The player is thrust right into the heart of the story at Empire City`s ground zero, as Cole attempts to find a way out of the rubble. Unfortunately, the authorities have cordoned off all access in or out, which means our hero is stuck within the city’s confines. Help comes in the unlikely form of an FBI agent who, in exchange for Cole`s help in finding an operative who has gone AWOL since the blast, promises him his freedom. Paying homage to recent titles such as the seminal Crackdown with a sprinkling of Prince of Persia thrown into the mix, Infamous takes its influences and makes them very much its own.

Each of the three districts that make up Empire City (Neon, Warren and Historic) are overrun by roving gangs, adding to the chaos and general mayhem caused in the midst of the explosion. In a lot of ways, Empire City is the real star of Infamous, as the design and architecture feels coherent and properly realised right from the start. There are next to no issues with the surroundings and the sheer joy of doing nothing more than indulging in exploration becomes as much a part of the experience as furthering the story by completing missions. Add into the mix the exemplary musical accompaniment composed by Amon Tobin, which rises and falls according to what area Cole finds himself in, or what actions are happening on-screen, the subtle way it's executed deserves a lot of praise.

With the power-grid off-line, the player must find substations to bring areas back online bit by bit, using Cole`s electrical powers as a glorified set of jump leads. These substations also add another power to Cole`s arsenal, expanding the set to an almost bewildering level by the end of the game. As the game progresses and the player gains access to the likes of the Static Thrusters, or the ability to grind along railway lines, the feeling of empowerment is impressive, and helps create the feeling of controlling a super-powered bad-ass. Leaping around the top of buildings, being able to scale just about everything in sight and how intuitive it all feels, allows the player to just get on and enjoy the game without ever feeling that anything is a barrier, that the City is one giant playground in which to enjoy themselves.

The story is propelled along by using graphic novel-style cells, instead of the usual cut-scenes, and they prove to be an inspired choice. Unfortunately, the weakest aspect of Infamous – the characters themselves – fail to live up to the quality shown in the hand-drawn sections. Cole is a fairly generic character, replete with shaven head and the obligatory 'attitude' that seems to be bolted onto every gaming avatar at the moment. His gravelly voice certainly doesn`t help matters, neither does his attempts to repair the broken relationship with his girlfriend who blames him for the death of her sister in the blast. She is such an unlikeable character that you wonder if Cole is actually better off without her and she doesn`t feel like a love interest, more of a hindrance.

Cole`s best friend, Zeke, also proves to be an annoyance too far. It`s a real pity that he can`t be disposed of in a hail of electrical bolts, which is how all players will feel by the end. Surely Sucker Punch could`ve done a whole lot better than a generic, fat, loser friend? It`s a real shame that this aspect of the game wasn`t imbued with a far greater purpose, prompting the player to question why exactly Cole would be friends with Zeke in the first place. Fortunately, the story takes the player on a journey and even when the massive twist presents itself at the end, it always feels relevant and you care about the outcome, but a bit more of a personal touch would`ve yielded a far more positive result.

The electrical power Cole harnesses is stored in Battery cores, which can be upgraded by collecting Blast Shards. Much like the Agility and Hidden orbs in the seminal Crackdown, these allow Cole to extend his capacity well beyond his starting point. Although nowhere near as tricky to discover as in the aforementioned title, the player will still find a challenge when they come to the final 20-30 shards, as the collector within them comes to the fore.

Karma choices will be presented to the player at various points throughout the game. Choosing whether to share an emergency ration-drop with the populace or keep for you and your friends are very binary in their execution, with no shades of grey in whatever choice is made. It’s only when you get to the far extreme of either (good or bad) that you see any real change in circumstances. Being good will mean people seek you out to help revive a fallen member of the public, or draw attention to someone carrying out a mugging, or even treat you as a minor celebrity, stopping to take your picture when you pass among them.

The Karmic choices also extend to weaponry, and, although this reviewer took the good path throughout, the player can mix and match depending on the choices adopted within missions and side-missions, which will cater for those who have a tendency towards the darker side of life in Empire City if they so wish. The side missions are well thought out and provide the right balance between challenge and accomplishment, and, if successful, any gangs operating within that area are expunged, thus providing more of an incentive to complete them.

Every action within the game is rewarded with Experience Points (XP). These can be exchanged for upgrades to all weapons that are acquired throughout the game. Although the player will stick to a handful of favourites, it`s nice to have the choice if the urge to become more creative comes to the fore. By the time the player reaches the final encounter, all weapons should be either fully upgraded or close to it, if an inquisitive mind has been at play and has made full use of finding new and interesting ways to earn their XP.

While not perfect, Infamous has enough excitement and vigour to see the player through to the end, and crucially leave them wanting more. The real hope is that that there will be another instalment of the adventures of Cole and the inhabitants of Empire City.