HerrDirector
BACKER
Log Status
Completed
Playing
Backlog
Wishlist
Rating
Time Played
--
Days in Journal
1 day
Last played
August 1, 2023
Platforms Played
I don't think I've ever seen a series evolve less from entry to entry yet still manage to be put on the kind of pedestal which the UNCHARTED series has landed. Uncharted 4 is barely a game, it's a tech demo for the PS4 by way of a blockbuster film.
Adequate 3rd person cover shooting and puzzles the game solves for you, but now there's a grappling hook that pads out the mostly auto-pilot traversal. Why not a stamina system to add stakes to the constant wall climbing? How about filling the gorgeous-but-mostly-empty environments with more subtle clues that would enable me to deduce the puzzles later on? If you're not being handed notes that say "THE ANSWER IS THIS," a character accompanying you will just say "THE ANSWER IS THIS" out loud as soon as you arrive. The game's so on rails it could be an arcade title if it wasn't also holding up a huge, messy narrative.
Speaking of, the problems with this game's story are a result of a massive tonal pivot from the PS3 era games, along with huge gaps in character development. The biggest gripe I've had with UNCHARTED's lore is that a lot of major character development happens "off-camera." Nate and Elena fall in love, then break up between 1 & 2, then they get married AND separate between 2 & 3. Now we're building an entire story around the emotional core of a relationship we've barely even witnessed. And speaking of non-existent bonds, the retcon that Sam was always in the shadows of Nate's past was very sweaty, and overall I don't know what it adds? Nate's character is pretty well established and defined, so much so that I could see him impulsively going on a risky "final quest" that endangers his marriage WITHOUT lost-brother drama. These characters are likeable, but their stories have never been fleshed out enough to make the emotional payoffs of A THIEF'S END feel convincing.
UNCHARTED 4's attempt to add depth to the gameplay and the lore just never add up to anything compelling. The final boss fight introduces gameplay mechanics you've never engaged with (and never will again), in order to round off the arc of an antagonist who doesn't have the character dimensionality Naughty Dog attempts to render them with. It doesn't click as a satisfying adventure shooter OR a character-driven blockbuster. Like it's lead, it pays the price for trying to live two lives.
Adequate 3rd person cover shooting and puzzles the game solves for you, but now there's a grappling hook that pads out the mostly auto-pilot traversal. Why not a stamina system to add stakes to the constant wall climbing? How about filling the gorgeous-but-mostly-empty environments with more subtle clues that would enable me to deduce the puzzles later on? If you're not being handed notes that say "THE ANSWER IS THIS," a character accompanying you will just say "THE ANSWER IS THIS" out loud as soon as you arrive. The game's so on rails it could be an arcade title if it wasn't also holding up a huge, messy narrative.
Speaking of, the problems with this game's story are a result of a massive tonal pivot from the PS3 era games, along with huge gaps in character development. The biggest gripe I've had with UNCHARTED's lore is that a lot of major character development happens "off-camera." Nate and Elena fall in love, then break up between 1 & 2, then they get married AND separate between 2 & 3. Now we're building an entire story around the emotional core of a relationship we've barely even witnessed. And speaking of non-existent bonds, the retcon that Sam was always in the shadows of Nate's past was very sweaty, and overall I don't know what it adds? Nate's character is pretty well established and defined, so much so that I could see him impulsively going on a risky "final quest" that endangers his marriage WITHOUT lost-brother drama. These characters are likeable, but their stories have never been fleshed out enough to make the emotional payoffs of A THIEF'S END feel convincing.
UNCHARTED 4's attempt to add depth to the gameplay and the lore just never add up to anything compelling. The final boss fight introduces gameplay mechanics you've never engaged with (and never will again), in order to round off the arc of an antagonist who doesn't have the character dimensionality Naughty Dog attempts to render them with. It doesn't click as a satisfying adventure shooter OR a character-driven blockbuster. Like it's lead, it pays the price for trying to live two lives.