Infamous is an alright game to pick up, and it would be harder to answer why than to answer why not.
Small problems hold Infamous 2 back from greatness, but there's still a lot of electrifying fun to be had in Cole's latest adventure.
Cole begins the adventure with a healthy number of abilities. You can glide along electrical wires, hover in the air, shoot lightning bolts, and toss grenades. As you progress through the adventure, you get new moves, including electrical blasts that mimic a rocket launcher or sniper rifle, and fancy-looking melee takedowns. The unlock system encourages you to be creative in fights. You have to meet certain requirements to gain access to some of your moves, which means you can't just rely on the same handful of attacks all the time. Although most of these moves either appeared in the original game or are quite similar, there are a few new offerings that make your repertoire more exciting. An area-of-effect attack lets you dispose of foes in style. Sweeping up a troop of lowly peons in a swirling tornado is one of the most satisfying ways to deal with enemies, and it doesn't get old no matter how often you do it. Movement hasn't been forgotten when it comes to new skills either. Toward the end of your adventure, you gain access to something that changes how you navigate the city. Using it is as exciting as anything else you can do, so it's surprising that you have to wait so long to acquire it. Considering that one of the most glaring problems with Infamous 2 is that it plays too much like the original, a lot of that familiarity could have been swept aside if this fantastic tool were handed to you early on.
New Marais is roughly the same size as the first game's Empire City and is loaded with missions, side quests, and hidden collectibles. The mission variety is similar to what was offered in Infamous. Most sequences revolve around fights to the death, with a few twists thrown in to mix things up. Sadly, diversity isn't always welcome. For instance, during one mission, you man a spotlight as if you're in a turret sequence, but Infamous 2 doesn't have the creepy atmosphere to turn this battle against creatures of the dark into a heart-pounding endeavor. Most of the missions are fun, though, and the side quests do a good job of giving you different tasks to perform. Some of these test your agility, others your strength, and it's well worth completing these so you can upgrade your powers. When you don't feel like following the strict directions of the various missions, you can explore the city at your own pace. There are blast shards scattered in many out-of-the-way places, and hunting them down is a good way to show off the exhilarating freedom of movement without worrying about being precise.
However, the open-world structure in Infamous 2 ultimately leads to uneven pacing. In the original game, you followed a rhythm of killing enemies, jumping through sewers, and earning new powers, and there was a continual feeling of forward momentum. When you gave electricity to a blacked-out area, it meant something, since traveling through dark sections was a surefire way to die. Every action had a specific purpose, so instead of just doing missions because you had to, you felt as if you were making a tangible difference with every quest you completed. But that smooth pacing is absent in the sequel. The sewer segments have been scrapped in favor of sequences in which you must defend stationary objects, and though it's fun to fend off waves of attackers, these sections blend in with the other combat-heavy missions. The ramifications of this change spread throughout the entire game. It never feels as if you're making an imprint in this city. And earning new powers doesn't carry with it the same thrill because most of your abilities are so similar to those from the first game. Because of these issues, the pacing in Infamous 2 feels aimless, rarely pushing you to see what comes next.
Although Infamous 2 takes a step back in a few important areas, the visuals have been vastly improved. This is a great-looking game. Each neighborhood in New Marais has a unique feel, and seeing what secrets the city has to offer makes exploration rewarding. From the red-light district of downtown to the foggy wastelands of Flood City, there is personality in these different areas that makes it feel as if they are inhabited by real people. Flood City in particular is hard to ignore. It has more than a little in common with the 9th Ward of New Orleans. Help messages are spray-painted on top of shanties nearly drowned in the rising swamp water, and citizens are desperate for a helping hand. It's strange seeing a real-life tragedy portrayed in a video game, but it adds to the feeling that this city is lived in. The music is another strong point in this adventure. The game forgoes the bombastic tunes that normally accompany heroic exploits, and in their place is an ambient orchestral score. The most affecting song plays when you're near death. Dissonant chords highlight your distress, and the wailing melody does an excellent job of setting your mood.
Your first story play through will like take at least 20 hours, and you can extend your playtime significantly if you dive into the expansive mission-editing tools. There are so many options in this editor that it can be daunting at first, but if you stick with it, you can create a plethora of different quests that are on par with just about anything you find in the main game. The intricacies of mission design are at your fingertips. You can quickly set objects down and come up with a few goals, but things get a lot more complex for the eager designer. AI routines let you alter the behavior of every creature onscreen, and coming up with ridiculous scenarios is a large part of the fun. You can share your missions when you're finished, and it's easy for players to jump right in and rate what you've done. User-created missions appear on the map while you're playing through story mode. These are clearly marked in green, so you can avoid them if you just want to play through the story, or make a beeline toward them if you're curious what the community is up to. Whether you're an aspiring creator or you just want to play others' work, this is a great addition to the franchise.
If only the rest of Infamous 2 were as imaginative as the creation tools. In many ways, this follows the predictable formula for a sequel. Better visual design and more variety build on the original's foundation, and the core mechanics are still fun to mess around with. But bigger is not always better. Pacing issues sap away much of your motivation to see what happens next, and poorly balanced combat encounters turn explosive action sequences into frustrating drags. Although there are still plenty of enjoyable moments that conjure blissful memories of the original game, a number of small flaws make for an uneven experience. Infamous 2 proves just how difficult it is to capture lightning in a bottle.
Tom Mc Shea loves platformers and weighty moral decisions. Some call him a T-Rex with bigger arms, some call him a gorilla with smaller arms -- you can just call him the jerk who hates all the things you love and loves all the things you hate.
I think this is an unfair rating when you compare this game to the 1st one and many many many other games that have been reviewed. This is way better than the 1st one. I asked my friends and they say that inFamous 2 is such an amazing game and that they love it. I play good games such as MGS, Skyrim and it may not be as good as them but I love it just as much. It deserves a higher rating. And I also think I'm not the only one as seen from the user score.
most of your point are very stupid and irrelevant i mean"cole is a dancer in another life"i mean seriously.the recently released metal gear rising was given 8.5 for fun gamplay completely ignoring every other aspect of gaming.infamous 2 on the hand is as fun as the next game with a very longer and good story driven campaign and its given a 7.5.you need counselling.
The biggest problem I've had with both inFAMOUS games was that the side mission stuff, while they can be fun, felt very much like filler. When I had initially played and beat inFAMOUS in 2009, I didn't really like it all that much, I thought it was OK, but on my secondary play through on hard, I really loved it.
Now, I had just beat the inFAMOUS 2 on easy yesterday, and I enjoyed it quite a bit other than the side missions feeling like filler, and therefor feeling like a somewhat arduous and mundane task to want to do, other than that, I really, really liked it, and I think if I go through it on its hardest difficulty to see the other side of things, I'll enjoy it more.
I hope there's a third.
tom complains about the fading grey effect when your health is critical ,but many games use this effect e.gUNCHARTED 1-3, KILL ZONE 1-2,RESISTANCE 2,even INFAMOUS 1 so does he hate all these games this effect.what i am saying in all its a stupid point
INFAMOUS 2 IS A GREAT GAME!!!!!!!.it surpasses it predecessor in every aspect, game play,graphics,combat you name it. i know this because i have finished the game 3 or 4 times on evil and good karma.for christ sake IGN gave it a 9,GAMETRAILER gave it a 9.2.what the hell is wrong with game spot i am really disappointed.not an 8.0, not an 8.5,but 7.5 DAMN!!!!!!!!
I mean, the end credits are rolling and I'm still in awe of how cool this game is. The soundtrack is just outstanding.
2 Like Just finished the game and I am absolutely astonished how this can be "only" a 7.5. Not wanting to bitch and complain, just wanted to join my voice to how "horrendus" and misleading this review this review can be in a way that it might put off people who are curious to try this game. If you are thinking about getting this game because you somewhat or really enjoyed the first one, just get this, your missing an awesome gaming masterpiece. It's the first one plus ten when in comes to quality, fun, story, soundtrack, fighting, missions, everything.
1 Like Tom Mc Shea said the game is 'good' (check the review score again) and people come here, complain about his review and say that its 'good'. What exactly is the problem here, both you and Tom have the same opinion, mainly that the game is good, except that he also points out why it isn't 'superb', which is his job. If he gave the game a 'superb' rating, we wouldn't know that its actually just the same as Infamous 1, just without the 'wow'-factor because its not new.But no, the internet gaming community comes on here and complains. Then we wonder why nobody takes gaming seriously.I don't even know if I take it seriously with this kind of behavior. HE IS A PROFESSIONAL VIDEO GAME CRITIC PEOPLE, ITS HIS JOB TO BE CRITICAL.
When I played the first, it was one of those games that I went through and didn't think much of initially, but when I went through it again, I absolutely loved it. It was a few steps behind Dead Space for me, and Dead Space is one of my favorite games of all time, so that means a lot; I even read the downloadable comic. At the time, I was very much a devoted fan to the series in general, as much as I could be, and was quite excited for this game, but when it came time for its release, I just never got it. I think I was led to believe this was just going to be a disappointment, and I shouldn't have. I still didn't get it, but I believe I will at some point. While Tom doesn't say it's a bad game, he pretty much says it's disappointing, and that's not what I want from a game, but in the end I probably won't be disappointed.
1 Like it is a great game far more epic than the first, you will not be disappointed.check IGN for more perspective
I stayed away from this game until a couple of days ago precisely for this review score. I didn't realize it was Mc Shea, or I would have ignored it altogether and bought the game on release day. Having played it through, I can honestly say I don't understand what Tom was thinking.
The combat is better, the enemies are better, the sub-bosses are way better and more varied. Okay, so the morality system doesn't challenge you. I don't think it's supposed to. For all the whining about lacking a gray area, consider that most people are going to play this game--and every game like this--twice: As a heel and then as a hero, or vice versa. The game doesn't promise difficult decisions, it offers a clear choice between good and evil. Just look at the difference in the endgame (no spoilers). You see any shades of gray there?
Yes, the game is more challenging. Why is that a problem? Yes, it takes a long time for your heath to regenerate. Interesting that Tom would complain about heath that doesn't regenerate fast enough, since he felt the very premise of regenerating health in war games is immoral...
Anyway. Great game, decent voice acting, good story, high menace and tension, big payoff at the end. Oh, and the game is balls-out fun. This game was an 8.5 at the least.
Had it since release and still playing it thanks to the awesome UGC system, gosh I love inFAMOUS.
I played the game and i dont understand why is 7.5 really TOm Mc Shea hates pretty much when a game is a little big harder.On normal difficulty is okay for normal on hard is ok for hard.Tom must be a pretty bad gamer.The paceing is a little bit of but not much.
@NIkoscho Wrong. He likes Dark Souls. Is that not supposed to be one of the hardest video games ever?
i would say that the game is totally awesome but comparing it to the previous version it would fall behind for certain. the reason i would say the enemy troops introduced here are over exaggerated and not well defined and the environment is pretty small compared to the previous infamous version.other than that the objectives and other stuffs are totally new and crazily creative. still would hav felt happy if the game was given 8+ rating by gamespot. :)
1 Like This review is horrible. Don't listen to it. This game deserves an 8.5 at LEAST.
Ive been playing this game almost nonstop for a week now. I loved the first one and am enjoying this one even more. Tom is so freakin critical on little things it really gets annoying sometimes. If you enjoyed the first one then pick this one up.
I've not played inFamous 2 but if this is the guy who reviewed the first game, then I think I'll pass on this game.
4 Like @Lightsyde Really? You're going to decide not to get a game based off of one person's opinion? If you've played Infamous and enjoyed it, then you should also like this one. If you havn't played Infamous, you should start there, if you're interested of course.
@SoNin360 The problem is, I did not really enjoy the first game as much as to give it a personal rating of Nine. 8.5 maybe-ish. (Although I admit that I've only played the Hero aspect of the game)
That's why infamous 2's lower rating discourages me. I've checked other sites though, and gamespot seems to be the one of the only ones with this low rating.
if you didn't like the first one all that much i assure you will like this sequel it a lot better
1 Like @Lightsyde the game is great this review is bad. It's every bit as good as the first.
1 Like Wow. That guy shouldn't write reviews anymore. The score should be a lot higher.
1 Like wtf??? seriously??? laughable morality system??? the reviewer must be a loon if he couldn't distinguish good from evil in infamous 1.
@mstrchf12 He's talking about Infamous 2, so why would you bring up infamous 1? I think he means except for the different ending the morality choices make no difference in the rest of the story.
1 Like Got the game cheap. I've got to say I completely agree with the review, the first one was better. I'm glad I listened and waited for a price drop, I'd have felt ripped off at $80 bucks but it's a steal at $30. Well worth the money.Thanks McShea :)
3 Like @FlamingFury Get of his d*ck. Just because you suck at the game, doesn't mean it's bad.
I am just replaying it and it's definitely NOT a 7.5. It's worth every penny. There should be a law for people like you: Don't sell great games, to cheap Tom Mc Shea lovers.
i could see an 8 for the game because it didnt live up to the hype and it didnt have as much of an epic feel as the first one. but 7.5 seems like a little below the belt.
5 Like I'm surprised this is the same person that did the first review. I know it's opinion-based and all, but I don't see how someone could give Infamous a 9 and then the second one a 7.5. And to point out a few things, the whole grey screen thing wasn't really even mentioned in the first review, yet he complains about it in this review when it's no different than it was in Infamous. I also don't see it as a legitimate complain, it's a good warning that your health is low, plus it encourages you to find some electricity and heal yourself. And another thing I don't get is that he seems to complain more about the combat in this game than the previous game. So far in my experience, Infamous 2 has actually been easier. So given that one has played Infamous, I don't see how you could struggle more with this game. He may have made a few fair points, but other than that I think this is a rather lousy review.
Agreed, JukedSolid. I really dislike the new voice actor. The game's still worth buying though.
The game is still just as fun in terms of combat, but why doesn't this article say anything about how they *changed* Cole's voice actor?!? It mentions how the voice actor drags the story down, but it doesn't acknowledge how even though the original Cole McGrath voice actor was a little over the top and probably smoked 3 packs a day, this new guy is severely lacking and has zero credibility as a superhero. He doesn't even sound remotely cool. I think a lot less people would have bought this game if they knew information like that beforehand because although it might seem like a small change from the original, it makes a huge impact on the overall effect of the game.
