. The process is designed to strip people of their humanity and brainwash them into menial laborers. The prospect of being transformed into one of these hulking abominations is so frightening that some would argue that Jack or Subject Delta killing them is actually an act of mercy.
7 There Are No Female Big Daddies — Yet
So far only men have been known to be transformed into Big Daddies, though concepts for a female equivalent were considered for Bioshock 2. However, given the process involves first mutating the body and then sealing it in a bulky suit it would likely be impossible to distinguish between genders. Also, only a few subjects have been identified, out of potentially hundreds of Big Daddies throughout rapture. So it is not impossible that there could be female Big Daddies.
6 Their Origins
Big Daddies were originally designed as slave labor, acting in the role of construction and maintenance workers for Rapture. The Bouncer's drill and Rosie's rivet gun were both intended for this function before being repurposed as weapons. This type of work would sometimes necessitate working outside the city, hence the diving suits. The vocal chord surgery was probably intended to facilitate communication while underwater by producing sounds that could travel long distances.
They were repurposed when demand for ADAM was increasing and becoming harder to meet. The little sisters became a conduit by which to collect and distribute ADAM in order to meet that demand, but would often draw unwanted attention from splicers. Big Daddies were then repurposed to act as protectors to keep the flow of ADAM going.
5 Bouncers
The most common type of Big Daddy, as well as the most iconic, is known as the "Bouncer." This is the one that appears on the cover of the original Bioshock- a massive hunched figure clad in a bulky diving suit with a helmet covered in tiny glowing portholes (inspired by the real-life Carmagnolle diving suit) and a drill fixed to one hand. Some early versions of the bouncer are able to pneumatically launch the drill, though this feature was abandoned in later models because it was too expensive.
4 Ranged Variants
While the Bouncer is able to rely on its drill up close, there are two Big Daddy variations that rely on ranged attacks. The first, and arguably the second-most common type after the bouncer, is called a "Rosie" due to its weapon of choice- a rivet gun (the name refers to Rosie the Riveter).
When the Rapture family began to take over after Ryan's death, another model of Big Daddy was made called the "Rumbler" that relied on heavy weapons. There was also the "Lancer" which was armed with an ion laser- fortunately, it is the rarest type of Big Daddy.
3 Alpha Series Differences
The Alpha series was the first line of Big Daddies. They acted as a prototype for the later models but were considered a failure as the necessary mental conditioning had not yet been perfected. They could only bond with one specific Little Sister and would go into an unstoppable range if anything happened to her.
Because of this, alpha Big Daddies are often much more violent than later models and are more likely to attack without any real provocation outside. The only known exceptions are Subject Delta and Subject Sigma, both of whom had unusual circumstances that kept them from going into rage mode.
2 Distinctions From Handymen
Like Big Daddies, Bioshock: Infinite's Handymen are large imposing figures created through the genetic manipulation of humans to act as slave labor, and it is implied that the process of being turned in is a cruel and painful fate, but that is where the similarities end.
The most obvious distinction is that Handymen are more like cyborgs, their arms and legs replaced with robotic limbs. They are also much harder to control than Big Daddies, as their condition leaves them in a state of constant insatiable rage which causes them to react violently to people around them. They are also not bonded with anyone. It is actually Songbird who acts as Columbia's answer to the Big Daddy.
1 Being A Big Daddy Is An Excruciating Process
The information that is available on how people are turned into Big Daddies indicates a few unsettling details. Aside from being irreversible, it is also painful. This is likely why unwilling subjects were used- it would be very hard to find volunteers for the process, and Dr. Suchong was not exactly big on little things like ethics and human rights.
The specifics are never explained, but the transformation from a human into a Big Daddy consists of a few distinct stages. The first step involves using ADAM to mutate the subject. Surgery is also done on their vocal cords which prevents them from speaking, only being able to produce the distinct moaning noise. The final step is to put them into the suit, which is permanently sealed. The suit contains systems that are used to sustain the person, providing them with essential nutrients and oxygen.