inFamous: Second Son
Grounded in reality. As a phrase, it’s a description that’s become trite in its repetition as seemingly every contemporary franchise tries to make its property more relevant. And yet, inFamous: Second Son very much represents Sucker Punch’s progression as a studio and one that is poised to make the inFamous series, ahem, more realistic.
Second Son acts as the third iteration in the inFamous universe and follows series newcomer Deslin Rowe, who will be voiced by rising star Troy Baker. The game will take place a full seven years after the events of inFamous 2 and is located in Sucker Punch’s true-to-form rendition of Seattle – a first for the series, considering the fictitious Empire City from the original games. Rowe is a very different protagonist than series stalwart Cole MacGrath. He embraces these mysterious, smoke-ridden powers. He’s arrogant, brash, and above all, a character that oozes personality, which is a testimony to the development process that Sucker Punch employed.
The studio utilised novel motion capture technology at Digital Domain which allowed them to render a voice actor’s motion and facial animations simultaneously – a technique that Naughty Dog implemented for The Last of Us – which, as evidenced by the footage we’ve seen, increases visual fidelity rather brilliantly. For me, a big part of making a game immersive is in the characters themselves. A nuanced, relatable personality will always top bombastic quick timed events or cinematic cut scenes, and in that regard, Sucker Punch seems to have struck a balance with presentation values with the in-game narrative. The proof? Troy Baker and Travis Willingham, who play the game’s central duo Deslin Rowe and Officer Reggie, respectively, are best friends in real life, thereby making their on-screen chemistry feel, you guessed it, grounded in reality.
This isn’t just a forced sequel of a beloved PS3 exclusive, inFamous: Second Son is an out and out evolution of Sucker Punch’s open-world creation.
The Order: 1886
How well do you know your history? Well, that’s a grey area that Ready At Dawn look to extrapolate on with their new Playstation 4 exclusive, The Order: 1886. The game represents a novel and indeed bold intellectual property from the American based developer, which is better known for its collaborations with existing franchises on the PSP, such as God Of War.
Set within an alternative history, The Order: 1886 orbits around a Neo-Victorian England and is said to take historical liberties by including advanced technology and weaponry. The game’s narrative will twist the industrial revolution so that it represents a fevered progression in response to a long-gestating war with a supernatural enemy. A progression which spawned the titular faction; a covert group of operatives who have battled with the non-human foe for millennia.
Though third-person by design, the game is very reminiscent of the steam punk vibe found in games such as Dishonoured. What’s more, a deep, century-spanning mythology appears to reside within the bowels of The Order: 1886 and I can’t wait to discover the secrets hiding within Ready At Dawn’s gritty and alternative visualisation of Victorian London.
The Elder Scrolls Online
Given the depth and profound quality of previous Elder Scrolls’ games, it’s a wonder Bethesda never had a crack at the MMO model before they announced The Elder Scrolls Online. Player-to-player interaction has been a fan-chanted desire that’s rung around the hills of Tamriel for aeons, and now, with their new multi-platform title, the franchise will transcend into the online ether for the first time. The game will join the likes of The Witcher 3 and Warhammer 40,000: Eternal Crusade in the genre’s resilient march towards next-gen consoles.
Bethesda – the series’ stalwart developer – has paired with Zenimax Studios to work on the game, and with the latter team bringing extensive experience of online play to the developing round table, The Elder Scrolls Online has significant industry pedigree behind it.
Set 1,000 years before the events of Skyrim, your quest, along with your close allies, is to fight against the Daedric Prince Molag Bal who plans to annihilate Tamriel in its entirety. Players will have the option to choose between three warring alliances and, following that, a specific race for your in-game warrior. Expect a plethora of customisation options, plus, considering that weapons and armours available to your character won’t be restricted by class, the game will wholeheartedly contain hours upon hours of content.
Early preview footage has showcased just how visually impressive the game is, and in retaining the franchise’s first-person, real-time combat system, The Elder Scrolls Online will stand out from an increasingly crowded genre with its own distinct ancestry. Besides, PVP battles infused with the series’ rich reserve of history? I’ll see you in Tamriel, then.
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