Quick Look: Uncharted: Golden Abyss

Excellent

i wish they had a tv out cable or something, i can't really tell how good the visuals are. i guess it's probably not available yet...

If only Ready at Dawn made this, then it would have been a legit portable Uncharted game.

What's happening with these games? It's as if there have never been touch-screen games before.

@SpunkyHePanda said:

What's happening with these games? It's as if there have never been touch-screen games before.

It is kinda funny how they're just shoehorning these controls into every launch game whether they make sense or not. It's just like the launch of the Wii or other similar devices, eventually developers will just give up and build the game around the best possible control scheme regardless of the potential controls.

Urrgh, I hate this video player. Lags all the time, then if you pause it to buffer, you lose the sound. Should just stick with the YouTube vids.

@P_Pigly_Hogswine: it is youtube vids

@Draxyle said:

@SpunkyHePanda said:

What's happening with these games? It's as if there have never been touch-screen games before.

It is kinda funny how they're just shoehorning these controls into every launch game whether they make sense or not. It's just like the launch of the Wii or other similar devices, eventually developers will just give up and build the game around the best possible control scheme regardless of the potential controls.

Well, the Wii had a totally new way of controlling games that developers had to learn to make the most of. Whereas this... You can pinch the front and back, that's a new thing. If they want to show off their new system, these launch games should be nothing but pinching.

They've come a long way since Bubsy 3D.

Nope nope nope nope.

DO NOT WANT.

The problem with new control systems are that publishers want to use new controls to do the same things they had already been doing and that never works. New controllers should mean new types of games that make use of them. Ahh... But that would be risk and publishers would rather flush money down the toilet with crappy controls shoehorned into established series than ever take a risk.

@csl316 said:

They've come a long way since Bubsy 3D.

lol clearly ^ :P

@MAD_JIHAD said:

Nope nope nope nope.

DO NOT WANT.

Reminds me of my 2 year old...

@JazGalaxy said:

The problem with new control systems are that publishers want to use new controls to do the same things they had already been doing and that never works. New controllers should mean new types of games that make use of them. Ahh... But that would be risk and publishers would rather flush money down the toilet with crappy controls shoehorned into established series than ever take a risk.

I hardly call that flushing money down a toilet when those games go one to still sell great.

The touch control stuff is occasionally annoying, but I found it never ubiquitous enough to really bother me from what felt like well...a good Uncharted game, which is what I was looking for. Particularly for a non-Naughty Dog developer, they seemed to land a lot of the trappings I was looking for. The menu navigation was pretty trivial, the only real problem was some of the 'puzzle' stuff, like dusting off an artifact (which was, admittedly, dumb). It absolutely could have done without that, and would have probably benefitted, but they are pretty ignorable. Especially the platforming touch-stuff which I just ignored and never used.

Not to mention, the game looks and sound absolutely phenomenal.

Remember when every PS3 game had to have six axis control?

Man, launch games.

@patbaer said:

Remember when every PS3 game had to have six axis control?

Man, launch games.

That never happened. It was always an option, and even developers were mostly like "nah, we're cool."

@patbaer said:

Remember when every PS3 game had to have six axis control?

Man, launch games.

Remember Lair?

Man, Factor Five.

Man, I don't like the touch screen swiping or the motion control stuff.

I gotta say this looks pretty cool, despite the negative commentary. I've never played an Uncharted game before, so maybe my expectations aren't as high

You guys do realize that half the whiners here will end up buying a vita on launch along with Uncharted : Golden Abyss. Watch it.

When they say near I keep thinking there talking about that game Nier.

This looks like something only an idiot would buy.

thats funny the scripted awesome explosions and stuff last barely a second and then you spend like more than 5 at a time doing those dumb minigames. FAILURE. They put the effort into making the awesome stuff but then presented it like a child, and unfortunately having to be compared to naughty dog's amazing presentation skills.

i know it isn't uncharted 3, but holy shit that game looks good still.

Patrick's use of the phrase "slightly more powerful" to compare the PS3 to the PSV makes me grin. The news guy instinctively being diplomatic and playing down the disparity between a full console and a handheld. 
 
Game looks better than I thought it would. Shame it's a launch title, it would really present itself better without so many pointless uses of the touchscreen. Apparently Sony didn't learn anything from the reaction to exactly the same mindset in the DS launch titles.

I can understand all of Jeff's points, and he's right, and some of the touchscreen stuff can get annoying, but, to be fair, this is one of the best launch titles of any console ever, handheld or otherwise. If Sony doesn't give up on it, I can see some GREAT games for this console in the future, the potential is there. Also, if the entire PS2 games library becomes available for the Vita, that would be amazing.

Balancing minigames like that have never been fun in anything ever.

so crappy

@Karmann: it wont.

I watched this for a few minutes and then thought, "Why am I watching this? This game is already in the mail."

It's a great looking game, but it doesn't offer anything new and awesome.

Patrick looks so bored. :)

@RoivaS3ternal said:

@Karmann: it wont.

it wont what? give up on it? Or port PS2 games to the Vita???

I know Jeff laments the lack of set-pieces in Golden Abyss but I think it's great.Uncharted 1 focused on it's core gameplay:Platforming and puzzles and only got into heavy gunplay during the second half.Golden Abyss seems to be a return to that whereas Uncharted 2 had way too many set-pieces and slogs of enemies to kill.The platforming in Uncharted 2 to me felt like it was just there to get you from one fight to another or from one set-piece to another.I haven't played Uncharted 3 though so I can't comment on that.

@Draxyle said:

@SpunkyHePanda said:

What's happening with these games? It's as if there have never been touch-screen games before.

It is kinda funny how they're just shoehorning these controls into every launch game whether they make sense or not. It's just like the launch of the Wii or other similar devices, eventually developers will just give up and build the game around the best possible control scheme regardless of the potential controls.

Pretty much. Same thing happened with the DS, and the same thing will happen with the next useless gimmick that comes out. Eventually devs will stop, and the Vita will truly sing.

Personally, I loved the touch controls implemented in Golden Abyss. Quite surprised that Jeff thinks differently.

I still really liked this game. Looked awesome on the Vita.