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Well, I am confused after several days of deep thinking.

The Booker that we play is 38 years old, Elizabeth is 20 (as I assume when referring to chalkboard in Monument Island where scientists observed Elizabeth's growing up). That means he was married and got Anna when he was 18 years. (He was married because Anna's surname is Dewitt).

Okay, now... In the scene after credits we see calendar that says 8th October 1893. In the Bioshock Wiki it says Booker was born on April 19, 1874.

So how did he get into debt, become a Pinkerton member, get fired, and open his own Detective Agency while still being so young?

Can anyone help me solve that mystery?

Thank you!

LessPop_MoreFizz
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Mario92
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    relevant post – Kevin Apr 22 '13 at 20:25
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    Wait, how do you know he was in debt and had been rejected from the Pinkertons in the post-credits timeline? All you know is that he has his PI office/hovel, which he was previously established to have when Anna was an infant. – Tacroy Apr 22 '13 at 20:33
  • Somehow I think that it is the case just because debt is constant. In every scenario there was some sort of debt which should be payed back (Gambling debt, recreated from old memories and debt for Anna).

    For the Pinkerton part - well, I guess you're right, there is not need for him to become Pinkerton.

     – Mario92 Apr 22 '13 at 21:25
  • If after-credits scene is whole new reality - why did he asked Anna is she really her? It just makes no sense to me right now. – Mario92 Apr 22 '13 at 21:32

1 Answers1

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The biography on Wikia does a good job of explaining things:

Booker DeWitt was born on April 19, 1874. At the age of sixteen, he was part of the 7th Cavalry Regiment of the United States Army, and was present at the Battle of Wounded Knee. Due to his gruesome actions at the battle, other members of his regiment gave him the nickname "The White Injun," because of his habit of taking trophies from his victims.

After the battle, fraught with guilt, Booker attended a river baptism led by Preacher Witting, to be reborn a new man and absolve his past. However, Booker rejected his baptism before it could be completed.

By 1892, when he was eighteen, his wife had become pregnant with their child. However, she died while giving birth to their daughter, Anna DeWitt. Dealing with the scars of Wounded Knee, the grief of her death, and the stress of becoming a single father, Booker slipped into alcoholism and gambling.

Looking for work, Booker became a Pinkerton Agent, tasked with breaking up union strike efforts, but was discharged due to his use of extreme methods on the job.

Following his discharge from the Pinkerton Agency, he tried to open his own Private Detective agency, but his alcoholism and gambling addiction remained. Eventually, Booker became indebted to individuals that, he claimed, one would not want to owe money to.

At some point, Booker met a mysterious man, who offered him a deal to wipe Booker's debt away in exchange for Anna. On October 8th, 1893, Booker reluctantly handed her over, but regretted his choice immediately.

So he had at least a year, possibly up to 18 months to get hired as a Pinkerton, get fired, and open a (presumably poor) Private Detective Agency. Not that difficult to believe, I think.

Also, to answer your original question, Booker is 19 years and 5 months old in the final scene (if the calendar on his desk is right, at least).

Django Reinhardt
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