“The city is an equal lead character to whoever your leads are,” says noted comics writer Brian Michael Bendis, author of successful independent series Powers as well as numerous Marvel lines including Ultimate Spider-Man. That philosophy makes Bendis the perfect interview subject for Ken Levine, whose contributions to BioShock‘s city of Rapture helped make the game’s setting its most defining element.

Both creators made their biggest impact on fiction after exploring other forms. Bendis cut his teeth on crime fiction, while Levine began his writing career as a screenwriter. Those experiences helped them develop their ideas about writing, as well as an appreciation for what makes their chosen forms unique.

In the second episode of Irrational Interviews–recorded prior to the announcement of BioShock Infinite–Levine, Bendis, and Shawn Elliott discuss lessons learned in writing, the challenges of character permanence in games and comics, and much more.

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• Produced by James Bonney, Shawn Elliott and Alan Bise
• Music provided by The Happy Hollows
• Spider-Woman Motion Comic clips courtesy of Marvel Comics