During a Sucker Punch panel at PAX 10 last week, the developers talked about the countless iterations Infamous went through until the final product shipped.
The development team who created the Sly Cooper series pitched some interesting game concepts ot Sony before Cole was even a thought. The game wasn’t even called Infamous at that point. Initially the title had a very cartoon like look which appeared to be a mix between Freedom Force and Cly Cooper. That has obviously not made the cut.
Until Sucker Punch nailed down the final gameplay and character designs Cole at one point had dreadlocks and was called ‘Gear Wolf’. The character also used to ride a trial like motorcycle to get through the city. The other concept for large area city movement was a disk shaped hoverboard. Interesting. Before Cole was finalized he used to wield guns which developed into lightning powers after many redesigns. Sucker Punch showed off some powers which did not make the game including ‘Minion Power’ which possessed groups of pedestrians to attack enemies and the ability to posses a single pedestrian which could be powered by lightning and blown up like a balloon.
The one game mechanic that I wish made it into the final game was the ability to impress female pedestrians and make out with them. That would be rather funny but probably would not have helped the gritty look of Infamous as we know it.
The entire video of the panel can be found on G4 TV.
