inFAMOUS Reviewed

Over the past 22 hours or so, I've probably spent almost 1/3 of that time playing Sucker Punch's latest PS/3 exclusive: inFAMOUS. Which is to say: it's somewhat addictive!

For those not familiar with the game, it's basically cut from the Grand Theft Auto mold: a third person, open-world concept in which you roam around a city (in this case, Empire City), taking on primary missions that further the storyline while being free to accept non-linear side missions that have you doing various, random activities. I've never been a big fan of the GTA franchise, so why am I enjoying inFAMOUS?

Well, there are a few reasons that I can see so far. First, the character that you play (Cole) is something of a superhuman as the result of a catastrophic event that opens the game. He's able to fire electric blasts out of his hands, and develops additional (electricity-based) powers as the game goes on. He can also scale almost any surface (ala Spider-Man) and so you're able to travel vertically, as well as horizontally, through Empire City. All of that is greatly appealing to me.

Another thing that I like is that you're prompted, at certain points during gameplay, to consciously decide whether to act heroically or selfishly. There's a karma meter that reflects how you're doing, and the civilians in the city react differently to you, depending on how you've behaved to date. I'm going the virtuous route at present, but if I really get into the game then I could imagine starting a new game and seeing just how far into the red I could push my karmic balance sheet!

The graphics are top notch, and so far the controls have been easy to use (I'm still smarting a little from how unnatural the Killzone 2 feel was!). It took me awhile to learn how to read some of the items that show up on my minimap, but once I did, the game got a lot less frustrating. One mission that I'd tried unsuccessfully to complete several times became relatively easy as soon as I deciphered some of the icons (and, began traveling by rooftop more).

I love the science fiction aspects of the game, which also place it much higher in my book than the "gangsta" feel of GTA. It's not as rich or deep a story as what you'll find in the Resistance franchise, certainly, but it's also not the insultingly-stupid fare that often shows up in shooters (Haze, anyone?). I'm still trying to figure out some of the finer points of what's going on in Empire City around me, but I'm not as lost as I was early on in Gears of War or any of the Halo stories.

Overall, I'm happy enough with the game after several hours of playing it. I can't say yet whether I'll stick with it all the way to the end - always one of the deciding factors for me as to whether a game really grabbed me, along with whether or not I replay any of its levels - but early indications are all positive.