I put a few hours into Prototype now and I'm probably half way through inFamous. After playing them both, I have to say that they are two very different games. Before playing either, I was thinking they were going to be very similar games. Many people were posting inFamous vs. Prototype articles. I'm really having a blast with both games. They both have their marked challenges, races from point to point, and collectible items hidden through out the map. They also both have experience points that you gain and use to buy abilities (weapon) and upgrades. but I want to point out the differences for those looking to get one or the other.
inFamous is only a PS3 game but the only game I can really compare it to is Crackdown on the Xbox 360. It is a shooter and platformer game all rolled into one. You spend a lot of time trying to get from place to place by climbing buildings, sliding across electrical lines, and jumping from platform to platform. Miss a jump and you may fall and have to start over. During boss fights or missions, you will be attacking the different enemies. You can shoot, melee attack, and block with a shield. You also have a cover system like Uncharted. This all works very well. The shooting sort of reminds me of Uncharted. It is in third person and I can move the reticule from the left side to the right for shooting around corners or off the top of buildings. You are charged with electricity but each electrical weapon has a real world counterpart. One skill is like a rocket launcher, another like a pistol, and even a grenade like electrical attack... zoom in for a sniper shot. You can shoot while on the move, from on top of a car or train, or while sliding across electrical lines. To me, shooting seems to handle a lot like Socom. It is very smooth. You have other electrical abilities that allow you to hover while jumping to get more distance through the air or put up a shield in front of you to block weapon attacks. The game is very smooth and plays very well. You don't drive any vehicles in this game, so everything is done on foot... which isn't bad when you are grinding just about every electrical line or railroad track on the map.
Prototype reminds me of the Hulk or Spiderman games. You don't really worry about figuring out how to get from point A to point B, you just do it. Hold down the right trigger (I have this one on the 360 so it may be R1 on the PS3) and you sprint. While sprinting you bash through, jump over, or climb up anything that gets in your way. Your character runs right up the sides of buildings. You gain skills and upgrades that allow you to run faster, jump higher, and even glide through the air. This is really a brutal game. Most of the time you are completing your missions by destroying any enemy that gets in your way. Slash, punch, pound, and rip through most enemies. You also have some stealth moves you can do by brutally absorbing another character. Absorb an military person and you can morph into them. You also gain mission information this way because you gain their thoughts that help move the story forward. You can also drive vehicles in this game like helicopters, tanks, and APCs after gaining those skills. When you are morphed into a military person, you can even use their weapons like Assault rifles or rocket launchers... only it uses a lock on system to shoot. You do a lot of fighting and need to watch your health. It will fill up on its own if you can hide or you can absorb people to gain health. Like I said, this is a brutal game but a whole lot of fun. You really feel the power in this game.
As for the over all play of the two games. In both games, you are trying to figure out what happened to your character. In inFamous, you can play good or evil, and there are different missions for both sides. I'm playing good now and am helping to clean up the fictional city. In Prototype, you are playing in a remake of New York. You are not doing anything for the city... just trying to figure out what happened to you and take out those in your way or who had anything to do with what happened to you. People are being infected in Prototype too, so you have more to deal with as the game progresses.
If you like expansive cities to explore, both games have this. Both have boss characters. You have special abilities in both games that came from some external source... electrically charged in inFamous and more of an organic infection in Prototype where you can morph into different weapons.
Hope this helps.
