inFamous

"No amount of electric puns can describe this gem"

After Sly 3 released on PS2, one might say Sucker Punch slipped off the face of the earth. At least, I had nearly forgotten about them until the announcement of inFamous, and I was certainly excited for this PS3 title.

Plot: 8/10

Taking place in the fictional city of Empire City, which seems heavily inspired by multiple cities in the United States, we are quick to become familiar with resident courier known as Cole McGrath. Cole is put under the task of delivering a package, to which he unknowingly cracks open and wounds up on the other end of an explosion.

Naturally, he's the one people are quick to blame, being he happens to be the only survivor of the explosion. This explosion hasn't left him entirely empty-handed of anything but accusations, as he soon discovers that he has super powers in which he can manipulate electricity.

After learning he is the top target of the whole issue and that the city is put under quarantine due to a plague running about, Cole decides to hightail it out of the city with the help of a fellow courier named Zeke. Obviously, the plan fails, but Cole is greeted by a FBI agent named Moya, who essentially serves as your source of missions in the game. From there on, Cole is put up to the task of completing the missions on Moya's behalf, and managing his powers.

Graphics: 9/10

Much like a load of other PS3 games, the game sports amazing graphics that I don't think I can grow tired of looking at. For Sucker Punch's first attempt at something photo-realistic, and not their usual cel-shaded works (not to say I mind; I adored Sly!), it is a very solid job.

Granted, a load of other games for PS3 follow suit in taking up a photo-realistic appearance, the look is very suiting for inFamous as it strives for an almost-real life setting mixed with that of super heroes. I don't think I would have it any other way, to be quite honest!

Sadly, I also feel that the specs could have been beefed up a tad bit, as they seem to take backseat to that of the gameplay. Again, however, they are still solid and prove to be pure eye candy.

Music: 7/10

The music in the game has been intended to feel very natural, tying in with the city environment that you will romp about in. It certainly doesn't fail at that, either – The music certainly does tie in with the game's concept, however…

It felt somewhat… uninspired. As much as I enjoyed the game's soundtrack, I also can't help but to admit I didn't quite feel that tint of magic I would usually feel from a game's music. Not to say inFamous's soundtrack is atrocious; by any means, it isn't, nor is it superb.

Sound: 10/10

Zap! You'll often be hearing electric-related sound effects, because… well, that's what Cole's power is all about. It sounds natural, to boot, so at least you know you don't get any cartoony feeling to it.

Everything else is about as natural as you could get. Obviously, they were aiming for that natural feeling and they didn't aim for any less. Nothing protrudes as out of place, so you'll fit right into the setting of the game quite nicely.

Gameplay: 10/10

As mentioned before, the graphics take backseat to the game's gameplay, which proves to be extremely enthralling and fresh.

Being the game is superhero-inspired, just about the majority of your abilities will come from electricity: Shocking people and thugs, starting up generators, healing people… essentially, a lot of things. Not to say it's a bad thing, because I'm a sucker for electric-based powers and found it an entertaining experience with how Sucker Punch got creative in the various tasks you can do with your powers alone.

Another cool aspect is exploration of the city. Like most sandbox games, you don't have to jump to the call of every mission, and can choose to scurry about the city, doing what you please. Interaction with the city and its people allows you to get a feeling that you are truly a part of the game and not simply watching the game play itself.

Accessing your powers is a simple thing, as the control setup is relatively easy. You obviously don't start off with many abilities, but you build them up as the story passes along. This grants you more far out abilities like the electric grenades and healing ability, as well as skills like “bio leech” which are for those of more devilish intentions.

Speaking of devilish, the game has been heavily advertised with a karma meter. This certainly holds true, as your karma meter will either lean to a hero or a villain depending on your actions. This is fairly self-explanatory, as I'm certain the lot of you know how superheroes and villains work in fiction.

Difficulty: 7/10

I'm not too much into sandbox games, but inFamous stands up on its own in terms of difficulty. It isn't insanely difficult to where you'll want to toss the controller aside, never wanting to play the game again; nor is it pathetically easy where you can close your eyes and open them a minute later to find the work done for you.

Fair enough, that previous statement was an over exaggeration of a game being easy, but this game proves to be balanced. Obviously, the difficulty will ramp up, but the curve is rather perfect as you will find yourself keeping up without a problem.

However, when you first start off, you might find yourself dying a few times due to rapid gunfire from the thugs and what not. Fair enough, you're going to die a few times – But at times it really does feel a little cheap, and yet it is very tolerable. Later down the line, you'll find enemies are beefed up to become a bigger annoyance and you'll have to upgrade some of your skills.

Some difficulty might come from when you are venturing into areas that suffer from blackouts. In these areas, you have no source of electricity to drain from, and thus you are severely limited. However… that adds to the challenge, and added a realistic aspect for the game, and I rather liked that difficulty buff added.

Enjoyment: 9/10

I find myself playing this game in long bouts, not becoming tired until I hit a bump in the road. Mind you, I'm typically not for playing a game beyond 2 – 3 hours a day, but inFamous had me sucked in to playing it more frequently than other games.

Granted, the game does suffer from some slight repetition as you'll find yourself facing the same type of enemies very often and it becomes tiresome to kill off the same set of grunts over and over. This is somewhat balanced by the fact you are offered a variety of abilities to work with and thus can tackle these enemies in multiple styles.

Exploration can easily allow you to become sidetracked, as well as the side missions. The environment is large and gives you a lot to view, so you're in for a real treat.

Replay Value: 9/10

The karma meter should become the obvious factor that gives you another reason to play through the game more than once: Certain powers are exclusive to the good or evil side of said meter.

Due to said exclusive abilities, you'll also be performing different tasks. Whether it be saving helpless victims of the Reapers or being a grade-A jerk and killing everyone in sight, different events are in order due to Cole's actions.

The obvious factor that comes as a result from this includes different endings. Considering the game is a buck-load of fun to play, I honestly wouldn't mind picking this game up a second time to see how things turn out if I were to set Cole on the path of a villain.

Odds are, you might be moderately inclined to replay the game but with different circumstances, so it likely won't feel tedious to you the least bit.


Overall: 9/10

PS3 owners are in store for a treat with inFamous. Those looking into getting a PS3? This game is certainly a must buy for a growing collection of exclusives for Sony's black brick. Suck Punch also truly outdid themselves with this title, and I am certainly looking forward to any future titles they may release on PS3.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 06/15/09

Game Release: inFamous (US, 05/26/09)