- Best blockbuster not in theatresAnyone who's ever played games in recent years have noticed an increase in cutscenes and FMV's to tell the story. While there's nothing inherently wrong with it, some might find the gameplay a bit unbalanced and you spend your time watching rather than playing (Metal Gear Solid games for one). But with the advantage of being able to make the story as long as you want in whatever genre one chooses, games in capable hands can rival the best of Hollywood's films and even provide a thrilling narrative you'd get from a good book. While Uncharted admittedly has its problems, it's still one of the premier titles to get for the Playstation 3.
Story: You play as Nathan Drake, a descendant of the famous explorer Sir Francis Drake. Drake uncovers a clue that could lead them to the treasure of a lifetime but things of such nature can bring people willing to get it for personal profit and along with Elena Fisher, a TV documentarian and Sullivan, Drake's friend and colleague, Drake has to trek through the jungles and uncover the secret buried within its forests and catacombs.
Graphics: Uncharted was one of the first games I played on an HDTV running in 720p and I got to say, this is one of the most gorgeous games on the console. From the realistic character animation (though Elena's eyes look freaky) to the colorful and vast jungle surroundings to the unbelievable water effects, this game is definately a showcase for your brand new HDTV.
Sound/Music: Equally impressive is the musical store which gives it that bombast and anthemic scores expectant of films like Raiders of the Lost Ark. While some of the in-game music is used sparingly for more ambiance, it's quite welcome when it's there. Along with the score is some fantastic voice acting with everyone providing non-cheesy voiceovers and it becomes a game great to see as well as hear.
Gameplay: Anyone who's ever played Tomb Raider or Prince of Persia will find things similar here. While Drake uses guns instead of swords and daggers, it's the environmental puzzles that will cause some deja-vu. Hopping from stones to ledges and ropes is all familiar stuff though sometimes getting Drake to jump away from the rope instead of just dropping made a simple puzzle aggravating. Some other puzzles pop up now and then where pressing Select will have Drake look in a page of a diary/journal to read clues. They're quite handy though one puzzle involving statues from the Bible were kinda...vague.
The other big thing is the combat which is similar to Gears of War in that going out in the open will get you killed quite easily. Instead you take cover behind stones, boxes and columns and pop up to shoot an enemy. It works quite well and save for the lack of a radar when an enemy would all of a sudden pop next to you without you noticing, it's quite fun. But the annoyance comes with enemies' inexplicable ability to take chestful (even headful) of ammo from semi-automatics and handguns and flinch like you just threw a soccer ball at them. On occasion, you'll get an instant kill with a headshot though more often than not, enemies who've had numerous bullets in their chest and head areas don't seem to want to go down. There's some parts that admittedly caused me frustration but some might just work past it.
Aside from some parts that made me yell at the screen, Uncharted was quite a blast to play and worth picking despite its rough 10 hour length (though treasures scattered all over will get you hunting).
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