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REVIEW
Uncharted 2: Among Thieves

There are murmurs about how games are not what they used to be. I’ve seen reasons like “not enough depth,” or “too much repetition,” or even “boring” bandied about. Obviously none of the people who speak these phrases has laid hands on Uncharted 2: Among Thieves.

When I bought my PS3, it was pretty much so that I could play another game (take a wild guess which one), and Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune, a pack-in with the bundle I got, was tossed aside. I was late to the PS3 party, so I didn’t know that Uncharted was a top quality launch title. I erroneously thought it was just some mediocre platform-ish adventure that I would breeze through, so I didn’t bother.

Fast forward to a few months ago when all of the Uncharted 2: Among Thieves hullabaloo really started to hit top gear. Having played through a good section of my PS3 titles, I put Uncharted into the drive and lost myself for several weeks. Given how amazing Uncharted was, I wondered how the hell Naughty Dog was going to top it. Graphics tweaks? Larger story? Improved play mechanics?

“Yes to everything,” would be an understatement.

From the get-go you are treated to one of the most incredible introductory levels in any game, ever. You are hanging off of a train car that is dangling precariously over a snowy cliff. The first thing you will notice is how stunning the background is. You attempt to make your way to safety, all the while flashbacks treat you to the story of how you started on the path to this current predicament. I’m a big fan of integrating the tutorial into the game in a meaningful way. From this point you are swept up into the story of Nathan Drake and his companions in their quest to find some treasure that Indiana Jones should probably be looking for, except here there are a lot more bad guys with guns.

One notion I’ve repeatedly seen on the Internet, in various phrasing, is that “Naughty Dog blurs the line between film and video games.” I’m going to have to echo that sentiment. This game certainly has a lot of heart and feels like much more than your typical action fare. We’re at a cultural point where games are getting better at telling stories while Hollywood movies offer a 50/50 chance of actually delivering something meaningful and original. Uncharted 2 is probably better than any action movie that is currently playing in theatres, or has been in a very long time. Want to talk about immersion? You will find yourself jumping out of your seat, or laughing along with the characters at various points during the game. The wonderful character voice acting, the perfect balance of cut scenes and interactivity, the moving score and beautiful imagery will cause you to become absolutely invested.

The wonderful dialogue between Drake and Sullivan is extremely well scripted and acted, as are the rest of the spoken parts in the game. Jokes come across as actually being funny rather than forced and awkward, and little touches (like Drake interacting with some of the kids in the game in a cute way) really push the game past the four edges of your television. All of it makes you care about the story and the characters.

The game feels even better than the first. Lots of little enhancements to the control scheme, for example, really make a difference when you’re in the heat of battle (and there are many to be had). Better parkour mechanics, creative stealth takedowns, new weapons (mini-gun, anyone?), and improved melee combat really spice things up. I was playing a multiplayer game once (co-op) and was up against a very tough foe. I was out of ammo, and he smacked me across the face with the butt of his rifle, causing me to head over the edge of a cliff. It was practically child’s play for me to grab the edge of the cliff to spare myself a nasty headache and then grab the offending party (whose attention was now turned on my teammates) and haul him over the edge.

On top of it all of that, Uncharted 2 has a fairly robust multiplayer section as well. With a variety of competitive and co-op modes, you can play and play until your thumbs fall off. Competitive modes include team deathmatch and “capture the flag” variants. Co-op modes include missions and treasure-hunting levels in which the enemies become increasingly difficult with every round. Matchmaking is really well done and there are multiple levels so that you can ease yourself into the experience. I’ve played a fair bit and, other than one game that ended in connection error, have been very satisfied with the speed and stability of the whole operation.

Naughty Dog has pulled off an amazing feat. I don’t even know if my senses are strong enough to even consider the obvious onslaught of awesome that a sequel to Uncharted 2 would involve.

Posted in Awesome, PlayStation 3, PSN, Reviews |