Shocking Philosophy

Today, I'll be reviewing the Playstation 3 exclusive inFAMOUS 2, developed by Sucker Punch Productions and published by Sony Computer Entertainment. Firstly, let me say that I've played this game in the evil karmic fashion and will be describing my thoughts on the game in this respect. I will try to limit the spoilers in there, but there may be some info on the game here and there if I cannot help it.

For some backstory: Cole MacGrath faces the Beast at the very beginning of inFAMOUS 2, and finds that he is not nearly strong enough to beat him. He flees to New Marais, the original place of developement of the ray sphere. Here he attempts to maximise the strength of his powers and waits for the arrival of the Beast. Cole can fight for the respect of the humble civillians of New Marais or terrorize them until they see him as the embodiment of death.

Firsty, the grafics of this game are extraordinary. Electricity will jump through the air between metallic objects and ripple through water beautifully and realistically. If grafics was the only aspect of the game that was developed, it would still make for a good game.

I was fearful at first that the choice that you have in being good or evil will negatively impact the game. I am happy to admit that I was wrong and there is a distinction between good and evil. Not only is the colour of the electricity turned to red if you're evil, but the environment, character interactions and powers are significantly altered.

The character developement in this game is amazing. With Zeke's betrayal in the previous game, he is filled with regret and does everything he can to make it up to Cole. He becomes the person that Cole can rely on in even the most dire of situations. Cole does act rather coldly in the beginning of the game, but feels Zeke's remorse and decides to forget about what Zeke did to him. During the end, it feels just like old times between the two.

Cole's two female friends are the personifications of good and evil. Kuo is the NSA agent, wielding ice powers, always ready to make sacrifices to minimise civillian casualties. Nix is the deviant demon, wielding fire powers, always ready to have some fun and enjoy some grand explosions.

There are some neutral powers that can be unlocked by both good and evil Cole, but the majority can only be unlocked if you're at that specific karmic level. For example, good people get some ice powers, evil people get fire powers. Good people get a rapid shooting electricity attack, evil people get to launch a cut of electricity that deals AOE damage.

Instead of the power upgrading in the first inFAMOUS, the upgrade system has been redesigned. Instead of giving you basic skills and you upgrading them, you choose a variety of different attacks, each has its advantages and disadvantages and should be used in different circumstances. You can setup your electric powers on the go to suit any situation.

Depending on whether you're good or evil, you can accomplish missions in two different ways. For example, you can ride a train packed with explosives through a building, killing everyone in the process, or release some trapped police veterans who can assist you on your quest. The choice is entirely up to you.

This game is composed of 40 main story missions, all varying enough to keep you entertained. Different aspects of gameplay are changed throughout and this keeps you on your toes, not knowing what to expect. It has a fuckawesome plot and really builds on the foundations that the previous installment has set. The ending of this game almost made me cry. It broke my heart to see what happened, and if you play this game, you'll understand why.

This game serves up 3 main classes of enemies with various miniclasses to keep you entertained. You are given the Militia. An organisation formed by Bertrand to keep the Swamp monsters at bay and enforce local law and order. You are given the Corrupted. Swap monsters at the edge of town attempting to cut through the defenses at get at the juicy civillians. You are given the Forced Conduits. Mercanaries that have been tortured and forced powers upon. They are unleashed upon the world and make their own organisation, going berserk and attempting to kill everyone.

The only flaw that this game has is the camera. When engaging in melee combat it will randomely decide to go into a wall, obscuring your view of the camera. This hasn't led to any of my deaths personally, but I can see how this rare bug can cause you to fail a mission entirely.

This game balances the fight between good and evil perfectly and understands how to keep gamers entertained by providing a new experience every mission. Gamers feel and understand what the characters in this game are going through, and empathise with them. I pity xbros, for this is an almost flawless gem of a game that is just out of their reach.