While not without its negatives, I can see why Infamous is as… famous as it is. There’s some classic PS3-isms that’ll remind you of the era you’re in, but it comes off more charming than grating to me. Most of the time that is. On that same train of thought, let’s get the infamous out of the way before we talk about why it’s famous.
Infamous is one of the many games of its generation to try its hand at the karma system, and it’s not the greatest. To its credit but primarily its detriment, it’s very on the nose with its choices. The total lack of nuance makes it very obvious the moral path that you’re going down, yet it also prevents any hard-choices or depth of choice. When your options are as starkly different as kill hungry civilians or save a hospital, it becomes much too easy to make a choice. And even with how satisfying the combat system is, I can’t see an argument to play the game through twice. There’s really one unique ability per alignment, and it’s no game changer either way. I think an alignment system can be great but the entire infrastructure has to be built around it intelligently, which is not the case here. Granted this is really a half-gripe, because I don’t think it takes away that much from the main game, except in the sense that the resources put towards it could have been put elsewhere. Still worth noting though.
My other gripe is with the characters. Growing up and watching my older brother play this game, I never really picked up on how naggy, backstabby, or just downright annoying almost everyone is here. After actually playing completely through Cole was pretty much the only person I wasn’t pissed at by the end. But hey, I know Zeke is much more likable in the sequel so at least I have that to look forward to. My last and most major issue I have is with the NPC generation, both the civilians and enemies. There are way too many at any given moment, in the immersive and gameplay sense. A healthy mix of NPCs are necessary for a world to feel lived in, it’s just literally every corner in Infamous is filled to the brim with people, to the point where civilian death is nearly a guarantee with how stupidly they run right in front of you while trying to zap some bad guys. And I’m sorry but there are SO many bad guys just strewn throughout the quarantined hellhole that is Empire City, that after a while I just ignored them to travel to my next mission. Some regulation of NPC count would have made the world not feel so cluttered.
In terms of pure gameplay, infamous is very refined for its first outing. A diverse array of offensive options, traversal enhancers, and even a permanent electro-shield all made for a veritable playground at any firefight. The ultimate ability and nade-spamming one being my personal favorites to unleash on some poor unsuspecting fool. Kudos also to the electrical line and train-tracks traversal, each were very smart and rewarding methods of travel. Same goes for the parkour, which felt very Assassin’s Creed-y, if made infinitely more relaxed. If any building exists in Infamous, as long as it has even the smallest lip jutting out, you can climb it, and I respect that greatly.
Not just suited for function, the aesthetics, power-wise and cityscape wise, were tip-top here as well. Using nearby generators, cars, and antennas to siphon energy for grenade blasts and hands-zaps emphasized how utterly badass playing as a superhero in a superheroless world could be. Along with using sewer substations to make yourself a literal conduit the game was A+ at making you feel awesome. I won’t get into the story here, I’ll just say it does have a pretty major twist unveiled at the end. I’m not sure it was necessary, and many people despise the supposed bait-and-switch they pulled, but I was honestly fairly lukewarm on it. Definitely the most interesting part of the narrative, so I suppose I’m cool with it. It certainly sets up the next game to be truly epic. On a last note about the story, I absolutely love the comic art cinematics they used to cap off mission completions. It was probably for budget purposes, however the art was positively striking, and I can see why they made a comic series in the same style after the fact.
All that to say, Infamous is a fun time. As long as you’re keeping a brisk pace and you can be patient with the video-game equivalent of your slightly older, ever-so-slightly backwards cousin, you’ll have a good time here. And you should, because I think Infamous holds up well despite its flaws.
Infamous is one of the many games of its generation to try its hand at the karma system, and it’s not the greatest. To its credit but primarily its detriment, it’s very on the nose with its choices. The total lack of nuance makes it very obvious the moral path that you’re going down, yet it also prevents any hard-choices or depth of choice. When your options are as starkly different as kill hungry civilians or save a hospital, it becomes much too easy to make a choice. And even with how satisfying the combat system is, I can’t see an argument to play the game through twice. There’s really one unique ability per alignment, and it’s no game changer either way. I think an alignment system can be great but the entire infrastructure has to be built around it intelligently, which is not the case here. Granted this is really a half-gripe, because I don’t think it takes away that much from the main game, except in the sense that the resources put towards it could have been put elsewhere. Still worth noting though.
My other gripe is with the characters. Growing up and watching my older brother play this game, I never really picked up on how naggy, backstabby, or just downright annoying almost everyone is here. After actually playing completely through Cole was pretty much the only person I wasn’t pissed at by the end. But hey, I know Zeke is much more likable in the sequel so at least I have that to look forward to. My last and most major issue I have is with the NPC generation, both the civilians and enemies. There are way too many at any given moment, in the immersive and gameplay sense. A healthy mix of NPCs are necessary for a world to feel lived in, it’s just literally every corner in Infamous is filled to the brim with people, to the point where civilian death is nearly a guarantee with how stupidly they run right in front of you while trying to zap some bad guys. And I’m sorry but there are SO many bad guys just strewn throughout the quarantined hellhole that is Empire City, that after a while I just ignored them to travel to my next mission. Some regulation of NPC count would have made the world not feel so cluttered.
In terms of pure gameplay, infamous is very refined for its first outing. A diverse array of offensive options, traversal enhancers, and even a permanent electro-shield all made for a veritable playground at any firefight. The ultimate ability and nade-spamming one being my personal favorites to unleash on some poor unsuspecting fool. Kudos also to the electrical line and train-tracks traversal, each were very smart and rewarding methods of travel. Same goes for the parkour, which felt very Assassin’s Creed-y, if made infinitely more relaxed. If any building exists in Infamous, as long as it has even the smallest lip jutting out, you can climb it, and I respect that greatly.
Not just suited for function, the aesthetics, power-wise and cityscape wise, were tip-top here as well. Using nearby generators, cars, and antennas to siphon energy for grenade blasts and hands-zaps emphasized how utterly badass playing as a superhero in a superheroless world could be. Along with using sewer substations to make yourself a literal conduit the game was A+ at making you feel awesome. I won’t get into the story here, I’ll just say it does have a pretty major twist unveiled at the end. I’m not sure it was necessary, and many people despise the supposed bait-and-switch they pulled, but I was honestly fairly lukewarm on it. Definitely the most interesting part of the narrative, so I suppose I’m cool with it. It certainly sets up the next game to be truly epic. On a last note about the story, I absolutely love the comic art cinematics they used to cap off mission completions. It was probably for budget purposes, however the art was positively striking, and I can see why they made a comic series in the same style after the fact.
All that to say, Infamous is a fun time. As long as you’re keeping a brisk pace and you can be patient with the video-game equivalent of your slightly older, ever-so-slightly backwards cousin, you’ll have a good time here. And you should, because I think Infamous holds up well despite its flaws.