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1'''As a Fridge subpage, all spoilers are unmarked [[Administrivia/SpoilersOff as per policy.]] Administrivia/YouHaveBeenWarned.'''
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4!!FridgeHorror
5* The Dust Men are a gang/cult of personality, and so are the First Sons. The Reapers, however, are all either drug dealers or ordinary, mind-controlled citizens. ''And you slaughter them by the dozen''.
6** Only if you're evil. If you're good you have the option of chaining them down and letting them live. You are far more likely to kill them lots either way though, since you don't take negative karma for killing bad guys. Sucker Punch might have netted some fridge brilliance on that point if you got more infamous for killing Reapers...
7** Karma represents your reputation among the population. How they hail you as either hero or villain is judged by them, which depends on your actions. You could say that you don't get bad karma for killing them because the population doesn't know they're normal humans, but then Fridge Logic is invoked when some of Cole's actions that net him good/bad karma aren't even seen by people.
8** The Dust Men are a gang made up entirely of the Warren's homeless and destitute who were united under Alden with the promise of a better life. Think about that for a second...
9* Oh, all that horrible stuff you do as evil Cole... that was to be CANON in the original version of the game! Just think of what this means for both the civilians and the world at large...
10** Given the whole origin of Kessler, this was likely canon indeed, just not from what the player sees.
11** Which also puts all of his moral choice moments into perspective. Even up towards the end, he'll constantly point out that he could do the morally right thing, or the horrific crimes and murders that make life easier for him. It hints that even a purely heroic Cole is always flirting with the dark side of his mind, always one pragmatic or murderous choice away from deciding to destroy anything in his path for his own ends, and he doesn't even seem disgusted by the mere thought of it. And that's even before knowing the terror of the Beast that Kessler sacrificed everything to prepare for.
12* If Trish and Amy’s parents are still alive, how are they going to take the fact that both of their daughters died within a short time of each other?
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14!!FridgeBrilliance
15-->'''Evil Cole''': ''Because of me, Empire City is a wasteland. I've taken this place down notch by notch, and it's never getting up again. Kessler thought he was preparing me to face some "Beast", that I'd be using my powers for the greater good. What an idiot. These powers are only good for one thing, letting me take what I want, when I want. In a place with no law, the strong take what they want, and the weak are their slaves, their playthings. And no one is stronger than me!''
16** Okay... But how does Evil Cole expect to rule supreme in a wasteland that will eventually lose all electricity? ''[[CannibalismSuperpower Bio Leech.]]''
17* Good Cole has Blue lightning, Evil Cole has red, Kessler has white. Why? Because white is The neutral colour, and it signifies Kessler being AboveGoodAndEvil, willing to do hideous things for the sake of everyone. He is unspeakably evil, for good reasons, but morality isn't important to what amounts to a PhysicalGod.
18** It may also have something to do with the fact that if Cole uses the Ray Sphere, his lightning gets ''black''. Kessler is the antithesis of the selfish, murderous, psychotic Cole who used the Ray Sphere.
19* Kessler's powers at the end of the first game are stronger versions of Cole's, but if he didn't have a ray sphere to amp him up how did he get them and his time travel power? Well: as of the sequel we learn that the beast that Kessler was trying to prepare Cole for was basically a living ray sphere...
20** Except Kessler had his powers before he met the Beast.
21*** The implication is that Cole's powers would have eventually activated on their own, possibly in the same event that originally created the Beast in Kessler's timeline.
22* When Kessler shows Cole a vision of the future, Cole states that he knew he was responsible for the rampant destruction that would take place. Later, it is revealed that it's actually the Beast who causes it. Given how the Beast inadvertently comes about in Cole's timeline through Kessler's machinations, Cole was technically right.
23** On top of that, it's revealed that it's because of the Ray Sphere's creation that everything hit the fan in the first place: the plague, psychotic conduits, The Beast itself. And since Kessler went back in time to create the Ray Sphere early, he inadvertently not only caused all the bad shit to happen way earlier then expected, but also made things that much worse then in his timeline. He didn't know HOW The Beast was created of course so he can't be blamed, but it still presents the nauseating idea that if Kessler had simply gone back in time and made sure the Ray Sphere was ''never'' made, all of this could have been avoided...
24*** In a way Kessler's plan did indeed work, however. Consider this: Dr. Wolfe was working on the Ray Sphere development under Kessler's leadership and was able to come up with the RFI, and it's highly unlikely that Wolfe was able to make the device in a reasonable span of time in the original timeline. But by accelerating the development of the Ray Sphere, Kessler inadvertently aided Dr. Wolfe in creating the device that would bring about the Beast's downfall, which wouldn't have been possible had Kessler not helped Cole develop his powers more quickly and be able to use the RFI!
25** Possibly. The Ray Sphere enhances/activates someone with the Conduit gene. It's hinted that Conduits develop powers naturally, which means that The Beast could have come about without the Ray Sphere, just much further down the timeline.
26** Kessler's ability involves giving people memories. So by this idea, he is actually giving Cole a memory of the destruction that happens in his own timeline. Since in his life he ran away from the Beast, he actually "caused" the destruction by running away from the Beast instead of stopping him before hand. Kessler did cause the death and destruction, just not directly.
27*** We don't know how the Beast or Kessler got their powers in the original timeline, but the information given implies that the Beast was at least close to full power when he emerged. Even if Kessler was at the height of his powers then, he would have been destroyed if he tried to fight the Beast. Cole only survived his first encounter because the Beast didn't want to kill him. Kessler's claims of guilt ring hollow when you realize that there is nothing he could have done, and even after a lifetime of research in the second timeline, someone else created the thing that defeated the Beast.
28** At the end of inFamous, Kessler states that he could have defeated the beast back when it first emerged but chose to run away to protect his family. Hence why he kills Trish so Cole won't make the same mistake. By the time the beast caught up with Kessler, it was too powerful for him to handle.
29* Trish dies, no matter which building you climb. Normally this would seem impossible if you've played both outcomes of this mission. That is, until you realize that Kessler is Cole from an alternate future. He knows which decision Cole would likely make (even if he never did it himself), and plans her death accordingly.
30* Kessler and the Beast are both considered [[AntiClimaxBoss Anti-Climax Bosses]]. Why? Kessler's entire plan was to make his past self Cole strong enough to defeat the Beast, which he was unable to. His plan succeeded.
31* The death of Trish seems, at first, to be cheating -- no matter which building you choose, Trish will always turn out to be on the other one, the villain's actions retroactively adjusting to screw you over regardless of your choice. But after the end of the game, you realize Kessler chose whether to lie to Cole or not based on his knowledge of ''what Cole would do''. By choosing what Cole does, you determine what is ''in his nature'' to do, therefore what Kessler would ''predict'' Cole would do, therefore which building Trish is on.
32* {{Word of God}} has declared that the hero endings are canon. At first, one would presume that this eliminates the evil endings completely, however, when Kessler's involvement is taken into consideration, there are really at least three timelines: the heroic Cole's, the infamous Cole's and Kessler's. Therefore, the bad endings could be considered "canon" as well.
33** Pretty sure they mean canon with iF2.
34** Regardless of whether you start with a good or bad save-game, the characters initially treat you as neutral before entering New Marais.
35* "Kessel" is a German word for "copper". Copper is commonly used as a conductor to make electricity go where it is needed. Kessler is the conductor guiding Cole's path to where he needs to be to defeat the Beast.
36* Kessler knows Zeke isn't a conduit, but willingly tempts him to his side with the promise of making him one, despite this seeming out of character for what a brutal person he is. This was, in all likelihood, a PetTheDog moment because it meant that Zeke had severed his and Cole's bonds, so Kessler wouldn't have to kill him or involve him in a SecretTestOfCharacter like he did Trish. KindToBeCruel at its finest, it lets Kessler spare one of his oldest friends.

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