Like many people, Second Son was my first introduction to the Infamous series back in the early days of the PS4. While I'm sure my opinions on it were warmer back then, replaying it with the full context of the rest of the series behind me reveals just how 'safe' Second Son plays it as a next-gen Infamous. Not necessarily in a bad way, but certainly not in a way that steps things up from Infamous 2.
In the case of Second Son, new-generation hardware brings a new protagonist, setting, and suite of powers at your disposal. Despite all three not really leaving as big an impression as Infamous 2 did, in my opinion, they do all have their charms. Delsin Rowe, the new lead, for instance, is a welcome change of pace, being a young Native American man with a rebellious streak and a cocky devil-may-care attitude. Thanks to Troy Baker's great performance and the friction he shares with his police officer older brother Reggie (played by Travis Willingham), it's easy to be endeared to Delsin, at least some of the time.
A strong supporting cast also contributes to this. Betty, an Akomish tribal elder and Delsin's surrogate mother; Fetch, a feisty junkie with the ability to harness neon light; and Eugene, a shut-in MMO addict with the ability to alter video signals, all contribute heart and levity to the story when needed and compliment Delsin's bratty attitude nicely.
Despite all this, however, Second Son's story still feels like a step back for the series. It's a simple narrative of the protagonist acquiring superpowers and subsequently learning their benefits, setbacks, and consequences for using them. It's a story told dozens of times before, and it goes exactly as you imagine it will from the start. There's no real twist or subversion that throws a wrench in the works, it's just a basic, by-the-books superhero origin story. That much would be fine if Infamous wasn't already adept at putting weird spins on familiar superhero stories.
There's no risk in Second Son's story, and thus there's no reward for seeing it through to the end. It all just happens according to the formula.
When it comes to gameplay, Second Son's new take on the mechanics and conventions of the series are all welcome and fun to use in isolation, but they again feel like a step back from Infamous 2. Traversal, for instance, feels a lot slower, even though they provide you with several different options for getting around Seattle this time. It all works well enough, but it doesn't have quite the same addictive flow and rhythm as the previous games. Then again, this may well be due to the quantity over quality prioritization of powers in this entry.
It's definitely the best-looking and best-running Infamous out of them all so far, but when the traversal and combat don't feel quite as fluid and expressive as a superhero power fantasy as they have previously, the huge jump in performance this time doesn't really stand out as much as it should.
Infamous: Second Son is still a decent game, and one worth picking up and (re)playing today, but if you go into it expecting it to be Infamous 3 in every conceivable way, you may find yourself with mixed opinions on it.
6/10
In the case of Second Son, new-generation hardware brings a new protagonist, setting, and suite of powers at your disposal. Despite all three not really leaving as big an impression as Infamous 2 did, in my opinion, they do all have their charms. Delsin Rowe, the new lead, for instance, is a welcome change of pace, being a young Native American man with a rebellious streak and a cocky devil-may-care attitude. Thanks to Troy Baker's great performance and the friction he shares with his police officer older brother Reggie (played by Travis Willingham), it's easy to be endeared to Delsin, at least some of the time.
A strong supporting cast also contributes to this. Betty, an Akomish tribal elder and Delsin's surrogate mother; Fetch, a feisty junkie with the ability to harness neon light; and Eugene, a shut-in MMO addict with the ability to alter video signals, all contribute heart and levity to the story when needed and compliment Delsin's bratty attitude nicely.
Despite all this, however, Second Son's story still feels like a step back for the series. It's a simple narrative of the protagonist acquiring superpowers and subsequently learning their benefits, setbacks, and consequences for using them. It's a story told dozens of times before, and it goes exactly as you imagine it will from the start. There's no real twist or subversion that throws a wrench in the works, it's just a basic, by-the-books superhero origin story. That much would be fine if Infamous wasn't already adept at putting weird spins on familiar superhero stories.
There's no risk in Second Son's story, and thus there's no reward for seeing it through to the end. It all just happens according to the formula.
When it comes to gameplay, Second Son's new take on the mechanics and conventions of the series are all welcome and fun to use in isolation, but they again feel like a step back from Infamous 2. Traversal, for instance, feels a lot slower, even though they provide you with several different options for getting around Seattle this time. It all works well enough, but it doesn't have quite the same addictive flow and rhythm as the previous games. Then again, this may well be due to the quantity over quality prioritization of powers in this entry.
It's definitely the best-looking and best-running Infamous out of them all so far, but when the traversal and combat don't feel quite as fluid and expressive as a superhero power fantasy as they have previously, the huge jump in performance this time doesn't really stand out as much as it should.
Infamous: Second Son is still a decent game, and one worth picking up and (re)playing today, but if you go into it expecting it to be Infamous 3 in every conceivable way, you may find yourself with mixed opinions on it.
6/10