by BR88KLYN
Empire City needs a savior and Cole McGrath is that person, not by choice but by circumstance. inFAMOUS finds our hero at the heart of a new sandbox superhero experience. Will Cole be king of the hill or court jester?
Graphics. This game is a mixed bag, textures are detailed and animations are smooth and do a great job of anchoring the player in the world of Empire City. The environments do a great job of truly conveying the despair and destruction that is the day to day reality of the residents of this piece of hell. Crumbled buildings and blown out bridges give weight to the event of destruction that begins this adventure. Cole moves with a fluidity of motion that is enjoyable to behold, his movements can be a little bouncy at times when pulling off his parkour inspired leaps but he is a believable superhero.
If the detail and animation serve the purpose of anchoring me in the game then the technical issues that plague this game do their best to try and sink the ship. Draw-in is the main issue that will stay with you just like Cole’s newly acquired powers from the beginning of the game to the end. Sucker Punch has made an attempt to disguise the issue by having the city covered by a foggy haze that extends into the distance but this does nothing but draw even more attention to the problem. Buildings, cars, NPC’s and enemies will randomly appear. The problem is made worse by issues that occur throughout game play. Cole will mysteriously get stuck behind invisible objects, dancing a two step as he tries to go around the object. A pull of the analog stick will help, but in a game that is exclusively developed for the Playstation 3 the question has to be asked, why does he need the help? Random deaths make an appearance but thankfully not as frequently as the other problems. You may find yourself jumping from a building only to watch Cole fall through the ground to his death in a glitchy great white abyss. These concerns can happen during some of the most pivotal moments of game play and immediately disengages the player from the full immersion that inFAMOUS strives to provide, it feels like riding atop the A train as Cole and having someone pull the emergency brake.
Controls. The controls feel intuitive and natural, a hybrid of first person shooter and third person action. Immediately familiar yet still new, Cole is responsive and the powers he wields are mapped beautifully to the Playstation 3 controller. Movement is fluid and the animations are beautiful to watch as our hero leaps from water tower to roof with parkour influence flare. Sucker punch has opted to use a system that acts like a magnet jumping from object to object, you will notice it immediately the first time you jump for a distant ledge and Cole grabs it with ease, but it is this same play mechanic that at times frustrates when fighting large numbers of enemies. Many times I found myself trying to get down a building only to watch as Cole grabbed every ledge or even grab an object that I never intended to grab at all. I learned immediately that jumping outward and away would get me down the fastest and stop the grab-happy Cole. Besides this minor annoyance inFAMOUS succeeds where many have failed.
Sound. The sound in this game is pitch-perfect, from the explosions to the demonic howl of the kamikaze enemies that explode if allowed to get close. In a move that I have questioned, inFAMOUS makes an obvious choice to not use music throughout the game but instead opts for certain sounds and rhythms to convey mood and tone. This choice does work, but it does so at the expense of an identifiable theme that further adds to Cole’s overall persona. There is no track that instantly invokes thoughts of Cole or inFAMOUS.
Gameplay. If you are looking for a Playstation 3 game that rivals Spider-Man 2 and Crackdown, technical issues aside, this is it. The story will pull you in from the moment you press start, unlike most games that ease into their stride inFAMOUS hits the ground running. The first couple of missions will serve as the standard tutorial but even those are filled with action and subtext that move the story and game play along at a nice pace. The question that concerned me and almost every gamer that hears the word superhero attached to a game is this one, do the powers and abilities make you feel especially heroic? Thankfully, the answer is a resounding yes. Cole’s powers are what make inFAMOUS so enjoyable on every play through, from the shock grenade to the amazing-to-behold lightning storm. The best thing about the powers is the fact that they are all accessible once acquired with a push of the button or a flick of the analog stick. You don’t have to trade off one for another, this is something that more games should employ. The game succeeds in making you feel like you are on a journey with Cole as he learns to use and harness the power that is growing within him.
The Experience (XP) system that is employed tracks your every action, from killing enemies to healing or killing NPC’s. That’s right I said killing NPC’s and getting rewarded for it if you do, but that is entirely dependent on which path you choose. inFAMOUS utilizes a game play mechanic that is becoming the bullet time of this generation (Hi Max Payne), a karma system. Your actions will dictate your progression down either the hero path or down the path to infamy. This is not just a cosmetic choice but a choice that heavily influences the game throughout the story and affects the powers and upgrades that you have access to. Depending on your choice Cole will appear healthy and vibrant, a beacon of hope to the residents of Empire City who will voice their approval and even go as far as assisting Cole by throwing objects at enemies while our hero fights. The choice of Hero provides powers and upgrades that offer greater precision while being destructive. If being inFAMOUS is your choice then Cole’s powers and upgrades will have a greater radial damage and carve a wider path of destruction. Resident’s of the city will now look upon you as their damnation and will flip you the bird as well as throwing objects at you and attack you physically. The main effect your decision will have is the side missions that are available when you are a Hero or inFAMOUS.
Once you complete a side mission that is on the good or evil path the other missions are no longer an option. This means that for all you trophy whores out there, you can look forward to multiple play throughs. The choice you make is totally dependent on your style of play, do you like precision and strategy that comes with a side order of adoration, or do you like the radial damage increase and greater level of destruction that results in eye pleasing and ear splitting explosions (Note to Self : turn down T.V.). No side orders of adoration here but you do get contempt, disgust, revulsion, and some other door prizes as well.
Overall. inFAMOUS bursts out of the gate but stumbles down the stretch. Draw-in and minor game play glitches and control issues keep this game from being great. If you are able to look past some technical flaws you will find a rewarding experience that offers one of the best super hero experiences to date.
