Let’s take a moment to talk about great games. What makes a great game? What are some similarities that tie the greatest games of the last two decades together? Is it the graphics? Of course not, we pride ourselves on being a “gameplay first” sort of industry. So is it the core gameplay itself? Perhaps a combination of the two? Or is it simply what we believe has earned the ethereal and rare quality of being fun?
We have methods of finding this out; although they’re not my favorite tools in the world. Through the websites Metacritic and Gamerankings, we can see that the amount of games that have earned the highest possible scores of 97 and 98 (averaged from countless review sites) count less that fifteen. These games include such heavy-hitters as Halo, Grand Theft Auto IV, Super Mario Galaxy, Soul Calibur, and Metroid Prime.
So what can we gamers average out about these games? They were often revolutionary; they offered an experience that was unlike what the generation or the genre could offer at that time. They not only played like a dream but had a visual style that stood apart from the crowd. They were often part of a series that had always been good, but had a bunch of improvements that perfected the experience. This process took years for most of these series. Others hit the mark on their first outing.
So what does this have to do with Naughty Dog’s Uncharted 2: Among Thieves? It just so happens that it has earned a Metacritic 97, averaged from over thirty perfect scores from all sorts of gaming websites and many more that hit above 90 percent. Not a single review aggregated on the site dipped below this magic score. This means that Uncharted 2 now reigns as the second-best rated game for the Playstation 3, just below GTA IV. Does this mean the PS3 finally has its killer app?
Okay, so I’ve asked a lot of big picture questions so far. I wanted to address these things in order to put my review in perspective. A lot of hyperbole has been tossed around about this game, so I wanted to present some context so it doesn’t appear as if I’m just repeating everything that’s been said. I happen to agree with the general opinion of Uncharted 2; but I’m going to be super specific about the things that are great about it. That way I can portray its greatness in comparison to the great games that have come before it.
Going back to my first set of questions, Uncharted 2 seems to be one of those games where the devil is in the details; no specific part of it makes it good, it’s all of these things working together. The visuals are obviously beautiful—combining the wonderful lighting and color techniques from the first Uncharted with newer motion blur and distance effects from games like Killzone 2 creates a simply stunning environment. The animation is top notch, with every jump and flail Nathan Drake performs looking natural. But nothing prepares you for the cutscenes. Done completely in-engine and by utilizing live actors running their lines while in motion-capture, these scenes have a lifelike nature that few games can match. The lauded scenes in Heavenly Sword, done by Peter Jackson’s mo-cap studio Weta, look staged in comparison to these performances.
Of course the look of the cutscenes would be nothing without the talent behind them. Nolan North reprises his role as the adventurous Nathan Drake, after a brief stint as the dude from Shadow Complex (though the untrained eye could assume that that was Nathan Drake, too). The standout performance is Emily Rose as love interest Elena Fisher, the most believable voice I’ve ever heard come out of a video game.
The story they discuss in these scenes has to be good too, then, right? Well, for the most part it serves as the impetus for the game’s relentless pace. I felt that the speed approached ridiculous levels by the end, though, which made some characters seem wasted and some backdrops too fleeting. The story itself is no Shakespeare, either; I would compare it more accurately to a summer action flick, but with the brains of an Indiana Jones or a Die Hard. It probably wouldn’t make for a good book, but it’s definitely movie material.
Oh yeah, and there’s a game in there as well. That might be good to mention. The core mechanics build on the basics of the first Uncharted; you explore, jump, climb, solve puzzles, and locate treasure with your partners. This is all put into a blender with a third-person shooter, and you end up behind cover a lot more than Lara Croft ever did. The new stuff this time includes a refined melee system that’s less about combos and more about context clues, a revolving door of partners for Nathan, more visceral shooting, some fancy cliff options (like pulling someone down from above you or shooting your pistol while hanging), and the removal of all Sixaxis support. Finally. The result is a better feeling game moment to moment.
The game is split into single and multiplayer modes, but it doesn’t seem like one was favored over the other. The single player experience is top-notch not only for everything I noted before, but also for the pure feeling you get while playing it. I mentioned the fast pace earlier, but its hard to convey just how much stuff happens in Uncharted 2. Nathan will tear through set piece after set piece in his journey, ranging from trains, trucks, caves, towns, temples, and rooftops. Each chapter has some ridiculous encounter that eclipses the last one; I would list some of the best moments here but the spoilers would be far too revealing. It’s the experience that matters. I’m quite aware that that last bit is cliché; but do you remember the feeling you had the first time you played through Half-Life? Or Metroid Prime? It’s kinda like that.
The multiplayer experience is anything but an afterthought to the stellar campaign. It’s packed with just as much to do, earn, and experience as the single player mode, and maybe more. The setups include a basic deathmatch, an elimination mode, and a slew of objective variants, as well as combinations of all of these for maximum variety. The play is similar to Gears of War, emphasizing clever gun tactics while utilizing cover and grenades. But Uncharted adds a new layer of exploration and movement to the pot by allowing you to jump and climb vertically in the level, making players form creative strategies that take advantage of high spots. The levels are built with secret passages and climbable walls just for this purpose. To sweeten the deal, Naughty Dog has added the incentive of leveling up your characters and earning money to buy Modern Warfare-style perks that affect your play. Oh, and did I mention that the matchmaking and lobby system are among the easiest to use on the PS3? I suppose those last two things don’t have anything to do with the fact that Bungie and Infinity Ward are in the Special Thanks portion of the credits. Of course not.
As you can see, I had a lot to say about Uncharted 2. Unsurprisingly, it has become my new favorite game on the PS3, as well as the most fun I’ve had with a game all year. So does it earn its 97? Does it deserve the high-profile company of the greatest games of the last twenty years? I’m not sure. These are things better left for time to decide. As for 2009, however, Uncharted 2 is simply the best experience on any console this year, and I highly recommend it. Is it great? Definitely. Is it one of the greatest? Maybe.
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