forevercloud3000 said:
Play.com- 9.5/10!!!!!
As far as I’m concerned the fat lady was bound and gagged until Sucker Punch’s first game hit the streets. Now the PS3 is officially launched. I was actually kind of dreading the day I’d finally play inFAMOUS, having thoroughly convinced myself that Sucker Punch had lost their minds the moment I laid eyes on the regular Joe that would follow in the footsteps of one of the most fun-to-control and charismatic characters to ever grace the widescreen—Sly Cooper. How do you top a suave raccoon that hangs out with a turtle and a hippopotamus? The last game in the Sly series came with custom red/blue glasses to play the special 3D levels. Do you have any idea how cool that is? How’s a guy in a motorcycle jacket that shoots electricity out of his hands supposed to compete with that? I wouldn’t care if I didn’t absolutely love everything Sucker Punch touches, but I’ve been on the bandwagon since they revolutionized physics on the N64 with Rocket Robot on Wheels.
Oh me of little faith…The moment Cole hit the ground running, after a 100-or-so-foot plunge from the building he and his buddy Zeke call home, I knew that they had done it again. I didn’t know exactly what “it” was yet, but whatever it was, it was gonna be great. First impressions are everything. Cole is super light on his feet, ultra responsive, and wiry as a cat. You immediately identify with him as a video game character. He may look like a regular Joe but his movement suggests something realistically unrealistic.
Click to see all inFamous images.
Running behind Zeke—who’s chattering like he’s overdosed on Monster Fuel—as we make our way to the city square to grab some groceries at the government food drop, people are freaking out; all the cars are crushed or gutted, and there’s trash and debris everywhere. Empire City is in total disarray. It looks like Godzilla just left town. And it’s all thanks to Cole. All we know at this point is that approximately 13 days ago somebody gave him a package to deliver that went big-bada-boom with a vengeance sending out a shock wave that gutted the city, leaving inestimable casualties (including Cole’s girlfriend’s sister) and one supercharged anti-hero in its wake. When we meet Cole he can climb like a monkey, leap from any height and land unscathed, and fire lightning bolts out of his hands 3rd person-shooter-style, no gun necessary. When he runs low on power, recharging is as easy as draining the nearest energy source—fuse boxes, cars, phone booths, generators… as long as there’s power to the grid, Cole’s like an energy sponge.
The food drop sets the stage. Once Cole climbs the tower and zaps the crates loose he’s presented with a choice; he can either zap a bystander, sending fear through the crowd so he can keep all the food for himself, Zeke, and Trish (leaving the weak to die), or let them eat their prunes and live to see another dreary day. Karma plays a big role in inFAMOUS, affecting the way Cole looks and in the way people look at Cole. At present, food or no food, they hate his guts (the propaganda machine is in full swing), so, time to go. But not before your first encounter with the Reapers— demonic hooded thugs that have taken control of the streets, killing anyone who stands in their way.
Cole wasn’t the only one affected by the blast. Reapers don’t have powers, but there’s definitely something sub-human about them.
Blue markers on the map represent primary (story) missions, and yellow depict side missions, which in this case are just as important. For every side mission you complete you reclaim a parcel of the city, crime-free, causing the people to rebuild, and if you’re being “good,” worship you. They’ll take your picture, plaster the region with your poster, and whenever someone is injured, beg you to use your Pulse Heal to revive them. I think I heard Zeke say I have a fan club… You’ll also earn valuable XP used to unlock new skills. Certain skills can only be acquired with a particular Karma rank, so Cole’s abilities reflect his demeanor. How you level up also depends on whether you’re naughty or nice. The Shockwave sends out an electromagnetic wave that can flip cars like dominos (effective relief versus marauding hordes); Overload Burst fires a bolt of electricity that chains off of conductive surfaces to fry multiple goons; Shock Grenades let you hurl a ball of exploding energy; and Thunder Drop turns Cole into a human torpedo, but affects anyone in the blast radius. Cole scales poles and scurries up sides of buildings like an anthropoid; he can zip across power lines and rails on a bolt of lightning, use his hands as boosters to hover and even channel the final thoughts of the dead.
(cont...)
By the time you cross the bridge linking the first two islands, you will be in complete and utter awe of what you’ve become, guaranteed; as long as the power’s on. Juicing Cole is a tactic unto itself. When the city goes dark you can drain injured Reapers to replenish Cole’s health with the eerily vampiric Bio-Leech, or if you’re fully charged use Arc Restrain to pin them where they lay. Tapping L3, Cole can also send out a Radar Pulse to locate any nearby energy.
So, it’s GTA on foot with super powers, right? Not even close. For the most part the missions in inFAMOUS are heated to say the least, and packed with tactical warfare, nimble acrobatics or both. The gameplay is far and away the most diverse, and altogether awe- inspiring, that exists in a single game today, open-world or otherwise. It has the precision of Sly Cooper (and the feel; if you’ve played Sly imagine that control, only better, in this world) and the look of a much smaller linear game. Infamous is textured and detailed better than the vast majority of big-budget games (name it, this beats it) and it’s simply immense vertically as well as horizontally. That said, the textures are only the beginning, the architecture itself is really the star. The animated signage simply should not exist in a playground this size, and the shapes and facades of the buildings is so varied and inspired I simply don’t have an expletive to do them justice. Each one is like a little piece of unique gameplay unto itself by design. The gameplay in infamous slaughters its competition, and believe me, you don’t need a car.
Click to see all inFamous images.
Even outside of the missions, the game is in constant motion. Crossing enemy territory to reach the next waypoint is never easy. You’re constantly using the world as a means of cover, stealth, and progression, leaping and hopping up the sides of buildings; hanging from any ledge to fire on attackers below or using the rooftops to leap, glide and hover into position or away from certain death. It’s a total rush. Reapers don’t have good AI, they have great AI. They attack in packs; some charge, some flank, some shoot from rooftops, some man turrets, some lob fire bombs…they might even arrive in trucks. Not with abandon of a typical NPC, but like they’re homed in on your beacon. It’s intense in a way I’ve never experienced. Sucker Punch are also known for their mastery of physics and once again, they’ve shown the way. There’s no question that these are the best action-game physics to date. Jump from any high perch onto a vertical pipe and you’ll begin to see what I mean. Climbing and building to building transfers are pure unbridled laugh-out-loud fun, and when you enter the sewers, well, say hello to your PS3 now. In fact, go ahead, give it a hug.
By the time you’ve taken on Sasha (one helluva French kisser) and graduated from Reapers to Dust Men (and other hulking monstrosities fashioned from junk), you’ll begin to realize the scope of what you’re into. Just prior, climb up to the top of the bridge before the engineer lowers it (once he’s safe) and think about how far we’ve come. It’s a very good time to be a gamer, even for a regular Joe.
score
9.5
out of ten |
verdict
inFAMOUS is now in the running for my number-one favorite game (how can this and Bionic Commando hit in the same year, let alone month?) and it doesn’t star a creature or a heroine. Hell must be frozen over. Sorry Sadam and Mr. Devil! |
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