Infamous (series)

Lore & Background

The series takes place in the present-day United States, featuring real and alternate versions of cities such as Empire City (resembling New York City), New Marais (resembling New Orleans), and Seattle. The plot involves American government agencies like the FBI, NSA, and DARPA, as well as the fabricated Department of Unified Protection (DUP), which aims to stop Conduits labeled as bio-terrorists. The first game introduces Cole MacGrath, a bike courier who gains electrical powers after an explosion caused by the Ray Sphere, an object that transfers energy from people to the user. Cole later faces Kessler, revealed to be a future version of Cole from an alternate timeline, who prepared him for a battle against an entity called 'The Beast.' Infamous 2 follows Cole to New Marais to prepare for the Beast, while Infamous Second Son introduces Delsin Rowe, a graffiti artist who absorbs powers from other Conduits. The expansion Infamous First Light focuses on Fetch's story before the events of Second Son.

Reader's Guide

The Infamous series is significant for its open-world gameplay, parkour mechanics, and a morality system called Karma, which allows players to choose good or evil paths that affect abilities and story outcomes. The series introduced unique power sets—electricity, smoke, neon, video, and concrete—that deplete from a gauge and refill from environmental sources. The Karma system influences the mixture of abilities available to the player. The series also includes downloadable content like Infamous: Festival of Blood, a vampire-themed side story, and Infamous First Light, a standalone expansion. A collection titled the Infamous Collection bundled the first two main games and Festival of Blood for PlayStation 3. Cole MacGrath also appears as a playable character in Street Fighter X Tekken. The series' legacy lies in its blend of superhero themes, moral choices, and dynamic traversal, influencing later action-adventure games.

Did You Know?

• The series includes a six-issue comic book series published by DC Comics in 2011.
• Infamous: Festival of Blood was the bestselling PlayStation Network game until the launch of Journey.
• Cole MacGrath appears as a playable character in Street Fighter X Tekken for PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Vita.
• The Infamous Collection was released separately from the 'PlayStation Collections' line that included God of War Saga and Ratchet & Clank Collection.