Don't let ambitious game critics fool you with their over use of the word 'Narrative' when describing how wondrous this game is. That word has lost it's meaning, having been used up over the last year by Reviewers who have little concern for the literal meaning of the word, who can't quite convey what it is about a game that makes it so damn good. So they throw in the word Narrative because their editor have told them the use of the term 'plot' has become passe.
Let's stop using literary diction to describe what amounts to a made for TV version of the Librarian, which was itself a knock off of Indiana Jones and other Pulp serials. Video games have their own vernacular, their own unique way of building worlds, telling stories and dealing with exposition. I feel that when most reviewers say that Uncharted 2 has a good 'narrative', what they really mean is that the exposition and world building have been handled in such a way as to be completely integrated into the cinematic and game sequences seamlessly. That does not mean it has an amazing narrative, jt just means that the story is conveyed appropriately.
Narrative in the strictest sense, is the means through which a given medium communicates stories, ideas, and abstract concepts. In a video game, Narrative has often been handled through cinematics and conversations, which are often completely removed from the interactive format they are being presented through. In the past, Narrative in a video game meant to be pulled out of the game to be feed story, and then placed back into a scenario to accomplish a goal.
Uncharted 2 still does this, however there are also narrative elements weaved throughout the game as you play that help contribute to a breakneck pace and plotting that keeps you interested throughout enough to not be jarringly slapped in the face whenever control is relinquished.
An example of a narrative element used 'in game' in Uncharted would be the integration of secondary characters as a gameplay element, they collaborate and handle exposition while you are working together. This narrative tool in games was first accomplished well in Half-Life 2, and expanded upon in later Half-Life Episodes. Technically characters have been used as dialog diatribes for years, but what Uncharted and Half-Life 2 accomplished was having these 'characters' be included in the game-play, and serve as a juxtaposition and venue for world building and characterization as you play, rather then an obliquely triggered event.
Uncharted 2 tells a sequential narrative, but only after starting half way through and then going back to the beginning by first introducing the main character in peril, then slowly revealing the sequence of events that lead up to the moment.
As far as Narrative goes, there is still an antiquated environmental mechanism involving Nathan Drake entering a room and murdering half of a trained mercenary army in a pretty location before being allowed to progress through the story. The motives and Actions of the characters in the story work within the context of the immediate focus of the player, however any far reaching objectives and understanding of the story are completely unimportant. As a story, your only interest is in the characters that serve as mouthpieces for exposition, regardless of how involved the characters are within the gameplay. You will grow attached to the personalities in the game, and will probably be amazed at the spectacles you interact and overcome. However, the context for the characters and spectales couldn't be more removed from you the player, and in this sense of the Narrative, Uncharted feels woefully inept. The story and narrative amount to little more than a scenic series of action set pieces that do a wonderful job of drawing you close to the cast of characters. You have no interest in the motivations of these characters, just that you understand why they act the way they do.
After beating the game, I only vaguely recall the whole of the plot, that being something about Marco Polo and a stone that is something that a bad guy wants that you have to race him to find.
You do this by progressing through a series of kill rooms, occasionally performing Prince of Persia like linear environmental puzzles, all the while being fed story and exposition through the various talking heads that surround you.
That is not amazing narrative, it is narrative designed to contribute to the goals of the game, which are to dish up amazing set pieces, beautiful exploration, and sexy people. There is nothing wrong with this, just don't expect it to be the Citizen Kane of gaming.
