Parents' Guide to

Infamous: Second Son

By Chad Sapieha, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 13+

Teens opt to be saviors or slayers in dark superhero game.

Game PlayStation 4 2014
Infamous: Second Son Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this game.

  • Infamous: Second Son Game: Screenshot #1
  • Infamous: Second Son Game: Screenshot #2
  • Infamous: Second Son Game: Screenshot #3

Community Reviews

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age 13+

Based on 7 parent reviews

Kate Q.
Kate Q. Parent of 6 and 9-year-old
December 4, 2021
age 9+

great!

This title has:

Great messages
Great role models
Easy to play/use
BlueFlame414
BlueFlame414 Adult
June 18, 2020
age 14+

Great game! Language is a let down though..

I loved playing this game when I first got it. I finished the hero campaign in one day and I'm currently going back through it on a villan campaign. The game is great when it comes to moral lessons, i.e. if you do good, good things will happen and visa versa. The strong language in the beginning of the campaign is honestly a huge turn off though. This game could get a better age grade if only there wasn't such harsh language in the beginning. It's only words like b----, s---, p-- and h--- but they are used so frequently in the beginning that its somewhat unenjoyable in the beginning. It gets better once you get settled into the story and the game is overall fun and bears many positive messages about teamwork, hardwork, overcoming obstacles and acknowledging rights.

This title has:

Great messages
Great role models
See all 7 parent reviews

What’s It About?

Players take on the role of a young Native American who gains superhuman powers in INFAMOUS: SECOND SON, a third-person open-world action game exclusive to PlayStation 4 consoles. Delsin Rowe is only a graffiti artist and minor mischief maker in rural America when a prison truck carrying inmates with superpowers crashes on a nearby highway. Upon touching one of the prisoners, Delsin somehow absorbs his power: the ability to turn into and manipulate smoke. He's enthralled with his newfound abilities and is eager to use them. The government, however, fears and condemns people with special powers, dubbing them "bio-terrorists." So Delsin has a choice: Fight back against the authorities manipulating public opinion, or punish everyone for their closed-minded beliefs, killing not only soldiers but anyone in his path -- including weak and wounded civilians. Delsin's powers evolve according to the choices he makes, with some only available to a "good" hero and others -- typically more destructive in nature -- available only to an "evil" character.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (7):
Kids say (41):

Infamous: Second Son makes great use of the PlayStation 4's processing power, offering players a beautifully rendered city to explore and some eye-popping superhero visual effects. The controls, meanwhile, provide ample opportunity to use the DualShock 4 controller's touchpad and motion sensors when interacting with objects in the environment and spraying graffiti art. Also, its story has the makings of something memorable, thanks mostly to a strong performance by veteran voice actor Troy Baker in the role of Delsin, a young man with a winning sense of humor who, depending on the player's choices, seems to legitimately struggle with the implications of his powers.

Unfortunately, the action suffers from a sense of repetition. Many of the activities players get up to -- hunting down surveillance cameras, looking for audio logs, destroying checkpoints and communications towers -- seem like filler, offering little variation from one sequence to the next. And, although Delsin earns a quartet of distinct base powers through the game -- smoke, neon, video, and concrete -- they're really only variations on a theme. Each comes with similar abilities, such as the capacity to fire projectiles and quickly scale buildings, that really only differ in terms of presentation and efficacy. It's certainly a spectacle and undeniably fun at times, but it also feels as though Infamous: Second Son could have been much more than it is.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about discrimination. Can you think of a time when you may have acted unfairly toward someone simply because of what he or she looked like, represented, or believed? Why do you think you might have behaved the way you did? How do you think the other person felt about it?

  • Families also can discuss the impact of violence in media. Most games see players fighting decidedly bad guys, but this one permits players to open fire on and kill innocent civilians if they want to play as a villain. What did you choose, and why?

Game Details

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