But a bit of background behind inFamous first. You play out the story of Cole McGrath, an ordinary guy who just happened to have been caught in a massive explosion, levelling several blocks of the city he resides in, Empire City. Though this killed most, Cole somehow survived, and came out of it with the power to control and often conjure up electricity. Not being the only one who was given power, the city falls apart, growing rampant with crime, and is placed under quarantine by the country due to a plague spreading throughout the city. This in turn puts Cole’s story in motion, where he faces many obstacles and choices: he could protect the city, or take it all for himself.
The story itself is actually very intriguing, and one of the best aspects of inFamous. Cole as a character is interesting and depending on what choices you make throughout the game, he will become darker and more twisted or more heroic and noble, with the city reacting accordingly. The choices actively affect the outcome of the story to an extent too. Though the fantastic and unpredictable ending isn’t all that different between being good and evil, there is enough difference to warrant a second playthrough, but that’s also due largely to the gameplay, which is both fun and maddeningly addictive.
Electrifying atmosphere.
In the beginning your powers aren’t all that flash, with a small shockwave attack and lightning bolt being available. But as you progress throughout the game your powers increase exponentially and pretty soon, you’ll be firing multiple shock grenades all over the place and summoning entire thunderstorms, with incredible and indescribably chaotic results. Your powers are different depending on whether you’re good or evil too, with the good powers being much more precise and civilian safe, and rather than killing many enemies you’ll restrain them to the ground with certain attacks. Evil on the other hand is quite literally all over the place; Shock grenades explode and fire several clusters, and shockwaves electrocute and blow up anything caught within its core. Though both karma sides are great fun to play, we feel most people will get the biggest kick out of the evil side, particularly because the amount of things going on at once and physics interactions with the destruction is utterly insane.
And this is probably inFamous biggest selling point: the karma system. As gimmicky as it sounds initially, the system actually works quite well as you play through. Choices between doing something good or evil are usually quite logical and it always seems to come into play at the most convenient times, without interruption. Many random events throughout the world will spring up offering these karma moments, and are barely ever a detour to your main quest. The only fault is that bad karma just seems to have a bit more favouritism. Though helping people is great and all, the end result after picking good is usually nowhere near as rewarding as the evil side, so for holy warriors of light, you might end up feeling a bit ripped off and bitter after a few of the karma moments. It’s almost like Sucker Punch want you to be evil, but then again considering the title name, that might not be too surprising.
Combat and parkour in the game also work really well together, with combinations of it used to achieve some startling results. Pulling out insane stunts like grinding across a power line, then boosting off to headshot someone in mid-air then thunder slam the remainders will always bring a smile to your face, no matter how many times you pull it off. It’s the best part about the gameplay, in that you can get creative due to Cole’s flexibility and destructive power. But though this works most of the time, the game often enough trips over its own feet to cause some frustrations. In between graceful and incredibly intense bouts of beautifully realised combat, sometimes Cole won’t grab onto the wall railing you wanted him to, or he might just overshoot something and fall clumsily into a pool of deadly water. Couple this with the AI being tough and ridiculously accurate (both on Hard and Normal, the former being insane), and moments of the game can quickly turn from immersive and fun to irritating and a chore. It doesn’t happen often enough to break the gameplay, but when it does happen, it tends to unmotivate you into playing. Platforming elements and combat are usually very fun and addictive, but when something doesn’t go right, the game suddenly loses the immersion it had.
Some shocking moments in the combat.
These flaws don’t make the game any less enjoyable however. Side missions and the main story hold some great set-pieces, and once you’re done with those, you can move onto collecting blast shards and dead drops, which are a game in their own right due to the ridiculously addictive nature of it. What inFamous lacks in some inconsistency, it tends to make up for in other areas, like replay ability, as it’s almost a guarantee that when you pick this game up, you may not let go of it until you’ve absolutely collected and done everything the game has to offer.
On the visual note, inFamous has bouts of a quiet beauty, a rare kind of feel to a game where the world around you feels alive and in need of saving. The city is vast and yours to play with, and the level of detail in many areas is quite good for a sand box title. On the other hand though, the overall design tends to feel a little bland, with the same darker and drab colours used in many areas and the city sometimes feeling a little dead. It really depends on the area you’re in and your progression in the game. Sometimes, Empire City will amaze you, others it will bore you. Cole himself looks great, especially when harnessing the powers of electricity, and will more than likely satisfy the hunger for decent visual splendour for most players. There is a little pop-in and a lack of anti-aliasing as well, however when moving at such a fast pace, it’s rarely noticeable.
Sound wise inFamous hits all the right notes and does it all in DTS too, creating some absolutely amazing surround sound ambiance. NPC’s in the world will either flip you off or cheer and take photographs of you, depending on if you’re evil or good, and explosions and gunfire will shatter your eardrums from the crystal clear and bassy sound of it. It all sounds exceptional, and music seems to meld in dynamically at just the right times, giving inFamous a cinematic flair and moody atmosphere. A great job from the guys at Sucker Punch.
These puns are serious shockers.
InFamous is a game worth buying solely for the addictive and fun nature of the game. Empire City is a blast to explore and combat coupled with a fantastic story is a great experience. The problem with InFamous however lies in its overall consistency, or lack of it. Though the game has such a fun level of play, it lacks a certain flair and some minor coats of polish to propel it to truly astronomical heights. But for what it is though, inFamous is much like the power it gives you, electricity. Powerful and unpredictable, it gives to you flexibility to do almost anything you want. But sometimes it proves unstable and will either black out on you or give you a nasty shock back to reality. That being said, we can live with electricity and love it for what it is and gives us. Highly recommended.
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