I got the platinum a few days ago, heres my take on the game after beating it. Good game, but I thought the first two games were better. SS has unique and not obvious powers, is extremely polished , throws you into a detailed and dynamic world, and introduces many interesting ideas but ultimately doesnt do much with any of this. I wonder if SP was forced to get this game by spring bc Sony needed a big first party game in the launch window. I cant help but think an additional 6 months with a September release would have improved things.
I was saddened to see how little choice there was in this game. The first two games handled it better. Infamous 1 had more ambiguous choices (who could forget the Trish/doctors dilemma), which I thought worked well. Infamous 2, while more black and white, worked in that depending on your choices, your story would be shaped down a different pathway. In SS, the only time you are presented with choice is when you are introduced to the conduits (which arent many). Really not much changes depending on which side you pick to play as. I was hoping with next gen, wed be able to build on and improve on the morality system, but it seems to have regressed here.
Speaking of karma, there is a bit of a disconnect here for me. You could play Cole as good or evil and that made sense given the ambiguity in the character, but it doesnt make sense here with Delsin. He wants to be a hero and thats his clear motivation this entire game. He goes on his mission in order to help his tribe that was attacked. Why then would he go around killing innocent citizens on the street? Why would his brother, that happens to be a cop, be cool with that? It almost doesnt make sense to have a karma system in this game bc it conflicts with the protagonists objective.
Story? Wasnt a fan of it. To me, it came across too simple. There were no twists, no real character development aside from maybe
, which btw, was extremely predictable. It was too straight forward and the game was just too short to really allow for a deeper story. Connected to this, I really had a hard time connecting to Delsin. He just didnt come across as sympathetic or rootable to me. A bit too arrogant and its this arrogance which got him and his tribe in the trouble they were in to beginning with. I found myself agreeing with and siding more with Reggie as Delsin came across as a punk.
I didnt care for the enemy types. Military happens to be one of my least favorite in videogames as they tend to be a bit boring and generic. I preferred the, monsters,
reapers and First Sons in previous games. I also hated the main villain. She just didnt do much for me. I hated her and not in the love to hate way. She was just an awful, miserable, stiff person with absolutely no charisma.
I hated the lack of Cole mentions. In fact the past games felt relatively irrelevant here. It seemed connected to Infamous in name only and feels more like a spiritual successor than sequel. I was expecting more of a link to the events of New Marais and Cole to play a bigger role here, with possibly some characters popping up, but the link between the games feels very minimal.
The game was WAY too short. When I was doing the final boss, I was kind of thinking there would be some type of twist and there was someone larger to face besides her. Unfortunately the game ends there. I wish there was more in the way of side missions. Outside of the story, all there is, is the one mission you do with Eugene/Fetch after you are introduced to them. I really wish there was more side stuff like that as those two especially could have used a bit more development. The DLC we are getting, is something I wish was incorporated into the game, but I guess at least they are extending it, so thats good
I liked the powers and thought there was some interesting choices but I was upset to see two of my favorite moves from the last game gone. Im talking about a shield and telekinesis. With neon, I could see you putting up a stationary neon shield and with the third power, you could have one that operated like the last games where you hold it to activate it. I loved picking up and slamming cars, so its a shame you cant do that here. Speaking of powers, considering how much build up the final power had, it felt as if they half-assed it
I will say the game is gorgeous. The graphics arent outstanding (it doesnt feel like THE next-gen experience, I was waiting for) but the visual effects are amazing. Running through the street with neon, disappearing into a puff of smoke or using your Karmic ability, just look visually impressive.
I think the reviews have mainly been fair. Id give the game an 8. The game is good but there just isnt enough of it. I think throwing in more side missions, variety in mission types, at least 1 or 2 extra powers, fully developing them all, more enemy types would have gone a long way in improving things.
Oh and 1 more thing. I hate that after 3 games, SP STILL lacks a decent statistics tracker. I think this is something that should be standard in all open world game. It seems rather disappointing to not see one here, especially after playing GTA V and AC IV. That would be very welcomed
