Would I have to play the first Uncharted in order to get the most out of this game?

yes, i'm going to play the first one before i play the second one.  
i think there's characters and story continuing from the first one. not sure though. 

Huh, I didn't think of that. After seeing the QL I'll most likely get Uncharted 2 at Christmas; guess I'll pick Uncharted 1 up some time before then.

Thought the question was going to be 'are you a whore?'
 
Knowing how good Naughty Dog are, I highly doubt it, although it may help you.

There are returning characters and from the trailers I have seen a couple "in-jokes" ("I'm last years model"). But because the way the first one ended, it looks like you will be safe by not having played it. Think of it like Indiana Jones, some characters make reappearances, but the stories all stand by themselves.

Apparently the game stands up perfectly on its own, so no it's not necessary. However, the Uncharted franchise is heavy on story and character development, so I'm sure those who played Drake's Fortune will get more out of the game due to familiarity with the cast.
 
Seeing as you can get the game for cheap, and it's actually still really good in my opinion, then I'd just go and play it.
 
You'll fall in love with Elena. Guaranteed.

Okay, thanks for the replies.

I'd say you'd enjoy Among Thieves more after playing the first game - the characters are really well established in it, plus its a great game in its own right and well worth checking out. Doesnt look like the 2 storylines are really closely linked though, so you'd probably get on fine without playing Drake's Fortune.

 You should play the first even if you don't need to, it was great.

"  You should play the first even if you don't need to, it was great. "

" @ParanoidFreak said:

"  You should play the first even if you don't need to, it was great. "

This is the epitome of....being right about stuff "

i would recommend it...

You don't "have" to, but the first Uncharted is such a great game that I would recommend it.  Also, I'm assuming they're will be "in" jokes for those that played the first, and watching the character progression is reason alone to play the first.

It's a good game and it will flesh out the relationships between Nathan, Elena and Scully a lot...especially Nate & Elena.

It definitely couldn't hurt - bunker level sucked though.