So after all this yelling about Uncharted 2, i finally bought it and sat down to play it. You better believe all this positive talk about a game can lift expectations. I like to think mine weren't completely unrealistic, but seriously, this game has some big issues. So much so I'm starting to wonder if it doesn't suffer a bit from the Call of duty syndrome, where scripting and set pieces overshadow the quality of the core gameplay.
 
It's not bad! Christ. Haha I'd be crazy to say it's anywhere near bad. But outside of the sheer spectacle this game is throwing around, i have certainly seen games that do what Uncharted 2 does mechanically better. 
 
I'm aware Naughty Dog are proud of their animation blending, which makes it really odd to see things like Drake suddenly flinging into his stumbling animation while sliding slowly sideways after a small jump. Inverse kinematics go out the window. 
 
This is a cover based shooter, but when you're in the inner elbow of a low L-shaped wall and it's nigh on impossible to shift cover from one inner wall to the other, you know, the one you're technically already up against, without a 90% fail rate that ends with you just standing up dumbly, that cover system needs some work. I like to think I'm not completely motorically challenged, but i still can't figure out exactly how their cover shifting works!
 
Why are nobody pointing out that every character's eyes have two dozen highlights, and that the lack of antialiasing, while really noticeable overall, turn the highlights into clouds of white dots effectively obscuring the pupils? It's hard to emphasize with a glowing-eyed space alien. Do all these characters have a fever? Chloe's face in particular is incredibly hard to look at.
 
Why are nobody pointing out that short of headshots you are emptying clips into dudes who only react when they finally die? There is little to no force to any non-explosive weapon! This was a problem in the first game as well, and it hasn't been remedied. Guns feel "soft".
 
Why, oh why oh why, did Naughty Dog choose to effectively open their game with an unforgiving stealth mission? When you sneak up on someone for a stealth knockout, 50% of the time you get a short sharp blow that lets you get right back into cover. The rest of the time a long strangling takes place. The difference, tactically, is immense. I've pulled off perfect stealth sections only to fail at the very end; bam, restart the section. Oh, and on this restart, you get other animations that take long enough to complete that you fail where you previously succeeded. It's a mess of a section and Naughty Dog should be ashamed. FFS, if you aren't making a stealth game, make stealth optional!
 
This is all mechanical nitpicking of course; As an adventure movie kind of experience, this is exceedingly well done. Mechanically however, it makes me almost desperate to go back to inFAMOUS where everything just works and feels right. I'm not sure I'm totally cool with this script-heavy trend. For every cool edge-of-your-seat moment in this game there's a bit where you repeat the section and the smoke and mirrors go away; Imminent peril will wait until you move to the next trigger. On the PS3, inFAMOUS remains my GOTY 2009. Part of me wishes i hadn't seen all the hype before playing Uncharted 2. I would certainly have been more enamored with it.

So after all this yelling about Uncharted 2, i finally bought it and sat down to play it. You better believe all this positive talk about a game can lift expectations. I like to think mine weren't completely unrealistic, but seriously, this game has some big issues. So much so I'm starting to wonder if it doesn't suffer a bit from the Call of duty syndrome, where scripting and set pieces overshadow the quality of the core gameplay.
 
It's not bad! Christ. Haha I'd be crazy to say it's anywhere near bad. But outside of the sheer spectacle this game is throwing around, i have certainly seen games that do what Uncharted 2 does mechanically better. 
 
I'm aware Naughty Dog are proud of their animation blending, which makes it really odd to see things like Drake suddenly flinging into his stumbling animation while sliding slowly sideways after a small jump. Inverse kinematics go out the window. 
 
This is a cover based shooter, but when you're in the inner elbow of a low L-shaped wall and it's nigh on impossible to shift cover from one inner wall to the other, you know, the one you're technically already up against, without a 90% fail rate that ends with you just standing up dumbly, that cover system needs some work. I like to think I'm not completely motorically challenged, but i still can't figure out exactly how their cover shifting works!
 
Why are nobody pointing out that every character's eyes have two dozen highlights, and that the lack of antialiasing, while really noticeable overall, turn the highlights into clouds of white dots effectively obscuring the pupils? It's hard to emphasize with a glowing-eyed space alien. Do all these characters have a fever? Chloe's face in particular is incredibly hard to look at.
 
Why are nobody pointing out that short of headshots you are emptying clips into dudes who only react when they finally die? There is little to no force to any non-explosive weapon! This was a problem in the first game as well, and it hasn't been remedied. Guns feel "soft".
 
Why, oh why oh why, did Naughty Dog choose to effectively open their game with an unforgiving stealth mission? When you sneak up on someone for a stealth knockout, 50% of the time you get a short sharp blow that lets you get right back into cover. The rest of the time a long strangling takes place. The difference, tactically, is immense. I've pulled off perfect stealth sections only to fail at the very end; bam, restart the section. Oh, and on this restart, you get other animations that take long enough to complete that you fail where you previously succeeded. It's a mess of a section and Naughty Dog should be ashamed. FFS, if you aren't making a stealth game, make stealth optional!
 
This is all mechanical nitpicking of course; As an adventure movie kind of experience, this is exceedingly well done. Mechanically however, it makes me almost desperate to go back to inFAMOUS where everything just works and feels right. I'm not sure I'm totally cool with this script-heavy trend. For every cool edge-of-your-seat moment in this game there's a bit where you repeat the section and the smoke and mirrors go away; Imminent peril will wait until you move to the next trigger. On the PS3, inFAMOUS remains my GOTY 2009. Part of me wishes i hadn't seen all the hype before playing Uncharted 2. I would certainly have been more enamored with it.

You should have been aware of the possibilities of hype when you started hearing it.  Personally I think most people are practically retarded so I rarely get sucked into the hype.

Just dont listen to hype or take it with a grain of salt.

I never had any of the problems you describe, maybe you just aren't good at this game. I dreaded combat in Uncharted 1 and love it in 2, it's vastly improved. The enemies stumble around when you shoot them in the body, and it only ever takes 3-4 body shots to kill them. The opening stealth missions was very cool, fun, and really easy, I only had to restart once in the room where you first get the tranquilizer gun because I didn't see how to climb up onto the ledge. Cover hopping is done with direction + circle, assuming there is another cover point next to you. Never seen the graphical glitches you describe with the eyes or the antialiasing either, are you playing in HD? 

Thank Christ, I thought I was alone on this. I've called Uncharted 2 my frustration of 2009 because of mechanical things that felt very off and caused me to die for stupid and (arguably) unfair reasons.

I disagree. I have had close to none of the problems you were having and the stuff i recognise are blown out of proportion.but hey, your opinion is as valid as mine :)

I have to say I am not sure what you are talking about with the stealth section I just started my second playthrough and the whole museum stealth mission is so damn easy, but I do agree about some of the shooting not feeling, Weighty when I shoot a Ak-47 it should feel like I am ripping someone apart but it is still a ton of fun and it works flawlessly (At least I never had any issues once I got kinda used to the PS3 controller which I still think is just weird WHY do I use buttons to shoot when there are fucking triggers? It makes no sense)

" @slacker4life:  Do you include yourself in this "everyone's a retard" theory you have, or do you just like generalizing people you don't know?  "

I generalize humans as generally dumb based on what I see everyday whether it be on the internet, at work, out and about, on a date, or on the news.  If you can't see large faults in many humans maybe you yourself have them and belong in my generalization.
 
Do I count myself in the masses? Clearly not as I have my life together and am quite successful, I can continue down the list but I’ll leave it at that. Believe me or not, I don’t care.

More on-topic when comparing to regular video game standards I found virtually no issues with Uncharted 2.

Firstly, if it lived up to the hype it would be Jesus
 
Secondly, the fact that you are anti-hyping it now makes it seem like it is an awful game. And the majority state it is not-in fact, it is very good.

I've been playing the game a lot more, and it certainly grows on you. Little technical problems don't bother me as much. I suppose i was getting hung up on them because the hype was making me think this was some kind of Nintendo-ish anal-retentive polish-fest where absolutely nothing is ever off by any margin. Shame on me :-)
 
The only thing I'm still not impressed with is the combat. The game is at its best when you're running, jumping and shit explodes and falls apart. When it drops you in a room with a gun and a bunch of enemies, i just want to get it over with. Impacts are weak, aiming doesn't feel right. This is such a subtle thing. many if not MOST shooters get this "wrong" (like Killzone 2 for instance), and games like Dead Space, COD and inFAMOUS nail the right balance of responsiveness and precision. I suppose it just speaks more to Naughty Dog's skills at storytelling and art. I guess it boils down to the feeling that if i empty a clip of FAL rounds into a man's abdomen, armor or not, he should not be standing.
 
About the aiming.. Why do game developers on consoles like to introduce so much artificial imprecision? We are already aiming with a fairly imprecise control method. It's a bitch as it is to line up a headshot under stress. Why introduce more imprecision? In Uncharted 2, you put your crosshair over a man's head, there's still a good chance it won't register as a headshot. Tracer rounds look like they just fly around everywhere. It just seems like unnecessary punishment.
 
Anyway enough bitching about what is, truly, a really good game. I went back to playing after writing this post and a couple of hours later i felt bad i ever brought up the slightly janky stuff.

Not like every game has its problems.  They are just games, after all.

damn i hate how all the good games fill the forums with ppl saying how they suck.
Yes MW2 is the WORST game ever along with WoW thats why everyone is playing. What's next guys?
Dragon Age Origins : huge dissapointment, lame RPG.

I didn't have any problems with the cover mechanics or the stealth missions. I found the stealth missions fun, and a nice change of pace that I wasn't expecting. I do agree with you about the guns though. Sometimes it felt as the body shots from the assault rifles didn't have much of an effect on the enemy in terms of animation. But anyway, you just focused on the negatives. There are some things mechanically that Naughty Dog did really well. For example, the platforming. It felt really fluid and looked great, some of the best platforming in any adventure game in my opinion.

" Why are nobody pointing out that every character's eyes have two dozen highlights, and that the lack of antialiasing, while really noticeable overall, turn the highlights into clouds of white dots effectively obscuring the pupils? It's hard to emphasize with a glowing-eyed space alien. Do all these characters have a fever? Chloe's face in particular is incredibly hard to look at."
 
This seems to be an example of "Trying To Find Something Wrong With Something Syndrome", or TTFSWWSS.
 
With such high expectations, people, of course, are going to try and find something wrong.
Best way to go about playing or watching anything is to go in with no expectations! That's what I did with Avatar, and I thought it was brilliant, unlike most people, who seem to have fallen into TTFSWWSS.

" damn i hate how all the good games fill the forums with ppl saying how they suck. Yes MW2 is the WORST game ever along with WoW thats why everyone is playing. What's next guys? Dragon Age Origins : huge dissapointment, lame RPG. "

Im really not a big fan of stealth gameplay, but I actually thought they handled it pretty well. It acted as a nice variation and it wasnt too difficult. I certainly wouldnt describe it as 'a mess' or suggest that Naughty Dog should be 'ashamed' because of it....its not like its broken

I only occasionally had trouble with the cover system but almost all cover based games occasionally hiccup and you push left and the person goes in the wrong dirrection.  My biggest complaint was the guy on the train that I literally unloaded about 100 bullets into him and did nothing........however a few punches in the face and he was owned.  I know games also do it all the time but it is still funny.

I don't like the concept that Uncharted 2 was hyped. Halo had an F'n drink and trailers in movie theatres. Modern Warfare 2 had crazy branding everywhere and half the industry intentionally delayed its games to avoid it. Uncharted 2 came out, received fantastic scores, and everyone hated on it. All it did was be a fantastic game without all the pre-release madness that some games receive. Hell, most people that bought it didn't get it until well after its release because there wasn't hype going in. My point is, stop saying it was hyped up. 
 
As far as its shortcomings, I did notice the crazy eye thing and that totally sucks...and it's still the best looking game ever made so I was able to let that go. The cover changing when you're in an "L-shaped" area is simple. Push the left stick in the direction you want to go. It works. The only time you'll end up standing up and looking ridiculous (which is quite funny) is if you move in a direction away from the cover you're already in.  I don't want this post to be even longer but I've played all the major cover-based games out right now and this system is by far the best. I'm willing to back that up if need be.
 
Enemies certainly respond to being shot. The only ones that don't are the guardians and the heavily armored soldiers, but even they respond to headshots. How else could the game reward you/encourage you to shoot an enemy while he's readying a grenade making him drop said live grenade and kill himself? There's a medal for that.  

I never did listen to the hype or follow it as it was the second coming of Christ so my expectations for a game are never really above "Meh, it might be cool". 
  
But that doesn't mean that I don't agree with you on your points. 
There are some weird errors and stuff that seems really weird, but the game is still fantastic if one is willing to look past those weird things.

" @Mordukai said:

" @slacker4life:  Do you include yourself in this "everyone's a retard" theory you have, or do you just like generalizing people you don't know?  "

 

I generalize humans as generally dumb based on what I see everyday whether it be on the internet, at work, out and about, on a date, or on the news.  If you can't see large faults in many humans maybe you yourself have them and belong in my generalization.
 
Do I count myself in the masses? Clearly not as I have my life together and am quite successful, I can continue down the list but I’ll leave it at that. Believe me or not, I don’t care.

More on-topic when comparing to regular video game standards I found virtually no issues with Uncharted 2.

"

" I don't like the concept that Uncharted 2 was hyped. Halo had an F'n drink and trailers in movie theatres. Modern Warfare 2 had crazy branding everywhere and half the industry intentionally delayed its games to avoid it. Uncharted 2 came out, received fantastic scores, and everyone hated on it. All it did was be a fantastic game without all the pre-release madness that some games receive. Hell, most people that bought it didn't get it until well after its release because there wasn't hype going in. My point is, stop saying it was hyped up."

I think some of the shooting could use more polish. Enemies STILL take a little too many hits to kill, and the difficulty on some fights gets stupid hard sometimes (I'm talking about YOU, blue guys, yes YOU!). Seriously beating that on hard... I tip my hat to any who have. 
 
But the traversal gameplay's awesome, the set pieces and scripted events are the best I've seen, and that's a mighty fine graphics engine they've got themselves.

I don't know how you logically complain about Uncharted 2's depiction of eyes, but then say inFamous is your GOTY.  I thought that game overall was graphically bland from a technical perspective, as if it was a PS2 game that got ported to a current generation console (I don't think that's far off base either; Sucker Punch said that they were not developing inFamous with the PS3's specifications in mind.).  All objects in the world has aliasing issues, and all non-comic cutscenes were very stiff and lacking of quality animations.
 
I guess that isn't inFamous' strong point though.  The best thing I found about that game is the way Cole traverse's through the game, which is the best gameplay mechanic of that type that I have ever experienced.  Other than that though, I could not get myself to love inFamous.  Enemy AI was very simple minded (move forward, attack - repeat) and that lack of mission variety really diminished my experience as the game went on.  Of course, this is all my opinion though.

" I think some of the shooting could use more polish. Enemies STILL take a little too many hits to kill, and the difficulty on some fights gets stupid hard sometimes (I'm talking about YOU, blue guys, yes YOU!). Seriously beating that on hard... I tip my hat to any who have.   "

Yep, Uncharted 2 has issues like most games.