A few decades ago the masses believed video games were a waste of time for lackadaisical youths to pacify themselves while ignoring their responsibilities as both kids and young adults. As more and more people started understanding the benefits of gaming so too did the perception of what a video game is and, most importantly, the benefits gaming can bestow on a person’s life changed.
Hi, my name is James Bullock and I am a gamer who has spent the better part of his existence testing the laws of physics, exploring the vastness of a world ruined, and been a champion inside various arenas courtesy of digitized worlds both driven by reality and created through pure unbelievable ingenuity unlike anything seen by human eyes. And as a gamer I’ve discovered something else video games provide: life lessons. Today I examine a game that showed some choices are out of your hands, “Infamous”.
You Can’t Control Every Choice’s Outcome
Gaming’s eighth generation allowed developers the chance to truly push the boundaries of what an open-world video game could feature. For all the mayhem & chaos players could create in games like the Playstation 2-era “Grand Theft Auto” offerings, gamers wanted more; they wanted a chance to be greater than just a thug-turned-master criminal. What gamers wanted was the opportunity to embrace their inner superhero and make that character a person people could idolize or fear. The developers of “Sly Cooper” – Sucker Punch Productions – during the Playstation 2 era went to work on something completely different than what came before it – a game where players could dictate the future of an entire city housing a super-powered crime fighter. As Cole MacGrath, players bear witness to a man caught in the middle of an explosion caused by him simply following orders. The big bang allows for Cole to gain powers rooted in controlling electricity. But with great power comes great consequences as the people of Empire City blame Cole for killing hundreds and ruining their relatively peaceful metropolis. In an effort to expose the true culprit, clear his name, and help the people of Empire City in the process, Cole uses his new-found powers to fight the mounting Reaper forces. But what really makes “Infamous” and the acts of MacGrath so special is the game’s karma system.
Thanks to a series of choices presented throughout the game and its sequels, the player can take the “Infamous” protagonist down a good path or an evil course. With these decisions comes the growth of Cole’s powers; some only being available when being good or bad. But, most importantly, the player’s path chosen presents Cole in a positive or negative light in regards to the people he’s intending to help. Unfortunately there are some decisions out of the player’s control including the safety of Cole’s love interest Trish. After a falling out between Cole and Trish, the latter is captured and held hostage with the intent of testing MacGrath’s morality. No matter what the player chooses – be selfish & save Trish, or rescue a group of Trish’s colleagues – Trish dies. Yep, the player can opt to pick Trish over the world and she’ll still die. Though Trish’s death fuels Cole’s mission, the fact remains no matter what the player chooses leading up to that monumental decision there’s nothing to stop fate from showing just how powerless someone is to the universe’s ways.
For all the choices both big and small people make during their lifetime, there are things that a person will never be able to control like turning into a super-powered force to be reckoned with or just some simple courier following orders that results in an entire town being overrun by mutants.
Have you learned any major life lessons from playing the “Infamous” or any video game for that matter? Leave them in the comments below and, as always, thanks for reading.
