Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune Review

Only a handful of games have taken advantage of the power of PlayStation 3. I was convinced to buy Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune after playing the demo on the PlayStation Network and being impressed. You play shortly after the game begins (about an hour into the game) and crash your plane on a Pacific island. After you get yourself out of a tree you landed in, you do some platforming before you quickly come into contact with some guys that want you dead.

Turns out that your character is the target of these assassins/pirates the entire game. You play as Nathan Drake, a relative to 16th century English admiral Francis Drake. Early in the game you learn of a lost treasure. It is actually the lost city of gold, El Dorado. Nathan finds a book in the coffin of Francis Drake that points him in the right direction. Drake is assisted by treasure hunter Victor Sullivan and Elena Fisher, but trouble starts when a treasure hunter who Sullivan owes money to shows up.

I am not going to spoil any key plot twists or go into further detail. I will say that this is one of the more in depth storylines that I have seen recently. It is not as convoluted as Metal Gear Solid, but it is much more involved and interesting than say Gears of War. Cut scenes complement the story and can be re-viewed once the game is complete. Uncharted’s story is on-par with a quality Hollywood movie. The closest I could compare it to is a video game version of Indiana Jones. What’s more the characters have distinct personalities and are likable. You pull for Nate throughout and want the bad guys dead.

Uncharted has a very large mix of gameplay elements: platformer, action, adventure, puzzle and shooter. The most accurate comparison I could come up with is Tomb Raider or Prince of Persia with a gun. While we are on the topic, I have to say it. Nathan Drake is a beast. This guy can climb towers, leap from walls, swing from vines, shoot guns, throw a punch, fly an airplane and spew out one-liners. In video game form, this may play like a Tomb Raider, but the main character is more of a John McClane from Die Hard or Indiana Jones.

And don’t worry, there is plenty of shooting. In fact, while the platforming, puzzle solving and such is much like Tomb Raider, the shooting is a lot more like Gears of War. Drake does not have a bunch of armor and he does not have futuristic weapons. He relies solely on the ammo and weapons of the men he kills, of which you get a nice assortment. You have your standard pistol (later in the game you will get a Desert Eagle), a semi-automatic, shotgun, AK-47, M4, grenade launcher, sniper rifle and more. You also come equipped with grenades, for which you can carry three, along with two weapons.

As I said, the shooting works a lot like Gears of War. Since this is a third-person perspective, the shooting is done over-the-shoulder and can be switched between left and right shoulder by clicking in on the analog stick. The controls are actually less cumbersome than Gears of War. When taking cover, you go up to a wall and press circle. You can move along the wall, jump away from it or jump over it. Cover is essential to Drake’s survival. A limited amount of run-and-gun can work in close quarters, but for the most part, you will be picking off your enemies.

Speaking of enemies, the computer A.I. in Drake’s Fortune is oftentimes extremely intelligent. They work together in order to flank you. If you are not careful, you will get surrounded by men quite easily, since they constantly are moving forward or back, depending on how the encounter plays out. There are several situations where I died, replayed an area and the enemies responded a different way. There are scripted moments and spawn points like in any game. It just seems to be a constantly changing battlefield.

The next thing that I would like to talk about are the graphics. Let’s just say that they are the best I have ever seen. Let me say that again. These are the best graphics you will find on a home console. Period. Naughty Dog dotted every i and crossed every t. In fact, it is so visually stunning that you may at times find it hard to tell the difference between Uncharted and the real world. You have realistic character models with facial expressions and gestures, ducking and dodging of bullets, leaping across walls and so on. The lighting effects and appropriately used fog add to the mood of the situation.

There are two things that really stood out in my mind in the graphics department for which video games almost always have a hard time creating a realistic environment. The first is the water effects. Again, this is the best I have seen in a video game. Drake uses the jetski and swims a lot, at least compared to other games, so this is a good thing. The rivers have suds, the rapids rush with water and bodies float just as you would expect them to. The second achievement technologically is the forest itself. I have found very few instances where forests are rendered well in a video game. Uncharted is one and Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater is the other.

The other thing Uncharted and Metal Gear Solid 3 have in common is length. This is a long game. One of my major complaints with its Game of the Year rivals like Halo 3 is that they are criminally short. Drake’s Fortune will take you roughly ten hours, depending on which difficulty you try. There is replay value to be had here, too. I played on Normal and am planning on trying to see what Hard is like. I probably won’t be able to beat it, but it is worth a shot.

If you don’t consider video games an art form, you need to play this game. Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune does a good job of creating what could be described as an interactive movie experience. If you like Gears of War, Tomb Raider, Prince of Persia or Broken Sword games, there is a good chance that you will like Uncharted. It mixes a number of gameplay elements to create a gameplay experience like no other. This is a beautiful game with the best graphics of any on PS3. It should last you a good ten hours, and while there is no multi-player to keep you busy, you can always replay on a harder difficulty. Count Uncharted in as PS3 Game of the Year. Ratchet and Clank better watch out.