So let's get the obvious out of the way. Yes, Cole has been completely redesigned. He looks (and will sound) nothing like the Cole many of us knew and loved from the original Infamous. Cole's sidekick Zeke has returned, too, and although the magazine confirms that he will be voiced by the same person, his design has also changed. His purpose is also intended to be more active in the game, though how that's going to be executed remains to be seen. The overarching theme in the redesigns, especially in terms of Cole, appears to be that Sucker Punch wants players to care more about Cole and to be able to relate to him more.
Game Informer also lets loose details about Infamous 2's storyline as well as its setting. The game actually begins in Empire City, the locale made famous in the original Infamous. Kessler has bent time and done all he could do to prepare Cole for his showdown with the demonic creature known as The Beast, but Infamous 2 starts out with Cole getting beaten badly by his foe and nearly dying as a result. Cole needs to become stronger, but revving up in Empire City isn't going to do the trick. This is where a new city, New Marais, comes into play.
New Marais is clearly inspired by New Orleans, Louisiana. You could tell that just by looking at the cover of the magazine – and we did -- but Game Informer confirms that New Orleans was definitely Sucker Punch's inspiration. New Marais plays an important role in Infamous lore, as the magazine reveals, because it's the location where the First Sons created the Ray Sphere, the bomb-like device at the focal point of the original story. The powerful First Sons organization has plenty of other strange technology hidden around New Marais, and Cole wants to find it because it will make him stronger and stronger. Of course, he'll have plenty of other villains to dodge all the while, most notably, an organization known as The Militia. Led by a man named Bertrand, The Militia is attempting to keep the city pure of any and all superpower-wielding persons. It appears that Cole's power-gaining experience in Empire City wasn't as unique as we once thought, after all.