Ever since E3 2005, there has been lots of hype for this game. From excellent HD graphics, to highly detailed animation, up to production values that rival those of Hollywood and gameplay mechanics that work well, nothing could have gone wrong with this title. Up till before the release of this game, everything seemed to have been going great, as the technology seemed to have been improving constantly with every new preview of the game. However, not everything is fine and dandy with this game.
First of all, while it incorporates gameplay features from many games, such as third person shooting with multiple guns like Stranglehold, taking cover the way you do in Gears of war, and a combo of puzzle solving and platforming in a jungle with ancient architecture a la Tomb Raider, it doesn't innovate much. The gameplay is solid, as the AI is aggressive and the controlling method is intuitive, but it doesn't have genre defining features.
Even more, it seems patently obvious that Sony's creative studios are being influenced by Columbia Pictures, with cinematic storytelling and production values so high. Uncharted brings some familiar elements that seem like a mix between Indiana Jones' adventures, National Treasure: The Book of Secrets and the Da Vinci code. And while it's great to have a good Storyline to entertain the audience, it's fundamental to remember that this is a game, the only lesson that Sony should learn from Nintendo: "Gameplay first, everything else second". It's just one, but it's vital.
As if these flaws weren't enough, there is the lack of online play, which leaves me perplex, since Gears of war, which plays similar in some aspects to Drake's Fortune has that mode, as has Stranglehold; hell, the next Tomb Raider should have it. Why not Uncharted? It's a perfect fit, and given that PSN is growing faster than we thought it would, it would have become a nice addition, especially for Home.
Uncharted is a great game, but it's not groundbreaking. It's solid in everything it does, you could say it's flawless at what it does, but it's an approach that is too conservative. However, this is the way Sony has always played the console war game: Mix new IP with traditional game genres that are well implemented without taking risks first in order to satisfy the hardcore; that’s what happened with PSOne, PS2 and is happening with PS3 (See Heavenly Sword, Resistance, Warhawk, Motorstorm). Once the install base grows, they will probably take higher risks (See: Little Big Planet, Infamous and Heavy Rain).
I am hoping SCE is taking note from reviews and gamers everywhere, and that Uncharted 2 will have online play, aside from more guns, longer storyline, online play, optimized gameplay and better graphics. Keep up the production values, just raise the bar for gameplay a little bit, Sony.
November 19 marks 15 years since the release of the Uncharted game that started it all.
I hope they don’t make another until the end of the ps5 lifecycle…. Show us a better jungle
VGChartz's Issa Maki: "I finally have a proper designation akin to what I've always referred to internally as 'the line that must be crossed' or 'The Line', for short – ludonarrative dissonance – the separation from a video game's story in relation to its gameplay. Why isn't PETA all up in Mario's grill for jumping on turtles and killing fish, or charging Samus Aran with the extinction of the Metroid species? Ever notice how fire has that habit of making bosses in Resident Evil stronger? Read on my friend, for I endeavor to imbue you with the ability to engage in basic queries concerning the concept."
KeenGamer: "Which Uncharted game is the best? Uncharted is widely recognized as one of the most groundbreaking and consistently great franchises in gaming. For both long-time fans and newcomers to this action-adventure classic, here’s a ranking of the franchise’s four main games."
No Golden Abyss -_-, otherwise I agree with the order.
UC2: Best overall
UC4: Best graphics, best gameplay, best locations, best environements
UC3: Best set pieces IMO (the boat and desert fights will always be amazing)
UC1: A rough Draft of what was to come
UCGA: Basically UC1 on Vita
Great list and great article nicely writen and explained. Although for me personaly i would put Drakes Fortune above Drake’s Deception and Uncharted 4 is absolutely my favourite of the franchise and number 1 for me.
U2 is the only game playable on crushing without causing a great amount of frustration. Not to mention just how much influence it had that they redid some of U2s set pieces like the caravan twice, and armored truck chase in U4.
I'd rate it as the following.
1.) Uncharted 2
(Close to perfection of any game I've played in years. Single Player/Multiplayer/Co Op all amazing.)
2.) Uncharted 3
(On par with UC2 multiplayer/co op wise minus the kickbacks [aka killstreaks]. I really liked the Lawrence of Arabia story.)
3.) Uncharted 4
(Single player is amazing. Multiplayer was meh. Co Op had potential. Absolutely hated the health revive system it slowed down the game way too much. Always preferred the fast pace action of UC2/UC3. Made it way more fun that way. Recoil was too ridiculous that most people in lobbies would only do hip firing, using power weapons and using that OP grappling hook to melee people after dropping them. Nobody wanted to revive anyone.)
4.) Uncharted
(It's the first in the series so it's hard to judge. Though I loved the story.)
I agree here but it’s also a series you can play from front to back and truly enjoy. Story-wise, they are all great and flow so well. I wish they threw both Golden Abyss and Lost Legacy on this list. Lost Legacy is the best mechanically in my opinion. You can see it’s stepping stone framework for TLOUS2.
uncharted 2 is one of the few games that actually surpassed its pre-release hype.
I am a single player gamer...I barely ever touch a multiplayer component. The only exceptions over the years have been the Mass Effect 3 multiplayer, TLOU factions, and the Uncharted 2 multiplayer. The Uncharted 2 multiplayer saw me spend more time playing it than all my other multiplayer experiences over the years combined. That game really was a masterpiece all around.
I agree completely, those are all stellar MP experiences, coming from another SP gamer who only occasionally gives MP some time.
Come to think of it, the step between Uncharted 1 and Uncharted 2 is huge. It goes from the weakest in the series to one of the best games ever made.
I think I'm going to play all of them again soon.
is multiplayer still up for the remastered trilogy? or did it never have UC2 mp?
Nice review. Yes it does do a lot of stuff from other games and doesn't bring that something new in the air but did prefect the ideas of them. The production value is hollywood writing and a great action movie. It may never have the go this way icon but they do present the stages in a very telling way. Great game non-the-less.
Solely jugding from the written review I would have guessed you'd rate it in the high 7, low 8 eighter range. You really ripped into the game at some parts but it was really well written.
If I could make a suggestion, maybe next review not so much focus on Sony? But whatever I did think this was really well done and I'm giving you review bubbles as well speak.
PS360Wii, I do love production values, that's what I like about Sony games. However, I tried to judge the game from a universal perspective, which is why I criticized Sony's focus; not that it's bad, it's just that a little extra on the innovation would have helped. Hell, if only the game was a little less linear.
Anyhow, toughNAME, I did think of giving it a review in the high 80's, but in the end I gave it a 9.0 because, that is right in the middle between the low 9.0s and high 8.0s, and to me that means everything it does, it's perfect, though it doesn't deserve a perfect score for not defining the genre. The lack of having an open world and online play aren't exactly flaws (otherwise Bioshock and many RPGs would be), but it's a personal preference.
And yeah, maybe I shouldn't have focused on Sony, though I think it's a persistent problem on their games as of late: High production values, but conservative approaches to gameplay, which is why the PS3 has gotten the criticism of not having "killer games", as of late. I do think that will change, however, as seemingly better titles are coming to the system.
Anyway, I think that the "no games" claim holds no water anymore. There are many great exclusive games on PS3. Now it's PS3's turn to get killer-apps, aside from the already great games. PS3 owners now have a reason to play with their PS3s even more, but non-PS3 owners will have reasons to buy one soon.
BTW, Thanks for the bubbles, bubbles for you too. This new layout is getting all of us gamers closer, as there's no need for fanboyish remarks. I'm glad there's the open Zone for those that can't control themselves, and it seems that they have done a good job of staying there. I'm really enjoying N4G more than I did before.
"In addition, the fact that the world isn't fully interactive is kind of annoying in the day and age of sandbox games, collision dynamics and ragdoll physics. The graphics are beautiful indeed, but perhaps they may not have been possible had Naughty Box made the game an Open World where you could roam the jungle freely, pick up any object and move stones and statues any way you want and not in a pre-defined way to solve puzzles. Then again, I'll give them the benefit of the doubt, thinking that they did it on purpose just to preserve the feeling that it's a movie, and that they'll do something about it for the Sequel."