Platform: PS3
ESRB Rating: T
Developer: Sucker Punch Productions
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment
Genre: Action/Shooter/Adventure
I've never been a fan of the sandbox genre of videogames. The majority seem disjointed and the abundance of side missions made the importance of the main story seem diluted to make way for a random side quest having little or nothing to do with the issues presented in the primary plotline. One of the first games, however to make me rethink my opinion on said genre was 2009's InFamous, which featured protagonist Cole MacGrath gaining superpowers and fighting off an evil threatening his city. The premise worked for this type of game, allowing a true comic book style to be experienced through a videogame media. Though it wasn't without its problems, the game was one of the best of the year and InFamous 2 only improves on the formula.
Taking place after the events of the first game, InFamous 2 once again puts you in the role of Cole, waiting in Empire City for The Beast prophesised from the first game. Things soon take a turn for the worse as The Beast arrives sooner than anticipated and proceeds to beat the hell out of an underpowered Cole and draining him of his powers. Cole and his backstabbing friend Zeke and new pal, NSA Agent Lucy Kuo, then flee to the city of New Marais in order to amplify his powers with the help of a scientist who worked on the original Ray Sphere with The Beast chasing him down, destroying every city in its path.
However, now in New Marais, a setting that so isn't New Orleans, Cole faces a new threat. A religious zealot and avid hater of conduits (AKA: people with superpowers), Joseph Bertrand III who actively attempts to turn the city against any and all conduits with the help of a radical militia. With the help of both Agent Kuo and Nix, depicted as the polar opposite of Kuo, Cole must ready himself for the arrival of The Beast and defeat Bertrand before he convinces everyone he's a demon out to destroy their city.
Even though the plot can feel a bit incoherent for what is essentially a comic book story, it is all very well told and even though a few times it fails to mention things early on that are blatantly contrived and go without any form of exposition or reason for half the game, it is still very enjoyable.
Did I mention this isn't New Orleans?
For fans of the series, the relationship between Cole and Zeke is a touching one. As Zeke actively tries to make amends for his actions in the previous game, there's a lot more character development and basic reason to care about anyone on screen. One of the bigger problems I felt in the predecessor was that I didn't particularly care for many of the central characters for a large portion of the game. InFamous 2 quickly fixes this by giving each character more personality and general appeal to the audience. Newcomers Kuo and Nix, representing good and evil respectively, are no exceptions to this as they're presented in a way to make them sympathetic and at least somewhat relatable no matter what karmic option you choose. The voice acting has been improved as well. While there are no complaints on my part for the voice acting in the previous title and I do miss Cole's original voice actor, the acting here is well done and you can tell the cast members enjoyed reading their lines and deliver them well, giving a more cinematic feeling to the game.
In terms of gameplay, InFamous 2 plays almost identically to the first game. During your stay in the totally-not-New Orleans-style-city, you'll spend the majority of your time climbing, gliding, sliding along power lines, electrifying unsuspecting enemies within the city and basically playing the role of Zeus and smiting anyone you damn well please. Despite the general lack of updates in regards to central combat, this isn't necessarily a bad thing. Don't fix what isn't broken, right? Well, even still it would have been nice to see a bit more innovation rather than a simply improved melee fighting system. This lack of diversity poses the same problem in the original game, unfortunately. With little additions to previous game mechanics presents a horrible amount of repetition, especially when played for long periods of time. Battles for the most part, feel the same and although there are still plenty of powers and abilities to be gained through XP, every enemy encounter felt like a simple "rinse and repeat" scenario. There's still a certain charm to be had by throwing a sticky grenade at an enemy's head and watching him cower away before it explodes but after the first 6 hours of doing this, it can get rather boring very quickly.
You're going to fight this thing. A lot.
The aforementioned fact of fewer characters also brings about an issue with gameplay. With only two primary antagonists in the near 20-hour game, boss fights get reused constantly. What I thought in my first encounter with an enemy was a one and only boss battle turned out to be an enemy I'd face again and again, with little variation. This isn't a game-breaking issue but it will undoubtedly turn off some gamers to the experience overall.
This problem unfortunately is present in side missions as well. There are a large number of extra quests that don't particularly pertain to the main story but are able to shift your karmic alignment in either way you choose. These however are generally copied from each other. Go here, fight bad guys, blow shit up, power up transformer and move on to the next one. It didn't bother me too much as I tended to avoid these side missions in general but when a player actively avoids half of the game's content due to its monotonous and repeated nature, it isn't really a good sign.
As much as I may be complaining here, these are really only nitpicks at the game's combat and central plot. There's a lot of fun to be had here, and even though I was slightly irked at the overuse of certain missions and the occasional boredom when fighting random enemies, I'm actually pretty hard pressed to come up with criticisms. The collectables and secret dead drop locations break up the monotony of combat while the story is well told and keeps the player hooked to find out what happens next, even if the characters are a bit too few and spread too thinly. And only adding to the game's positive side is the addition of user made levels that provide even more enjoyment than a lot of the missions in game. Perhaps Sucker Punch should hire a few of these people for level design in the future.
However, InFamous 2's biggest problem lies within one of the main mechanics of the game and that is its karma system. I share the opinion of many when I say that the basics of the morality aspect of the game series are borderline ridiculous. Almost all decisions are presented in black in white with next to no grey area and no reason to choose one over the other. Cole can either be a beloved saint who runs around saving people or a complete dickhead who kills people for no good reason and doing only things to benefit himself. Actually, scratch that last bit. The majority of the "evil' choices throughout the game aren't even beneficial to any character, they're just there to make Cole out to be an asshole. Sure, this is a comic book game and comic book villains aren't typically known for the brilliant exposition giving reason for their evil deeds, but even taking that into consideration it becomes impossible to relate to the main character if he's a complete and total wanker. The only semblance of a realistic moral choice comes at the very end of the story and even then, the terms "good" and "evil" don't seem to properly fit the given actions.
Pictured: Cockhead doing cockhead things for no good reason.
This problem only makes the outcome of the game's story lackluster when taken as a whole. To its credit, both endings are brilliant, yet the events leading up to either finale seem to dilute the impact they would have had if there were reason behind Cole's actions. It's an issue I hope to see fixed in a possible sequel or at least improved upon in the future. Regardless, InFamous 2 is a fun and enjoyable game that can present hours of entertainment. Though I didn't play too much of the user-generated content, it does nothing but add to the already high amount of replay value to the game. Overall, if you enjoyed InFamous, there's no reason not to play InFamous 2. It's more of what you loved from the first and it is even more enjoyable than its predecessor. Sequels tend to determine a franchise's future and if this installment is anything to go by, future titles are sure to be promising. It truly is an electrifying game. Now please excuse me while I go punish myself for making that pun.
[HEADING=1]4 Stars[/HEADING]
Movies:
Best Movies of the Decade [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.164045-Best-Films-of-the-Decade-Warning-Extremely-Long-Review] I Inception [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.215806-JK-Reviews-Inception] I Oldboy [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.236848-JK-Reviews-Oldboy] I Thirst [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.238393-JK-Reviews-Thirst] I Noroi [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.258713-JK-Reviews-Noroi] I Ghost in the Shell [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.264848-Poll-JK-Reviews-Ghost-in-the-Shell?view_results=1] I Top 25 Favourite Films [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.273264-JKs-Top-25-Favourite-Films#comment_form] I Kodomo no Jikan [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.283845-JK-Reviews-Kodomo-No-Jikan] I Super 8 [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.291002-JK-Reviews-Super-8]
Games:
Bayonetta [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.169030-JK-Reviews-Bayonetta-Warning-May-Contain-Spoilers] I Game of the Year 2009 [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.163760-Celebration-for-My-5000th-post-Game-of-the-Year-awards] I God of War III [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.182952-JK-Reviews-God-of-War-III] I NieR [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.203204-JK-Reviews-NIER] I Castlevania: Lament of Innocence [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.206361-JK-Reviews-Castlevania-Lament-of-Innocence] I Maximo: Ghosts To Glory [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.212014-JK-Reviews-Maximo-Ghosts-To-Glory] I Kingdom Hearts [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.229506-As-Per-Request-JK-Reviews-Kingdom-Hearts] I Kingdom Hearts II [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.230725-As-Per-Request-JK-Reviews-Kingdom-Hearts-II] I Assassin's Creed Brotherhood [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.248762-JK-Reviews-Assassins-Creed-Brotherhood] I Top 12 Games of 2010 [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.252471-JKs-Top-12-Best-Games-of-2010] I Bioshock [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.262110-As-Per-Request-JK-Reviews-Bioshock] I Fallout: New Vegas [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.266849-JK-Reviews-Fallout-New-Vegas] I Silent Hill 2 [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.270928-As-Per-Request-JK-Reviews-Silent-Hill-2] I Dragon Age 2 [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.276414-JK-Reviews-Dragon-Age-II]
Music:
Equilibrium's ReKreatur [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.204108-JK-Reviews-Equilibrium-ReKreatur]
Best Movies of the Decade [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.164045-Best-Films-of-the-Decade-Warning-Extremely-Long-Review] I Inception [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.215806-JK-Reviews-Inception] I Oldboy [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.236848-JK-Reviews-Oldboy] I Thirst [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.238393-JK-Reviews-Thirst] I Noroi [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.258713-JK-Reviews-Noroi] I Ghost in the Shell [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.264848-Poll-JK-Reviews-Ghost-in-the-Shell?view_results=1] I Top 25 Favourite Films [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.273264-JKs-Top-25-Favourite-Films#comment_form] I Kodomo no Jikan [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.283845-JK-Reviews-Kodomo-No-Jikan] I Super 8 [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.291002-JK-Reviews-Super-8]
Games:
Bayonetta [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.169030-JK-Reviews-Bayonetta-Warning-May-Contain-Spoilers] I Game of the Year 2009 [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.163760-Celebration-for-My-5000th-post-Game-of-the-Year-awards] I God of War III [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.182952-JK-Reviews-God-of-War-III] I NieR [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.203204-JK-Reviews-NIER] I Castlevania: Lament of Innocence [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.206361-JK-Reviews-Castlevania-Lament-of-Innocence] I Maximo: Ghosts To Glory [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.212014-JK-Reviews-Maximo-Ghosts-To-Glory] I Kingdom Hearts [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.229506-As-Per-Request-JK-Reviews-Kingdom-Hearts] I Kingdom Hearts II [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.230725-As-Per-Request-JK-Reviews-Kingdom-Hearts-II] I Assassin's Creed Brotherhood [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.248762-JK-Reviews-Assassins-Creed-Brotherhood] I Top 12 Games of 2010 [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.252471-JKs-Top-12-Best-Games-of-2010] I Bioshock [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.262110-As-Per-Request-JK-Reviews-Bioshock] I Fallout: New Vegas [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.266849-JK-Reviews-Fallout-New-Vegas] I Silent Hill 2 [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.270928-As-Per-Request-JK-Reviews-Silent-Hill-2] I Dragon Age 2 [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.276414-JK-Reviews-Dragon-Age-II]
Music:
Equilibrium's ReKreatur [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.204108-JK-Reviews-Equilibrium-ReKreatur]
Remember, that I am now taking requests for reviews, so any suggestions for future reviews or lists you may have, please let me know via PM or in the replies to this review.