inFAMOUS Second Son [PS4]

This is how to do a patch, not fixing a broken game after launch, but actual, meaningful changes.

Full 1.01 Patch Notes:

Cole's Legacy Content Pack
FREE with pre-order
Explore the events immediately following inFAMOUS 2
Work with an investigative reporter to understand the source of conduit powers
4 story missions, approximately 1 hour of gameplay

inFAMOUS Paper Trail Storyline
FREE bonus missions and exclusive web content
Innovative online and in-game story arc co-developed by Sucker Punch and 42 Entertainment
Manga and murder, follow the trail of origami doves to discover the full story behind the D.U.P.'s occupation of Seattle.
19 story missions and corresponding web-based investigations, approximately 5 hours of unique gameplay.

Difficulty Balance
Normal difficulty has been slightly increased to challenge the player’s mastery of their powers
Expert difficulty has been fine-tuned to ensure it is the best experience for skilled gamers
Karma progression extended to support longer playtime

Boss Fights
The boss fights have been re-tuned for difficulty and fun
More dynamic boss behaviors and attacks

Pedestrians and DUPs
Engine performance tweaks to allow for more life and activity in the city
Increased pedestrian and traffic density and variety
Increased pedestrian-related karmic opportunities
Post-story enemy activity and D.U.P. raids

Technical Improvements
Graphics and performance improvements
Fixes for a small number of infrequent blocking bugs
PSN integration to support Paper Trail DLC
 
First review: http://bgr.com/2014/03/20/infamous-second-son-review-ps4/

Across the board, this is one of the best video game casts in recent memory, heightened by the performance capture technology that allows Sucker Punch to highlight nuanced emotions through facial expressions. Every cringe, every balk of incredulity, every sly smile (of which there are quite a few) is perceptible, and it’s amazing to watch.

The story, on the other hand, doesn’t soar quite as high as the actors. As in the first two titles, side characters play a major role in the story of Second Son. Unfortunately, we hardly get any context for our companions this time around. They make occasional appearances during missions, typically directly following your initial encounters with them, but you’ll go through most of the game on your or with your older brother, Reggie.

Infamous: Second Son is the long-awaited emergence of another exciting console generation, a breathtaking open world that gives us a glimpse of what the PlayStation 4 is capable of. Despite some stumbles in the story department, Infamous provides some of the most enjoyable, fast-paced combat in the history of the series and sets up a bright future for Sucker Punch on the PlayStation 4. Infamous: Second Son is a thrilling adventure that shouldn’t be missed.
 
^^ Not a bad score...

PS4 powers this city with ease, the busy skyline stretching all the way to the Puget Sound without compromises in draw distance or frame rate, even as you clamber and swoop from rooftop to rooftop at breakneck pace. If there's one thing the former platform game specialist Sucker Punch excels at, it's the joy of just getting around, and inFamous' brand of superpowered parkour has never been sweeter than in Second Son. You can race up walls in a neon streak or sprout flickering pixel-wings to zoom through the air; at such moments the game has some of the intoxicating glee of Realtime Worlds' classic Crackdown.

The PS4 has enabled Sucker Punch's artists to really go to town on the VFX, too. Cole MacGrath's electricity powers have gone to the grave with him (continuity-wise, the game follows inFamous 2's "good" ending) and we now get a much more imaginative and striking suite: smoke, neon, video and concrete. These are visually original and quite spectacular in pitched battles. The brittle shards and swirls of concrete commanded by superpowered DUP agents have a particularly unique and tactile flavour, but I also loved the hot pink highlights of neon and the ashy crackle of the smoke powers.

Overall, it's good clean fun - so it's a shame that Second Son suffers from a consistent failure of imagination in how it's put together. There's not been much of an attempt to shake up the mission scenarios or structure of the game, leaving you with a very rote open-world adventure
 
4 and 1/2 stars out of 5: http://www.joystiq.com/2014/03/20/infamous-second-son-review-thank-you-for-smoking/

Infamous: Second Son emphasizes the series' strengths in its debut appearance on the PlayStation 4, easily trumping previous Infamous games while showcasing the power of Sony's latest console. In the process, it drastically overhauls the series' defining elements, stripping away the weaker parts and focusing on what works best. If you found previous Infamous games more frustrating than fun, Second Son's gleefully destructive superheroics will win you over as a fan.

Second Son is polished and refined enough to make previous series entries feel dated in comparison. It represents a great leap forward both in terms of gameplay and in graphical fidelity, and establishes a high standard for what players can expect from the PlayStation 4.
 
It's getting positive reviews with a 8.1 metacritic score for 54 reviews.

It looks like a fun game, as good as the previous Infamous games.
 
Should you play this... YES! http://kotaku.com/infamous-second-son-the-kotaku-review-1547813563

Second Son doesn't just do shinier versions of the things previous Infamous games did. It multiplies and extrapolates on those things, letting them intertwine in really satisfying ways. So you get some skills that have choice built in, like sniping that lets you automatically go for headshots (evil) or hobbling (good.) You're a hero—or anti-hero, if you so choose—who can change the nature of his super-ness on the fly. There's a brief sequence in the last third of Second Son where Delsin's powers glitch out. You're forced to run past folks getting beaten up and you can't help. It feels pretty horrible, at least if you're playing Delsin as a good guy. That feeling is testament to how much the game pulls you in. Second Son feels like a game made by a studio reaching the peak of its own powers, on a new console that it's helping come into its own.

8/10 stars: http://www.pushsquare.com/reviews/ps4/infamous_second_son

There’s an unparalleled sense of empowerment in inFAMOUS: Second Son that makes it a release to be reckoned with. Bursting with more attitude than a high school hardcore band, this out-of-control excursion effortlessly nails the sensation of possessing superpowers. It may put its plot forward a little too forcefully at first, but persevere and you’ll be richly rewarded with an appetising roster of outlandish abilities. While it does little to push the open world format forward, this is still a series that’s very much in bloom.

IGN 8.7: http://www.ign.com/articles/2014/03/20/infamous-second-son-review

While high production values are often a smokescreen for weak characters, Second Son succeeds here, too. Troy Baker’s motion-captured performance as our new Conduit, Delsin, remains believable whether he’s being a snarky, reckless jerk, or a plucky, bohemian do-gooder. He’s not universally likable, but the chemistry he has with his conservative, law-defending brother makes for some absorbing familial banter.

Open-world superhero action games are about freedom and empowerment, and in these regards, Second Son is really impressive. Seattle is a big, beautiful playground for you to stomp around in with a set of devilishly fun and powerful toys at your disposal. It plays great, and it looks even better, but its advancements also beg it to be held to a higher standard, one that its overall story and morality systems struggle to reach.
 
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Maybe we're talking about the same thing here (not too familiar with the technical jargons I'm afraid), but what bothers me the most is that half the stuff which should be visible in the reflection simply isn't showing.
That would be the "the incorrect parallax and general inaccuracy that cubemaps suffer from", or some similar issue.

The game is probably not generating the reflected image through a real-time technique. Which can look okay sometimes, though I prefer very indistinct cubemaps (to add some sheen to a surface without betraying incorrect parallax). But that technique probably wouldn't look right on smooth surfaces which ought to offer a clean reflection of an object. So, we get a weird road surface reflecting some funky-looking building that isn't there and which is infinitely far away. Plus some dynamic lights that do reflect correctly in real time to make up the difference, or something.

Shadow Fall has great reflecions.
And that would be the "much praise screen-space reflections are somehow getting".

I honestly think KZSF's real-time reflections look terrible. As things transition in and out of view, you get gigantic and incredibly obvious wipes across your screen. In some cases you even wind up with stuff like your gun model "inexplicably" shoving its silhouette onto a hallway wall.
And there are a ton of things in KZSF that have their own instabilities.

And yet KZSF's graphics are highly praised. What happened to all the people who ripped Halo 2 apart for having what today would probably be considered a small to medium amount of texture pop? I feel like I'm going insane, because these visual issues annoy me, but nobody ever mentions them.
 
Sounds like this game is showing some of the design philosophy problems for SP, I remember they said in i2 that they start writing they story when the game dev is 80% done for all of their games.
 
It was the IGN score I was waiting for and it's a 8.7. When it comes to inFamous, they mirror my tastes :smile: Excellent.

I would say that is a good score. It does most things better than Infamous 2, but not all. Don't take that as a big negative though, Infamous 2 is my favorite game from last gen.

This game is more grounded in reality, there are no large monsters to fight, which I enjoyed in Infamous 2. Seattle is a great city for the game, but it lacks the variety that New Marias had with the swamps and flood town.
 
I would say that is a good score. It does most things better than Infamous 2, but not all. Don't take that as a big negative though, Infamous 2 is my favorite game from last gen.
I knew topping inFamous 2 was going to be a tough one - also my fave and more replayed game of the PS3 generation. To get it in perspective, I played I2 more than Oblivion, Fallout 3, New Vegas and Skyrim, and I love those games.

This game is more grounded in reality, there are no large monsters to fight, which I enjoyed in Infamous 2. Seattle is a great city for the game, but it lacks the variety that New Marias had with the swamps and flood town.
A shame there are no giant enemies - I loved the giant trash mech things in inFamous and big monsters in I2, but I suspected this might be the case from no showing of these. It's a different vibe. For me inFamous is the mastery of the environment and combat and it looks to be more of this in spades. Really looking forward to getting to grips with it tomorrow morning :smile:
 
Infamous: Second Son is a hit...

Nice wrap-up stolen from GAF (fluffydelusions). Congratulations Sucker Punch.... :cool:

Metacritic: http://www.metacritic.com/game/plays...ous-second-son

PSU - 10/10
http://www.psu.com/a022827/inFAMOUS-...st-masterpiece

Destructoid - 9.5/10
http://www.destructoid.com/review-in...le&mode=mobile

DualShockers - 9.5/10
http://www.dualshockers.com/2014/03/...nally-arrived/

GamesBeat - 94/100
http://venturebeat.com/2014/03/20/in...on-4-review/2/

Cheat Code Central - 4.7/5
http://www.cheatcc.com/ps4/rev/infam...onreview2.html

Gamed.nl - 9.2/10
http://www.gamed.nl/view/111050

VGNetwork - 9/10
http://www.vgnetwork.it/recensioni-p...us-second-son/

EGM - 9/10
http://www.egmnow.com/articles/revie...us-second-son/

Lazygamer - 9/10
http://www.lazygamer.net/review/infa...me-as-you-are/

GamerFitNation - 9/10
http://gamerfitnation.com/2014/03/in...nd-son-review/

Gaming Age - A-
http://www.gaming-age.com/2014/03/in...on-review-ps4/

thesixaxis - 9/10
http://www.thesixthaxis.com/2014/03/...nd-son-review/

Joystiq - 4.5/5
http://www.joystiq.com/2014/03/20/in...u-for-smoking/

PCgames.de - 89
http://www.pcgames.de/inFamous-Secon...est-1114294/3/

videogameszone.de - 89
http://www.videogameszone.de/inFamou...est-1114294/3/

rebelgamer.de - 89
http://www.rebelgamer.de/2014/03/inf...-im-test/30535

Gametrailers - 8.8/10
http://www.gametrailers.com/reviews/...ond-son-review

IGN - 8.7/10
http://www.ign.com/articles/2014/03/...ond-son-review

Meristation (Spanish) 8.7/10
http://www.meristation.com/playstati...-juego/1841142

Gameswelt.de - 8.5
http://www.gameswelt.de/infamous-sec...ext-gen,217472

Post Arcade (National Post) - 85
http://business.financialpost.com/20..._lsa=fc2c-6a77

3DJuegos (Spanish) - 8.5/10
http://www.3djuegos.com/juegos/anali...us-second-son/

Gameinformer - 8.5/10
http://www.gameinformer.com/games/in...for-power.aspx

Polygon - 8.5/10
http://www.polygon.com/2014/3/20/552...view-drain-you

XGN.nl - 8.5
http://www.xgn.nl/review/54985/infamous-second-son/

Play UK - 8/10
http://www.play-mag.co.uk/reviews/ps...on-review-ps4/

Gamer.no - 8/10
http://www.metacritic.com/game/plays...critic-reviews

Everyeye.it - 8/10
http://www.everyeye.it/ps4/articoli/...censione_21983

Gameblog.fr - 8/10
http://www.gameblog.fr/tests/1886-in...second-son-ps4

Playstation Official Magazine UK - 8/10
http://www.officialplaystationmagazi...ss-in-seattle/

GiantBomb - 4/5
http://www.giantbomb.com/reviews/inf...view/1900-635/

JeuxVideo - 16/20
http://www.jeuxvideo.com/articles/00...test.htm#infos

Gamespot - 8
http://www.gamespot.com/reviews/infa.../1900-6415705/

Eurogamer.pt - 8/10
http://www.eurogamer.pt/articles/201...analise?page=2

Pushsquare - 8/10
http://www.pushsquare.com/reviews/ps...ous_second_son

GamingTrend - 8/10
http://gamingtrend.com/reviews/pack-...nd-son-review/

NowGamer - 8/10
http://www.nowgamer.com/ps4/ps4-revi...on_review.html

Gamersglobal.de - 8/10
http://www.gamersglobal.de/test/infa...d-son?page=0,2

Play3.de - 80
http://www.play3.de/2014/03/20/test-...us-second-son/

giga.de - 80
http://www.giga.de/spiele/infamous-s...-neue-schwarz/

Spaziogames.it - 8/10
http://www.spaziogames.it/recensioni...econd-son.aspx

4players.de - 74/100
http://www.4players.de/4players.php/...econd_Son.html

Edge - 7/10
http://www.edge-online.com/review/in...nd-son-review/

Videogamer - 7/10
http://www.videogamer.com/reviews/in...on_review.html

Eurogamer - 7/10
http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/20...ond-son-review

Shacknews - 7/10
http://www.shacknews.com/article/836...w-over-powered

Escapist - 3.5/5
http://www.escapistmagazine.com/arti...The-Good-Son.2

GamesRadar - 3.5/5
http://gamesradar.com/infamous-second-son-review/

Metro.co.uk - 6/10
http://metro.co.uk/2014/03/20/infamo...llain-4667828/

Rev3 - 3/5

Kotaku - Yes
http://kotaku.com/infamous-second-so...iew-1547813563

Gamersyde - Positive
http://www.gamersyde.com/news_we_rev...-15112_en.html

Arstechnica - Buy it if you have a PlayStation 4. If you don't, maybe it's time to consider getting one.
http://arstechnica.com/gaming/2014/0...ful-enjoyment/
 
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