[Timgt5]

Uncharted 2, Among Thieves, Simply Magnificent!!

Released: October 13, 2009
Developer: Naughty Dog
Type: Third Person Action/Adventure
Genre: Modern Day/Treasure Hunter
Players: Single Player, and Multiplayer online cooperative and competitive modes
Platforms: PS3 Exclusive
Rating: T (Teen)

In 2007 Long time platform game developer Naughty Dog shook up the gaming world with the excellent adventure romp, Uncharted, Drakes Fortune. Praised by critics for its excellent graphics and smooth mechanics, the game garnered over 2 million in sales. Now in 2009 we have a revamped sequel, just how good is it? Read on

Highs: Fantastic Graphics, unrivaled art design, polished mechanics, easy to use controls, excellent music score and sound effects, well written story, stellar voice acting and dialogue, challenging and smart enemy AI , robust multiplayer campaign and on and on…

Lows: uh…it ended L .

The Plot: Uncharted 2, among thieves picks up about a year or so after Uncharted, Drakes Fortune. Nathan Drake meets up with an old friend Harry Flynn and former lover Chloe Frazier (Played wonderfully by veteran actress, Claudia Black) and is talked into sneaking into a Turkish museum and steeling an oil lamp. It is not just any oil lamp however, as it is the first clue to the missing fleet of Marco Polo (Marco’s last journey back to Italy, from China originally had 13 ships, and six hundred people, only one ship and 18 people made it back). Marco Polo did not give an account of the fate of the others. Nathan learns that Marco Polo had stumbled upon the mythical city of Shangra-la and contained within the Cintamani stone, a gigantic sapphire worth tens of millions. Nate then embarks on a world wide search to find both.

The plot is well written and flows with a wonderful rhythm that would be comfortable in a big budget summer blockbuster movie. There are great twists and turns in the story. Game play is beautifully designed around the story. Special mention goes out to brilliant game director Amy Hennig. (if she ever got into doing film, Michael Bay and Jerry Bruckheimer would be in the unemployment line within a year) for keeping this game moving so smoothly.

The Game Play: The game returns with the mechanics of its predecessor, with the platforming elements as sharp as ever (after all these are the developers that came up with Jak and Daxter and Crash Bandicoot). Drake runs jumps and climbs fluidly. The animations are flawless and controls are simply spot-on. Naughty Dog tweaked the shooting mechanics to good effect. The variety of weapons is much greater than in the first game with the addition of RPGs, the Pistole (a handheld scattergun weapon) and crossbows. Drake now has the ability to lock on to his enemies much more effectively than before. Drake can also “blind-fire” from cover and “run and gun”. One particularly sweet addition is Nate’s ability to fire pistol-type weapons while hanging off structures. This use of verticality is a brilliant game play element and is especially useful in the multiplayer campaign. Grenade tossing is much improved, ditching the motion control scheme of its predecessor for a single button. There are some subtle “Quick Time Moments” as well that flow very well. All in all everything mechanical is near-flawless in execution.

The puzzles are less in number than in the first game, but are larger and more complex to solve. They add a great deal of variety to the other aspects of the game and are engineered carefully not to slow things down too much.

In addition to a longer single player campaign there are now a fully fleshed out multiplayer challenges as well. You can play a number of match styles in competitive mode (capture the flag, death match etc…) you can also join forces with three of your friends and run through missions cooperatively. All are quite a challenge and very well put together.

Graphics and Sound: This is without a doubt one of the most beautiful games ever published.The first game was excellent and this game takes it to a new level, with some of the most stunning scenery ever presented in a console game. Environments are beautifully detailed, with subtle textures, lighting and particle effects. Sightlines are incredibly expansive, with the environments maintaining detail all the way to the far horizon. The set pieces like Shangra-la, Nepal, The Tibetan Village in the mountains are all “jaw dropping” when you see them for the first time. Naughty Dog also still does some of the best water depiction in all of gaming. A new graphical element, snow has been added to great effect. This is the first game where snow is depicted realistically as powder and sticks to cloths causing them to become damp. It sounds like a minor thing but it is representative of the kind of details that Naughty Dog is willing to sweat to give the players a grand experience. The character models are also very nicely rendered. The game’s characters are highly detailed without being “over-mapped” The animations, thanks to some great mo-cap are fluid and the lip synch is perfect.

The sound qualities are also first-rate here. Gun fire, explosions, engine sounds and movement are all handled very well. Greg Edmonson was retained from the previous game to compose the score and he delivers perfectly, rivaling the best in cinema. The voice actors are superb. Nolan North returns as Drake, and delivers an incredible performance, among the best in any videogame in recent memory. Also Emily Rose returns as Drake’s lost love, the ever spunky Elena Fisher. New additions include Claudia Black (Farscape, Pitch Black, Stargate) as Drake’s very mysterious former lover, Chloe Frazier. Actor René Auberjonois (constable Odo, from Deep Space 9) also joins the cast as the mysterious Carl Shaffer, turning in a powerful performance.

Kids Corner: This game is on the outer edge of Teen, there is some gunplay, and melee elements here. The blood is somewhat toned down from the first game. There is one somewhat titillating cut scene (though no actual sex or nudity) the characters do use some explicatives, but they are in service to the plot as opposed to being gratuitous. I would view this as the equivalent to a modern PG-13 action film.

In Summary: I have been playing games since the days of “Pong” (yeah I am that old LOL) In my pursuit of this little hobby I have perhaps played somewhat north of 300 games across a multiple number of platforms. In all of my years, this is simply the finest game I have ever played.

Uncharted 2, Among Thieves is a true masterpiece and a beautiful marriage of technical wizardry and artistic talent, which happens on very rare occasions. This game is going to be Sony’s signature title, its “Killer App” More than that it signals where the potential of videogames to deliver a world class level of production and storytelling. The level of effort to put Uncharted 2 together is unprecedented! This is the kind of thing that if it were a summer film, it would easily gross 300 million or more.

I would argue that here and now this is the best game ever made! I know that statement would spark a lot of debate, but I would challenge anyone to find a console game that matches this one strength for strength.

Bottom line: If you own a PS3 this is a MUST BUY (especially if you want to make your Wii-tard friends insanely jealous… LOL).

Here are some vids and pics you have got to see this in action to appreciate my review above

Trailer

As I said, this rivals a number of Hollywood action films

Ice Cave Puzzle:

Old Market-Nepal

Tim,

Glad you liked this. These are beautiful images, it's like these games look more like movies than video games. Amazing.

[Timgt5]

yep, it is definately a look at the future of videogames.

[Timgt5]

more images:

[nowheretorun]

this last image catches my eye.... how ironic war is... those are prayer flags in the midst of the destruction... wish people would have listened, dont you?

[Timgt5]

Good catch and right you are my friend! in more ways than one, the scene is in war-torn Nepal,

[nowheretorun]

i have to be honest here Tim, the only part of this that seems healthy to me is the prayer flags... maybe its just me but it disturbs me a lot that these games teach our youth that war and violence are just something we play, and we know by now thats not reality, that war is costly in more ways than peoples lives.. i think if we want to teach children about guns, violence, aggression, we should leave it to the military to prepare them in defending our country and families...

does Sony market games relative to Nagasaki or Hiroshima? dont want to make this political, its about health.... Nepal is a loving people and country who are suffering greatly, its sad to see any profit at such expense... just my humble opinion, no intent to harm

[Timgt5]

Originally Posted by nowheretorun

i have to be honest here Tim, the only part of this that seems healthy to me is the prayer flags... maybe its just me but it disturbs me a lot that these games teach our youth that war and violence are just something we play, and we know by now thats not reality, that war is costly in more ways than peoples lives.. i think if we want to teach children about guns, violence, aggression, we should leave it to the military to prepare them in defending our country and families...

does Sony market games relative to Nagasaki or Hiroshima? dont want to make this political, its about health.... Nepal is a loving people and country who are suffering greatly, its sad to see any profit at such expense... just my humble opinion, no intent to harm

I agree that video games like other medium (books, films, music, TV) have to be scrutinized by content and rated accordingly. Please read my review above as a responsible member of the gaming community, I make it a point in all my reviews to disclose content that may be of concern to parents of children.

This paticular game is rated for teens and up. I actually think it warranted an M (mature rating) but I do not run the ESRB so it is not my call. Several of Naughty Dog's staff have actually been to Nepal (hence the level of detail) and feel that the game may actually raise awareness of the ongoing conflict and perhaps motivate the people who play to find out more about whats going on and how they can help the people there caught up in the strife.

The protaganist of the game, Nathan Drake (that would be the fellow in the above pic holding the riot shield) is not a party to the conflict at all. He is there because one of the key artifacts and clue he needs is locked within one of the temples. He actually is battling mercenaires employed by the evil Russian warlard, Zoran Lazarivich and does not engage in any fighting with the local people.

Do videogames make people violent? I do not believe so. For all the noise that politicians like Hillary Clinton and that idiot lawyer Jack Thompson (do Not get me started about Jack Thompson, the gaming community HATES this guy with a passion and consider him a hypocritical piece of excrement, sorry I digress) No study has ever shown that gaming is any more prone to cause people to become violent, than any other medium of entertainment.

My point in all this is that I would not let a young child play this, it is not appropriate for that age group. It is an adult game and should be understood in adult context, the way action movies should be treated.

If you object to Naughty Dog's product I would advise you to voice those objections to Evan Wells and Chris Ballesta, the co-presidents of the company. If you look them up I believe you can email them.

[nowheretorun]

this is very interesting Tim, im fascinated by all the studies that are done showing the influences of media on the human mind and how what we take into our minds has a way of then coming out and back into the world, filtered by our current level of understanding and how we use that data in responding to and interacting with the environment around us... i find it fascinating how some people insist that what is taken into our minds and bodies has no effect on reality around us, as if eating or smelling a peach does not in some way affect our mood, thoughts, and speech..

the same would hold true in the movies we watch, the language we hear, the books we read and in general, how we are treated in each instant of each day.. how can anyone believe that we are not in some way influenced by all the incoming?

ty for the names of the people who to contact with my concerns, i suppose i was addressing the issue with you as you are the person who brought this data to all of our attention within a mental health and healing environment..

in one way i agree with the notion of presenting controversial art so that viewers are then made to think about what is commonly consumed and what effect it bears upon our thinking, consciously and sub-consciously

it reminds that i need to be careful of what i take in because it always affects what comes out..

i think it is good that we are made aware of the horribleness of war and its effects and i think we need to be reminded of its huge costs and losses... i think it is better accomplished in a classroom situation (jmo)

[Timgt5]

this is very interesting Tim, im fascinated by all the studies that are done showing the influences of media on the human mind and how what we take into our minds has a way of then coming out and back into the world, filtered by our current level of understanding and how we use that data in responding to and interacting with the environment around us... i find it fascinating how some people insist that what is taken into our minds and bodies has no effect on reality around us, as if eating or smelling a peach does not in some way affect our mood, thoughts, and speech..

the same would hold true in the movies we watch, the language we hear, the books we read and in general, how we are treated in each instant of each day.. how can anyone believe that we are not in some way influenced by all the incoming?

I would clarify my earlier comments by saying that I am not naive enough to believe that what we see, hear or read does not have an emotional or mental impact on us, of course it does. All art is designed to affect the end user.

My point is that videogames have become a scapegoat (along with films, TV, Rock Music) to excuse the actions of some people. While media can indeed influence people's thought, people in the end have free will, they can choose how and when they act and what acts they commit. In the end we are responsible for our actions, we have minds, we have wills, nothing can MAKE us do something, I do not believe otherwise and never will.

i think it is good that we are made aware of the horribleness of war and its effects and i think we need to be reminded of its huge costs and losses... i think it is better accomplished in a classroom situation (jmo)

I agree that videogames cannot take the place of classroom learning, but in some cases can augment it. When Steven Speilburg, launched the Medal of Honor series back in 1998, many WW2 vets were very impressed with the presentation and bought the game. They ofter would play it with their grandchildren to help them understand what they went through.

I do not mean to keep this going, but as a part of the industry (an avid 25 year hobbyest) I must stand in its defense. I do not agree with everything that gets put our there, but I also think that for most part the industry polices itself very well.

Thanks for listening.

PS: Florida attorney Jack Thompson is a phony anti-game crusader, a racist, homophobic piece of ________ nothing he says has any value and should be held to contempt and utter ridicule. Sorry I just hate this loud mouth hypocrite, as does the rest of the gaming community.

[nowheretorun]

PS: Florida attorney Jack Thompson is a phony anti-game crusader, a racist, homophobic piece of ________ nothing he says has any value and should be held to contempt and utter ridicule. Sorry I just hate this loud mouth hypocrite, as does the rest of the gaming community.

are you speaking for All gamers Tim?

[Timgt5]

Originally Posted by nowheretorun

PS: Florida attorney Jack Thompson is a phony anti-game crusader, a racist, homophobic piece of ________ nothing he says has any value and should be held to contempt and utter ridicule. Sorry I just hate this loud mouth hypocrite, as does the rest of the gaming community.

are you speaking for All gamers Tim?

Go on some game forums, bring up Jack Thompson, and watch the venom fly, the only gamers who do not hate this guy, are the ones who have never heard of him...

Let me give you a little background on this jerk. He was a shyster FL lawyer( he has been subsequently disbarred) who has waged a relentless crusade to try to shutter the doors of Take Two Interactive (publisher of Grand Theft Auto) and a personal vendetta against Sam and Dan Houser (the presidents of Rockstar games) He supports full censorship of games, despite the fact that court after court has ruled against him and on the side of free speech.

Excerpt from wikipedia:

Relationship with industry and gamers

See also: A Modest Video Game Proposal
Thompson's "high-profile crusades" have made him an enemy of video game aficionados.[70] On occasion, Thompson has sparred directly with the gaming industry and its fans. In 2005, he wrote an open letter to Entertainment Software Association president Doug Lowenstein, making what he described as a "a modest video game proposal" (an allusion to the title of Jonathan Swift's satirical essay, A Modest Proposal) to the video game industry: Thompson said he would donate $10,000 to a charity designated by Take-Two CEO Paul Eibeler if any video game company would create a game including the scenario he described in the letter. The scenario called for the main character, whose son was killed by a boy who played violent video games, to murder a number of industry executives (including one modeled on Eibeler) and go on a killing spree at the Electronic Entertainment Expo. Video game fans promptly began working to take Thompson up on his offer, resulting in the game I'm O.K - A Murder Simulator, among others. Afterwards, he claimed that his proposal was satire, and to date he has not made his proposed donation.
In response, Jerry Holkins and Mike Krahulik, the creators of gaming webcomicPenny Arcade and of the children's charity Child's Play, stepped in to make the donation instead, writing in the memo field of their check, "For Jack Thompson, Because Jack Thompson Won't." Afterwards, Thompson tried to get Seattle police and the FBI to investigate Holkins and Krahulik for orchestrating "criminal harassment" of him through articles on their site.[117][118] Other webcomics have regularly incorporated references to Thompson, alluding to this incident as well as others.[119]
In 2006, two Michigan gamers began a project dubbed "Flowers for Jack", soliciting donations to deliver a massive floral arrangement to Thompson’s office. The flowers were delivered in February along with a letter aimed at opening a dialogue between Thompson and the video gaming community. Thompson rejected this overture and forwarded the flowers to some of his industry foes, with such comments as "Discard them along with the decency you discarded long ago. I really don't care. Grind them up and smoke them if you like."[120]
Gamers have responded to Thompson's attempt to link the Virginia Tech massacre to the game Counter-Strike. Video game Web sites and young gamers on Internet message boards "teemed with anger" at what San Francisco Chronicle reporter Peter Hartlaub called "his serial misstatements," in some cases linking to YouTube videos of Thompson and dissecting his claims point by point.[121] Jason Della Rocca, executive director of the International Game Developers Association, said, "It's so sad. These massacre chasers—they're worse than ambulance chasers—they're waiting for these things to happen so they can jump on their soapbox."[47] In response, Thompson referred to Della Rocca as an "idiot" and a "jackass [...] paid not to connect the dots [connecting shootings to video games]," and compared himself to people who warned that the government should be more concerned about terrorism before the September 11, 2001 attacks.[122] According to Della Rocca, Thompson then challenged him to a series of gaming debates, claiming that they could each make more than $3,000 per event. When Della Rocca suggested that neither he nor Thompson accept any money for the events, Thompson refused.[115]
In July 2009, Entertainment Consumers Association (ECA) president, Hal Halpin, posted a copy of an email exchange between he and Thompson, stating, “I get messages (IMs, emails, FB notes, etc.) from members all the time, asking what the (almost daily) notes are from JT. Since this one's fairly harmless and I've redacted anything personal (not that I don't love getting his threatening cease and desist letters), I thought I'd share it as a pretty typical exchange.” Halpin and Thompson have been vocal opponents since 1998, when Halpin ran the game retail trade association IEMA. The exchange was sparked by a guest editorial that Halpin did entitled, “Perception is Everything” for IndustryGamers.com[123] where he called for consumers and the industry to speak out against negative stereotyping of gamers.

Yeah, Nowheretorun, I think he's speaking for just about all gamers. I'm not really even in that community and I've heard of this pro-censorship jerk.

Big leader of the "For the Sake of the Children!" social watchdogs.

I don't like some of these games either. "Manhunt" from Rockstar is completely gratuitous (and scares the bejebus outta me). But doesn't censorship always turn out to be worse than the problem it was used for? History shows time and time again that the official urge to censor always either fails outright or gets completely out of control.

I'm just sayin. Mike

[Timgt5]

I agree with you about "Manhunt" and I did write a letter to Rockstar urging them not to go down that path.

But as I said before the community polices itself better than most other forms of entertainment

Thank you Cypher, I appreciate your thoughtful response

Tim

[nowheretorun]

ive been observant of the statements you've made regarding your opinion of the industry's sense of responsibility Tim and im thankful that theyve done as much as theyve done... i respect that the producers, manufacturers, distributors cannot control the end users actions or interpretations, that it is the individuals responsibility to educate themself on the many factors associated with this simple prospect of gaming... i wonder how many do however, and it leaves me feeling like the main responsibility is with the parents and educators to make certain that the children understand all things to be considered, and i will always hope the children are given thorough instruction on the difference between gaming and real life...

im appreciative that Sony had foresight in exposing a very serious political dilemma in Nepal and i will be hopeful that children view war not as a game, but a very serious matter, as im sure was Sonys' intent...

as far as gamers, or your own personal feelings about Jack Thompson, i wonder if there is a middle ground? you each seem concerned about the childrens welfare and i agree, (as if you hadnt guessed) the children matter very much

To be honest, I'm not terribly concerned about "the children" when it comes to the adult world.

I get really tired of these Maude Flanders types (Ned's deceased wife on "The Simpsons" -- a 'children's crusader' and would-be "Itchy & Scratchy" censor) trying to regulate what adults can see and do in their private lives on behalf of this insane fetish for children's sensibilities. George Carlin referred to these types charmingly as "diaper sniffers."

That's just my opinion, no offence intended (but I am strongly repelled by censorship -- for ANY reason).

Mike

[gimmeice]

The game sounds pretty interesting, I will have to suggest it to my husband.

[nowheretorun]

without children there is no adult world of the future, im surprised at any lack of concern for them

That doesn't mean that adults should live their lives in reference to what is appropriate to children. Besides, I don't think that kids are as fragile as some adults make them out to be. I wasn't!

And self-appointed censors always point to KIDS to justify their regulation of ADULTS. Ever notice that?

Mike

[Timgt5]

i wonder how many do however, and it leaves me feeling like the main responsibility is with the parents and educators to make certain that the children understand all things to be considered, and i will always hope the children are given thorough instruction on the difference between gaming and real life...

Excellent point and one that I wholeheartedly agree with!!

I will say to you and anyone else who may read this thread please, contact me via PM if you have questions about the content of a game or about the rating system used. I will be more than happy to answer questions as I want parents to be educated in the games they may purchase for their children, thank you.

TJ

[Timgt5]

Originally Posted by gimmeice

The game sounds pretty interesting, I will have to suggest it to my husband.

I would whole heartedly recomend it, check out other reviews, this game has won a ton of accolades. I think right now it is the strongest title on PS3 and ahead of any game on 360 or Wii, sorry xbots and wiitards...

[Timgt5]

Over 1 Million copies have sold thus far making it the biggest seller for October.

[thefallsman]

Dude this game looks so cool. I haven't gotten it yet but i really want it.

[nowheretorun]

jmo, but the coolest thing about it is the awareness it raises over the Nepali issue