inFamous

We’ve only just seen them create the Sly Cooper series for the PS2, but now Sucker Punch Productions is making waves in the PS3 front as gamers anticipate one of the most buzzed and exciting action games on the Sony console, inFamous. Sure we’ve already seen an action-packed, surreal sandbox-style RPG shooter – it was even set after a holocaust. BUT have you ever seen an action-paced, surreal sandbox-style shooter with electrical powers? This electrocuting action-hero is one of the most watched out for on May 26 2009.

According to those who’ve seen a sneak peek, it combines the elation of City of Heroes, the exploratory open-world excitement of GTA, and the moral exhilaration of Fallout 3. I guess the only thing missing here are power up mushrooms and a handful of zombies.

You take on the role of a bike messenger, Cole MacGrath, as you wound your way around Empire City. One fateful day, one of your delivery parcels just happened to blow up. Big time. Six city blocks were destroyed, and you were the only man left standing. It’s alright though, because you’re suddenly the proud of owner of super electrical powers. Empire City goes into mayhem – a plague spreads throughout the citizens, the police are nowhere to be found, and gangs have taken over. To top it off, everybody now believes that Cole caused the explosion. So here’s your character, with all his menacing electrically-charged strength – and he has a chaotic city in his hands with everybody against him.

As the famous superhero quote goes, with every power comes great responsibility. Our average Joe courier traverses the city while trying to come to terms with his omnipotent abilities. Whether he brandishes himself as a hero and try to make Empire City a better place, or he simply seeks revenge on those who blame him for the city-wide pandemonium – this moral choice is entirely up to the player. In Cole’s hands lies the power to decide whether his newfound ability is a blessing or a curse. For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. So going on a murderous rampage around Empire City will greatly affect the outcome of your game. If you happen to play the goody-two-shoes, that will also lead you to a completely different path. Need I say replay?

Combat-wise, you shoot up your enemies with your lightning bolds, shield yourself with an electric deflector, and even haul some lightning sticky bombs at your enemies. With this kind of innate weapon, who needs real weapons? Besides, this is an electric ability that doesn’t need recharging. So there’s no need to worry about finding ammo to pick-up, or taking downtime to plug yourself in some socket to gear up on electro-power.

Graphics-wise, inFamous is inspired visually by graphic novels. So you get a sense of the dark, psychological demise that our hero is experiencing. Not only is the game set to be exciting, it will be an emotional attachment as well. Hopefully, inFamous will prove to be worth the wait.