Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception

Before you blow your lid over the score to the right, I would like to attempt to explain my reasoning. Uncharted 3 is amazing, but given the cinematic nature of the game it must be judged on those criteria as well as being a video game.

We've been through a lot, Drake and I. Together we travelled to places most people only dream of - from the deepest rain forests of Borneo to the roof of the world in Himalaya. We've fought war criminals, crooks, mystic and deceptive femme fatales and what seems like an endless army of mercenaries. This time however, things are different.

A black Jaguar accelerates quickly, screeching tires, and makes it out of the dark alley. Two gun shots breaks the silence of the London night. There lies Nathan Drake and his trusted friend Victor Sullivan, among the trash from the local pub. A dark red pool of blood is forming on each body.

That's the start of the third chapter in the Uncharted series - a franchise that mixes elements from Tomb Raider and Indiana Jones and gives them a delightful new twist. A concept where the adventure takes you on a wild ride and where the story is always in focus. And if you for some reason thought that the third game would be any different you're absolutely wrong. And that's a good thing as the third game offers a good story, where Naughty Dog experience offers the player the best game to come out of the developer so far. Or does it? While the game gives us plenty of new memorable moments, there are still some old problems and new flaws around.

Drake and Sullivan is closing in on Drake's ancestor, Sir Francis Drake, who on his voyage around the world wrote about a mysterious city in the middle of a desert. A sandy Atlantis if you will, filled with riches. In order to reach this city Nathan needs to go through fire, water, sand and well, just about everything else. It's hard not to say too much about the story, but I don't want to spoil the experience for anyone. Instead, I would like to focus on how the story relates to the gameplay.

In a game where the story is so important and takes up so much time, it needs to be well told. And the Uncharted series has been one of the frontrunners when it comes to storytelling this generation. Unfortunately, the plot of Uncharted 3 isn't as good as that in its predecessors. Instead of a strong and rigorous story with a well defined goal and beautifully portrayed characters, it sails along with characters, whose relation to each other we are not made aware of, and perhaps we are purposely left in the dark until the next chapter of the series.

If we were dealing with an episode of the TV series it would have been fine. But in a standalone game it just comes off as strange. I'm left with more questions than answers. Why can't I be told what happened between Elena and Nathan since the previous game? What is the motivation of the main villain, what drives him? The storytelling simply doesn't reach the level I was expecting.

One example is Drake's trek through the desert, where you are meant to feel hopelessness, but instead you just start to feel bored as the scene doesn't contribute to the story. You're more of a viewer than a player. At other times it feels as though you have missed out on a cutscene, and it's frustrating when we know what Naughty Dog are capable of.

Because this is a quality experience, just as the predecessors. When Drake makes his way across resting place for ships, with its rusty, metal constructions you can almost smell the sea breeze in your nostrils. It's a magnificent sight, and it's easy to imagine the wonderful art that got realised through the engine. Almost all the levels are of this high quality, and regardless of whether you're escaping a burning chateau in France, chase bad guys through crowded markets of Yemen with police or mercenaries are on your trail, the game offers intense and wonderful experiences.

What Naughty Dog has added to the game is some much needed energy. When the gameplay settles down in its usual rut, a mix of exploration and shooting from behind cover (Gears of War style), then the developers have kicked it up a notch and created moments that bind the elements of the story together. These moments, that stand out as the most memorable in the game, and you will understand why when you play the game. I can mention and plane that crashes into the desert, a horseback chase, a chase on a sinking ferry and a flashback. The developers should be commended for these elements as they add excitement and focus the player on the story. It's extremely visual and almost takes your breath away.

It works very well, and it breaks the monotony of shooting and puzzle sequences, that can get a bit predictable after a while. But there are lots of new weapons with proper weight and feel to them, varied enemies plus a few new mechanics, such as throwing back grenades at the enemies that keeps combat exciting. And while the basic concept still remains very strong, the manner in which the game switches from exploration and puzzle solving to action sequences is rather simple, and if it wasn't for the added excitement of these key moments, you would probably feel a bit bored towards the end.

But then there is always multiplayer, and there is a little something for everyone here. You can now play with your friends both online and locally on split screen. The latter in the shape of the co-operative mode, that offers up a handful of levels from all three games. You should not expect too much from this mode, as it comes across as a bit odd and unfinished. It still manages to entertain as the basics of shooting, reviving, and complete objectives are solid, but the framing and story just feels a bit off.

Without goal or meaning the isolated ideas are sound, but as the developers have tired to tie it into the Uncharted universe and used characters it just feels wrong, and they should have refrained from tying it all together. It would have been way better to have the same set up as Spec Ops in Modern Warfare, where story takes a back seat and it lets the developers realise ideas that didn't fit into the main story.

On the positive side of things, you gain points and level up when you play it, earning you new gear, and weapons in multiplayer. Nothing revolutionary, but something that works well.

One point of criticism that I have, that affects both multiplayer and single player is that when the action is hectic with bullets and grenades flying through the air, it's a very poor decision to have the same button perform dodges and stick to cover. It's a source of frustration at times.

With that noted it must be said that the multiplayer is really well crafted, and with levels taken from the campaign you will fight in ancient castles and the London underground, and it comes across as a quick fix of intense gaming, that will hold its own for a long time, perhaps all the way until Uncharted 4.

If we take a look at the technical side of things, Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception is mighty impressive. While it is still powered by the same engine, it has been improved upon and the wonderful environments, a mix of historical and detail locations much like in the predecessors, are given beautiful lighting, shadows, fire, smoke and any other effect you can think of. Of course, there are places where the levels aren't as striking and become a bit bland and grey, but given the length of the game (about 8 hours) there is no reason to complain.

There are places where textures load slowly, and Naughty Dog's use of skybox, a technique with which you create backdrops, is far from breathtaking, and this somewhat breaks the illusion. The same can be said of the camera, that isn't always on its best behaviour indoors when you find yourself surrounded by five or six enemies. The sound is of the highest calibre, everything from voice acting, music and sound effects impresses and adds to the environments, characters and events that take place on screen.

To me, the main draw of the Uncharted series has always been the story. But what happens when the story isn't as good as it used to be? You could argue that the calibre of the gameplay fills any gaps left by the storyline, but I'm of the opinion that when the story is the thing that pulls the whole game along, then it is a problem. Why should we be interested in the game, when we're not that interested in what's going on.

Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception is a game of very high quality and I definitely recommend it, but it's not necessarily the revolution many were hoping for.