June 12th, 2011: I know nothing about you.

Oh, inFamous. I’m sure all of you remember that huge ol’ fanboy flame war between inFamous and Prototype. From what I recall, inFamous was unofficially “dubbed” the better of the two, but man. That was ugly. Since then, several of my fellow gamers have gloated over how amazing inFamous is, whether it be in person, on Twitter, Facebook, IGN, etc. So, this game has been on my radar for some time. And thanks to Sony’s Welcome Back program, I was able to download it for freeee. Maybe the PSN hack has a silver lining after all…

I know little of inFamous. I *think* it follows a dude named Cole in a post apocalyptic-ish city and he’s somehow acquired the ability to shoot lighting out of his hands (or some other super power-y shit), and whether or not the player wants to use those powers to be good or evil is up to them. UM. I think there’s someone named Zeke? And I think someone dies. It might be Zeke. I dunno.

Oh. I know a lot, and I mean A LOT of people bitched about Cole’s appearance in inFamous 2, so the folks at Sucker Punch were good sports and fixed his duds. Possibly his face as well.

Alright, clearly I have no idea what I’m talking about so I’m just going to go play the game now.

PS: Thanks to an internet spoiler, I remember reading about a Zeke betrayal. That might go well with my theory that this person dies. Kthnxbai.

June 13th, 2011: I think I love you.

Me: Baby, do you believe in love at first sight?!
inFamous: YES.
Me: Kthnx let’s get married.

Have you ever had that feeling of “Holy shit, this is going to be a fan-fucking-tastic game!” only minutes into it? As a player, you can’t wait to see and unlock everything, yet you don’t even know what you’ll be seeing or unlocking.That happened to me no more than 10 minutes into inFamous. I’m bursting with enthusiasm over this game, and although I know little more than nothing about it, I DO know inFamous will probably end up on my list of top games.
For starters, the post-apocalyptic city is INSANELY immersive. I could easily spend hours just wandering the city streets, eyeing the sights. Sucker Punch has done such an amazing job at making the city of Empire feel like it has just gone through hell. The city has a tint of grey about it, garbage litters the ground, folks are helplessly lying on the sidewalk, beat-up cars are barely shambling down the street, thugs are wreaking havoc…the place is in utter turmoil.

Hey, you like my "house"? It's on a rooftop, baby!

Speaking of thugs wreaking havoc, I found it a little annoying each time one of them would pop me from a rooftop while I was “touring” the city. I’d have to stop running around, and scour the distance for one of the red-hooded bastards. I felt like no matter where I went, I couldn’t just stop and gaze about the city, which sucked.

But once I was introduced to side-quests and the rewards that follow them, I was a very, very happy camper.

If that isn’t the biggest incentive to complete all of the side-quests, I don’t know what is. I want to see Empire City look purdy and colorful again. I want to be able to walk the city without worrying about being shot in the face. And if the only way that’s going to happen is by completing fun and various side-quests, sign me up.

Now I want to get to know these characters. So far, I’ve met…

Zeke: Supposedly Cole’s best friend. I don’t know much about their relationship before shit hit the fan, but I get the impression the two are close. I’m hesitant to become attached to Zeke because I’m lead to believe (thanks to a spoiler) he’ll betray Cole. May I have misconstrued this? Sure. Had I not read the spoiler, would I still trust Zeke. Meh…he kind of seems like a user, like he’d be quick to look after “number one” and stab Cole in the back in order to earn a way out of the city.

I wanna like you, buddy. I really do.

Trish: SUPPOSEDLY Cole’s lil’ girlyfriend…until Cole was accused of being a terrorist, that is. This leads me to believe they couldn’t have been too deep in love, otherwise I’d imagine she’d stick up for him and support him, not, you know, break up with him. If I remember correctly, she had a sister, Amy, who died during the attack. Methinks she and Cole will rekindle their relationship in some way or another, it’ll be all dramatic and suitable for a sappy Jerry Springer episode.

Moya: This is the lady that had be return to the city in search of her boyfriend or something named John. I can’t remember if he is her boyfriend/husband/fuck buddy or not, and I’m not about to look it up because I will be slapped in the face with thousands of spoilers. So. Her and Cole’s relationship seems to be based off of the phrase “I scratch your back, you scratch mine.” Cole returns with John and the Ray Sphere (is that even right?) and he gets to leave the city. Right, like he’ll be allowed to leave the city with his little electricity issue. Clearly she wants the sphere (probably because she doesn’t want anyone finding out about it) and Cole is uh, living, breathing proof of its existence. HA. DON’T FALL FOR IT, COLE!!!

June 15th, 2011: You Still Give Me Butterflies.

How are inFamous and I doing, you ask? Well, weve been on a few dates, and while the second wasnt as exciting as the first, the third gave me butterflies. And before you ask, the second date consisted of doing mundane tasks for helpless citizens. Fun, but not exciting.

So the gist of inFamous is starting to reveal itself, but barely. If the story were a stripper in a school girl outfit, her white blouse would be unbuttoned and the skirt would be unzipped. …right. MOVING ON. My core missions as of late have involved cleaning up the clusterfuck(s) created by the Reapers (Reapers…man, couldnt Sucker punch have come up with another name? I keep thinking of Mass Effect!). Destroying tar truck this, blowing up tar keg that…cool, I get it, the tar is bad news. In fact, when I try to heal those infected with it, the bastards stand up and try to attack me!

 

Just in the nick of time (before I became overly bored with it) the story revealed one of its bad boys: this hooded dude that met me on a rooftop.


After he said “She’s going to be pissed,” this guy splayed his fingers on Coles head and relayed to him images of the future. The images consisted of abundant sunshine with rainbow colored unicorns trotting the streets of Empire City while children giggled and played hopscotch on the sidewalk.

Okay, so the images really were of death and destruction. Go figure. And thats where I stopped. My next mission is to grab drinks (or something) with Zeke.

So, this tar stuff is interesting. I have the feeling that whoever created it did it for the sole purpose of killing/capturing Cole…or for destroying Empire City. Maybe its another Umbrella/Raccoon City fiasco? BAH. Theres too much I dont know yet. Also, this crazy lady with a seductive voice talks to Cole while hes under the tars influence, saying shes always loved him but Trish doesnt love him, and Zeke doesnt care. The most interesting thing she said was Ill show you true love, then the bastard will see what hes lost. Who could she be talking about? Who lost Cole? The only he I know of is John, his boss (cant remember his name) and the dude on the rooftop. HMMMM.

Oh, and speaking of Zeke. I gotta be honest, but its really hard to like this guy. Ive said from the beginning that I think Zeke has ulterior motives, and some of the things he says solidifies my theory. Hes told Cole that he tries telling people hes Coles right-hand man (in order to gain popularity himself) and he suggested cracking the Ray Sphere and giving everyone the powers that Cole has. Of course, I may be looking way too much into this and he might just be trying to do what it takes to survive (and hey, if I were in his situation I would definitely try to keep Cole on my good side). Im still leery.

A few random notes:

  • The government is clearly hiding what’s really going on in Empire City. Every time I (being Cole) restore power to parts of previously blacked-out areas, this stupid news reporter lady comes on and tells the public that it’s the GOVERNMENT. Whatever! When I break out of here I’m so killing all of you. But on a, er, happier note, I think it’s awesome that a small crowd gathers around the television when something is playing.


  • You know what else is awesome? Stumbling upon someone’s makeshift living room (or whatever you want to call it). Again, Sucker Punch did an amazing job with the setting. Finding things like this placed on random rooftops really solidifies the feeling of a post-apocalyptic shithole.

  • I don’t have a picture of it, but my rank is now Champion! W00t!!!

June 17th, 2011: Crazy Bitch.

That Sasha lady is ONE CRAZY BITCH.

She reminds me of Las Plagas with her crazy tenticle-mouth.

Yeah, she looked just like that.

(fun fact: I originally typed testicle mouth)

The fight with her wasnt difficult (Im playing on normal difficulty in case anyone was wondering), in fact it was fun! I was able to use all of the skills I had accrued thus far. But yeah, lets get back to how crazy of a bitch she is. I dont know if I (I being me, the player) am supposed to know who she is yet, but it sounds like Cole knew her before all of this started. That would explain the sickening, twisted love chants she forced him to listen to. Blegh.

 

I was too busy taking the picture I didn't realize I had to actually DO something at this point.

When I had adequately beaten her ass and she was about to talk, the First Sons or whatever barged through and took Sasha with them (or Im assuming they did). To where? I dunno. Maybe they have some super secret First Sons building or something. GOOD FOR THEM. I’ll just return to my rooftop, thank you very much…

I ultimately ventured into The Warren, which Im assuming is the equivalent of the slums. I met up with the fine folks that run that area…the Dust Men. So did I hear Cole right? Are these fools actually wearing garbage bags? Meh, they can wear whatever they want cuz they give me more experience points than the Reapers (although they are tougher). By the end of mah play session, I assisted the engineers with fixing the bridge to Neon District (YAY!). Cole tried calling Trish to tell her the news, but she didnt answer her phone. DUN DUN DUN….oh, and I also ran into that Dust Man dude that is accompanied by those Junk Monsters or whatever theyre called. Im not going to Google their name becaauuuause chances are Ill unintentionally run into an spoiler. And that, my friends, would be no bueno.

The story is starting to pick up now. Of course, the story could really unravel out at your own pace, couldnt it? You dont need to do all of the side quests, but I am. Unfortunately theyre pretty repetitive in terms of what you need to do (locate surveillance equipment, save the hostage, kill X amount of Dust Men/Reapers, escort the prisoners, etc) but they relatively easy and quick, so hey.

Here we go again…

I ended up clearing about 25% of the district afterwards, and that’s as far as I got.

Oh, and I still don’t trust Zeke. And I think Trish is in trouble. JUST SAYING.

June 22nd, 2011: SO MUCH TO TALK ABOUT

Like I said in the last log, I’m at a point in inFamous where things are starting to pick up. It’s nice to have finally some story elements to cling onto and write about. I’m not saying the game wasn’t interesting before, but like I’ve said a MILLION times, I’ve a story-driven gamer and I thrive on ponderable things. So here, read my ponderings.

Just as an FYI—I’ve cleared about 60% of the Neon District and my next mission is to make sure Alden doesn’t escape before Moya’s extraction team takes him to wherever the hell they’re taking him. I dunno where. She doesn’t tell me these things. Bitch.

Cole and Trish: They got back together after I helped her transfer supplies to the hospital. Apparently she couldn’t resist his electrifying good looks (HURRRR). On another note, I think it’s adorable how Cole responds to Trish when she’s bitching about whatever it is she’s bitching about; he’s very patient with her and you can tell by the tone of his voice just how much he cares about her well-being and happiness. WHAT A GOOD BOYFRIEND. Too bad he (in a roundabout way) killed her sister. Yeah, that’s kind of unfortunate. I still think Trish is going to become a “bargaining” tool of sorts for Kessler, Sasha or Alden. I’m getting the feeling Trish is what Cole values most on the island, moreso than his freedom, and those bastards know it.

Also, Sasha was NOT happy about Cole and Trish getting back together. WHAT IS THEIR HISTORY?! Also, this confirms that she’s still lurking around somewhere.

Zeke: Y’know, if I didn’t know he’s going to eventually betray me, I still don’t think I’d care a heckuva lot for this dude. I don’t know what his motives are, but I don’t believe they are what he says they are. According to Zeke, he wants to take this opportunity to create a new image, a fresh start, for himself. Which is apparently why he thought it’d be a good idea to get nosey around with the Dustmen, harass Moy and ultimately get captured and stuffed in a cage dangling hundreds of feet in the air. WAY TO GO ZEKE you dumbass. Is he jealous of Cole? Oh yeah. I wish I knew more of the history of their friendship. My assumption is he’s going to betray Cole in a way to benefit himself (obviously); maybe he’ll get freedom, maybe he’ll try to absorb some of the Ray Sphere (or whatever it is you do with it), maybe he’ll join up with Kessler, Alden or Sasha in order to become “someone”. Cole will confront him and Zeke will confess how he’s a big pussy who has been envious of Cole for years and years. Then he’ll become worm-fodder. THE. END.

Kessler: I don’t know enough about this dude, but I know he’s currently weak and toying around with Sasha. Or I think it’s Sasha. I dunno, I heard him torturing or interrogating a female that sounded like her. He recently said something that made me paranoid (and makes me think Trish is gonna croak). He said something along the lines of “every time you fail, someone’s life ends” and that he was forced to “learn the hard way”. He’s hell-bent on ensuring Cole experiences the same thing he did. GREAT. =__=

Alden: Unfortunately I was half-asleep when Alden was introduced to me, but he’s this creepy little old man who can do crazy things, like lift busses with my girlfriend inside them and place it on a roof…ALL WITH HIS EYE. I know he was some big-wig with The First Sons as a child, then Kessler came along and he became homeless. Now he’s a total creeper. Apparently the police have him, and I have to make sure he stays put until Moya’s extraction team shows up.

Reapers and Dustmen: So these kids are fighting now. I can’t remember if I’ve seen Reapers in the Warren or Dustmen in the Neon District (maybe both?) but they’re stepping on each other’s territory…which is fine by me, as it makes picking them off much easier while they’re in mid-battle. I’m curious who (or what) I’m going to encounter in the next district. But holy hell, those robotic troll-esque things are a pain in the ass. But I don’t mind taking them on—as long as I’m perched on a very high rooftop.

Empire City: I’m starting to realize that Empire City is one big cluserfuck. On one hand, you have the nuisance of the Reapers and Dustmen going at each other’s throats, and on the other you have the big power-hungry bastards like Kessler, Alden and Sasha. Let’s not forget Zeke is a douchebag and will eventually do something douchey.

June 13th, 2011: Well, That Finally Happened.

Like I predicted, Zeke done fucked up, and in more ways than one.

First of all, he left his post at the police station and Alden was recaptured. Okay, stupid move, but it wasn’t a personal attack on Cole. It was more him trying to “prove” himself as being someone worthy of respect from the public. Afterwards Trish called and said Zeke had stopped by the hospital; he was pretty upset and kept mumbling about the prison or something.

I gotta admit, if I didn’t know Zeke had another card up his sleeve (that he was destined to unveil sooner than later) I would have taken a liking to him right then and there. Sure, he effed up, but my guess is that I would have come to the conclusion that he was sincere in his actions; that he was just trying to help and better himself—even at the cost of others. Foolish, but sincere. (Although you could tell by the tone of Cole’s voice while he was talking to Trish that he was still very upset with Zeke.)

Oh, and on semi-random note, I restored power to the last section of the Warren. And for some weird reason I love it when does that thing he does with the electricity.

Also, I fully upgraded my shock grenade. I felt like the biggest doosh ever when the blast accidentally arc restrained this person. HE SHOULD HAVE RAN AWAY FROM THE GRENADE DAMMIT.

Not long after, John contacted me. He wanted to meet ALONE. Cole called Moya (which kind of pissed me off….I still don’t trust her) and told her what was going on. She seemed genuinely enthused about the news. Hmph. I even made a prediction before I went to meet up with him.

Anyway, when I was arrived at the meeting location John was nowhere in sight, but The First Sons just happened to be looking for him as well (but in a helicopter. Cheaters). How they found out about our proposed meeting is beyond me. Maybe they heard the radio transmission, or maybe MOYA TOLD THEM. Anyway, I followed their helicopter and found John. I blew some shit up, and he dropped some knowledge.


Greeeaaaat. Moya later said John’s transmissions were coming through only as static, and when she calls me, the phone doesn’t connect or some shit. Is John the bad guy? Is Moya on the right team and John is trying to place me against her? DID HE LOSE HIS MEMORY!??! Ahaha. SO many questions.

After hearing the news, Cole didn’t know what to do, so he called his BEST FRIEND EVER, Zeke, to assist him in locating the Ray Sphere on top of Alden’s Tower. And here, my friends, is when I knew Zeke would do something to royally fuck me over. So I climbed the tower, killed Dustmen, yadda yadda yadda.

Finally, we ran into Alden. While I was fighting off the bad dudes, Zeke took the Ray Sphere away from him. GREAT, right?! Well then Kessler showed up, and Zeke was sandwiched between the two.

“Right here,” I thought, “is where he’s going to betray me.” On cue, Zeke tried activating it–which, you know, would cost thousands of lives. No big deal–but oddly enough, nothing happened.

THERE YOU HAVE IT, FOLKS. Ugh.

Yeah, I saw this coming from a mile away. I always knew he craved power, or something that would at least allow him to stand out from the rest. Had he been granted those powers initially, I assume he would have used them for the greater good (or at least I’d like to think so), but now that he’s with Kessler, I’m afraid he’s going to be a little bitch and do something stupid…again.I don’t think Zeke really knew what he wanted, or that he had thought things through. If he had, I don’t think he would have hesitated; he would have activated it as soon as he got his hands on it.

But anyway, I JUST made my way into the Historic District. According to Cole, “Things are coming to a head.”

WOOHOO! Can’t wait to finish this one and move onto the second. >)

June 27th, 2011: Well, That ALSO Finally Happened. 

Poor Cole. Not only did his best friend of (seemingly) FOREVER betray him for a crack at having power, the only thing he loved was…well, killed. Dropped hundreds of feet from the air onto pavement. Uh, ouch.

I had a feeling this was coming. Kessler had made strange remarks to Cole in the past—like how Cole will have to suffer like he did and something or another about Trish—so it really wasn’t a surprise when she was kidnapped. But that being said, you better believe I busted my ass to diffuse those scattered bombs throughout the Historic District. FOR SOME SICK TWISTED REASON I THOUGHT I COULD SAVE HER.

In fact, when I had to make the crucial decision to either save the six doctors or Trish, I performed my first evil action and headed straight for Trish. EFF THE DOCTORS.

While I was scaling the building to reach her, Kessler kept saying how he was SO disappointed in Cole, yadda yadda yadda. So I finally get to her, and Cole yells, “TRISH!”…

…and this chick with a hood over her face was all, “TRISH? Who the hell is Trish? Get me out of here!” aaaaand my jaw dropped. Of course, I was then forced to watch Trish—who had been, y’know, chillin’ with the doctors this entire time–fall to her death. KESSLER YOU ASSHAT! You tricked me and made me question my morals!
So, like every other sane person would do, I manipulated the system and uh shut the PS3 off and restarted the mission. But this time I was going to save Trish. I couldn’t bear to let Cole live this crazy life by himself. ::cue the D’AWWWW::

Again, I diffused the bombs throughout the district and when I was prompted, I went after the doctors, knowing damn well Trish was one of them.

……

Anyone who had played inFamous is probably laughing at me right now.

When I saved the doctors, Trish suddenly became the OTHER girl hanging from the OTHER building.

So the bitch is doomed from the start, it seems. On the bright side, she approved of Cole using his powers for the greater good. I wonder what she would have said if I had been playing as an evil bastard all along.

Cole swore revenge, probably popping a few blood vessels in the process. The typical stuff.

Not long after, Miss/Mrs (?) Moya contacted Cole, apologizing. I don’t know who she works for anymore, but all I know is she wants the Ray Sphere. She says she wants to put the sphere away where it won’t fall into the wrong hands. I also want to know what the heck she wanted with John. It sounds like HE wants to destroy the sphere, whereas she wants to lock it away. I’M SO CONFUSED.

Guess who else called to chit-chat? A little ol’ friend of mine named Zeke. He briefly apologized about Trish, but it seemed he more or less called so he could whine about himself and his shitty luck: “Things didn’t go the way I had thought they would. Story of my life.” REALLY ZEKE? Gawd. Quit whining. To top it off, he seemed surprised when Cole wouldn’t talk to him.

Like I said above, poor Cole.

Let’s see…I “destroyed” Kessler’s balloons. According to John, Kessler must have trained Sasha dry for all of that mind control reagent stuff. ALSO, they (they being Kessler and Sasha) had a relationship? I heard it from one of the satellites. CRAZY.

Now I need to meet John. We’ll see if he actually shows up.

PS:

I’M SUCH A GOOD PERSON.
 

June 30th, 2011: HOLY BALLS!

Wowowweewa. I just wrapped up inFamous last night, and again, HOLY EFFIN’ BALLS. Umm, I really want to dive into the ending, but I’ll work my way there.

I met John—or more like he met me—with a badass helicopter/electric panel hybrid. Can I just say how much I loved those kind of missions? Limitless energy, just throwing shock grenades at bitches…yeaaaah! Anyway, while I was destroying the three invisible jammers, my good ol’ buddy Zeke called. He pleaded for Cole to answer him…and he did.

I was yelling, “YEAH COLE!” I was also by myself. It was a little awkward.

I eventually did the deed (not THAT deed) and blew up some big ol’ guns. At one point, John said that he had ALMOST stopped Cole from opening the package containing the Ray Sphere, but Cole ran a red light and John lost him. HA. Haaa…ugh.

Finally, I came face to face with the Ray Sphere.

John was there too, and at that moment I felt like I could really trust him. He said that he had held the sphere before, and the feeling it had gave him “wasn’t right”. He truly was all for destroying it…so I did.

But in inFamous fashion—and with Cole’s streak of bad luck—shit went downhill very fast.

WHHHHYYY?? UGH. My jaw dropped. Guys, I really liked John; I felt like he was the only person I could trust. So by the law of Britt that means he has to die. I wonder what would have happened if I had used the Ray Sphere to make Cole more studly…meh, I imagine John would have croaked anyway. (Note to self: YouTube that later!)

With that, uh, rather unfortunate incident out of the way, it was time to meet Kessler. Many of you had warned me that the fight would be uber difficult and frustrating, so I had prepared myself for hair pulling and controller tossing.

Zeke showed up about halfway through and tried to help Cole. D’awwww. <3. Maybe it was because I was still butt-hurt over John, but he definitely earned a few cool points for risking his fat ass. Anyway, the battle with Kessler was fun. I think I died once or twice—which were the direct results of trying to snap photos for this log DURING the fight. Yeah. That didn’t turn out so well.

Ultimately, I killed him. Killed him dead.

OKAY NOW CAN I GET TO THE PART WHERE MY MIND WAS BLOWN INTO A MILLION PIECES?!

AHHHHHHHH.

I NEVER in a million years saw this twist coming. Kessler is an old, wrinkly and ugly version of Cole who hails from the future. LIKE, THEY ARE THE SAME PERSON. Well done, Sucker Punch, well done. My hands were entangled in my hair as I watched the ending for the first time. Did anyone predict this was going to happen? If so, you must be a God.

Alright. I’m rambling. Let’s start over.

Again, I was blown away by the ending. In his time, instead of using his powers Kessler fled with his family—which included his wife Trish (it looked like there might have been children). But things quickly escalated and by that time, it was too late to save anyone. So, using his power, he went back in time. He spent decades planning the detonation of the Ray Sphere, the quarantine, etc. His ultimate goal was to mold Cole into the savior Kessler couldn’t be—by any means necessary (see: Trish falling from a billion feet up onto concrete). And y’know what? I guess he succeeded.

:(

So now the big question:

Who was the nemesis in Kessler’s time? I imagine this is where inFamous 2 would pick up. But we’ll see.
Other questions:

  • What is Moya up to? Who does she work for? Shortly before the game ended, she told me that she had pinned the entire downfall of Empire City on Cole.Wow. BIATCH!
  • Is Sasha dead? What was her and Cole’s history, anyway? It probably does’t matter, but curious cat is curious. Also, her and Kessler supposedly had a thing going on. WEIRD.
  • And Alden…I didn’t actually kill him, did I?

PLEASE don’t answer any of these, as I plan to dive into the sequel immediately. But I thought you’d like to know my ponderings.

My verdict? inFamous was electrifying! HURRRR. But for serious, I have never played a game like this before. At times, it felt a little slow and I gave up on doing the side quests because of it (I think I only had three or four to go) but the twist at the end totally made up for it. At the end of the day, everything tied up into a nice lil’ package with a pretty pink bow.

Now I’m going to read this log from start to finish and laugh at my false predictions. WEEEEEEE!

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