Thought I'd make this topic for people who have finished a playthrough of the game, like me.
My impressions? Absolutely awesome game, but I think the "best game ever made" hype is way overstated.
Incredible visuals, great story, much improved shooting from the first game, great music, amazing set piece action sections, etc. etc. etc.
However, it isn't flawless. The game reaches a point where it just becomes like Gears of War "horde mode" for a while - enter an environment, and then fight off waves of guys, go through a section of climbing and jumping puzzles, then enter the next "battle arena". It got a little tedious for me through these sections, though I inevitably came back because I had to find out what was going to happen next.
They weren't bad, per se - but I reached a point where I started saying "oh come on!" out loud, when more and more baddies would come out of the woodwork after I thought a section was clear.
The game also still has a little trouble letting you know what is climbable, and what isn't. Some spots are obvious, but others - especially scaling the sides of buildings - are not. And some areas look cilmbable, but aren't.
I also hope they include more stealth in Uncharted 3. There was nothing more rewarding than artfully sneaking around an area, and breaking as many necks as I could before the shit hit the fan. It'd be great if more firefights could be avoided entirely in favour of climbing all over the place and quietly taking guys out.
Ultimately these are small quibbles though - the vistas are stunning, the graphics are sublime, and the story is interesting. However, I think "best game ever made" is pretty ridiculous hyperbole - best game of the year though? It currently is for me, that's for sure. I will say this game probably wins "best tutorial ever made", haha - it definitely makes you sit up right away and say "holy shit, this is going to be GOOD".
Your thoughts? I expect universally positive opinions on the game overall, but I'm more interested to see what little quibbles people may have had, if any, in addition to the positives.
- Scott
Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
Game » consists of 14 releases. Released Oct 13, 2009
Nathan Drake returns to find the lost secret of Marco Polo, in this sequel to the 2007 sleeper hit Uncharted: Drake's Fortune.
Finished the Game - Your Impressions *POSSIBLE SPOILERS*
I thought it was the best game i'd ever played. I've played a lot of games in my life - hundreds and hundreds - but this really stood out. Production values are through the roof and raise the bar for eveything else. The soundtrack, effects and acting are incredible - I say acting, as it's not even a case of just voice acting anymore. These characters move and express with eerie realism, especially Chloe Frazer in some early cutscenes. A slight uncertain wink in Chloe's eye floors me, not the massive vistas (although they are beautfiul).
The game handles flawlessly too. It somehow manages to do so much with the Dual Shock 3 so easily. I went back to playing Gears of War 2 tonight and, while it's also a great game, it just feels stiff and decrepit in comparison. Uncharted 2 moves like water - so smooth at all times, and always able to be manipulated. In the last few years, few games have made me sit there and complete it in one evening like Uncharted 2 did. When I compare it to some of my other favourite games: Ninja Gaiden Black, Metal Gear Solid and Vice City, I can't imagine sitting there for the same amount of time with them, even on a first run. I blame this on the pacing. In Uncharted 2 the pacing is simply perfection and I don't think any other game does it as well. The length, while short at 7:30 hours, fits the pacing perfectly and encourages a marathon session like i did.
I can't think of any other game as good as this - if I did, i'd just be looking at old games with rose tinted glasses. My favourite games can't be my favourites forever; sometimes they have to move over and accept that the new blood does it better.
I just finished the game. I pretty much was like this at the end of it:
I really don't have to delve into how the story was great, or how it's really a cinematic masterpiece in the video game medium. As for the gameplay, I thought it addressed a lot of the issues that the first one had. I actually thought the whole "arena battle" issue occurred a lot less. It was pretty noticeable when in Nepal, but a lot of times it felt like the enemy was just on your tail and engaged you in combat when they caught up. Then there were areas where it didn't feel like the enemy was staying stationary, just waiting for you to arrive. The whole tank sequence in the village made it feel like Lazarevic's men were hunting down the villagers, and you were plowing your way through.
I still have some problems with the way Drake moves in the game. He loves to just stick onto something every time you roll. I wish they implemented the fix that Epic made for Gears 2: just pull back on the joystick to cancel out of cover. I also get annoyed when you jump, trying to avoid fire, but end up hanging on some low ledge in clear sight of enemy fire. As for the traversal gameplay, I love that Naughty Dog didn't highlight what you needed to climb in an obvious fashion. In Uncharted 1, those climbable ledges popped out too much, making the environment look unnatural. You really had to look around and think what would be reasonable to climb.
My gripes are pretty minor for this game though. Other than the final boss fight (which I liked in concept, but was way too repetitive), this game is an extremely polished experience. Naughty Dog has raised the bar for what can be done in a single player experience.
I have some very slight nit-picks with a couple of areas of the gameplay that I think were mentioned in the post above me, but that aside, I certainly think it lies somewhere in my top 10 games ever played.
I was consistently floored visually, but the gameplay really breaks down starting at around Chapter 21. Giant kill rooms, creatures that take 5000 bullets, that horrible final boss, etc...
Naughty Dog just doesn't know how to end a game.
" I was consistently floored visually, but the gameplay really breaks down starting at around Chapter 21. Giant kill rooms, creatures that take 5000 bullets, that horrible final boss, etc... Naughty Dog just doesn't know how to end a game. "Use a shoot gun or cross bow on them.
I've got a question. I've put it into a spoiler tag, 'cause it alludes highly to the first game's plot.
"Yes, it does.I've got a question. I've put it into a spoiler tag, 'cause it alludes highly to the first game's plot.
"Is Uncharted 2 also filled with supernatural mutation shit when nearing the end of the game, or it is at least hinted throughout the plot? The Nosferatu from the first game where a MAJOR turn off for me, as the game progressed before as one with no ridiculous magical stories and BAM!, suddenly crawlers happened.
While I found the game to be absolutely brilliant, I have some issues with the enemy spam during some of the fight sequences.
It seemed like ND couldn't figure how to make the game harder after decreasing the amount of bullets it takes to take down regular soldiers so instead just flood each area with enemies.. there is one section in the game where you face off against like 40 soldiers... Ever a SHOOTER like gears of war never does that.
that and too much love for snipers, sometimes the game wouldn't really tell you where to go next (like a rope or a tiny ledge that really easy to miss)... I feel absolutely weird about complaining but I got really "AGHHHH!" in places due to getting killed by a homing electrical grenade thing or a one hit kill-rushing shotgunner... then I think back to the first game and never really had to contend with that kind of stuff even on crushing difficulty.
The game is absolutely top notch though one of the top five games for the system without a doubt... But definately not the best games I have ever played. I thought the best moments happened in the final two missions and the ice caves...I even liked the guardians.
I'm on chapter 23.
It's been a bumpy ride, lots of highs and lots of lows.
Hopefully it ends on a high.
" @Milkman: Thanks. I'll pass Uncharted 2 for now and get Brutal Legend instead, I still bet it's an awesome game, but I'm finishing the first one and I'm trembling with disgust because of the last parts of the game. "it's not zombies if that's what you're thinking.
@Shadow: Still, I prefer to wait - I don't want to ruin the game for me by getting a negative attitude from the start, it'll pass after a while.
I'm ok with the way Uncharted ends, but I have a problem how the game establishes it from pure nothingness. There's no indication throughout the game, the twist is never expected. I was left dumbstruck and it blasted the experience. The game from the start builds a climate like in The Temple of Doom, not Raiders of the Lost Ark, then it suddenly comes up with
I bought the game yesterday and completed it about an hour or so ago.
I'm actually shocked at how good it is. The density of amazing set-pieces just one after another and the game's ability to put you in all the action rather than just cutscenes is terrific. Easily my favourite game since MGS4, and objectively speaking it's probably even better. A few little issues and i've had a couple of glitches, but the production values are amazing. The quality of the characterization; the performance and the dialogue blows most games out of the water.
I haven't even touched the multiplayer yet, but Uncharted 2 is already a phenomenal piece of entertainment.
i like to nominate this game for best acted video game of all time (so far) the voice acting was just so well done, and the story was just awesome! where have all the good action movies gone? well they all became video games
Its overall lived up to my expectations of GOTY, only gripe i have with it is how strictly by the story the platforming is. So many times i'd have nate just jump ata wall with me figurin that would be somewhere he could climn onto.
Story is pretty amazing, thanks to the lovable characters...a severe lack of Sully though :'(
The shooting segments did drag near the end though and the end boss battle was plenty frustrating more than fun.
But asa whole package the single player game would still be enough for full price for me. Be completing this a few times before it hits the boredem mark i'm sure
finished the game 2 days ago, took about 9 hours on normal, cut scenes, visuals and story was good, the gunplay was pretty mediocre, cover system was a bit shaky. I'd say great but game was somewhat overrated.
holy shit!!! i just finished this game and ill be going through it several more times. the game play was so smooth and the story kept it very entertaining. graphics are the best i have seen in any game, there were times where i just wanted to sit on top of a building and just look at all the scenery. absolutely worth every penny i paid for it. if you are looking for a good game for your ps3, definitely pick this up.
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