Now, if you're still reading this I'm assuming you already finished the game and for that I say great job! Even though the game is a little old now it has stood the test of time quite well. However, this short piece isn't about raving on about how great Infamous 2 is but rather I am going to discuss with you one of the game's features that outshines many other titles. In short, that feature is "Blast Shard Sense."
Within the past generation we've all played great titles such as Bioshock, Uncharted, Call of Duty, or Assassin's Creed. In each one of those games there has been what I like to call a "Collection Achievement," by which I mean, there is a side quest in the main story that requires you to collect particular items in order to unlock an achievement or get an extra dose of story information.
By the titles that I mentioned above you can already recall the collection achievement mission that I have described, Bioshock has the tape recorders, Uncharted has the treasures, Assassin's Creed has the feathers/flags, and even the ever popular Call of Duty has the intel. All of these games including many other popular titles have these collection achievement missions.
In each one of those games I would argue that collecting the required items ended up being a chore and in worst cases, it removes the player from the entire experience. For example, as much as I love the Uncharted series, sometimes I found myself moving the camera in odd places just to see if there was a treasure that I might have missed. The same can be said about Assassin's Creed. Whenever there was a mission that involved chasing after a target or simply trying to be stealthy, a feather or flag would appear and for a moment I would switch my attention on trying to obtain the item. Now, this doesn't break any game by any sense, but it is something that many games still have and honestly, I don't feel that it should be that way.
Infamous 2 on the other hand does something great with it's own collection achievement mission. Yes, it still has you collect a particular item (Blast Shards), but the entire collection process is remedied with an ability that Cole gets midway through the game called "Blast Shard Sense." This ability allows the player to pin-point the exact location of the remaining blast shards without having to search for them on your own. If you want the Blast Shards, go get them. If you don't, leave them be. If you're playing as Cole while on a mission, it becomes a whole lot easier to leave a blast shard that you passed by because in the end you know that you can always come back to get it. This ability allows the player to remain engaged in the experience without having to worry about missing a collection item.
Infamous 2 did genius work with "Blast Shard Sense," and other games should take note on how to take on these collection achievement missions. As a player, you want to be engaged in what you're playing and anything that breaks that engagement should be remedied.
Image: Wikimedia Commons
No comments:
Post a Comment