Hero or Anti-Hero? Either way you will be kicking ass and taking names!

Like so many people out there I really love the idea of having super powers. I would totally give a nut to have a cool super power. Then all the people would stare at me and say “Did you hear about that guy? He gave his left nut to be able to fly! How cool is he!” You can see that I have given this A LOT of thought. The concept really fascinates me. To be able to fly, have super speed, or controlling objects with your mind (just to name a few powers) is fantastic! Not only that but how you use your powers. Would you be the anti-hero that people would fear because of your unpredictable nature or would you be virtuous type that people could love and trust? Personally I would be the goodie goodie. I can’t help it. Like Uncle Ben said (from Spiderman) “With great power, comes great responsibility.” I try to live an honest and virtuous life so it only makes sense that I would be that type of hero in the video game world. Swooping in to save the innocent citizens, beating up all the bad guys, and getting the fine ass girl in the end. Now if only I could get my hands on a game where I had super powers and a morality system I would be in heaven. Where could I possibly find a game like that?

After much searching on something called the World Wide Web (weird name I know) I found a game called Infamous. So I decided “what the hell” and bought it. It looked like everything I was looking for in a super hero game. It was everything I could have wanted and much more. Best of all I didn’t have to give up a nut to have the power. Phew! It is time to get knuckle deep and do some discussing about one badass man, some bad ass powers, and a badass plot leaving you wanting more. Ladies and gentlemen I give you Infamous.

*SLIGHT SPOILER*(not really) On a glorious day a courier (named Cole) is innocently delivering a package when all hell breaks loose. Instead of reaching his destination there is a big explosion and you are left to pick up the pieces and find out what the hell happened. The city has been torn apart and you are left to fend for yourself and bring justice (or fear depending on how you play) to a city that has been quarantined by the government and left for dead. When you start, you go through a short tutorial on how to use your new electrical powers (badass electrical powers I might add since you were at the epicenter of the blast). The game plays sandbox style where you are given a large area to explore, fight, and find collectibles hidden all over the city. The game measures how you handle yourself during certain fights and situations. For instance if you are fighting a group of bad guys and a bunch of civilians die because of your recklessness then you will fall more towards the infamous (bad) side. If you go around making the tougher and moral choices you will fall on the side of being a hero. The game does an excellent job of this by getting you to care about the main characters and wanting to see everything through until the end. Personally I am a sucker for being a champion of the people. I love being there to help everyone (therefore I can only give the view of a person that played through as a hero). Like a GTA (Grand Theft Auto) there are main missions and side missions to progress the story. It would be possible to beat the game without beating the entire game (leaving the side missions) so there is replay value because of that. Plus you have the option to play the game through as both a hero or an anti-hero. I will say that going through the side missions as you play through the main missions is probably your best bet. More than anything you will need the experience points to unlock new and upgrade your existing powers. It’s not that the game is so hard that it would be impossible without it but there are certain fights you will wish you had maxed out your abilities (hello Kesler!). One aspect I found very refreshing was the different types of missions. You will deal with everything from boss fights, breaking up small mobs of bad guys, finding hidden packages, etc. At no point did I get the “Oh here we go again” feeling. The developers were able to keep most things feeling fresh and challenging. Also I would like to give a nod to the nice plot twist that is thrown in at the end. I did not see it coming and I CAN’T wait to see what the second game has in store for it.

Overall I think Infamous has an excellent plot and great characters that leave you wanting to play both scenarios (unless you are me and a sucker to be a superhero) to see what differences there are between the hero and anti-hero story. By the end I was bothered by some (I may or may not have been crying) of the choices I made which points to a game that gets its claws in you and does not let go until the end. Move over Superman (and your weird red underwear) because there is a new superhero in town and Cole is here to stay!