Uncharted 4 - The Con Artist Video Game Review

There really is no surprises here,Uncharted 4 is probably one of the best games you will play this year and probably for the next couple as well. Developed by the curators of the Last of Us, Uncharted 4 is a master-piece of a game that combines the best aspects of Uncharted with some vastly improved gameplay and some of the best graphics you will see to date on your PS4. It gives the heroes we have known and loved for the last decade a great farewell and will probably go down as one of Naughty Dog’s best work.

Visuals:

I couldn’t walk 5 steps without turning on “photo mode” to capture some of the incredible views, landscapes and character renditions I have seen to date on a game. Uncharted 4 drops the cartoonish image quality in previous titles, for a hand-drawn photo-realistic color template. The first noticeable improvement is the depth of field along with the draw distance. Both have been greatly increased from the PS3 games and presents the world in a much larger scope. The character models are also breathtaking, the animations, the facial expressions. All of them are incredibly realistic and accurate and with the added level of shaders, Nathan and his pals feel more immersion as dirt, water and snow are properly reflected on the characters. Go swimming and Nathan’s face will show water dripping down his chin, go traverse muddy areas and watch as dirt piles up on Nathan’s face. Though not at the level of Tress-FX, the hair construction is very impressive as light properly bounces off the hair and they too interact with the environment appropriately. Overall if you really want to see the power of the PS4, forget the Order or Infamous Second Son, Uncharted 4 is your go to product.

Gameplay:

Being honest, Uncharted’s always made its name on its presentation and writing. Gameplay has always been its weakest and in this game its made some great leaps. There’s weight to the shooting and long gone are the likes of having to land more than one headshot to put an enemy down. The guns reflect variety based on their fire-rate and category and the hit-boxes in general are much better. The cover mechanics have improved, though on its hardest difficulty the various maneuvering and cover to cover transitions can really show the weak spots in the system,which often feel non-response as rolling often takes you into cover when you don’t want it. There is a much bigger emphasis on stealth as almost every big area, presents to you beautifully rendered foliage to use as AC’s like stealth zones to ambush and takeout enemies. And with the more open areas, there are plenty of different approaches one can take on their course to clear an area. The climbing has also improved as now you can use the thumb stick to reach for edges and jumps are linked directly to the camera angle. There’s a new rope that’s used for exploration and also allows the player to jump high over enemies and come smashing down on them for an instant kill. Overall the gameplay feels like an evolution in the right direction and makes the gun that much more enjoyable.

Story:

Taking place 3 years after the event of Uncharted 3, Nathan is now a retired treasure hunter and does work at a salvage plant. He is married to the love of his life Elena and they have quiet life and spend time playing their Playstation 1. This is all changed when Sam, Nathan’s long lost brother comes back into his life and says he needs his help in finding Avery’s treasure or he will lose his life. The stakes for the treasure grow and Nathan is thrust back into the life of treasure hunting, but in secrecy to Elena. The story grows into form in the latter half of the story and is much darker than the previous entries. However the beginning suffers far too much from long expositions and slow phases, this is really in part to try and solidify the relationship between Sam and Nathan. But it doesn’t match the fluidity of previous games and in all honesty Sam is one of the blandest characters in the Uncharted universe. He feels way too conveniently interjected into the universe, especially cause I’m pretty sure there was a part in Uncharted 3 that established that Nathan was orphaned and had no one else. Yet we see Sam in flash backs in every part of his life. Sam doesn’t add anything he feels more like a plot device more than anything and that isn’t what a good character is built on. For this last entry I would’ve much rather preferred more intimate moments with Sully and some comebacks from Charlie and Chloe. The writing also suffers as it feels more akin to the story telling of the Last of Us rather than Uncharted. Really in part because Druckman and Staley are the directors of this game and TLOU as well. But you can definitely feel the departure of Amy Henning in the game, as the constant barrage of witty humor is almost non-existent. Perhaps a part is because of this increased focus on a new character, but to me it just doesn’t have the same comedic and fluid writing I am used to in the series. Does that mean the writing is bad? Hell no, its fantastic, but it does not carry the same dynamic that I love from the previous ones. Though the story starts of slow it ends with a bang and is one of the best in the series.

Multiplayer:

I didn’t really have a chance to talk about this in detail, but its kinda just here and it does what it does. The MP isn’t exceptional or great in anyway, it severely lacks game modes and has less maps than a vanilla Battlefield game. And though the climbing and the gameplay improvements of the single player transition here as well. It overall feels like a step backward from the likes of UC3 and 2’s MP. Especially the absence of the dynamic maps like in Uncharted 3, where you transitioned from a plane taking off to a courtyard, now that was freaking cool. Running at 60 FPS everything feels better in the multiplayer, but it lacks depth. Really see this as the icing on the cake.

Final Thoughts:

Overall Uncharted 4 is one the BEST gaming experiences you will probably play this year. Its fantastic story, technical prowess and light but fun multiplayer makes this an easy must own purchase on the PS4.

9.5/10