A Link to the Past
Banned
Both were good, for what they were. I went into both feeling kind of tepid about them, as I'd heard mixed things, especially about First Light. Ultimately however they both exceeded my expectations (though both were still flawed!). I might be biased - in fact I definitely am - as inFAMOUS was the first HD console game I'd ever played (came bundled with Batman: Arakham Asylum in my PS3). It was an open world I could tolerate, and the superhero stuff was fun and interesting. The story wasn't groundbreaking, but it helped propel the experience along pretty decently. I also don't think I'd played a game that really dealt with the good/evil path concept (not that I can think of), so that was a neat experience too. Of course in hindsight you realize that it's just "be a normal person or be a villain", which seemed to persist across all three of the main games. inFAMOUS 2 is still my top game of the series - a lot of neat stuff goin' on it, I enjoyed The Beast, I enjoyed Bertram (thought he was Michael Rooker!), and I really enjoyed that Nix, the "evil" partner, worked with you in the good mission, and Kuo, your "good" partner, joined The Beast out of fear of dying if The Beast does not succeed in his plan. I also give props to them for being able to actually kill off Cole, who was bankable as a recognizable character (I mean he wasn't a great character, but I think a lot of people recognize him as the face).
Ultimately though, while inFAMOUS 2 is a better game than Second Son, I liked Second Son's story and characters more. Delsin is a great protagonist - not a brooding asshole, not a paragon, just kind of a brat; Reggie's fantastic, great older brother type, and I enjoyed that he was kind of a bigoted asshole (I seriously wanted to give him a shot to the foot when he was doing his "Conduit impersonation"); Augustine was a pretty great villain I'd say; Hank I felt was a little one-dimensional and predictable but not bad; Fetch is great (and I'll elaborate later); and Eugene is also pretty good, but unfortunately doesn't get to develop quite as much as Fetch does. What I liked about the inFAMOUS games still rings true here - it's fun to fly around cityscapes, jumping from rooftop to rooftop. Everything feels on point, except it felt like the snapping technology wasn't as good (ie, the mechanic that pulls you towards something you can hang onto when you're near). It also might just be that a lot of things have weird designs that make grabbing a little harder. The introduction of various mobility options, including (and especially) Neon's is pretty awesome - they're super fast and they let you get up buildings super fast, which severely reduces this game's level of busy work. As far as superpowers go, I'd rank them...
1. Neon (My default pretty much)
2. Video (Great for sneaking in and subduing people)
3. Concrete (Haven't used it much since I've not done much after beating the game, but it seems good)
4. Smoke (Meh)
Neon is just fantastic. Super fast, super effective projectile attacks, slow-mo, and zoom. It makes it way easier to build up your super attack and your good karma (or bad karma fufufu). Video didn't get much play unless it was required or unless it seemed like the best power definitively, and Smoke? I barely used it after I got Neon. It's too slow, it doesn't feel like it has as many neat options, and ascending buildings is tougher because you have to find specific spots that take you to specific spots on top of the building. It's extra disappointing because I was so excited to have it. The ending was pretty good. Taking down Augustine - especially with the help of my buddies Fetch and Eugene - was super satisfying (as was seeing the two D.U.P. members drop to the ground and play dead). It was made especially satisfying given that she killed my brother, and I gotta say, that affected me. I was really taken aback when he died. I was actually kind of expecting it - he was being given a bit of an arc right before a dangerous situation - but not only does he die, but he dies because I (Delsin) didn't listen to him, so it doubly sucks. At least it didn't happen the way I thought it would, with some Walking Dead "save Fetch/Eugene or Reggie!" shit. I also really dig the super classy graffiti of Reggie at the end.
As for First Light, I liked it, but I am definitely glad I got it through PS+. Festival of Blood is probably a better game ultimately, but I think I liked First Blood better because I liked Fetch as a character and Neon is just fantastic. Shane wasn't the best villain either, but Laura Bailey did a pretty great job as Fetch in both games, so I felt for her when bad shit happened to her. Ultimately, I got to blow Shane up, and I was very happy. If I had to say, Fetch is definitely my favourite character in the series, and I'd love it if the next game stars her (or if not that much, at least features her prominently).
(this post was a lot longer than intended)
Ultimately though, while inFAMOUS 2 is a better game than Second Son, I liked Second Son's story and characters more. Delsin is a great protagonist - not a brooding asshole, not a paragon, just kind of a brat; Reggie's fantastic, great older brother type, and I enjoyed that he was kind of a bigoted asshole (I seriously wanted to give him a shot to the foot when he was doing his "Conduit impersonation"); Augustine was a pretty great villain I'd say; Hank I felt was a little one-dimensional and predictable but not bad; Fetch is great (and I'll elaborate later); and Eugene is also pretty good, but unfortunately doesn't get to develop quite as much as Fetch does. What I liked about the inFAMOUS games still rings true here - it's fun to fly around cityscapes, jumping from rooftop to rooftop. Everything feels on point, except it felt like the snapping technology wasn't as good (ie, the mechanic that pulls you towards something you can hang onto when you're near). It also might just be that a lot of things have weird designs that make grabbing a little harder. The introduction of various mobility options, including (and especially) Neon's is pretty awesome - they're super fast and they let you get up buildings super fast, which severely reduces this game's level of busy work. As far as superpowers go, I'd rank them...
1. Neon (My default pretty much)
2. Video (Great for sneaking in and subduing people)
3. Concrete (Haven't used it much since I've not done much after beating the game, but it seems good)
4. Smoke (Meh)
Neon is just fantastic. Super fast, super effective projectile attacks, slow-mo, and zoom. It makes it way easier to build up your super attack and your good karma (or bad karma fufufu). Video didn't get much play unless it was required or unless it seemed like the best power definitively, and Smoke? I barely used it after I got Neon. It's too slow, it doesn't feel like it has as many neat options, and ascending buildings is tougher because you have to find specific spots that take you to specific spots on top of the building. It's extra disappointing because I was so excited to have it. The ending was pretty good. Taking down Augustine - especially with the help of my buddies Fetch and Eugene - was super satisfying (as was seeing the two D.U.P. members drop to the ground and play dead). It was made especially satisfying given that she killed my brother, and I gotta say, that affected me. I was really taken aback when he died. I was actually kind of expecting it - he was being given a bit of an arc right before a dangerous situation - but not only does he die, but he dies because I (Delsin) didn't listen to him, so it doubly sucks. At least it didn't happen the way I thought it would, with some Walking Dead "save Fetch/Eugene or Reggie!" shit. I also really dig the super classy graffiti of Reggie at the end.
As for First Light, I liked it, but I am definitely glad I got it through PS+. Festival of Blood is probably a better game ultimately, but I think I liked First Blood better because I liked Fetch as a character and Neon is just fantastic. Shane wasn't the best villain either, but Laura Bailey did a pretty great job as Fetch in both games, so I felt for her when bad shit happened to her. Ultimately, I got to blow Shane up, and I was very happy. If I had to say, Fetch is definitely my favourite character in the series, and I'd love it if the next game stars her (or if not that much, at least features her prominently).
(this post was a lot longer than intended)
