Uncharted 3 Drakes Deception, Review, Timgt5- Gaming's Utimate Thrill Ride!

Timgt5 · Nov 13, 2011, 06:40 AM

Uncharted 3, Drakes Deception
Review by Timgt5

Uncharted 3, Drakes Deception

Review by Timgt5

In 2009 Naughty Dog had unleashed Uncharted 2, Among Thieves to tremendous acclaim from critics and players alike. The game received numerous awards for its production values, tight mechanics and well written narrative. Many reviewers in fact went as far as to say that Uncharted 2, Among Thieves was at the time the greatest action game ever published. The only issue with doing so well is that the bar has been raised and expectations for the sequel run sky high. Can Naughty Dog deliver once again? Read on…

Uncharted 3 Drakes Deception
On Sale: November 1 2011
Developer: Naughty Dog
Publisher SCEA
Type Action/Adventure
Genre: Modern Day, History based Fiction
Platforms: PS3 Exclusive
Rating T (Teen)

Highs: Spectacular production values, tight mechanics, well written narrative, top notch voice acting, wonderful music score, expanded co-op and multiplayer online features.

Lows: Some of the puzzle logic misses here, wonky AI behavior.

The Plot:

The events of Drakes Deception, take place at some undisclosed time period after Among Thieves. Nathan Drake, his long time friend and mentor Sully, Drake’s former lover (and grifter), Chloe Frazier, and new partner Charlie Cutter pull an elaborate con to obtain what appears to be an astrolabe from Katherine Marlowe. The device is connected to a secret mission that Sir Francis Drake (Nathan’s ancestor) went on for Queen Elizabeth I.

Marlowe; the head of a secret Masonic-like order seeks to obtain the ring once belonging to Francis Drake (Now in the possession of Nathan Drake), which is the key to making the device work. Obtaining the device Drake and Sully embark on an around the world adventure which leads them to the lost city of Urbar, or Iram of the Pillars, also called “The Atlantis of the Sand” a powerful ancient city that was “cursed by God” and buried in the Rub' al Khalidesert, smack in the middle of the Arabian Peninsula. In the process we also get a bit of Drake’s back story as one of the chapters reveals how Nathan met Sully in Bogotá, Columbia as fourteen year kid and how he came to be in possession of Sir Francis’s ring.

Naughty Dog’s head writer, Amy Hennig, once more delivers a wonderfully written narrative that is full of twists and turns. She also gives us deeper insight into both Drake and Sully. We learn more about what motivates Drake and the people around him. The dialogue is snappy and believable thanks to a combination of a good script and Amy’s willingness to encourage the actors to improvise. Introducing a female villain was something refreshing to the series and worked really well with the type of plot the game has going.

The Game Play:
For those who have played the prior games, much will be familiar. The game play could best described as a hybrid of Tomb Raider and Gears of war. In the single player game, the player controls Nathan Drake, as he navigates levels with a righteous set of “Parkour” skills (climbing, jumping etc), gets into massive gun battles, and solves puzzles.

Overall the game maintains its great pacing. Much like a roller coaster Uncharted 3 has those well placed quiet moments punctuated by breathtaking action sequences.

Having cut their teethon platforming games (Crash Bandicoot and Jak and Daxter) Naughty Dog has the climbing mechanics down to an art. Drake must navigate treacherous environments such as an old Chateau that is falling apart and a pirate laden cruise ship that is rolling and pitching on a rough sea. The mechanics here are simply the best in the business.

The combat remains similar to Uncharted 2, with the familiar “pop and cover” style of games like Gear of War. There are a variety of weapons throughout the environment, but as before Drake can only carry two at one time. One interesting enhancement from the previous game is that now Drake can toss back enemy grenades before they go off, which can help him turn the tide of battle. The hand to hand combat has been greatly expanded, with a much larger set of move animations. One really cool new element is Drake’s ability to grab an enemy’s weapon and use it against him up close. He can also pull the pin on a grenade that some enemies carry, pushing them away as they blow up. All of this stuff plays well with action movie mechanics this game strives to create.

Not all is perfect though. The AI in this game is at times unbalanced. AI enemy characters often are hyper aggressive, charging Nate at high speeds. The idea was to force a more intense reaction but it more often than not led to some frustration as cover becomes in some scenes, less effective.

The game’s puzzles are a bit more challenging than in the previous game as well. Although the ever handy journal helps with hints, the solutions are not as obvious. For the most part the sets were well designed, but there were couple of them that did not make a lot of sense. I am normally very good at figuring out game puzzles but a couple took a long time to resolve.

Once the 8-10 hour campaign is complete there is a greatly enhanced multiplayer mode to tackle. The normal types of matches (Death Match, Capture the Flag etc) all return using set pieces from the single player campaign. There is also a robust on and offline co-op mode (the offline is actually a lot of fun) All of the multiplayer aspects are well executed and a blast to play. The Uncharted community is a great place to hang out and the game carefully matches your skills with others.

Sights and Sounds:

There is no doubt that one of standout elements of this series has been its terrific graphics. Uncharted 3 continues that tradition with relish. Each of the environments that Drake finds himself is beautifully detailed. On the second play though the player is often compelled to stop at times and just drink in the surroundings. The art direction in this game is simply unmatched by any title on the market.
Uncharted 3 Drakes Deception, Review, Timgt5- Gaming's Utimate Thrill Ride!

Uncharted 3 Drakes Deception, Review, Timgt5- Gaming's Utimate Thrill Ride!

Naughty Dog's uncanny attention to detail, and yes this is an In Game picture

The summer blockbuster feel of Uncharted 3 is simply incredible, whether Drake is fighting for his life in a crashing cargo plane, chasing the bad guys though massive canyons on horseback, or trying to escape a burning mansion. The set design is simply staggering and some of the set pieces (which this game is filled with them) move about in real time. The sinking cruise ship, an environment that turns upside down and ninety degrees while Drake is moving through it is one of the most remarkable demonstrations of physics programming every put forward by a developer in a game.

Naughty Dog always pushes itself to add some new visual element to each Uncharted game. The party trick here is the sand in the desert. Animating sand to behave like the real thing takes an incredible amount of skill. Naughty Dog makes it look almost natural and effortless. Other related effects, such as fire deteriorating the wood structure of a house in real time, water splashing from the impact of waves and particulates from dust and ash are presented masterfully here.

One thing that a game like Uncharted 3 has to pull off well is the believability of the characters. The character models are nothing short of excellent. Thanks to well crafted animation, these people are truly brought to life, things like dilating eyes, upturned corners of the mouth, are handled with aplomb. Only LA Noire and Heavy Rain match this game’s facial animations. More subtle body animations complete the effect; one example characters will bring their hands up when they get too close to a wall and push themselves off. Another example is Drake making a ninety degree turn in one scenario cause him become off balance just as it would in real life. The other realistic component is that Drake actually gets hurt when he falls or has to drop down from high spot and reacts accordingly.

Overall the game simply looks fantastic and goes on a very short list of the best looking console games ever made. As a bonus the game is 3D compatible and looks awesome on a 3D Television.

Sound effects are handled brilliantly, with great layering of the background effects, voices, gunfire, and environments. The mixing is good as any of the best Hollywood productions. The game provides a tremendous workout for a good home theater system.

Equally great is the excellent voice cast in this title. Led by Nolan North, as Drake, most of actors from the previous title return for this one. Emily Rose is back as the perky, yet tough reporter, Elena Fisher(she is just plain adorable), the ever sultry Claudia Black remains pitch perfect as grifter, Chloe Frasier and Richard Mcgonagle almost steals the show as Sully, Drake’s long time friend and mentor. New additions to the cast have been terrific, with many props to long time British stage actress Rosalind Ayers, who plays the cold and calculating Catherine Marlowe, she was terrific. I hope they interview her for the online extra features as I would be interested in her experience working in video game for the first time.

One also cannot go without mentioning the awesome music score. Greg Edmonson is retained once more and brings his expertise in producing memorable compositions that perfectly highlight every scene. Frankly there is nothing out there, even in film quite like this blend of exotic instruments, traditional orchestral themes, vocals, and the occasional rock rift to round everything out nicely.

A bit of it here:

In short, Uncharted 3 Drake’s Deception to use a phrase by David Lee Roth, “A Stellar Production”

Kids Corner:
Uncharted 3, Drake's Deception is rated T for teen. I would say it is roughly the equivalent of a modern PG-13 movie. There is a lot of gunplay and fisticuffs but nothing graphic or gory here. Explicative language can be found in the dialogue, but is used sparingly and where it makes sense. There is no nudity or sexual elements to the game (Drake is too damn busy going around the world chasing clues and fighting bad guys to carry on any kind of romance)

In Summary:

For a long time, action game fans have dreamed of a title that would seamlessly blend game play and cinematic elements. Uncharted 3 Drake's Deception pulls this idea off like no other game ever made. The whole thing feels like taking the lead character in a 300 million dollar Summer Blockbuster, one where you can put on a big screen, crank up the sound, turn down the lights, pop some popcorn and invite some friends over as you give them a jaw dropping display of just how far gaming has really come. Hell you could probably charge admission.

For those who have a PS3, I whole heartedly recommend this incredible game, go get it now. If you are still waggling a silly looking TV remote at a bunch of sad little stick figures (cough, cough, er Wii) now would be the time to go trade that little thing in for a PS3 Uncharted 3 bundle pack and be welcomed to the 21st century.

Perhaps the best endorsement though comes from “Mr. Indiana Jones” himself, Harrison Ford. Mr. Ford was given a sneak peak at Uncharted 3 shortly before its release. Here is his reaction to playing one of the scenes, completely unscripted.

This indeed is high praise, as the “Raiders” movie series inspired Amy Hennig to create Nathan Drake.

Here are some clips of Uncharted 3 for your enjoyment.

Story Trailer

Gameplay, "Escape the Burning Chateau"

Gameplay, "Desert Settlement" note the incredible sand particle effects

Gameplay " Cruise Ship"

nacht · Nov 13, 2011, 12:45 PM

I haven't purchased this yet; Skyrim and AC: Revelations were higher priority on the list, but I'll definitely be giving it a try. I really liked Among Thieves.

Timgt5 · Nov 13, 2011, 01:22 PM

Both of those are excellent choices, definately getting AC Revelation in December and possibly Arkham City. This has been a big year for blockbuster titles.

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Uncharted 3 Drakes Deception, Review, Timgt5- Gaming's Utimate Thrill Ride!

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