My Games Of The Year 2009 - Part 4

I’m revisiting some of my favourite games of the year. Here's part 3 and  part 2 and part 1... 

WHAT IT IS

Uncharted 2 is a major PS3 release from Naughty Dog. Sequel to Uncharted: Drake's Fortune, it tells the Indiana Jones-inspired story of a treasure hunter and his search for riches and, perhaps, goodness. A smash hit with critics, it's currently the second-highest-rated PS3 game on Metacritic with an impressive average score of 96.

WHAT I LOVE ABOUT IT

Uncharted 2 just has wow factor. From start to finish. My jaw has never dropped so often in a game. I'd compare it to seeing Jurassic Park in the cinemas in 1993 and thinking “How is this possible?”. It just raises the bar for presentation in games. Does that make it a triumph or a rather shallow pleasure. A bit of both, I'd say.

It defies its own criticism in a way. Because there's a sense in which I don't want to praise it, because it is simply a collection of polished visual tricks, packed around a fairly predictable action storyline, in a way that could almost be labelled as cynical. It also openly apes Spielberg's set-piece-led action cinema in a way that goes beyond homage – it is an out-and-out attempt to copy that experience in a videogame. As someone who thinks that gaming's real worth as a medium is in a route away from copying other forms, this game has forced me and others to think again.

But it's so rich. The birds that flutter around the palm trees. Your imprints in the snow. Your realistic animated stagger when you're injured. The cinematic depth of field effects. The integration of wonderfully staged cut-scenes with the action. The sense of physicality as you're thrown around the landscape. The use of dialogue, humour, character as punctuation. The scale of the vistas. The pacing. The John Williams-esque score.

It's not a healthy salad, it's a new kind of fattening gateaux. You feel like a glutton playing it. There's a train section, where you see a rich and believable landscape flying past the tracks – a bridge, a jungle, a lake, a mountain, and this is just the scenery – it's just too much. But I want more of it! It's the equivalent of a warm hug from a loved one, who reveals a special wrapped up present on Christmas Day. “Enjoy” they say. How can that ever be wrong?

THE GAME'S LEGACY

A new bar for graphics and presentation, basically. At the same time I wonder if the legacy could be negative, adding another year and a few million in cost to the next generation of already-overblown triple-A titles. I think every game developer worthy of the name will be studying the incredible 'craft' on display in this game, and trying to learn the lessons. This is how you make a mainstream action game.

I’m revisiting some of my favourite games of the year. Here's part 3 and  part 2 and part 1... 

WHAT IT IS

Uncharted 2 is a major PS3 release from Naughty Dog. Sequel to Uncharted: Drake's Fortune, it tells the Indiana Jones-inspired story of a treasure hunter and his search for riches and, perhaps, goodness. A smash hit with critics, it's currently the second-highest-rated PS3 game on Metacritic with an impressive average score of 96.

WHAT I LOVE ABOUT IT

Uncharted 2 just has wow factor. From start to finish. My jaw has never dropped so often in a game. I'd compare it to seeing Jurassic Park in the cinemas in 1993 and thinking “How is this possible?”. It just raises the bar for presentation in games. Does that make it a triumph or a rather shallow pleasure. A bit of both, I'd say.

It defies its own criticism in a way. Because there's a sense in which I don't want to praise it, because it is simply a collection of polished visual tricks, packed around a fairly predictable action storyline, in a way that could almost be labelled as cynical. It also openly apes Spielberg's set-piece-led action cinema in a way that goes beyond homage – it is an out-and-out attempt to copy that experience in a videogame. As someone who thinks that gaming's real worth as a medium is in a route away from copying other forms, this game has forced me and others to think again.

But it's so rich. The birds that flutter around the palm trees. Your imprints in the snow. Your realistic animated stagger when you're injured. The cinematic depth of field effects. The integration of wonderfully staged cut-scenes with the action. The sense of physicality as you're thrown around the landscape. The use of dialogue, humour, character as punctuation. The scale of the vistas. The pacing. The John Williams-esque score.

It's not a healthy salad, it's a new kind of fattening gateaux. You feel like a glutton playing it. There's a train section, where you see a rich and believable landscape flying past the tracks – a bridge, a jungle, a lake, a mountain, and this is just the scenery – it's just too much. But I want more of it! It's the equivalent of a warm hug from a loved one, who reveals a special wrapped up present on Christmas Day. “Enjoy” they say. How can that ever be wrong?

THE GAME'S LEGACY

A new bar for graphics and presentation, basically. At the same time I wonder if the legacy could be negative, adding another year and a few million in cost to the next generation of already-overblown triple-A titles. I think every game developer worthy of the name will be studying the incredible 'craft' on display in this game, and trying to learn the lessons. This is how you make a mainstream action game.