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Review: inFamous 2 - PS3

by Steven Williamson on 8 July 2011, 17:25 4.25

Tags: Sony Computers Entertainment Europe (NYSE:SNE), Shoot 'em up

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Parkour playground

Throughout the game you can partake in numerous good or evil missions, where the decisions are as black and white as choosing to either save civilians or kill them. There’s no middle ground, and it’s slightly disappointing that you can’t pick up a mix of good or evil powers during the game—instead having to play through the good and bad paths independently to get the whole inFamous 2 experience. Nonetheless, this is an action game and not an RPG, so these clear choices do ensure that you’re entirely focused one way or another on being a badass, or a do-gooder—killing innocent street performers for no reason whatsoever, or choosing to help the cops tackle a bunch of terrorists. Either choice still gives you access to an impressive arsenal of powers.

Shooting bolts of lightning into a gang of militia, picking a car up with your Telekinesis skill, or conjuring up an Ionic Storm to cause utter devastation are all visually impressive and enjoyable to execute. One of the joys of combat is the freedom to experiment with this combination of powers, as well as the stunts you have to perform in order to gain XP, such as having to hit five enemies with one Blast attack or attaching a sticky grenade to an enemy. It can be difficult to lock onto enemies efficiently, and jolting camera angles occasionally dampen the experience, but combat is intense, enjoyable and rarely disappoints.



Enemies play their part in creating this intensity, largely consisting of big gangs of tough-to-kill militia and mutants. There are a number of missions where you’ll encounter vast numbers of enemies, which can make it very challenging (especially if you haven't been trying to unlock new powers), but that challenge rarely manifests into frustration. Some exciting – and a few truly tedious – boss battles offer a nice break in pace, and it’s very clever how Sucker Punch has created an environment that more often than not plays a part in these skirmishes. Water, for example, can be used to electrify enemies, while zip lines throughout the city can be used to move swiftly to chase down a target. Once again, McGrath uses the environment to siphon electricity, and the brilliant addition of the vertical launch poles send you shooting high in the air, allowing you to see the city from a different perspective. Overall, there's a mass of different ways to traverse New Malais and dozens of creative ways to kill enemies.

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