Uncharted 2: Among Thieves

Pros:

• Beautiful graphics, best ever made
• Game play is great and varied and well refined
• Online is fun and addicting
• Storyline and characters are great and engaging

Cons:

• Puzzles are a bit easy

Uncharted 2 is certainly a game with alot of praise and hype, but are people simply over exageratting and just blinded by it's stunning graphics? I am here to tell you that they are not, and that if you enjoy games at all you owe it to yourself to pick this up IMMEDIATELY! Uncharted 2 alone is worth buying a PS3 for just to play it if you don't already own one.

To start off you simply can't mention Uncharted 2 without bringing up the graphics, as that is simply the first thing you'll see. And Uncharted 2 has this down perfectly, you'll be hard pressed to find any game on consoles that looks this good. The level of grapical detail is simply jaw dropping and you'll be amazed the whole way through. Thankfully though, Uncharted 2 plays as good as it looks!

Let's explain what Uncharted 2 is all about for those who don't know, Uncharted 2 is an action-adventure game about treasure hunter Nathan Drake who is on a quest to find Marco Polo's lost fleet and the ancient and fabled city of Shambala. Nathan Drake's personality is one that is instantly reconisable as a classic hero archtype of this clever and quick witted scoundrel type, he says cheesy one liners (but in a good way) and has funny and intersting dialog with other charecters in the game. He is the type of person who relies on being clever and always get's out by the skin of his teeth.

If all this reminds you of Indiana Jones that's because it basically is. Nathan Drake is simply a more modern day version of his personality, and while it might be unorigional, it is by no means a bad thing. He is quite enjoyable and all the other charecters are aswell, you have his best friend Sully who fills this older and more experienced role, you have the classic girlfriend Elena who fills out this romance type role, and you have Clhoe who is this more mysterious and sultry new girl type of role. And of course there is the bad guy named Lazarvich, a brutal Serbian war lord who honors tyrants such as Hitler, Stalin and Pol Pot.

So while the overall plot it'self isn't origional and you can see where it's going, it doesn't stop the fact that the story is still pretty enjoyable and entertaining. And the real magic of Uncharted 2 is that you get to play all these movie-like moments, imagine just about any intense scene or moment from Indiana Jones, National Treasure or just about any other action-adventure movie. Now imagine being able to play it, the result is something truly special and awesome.

The gameplay clearly takes a few things from other games such as the 3rd person shooting/cover mechanic from Gears of War, or the climbing from Assassin's Creed (handled MUCH better in Uncharted 2). There is also alot of platforming in the game aswell, but none of these things are a problem. Naughty Dog took these mechanics and polished them SO well that playing with them is flawless, there is really nothing to complain about as far as gameplay it'self goes.

Uncharted 2 has three main types of things you'll be doing, climbing and platforming, shooting/cover, and puzzle solving. All these things are handled well like I mentioned before, but the puzzles have one little flaw to them, you can "cheat". The puzzles themselves are pretty creative including ones that are GIGANTIC and take up an entire room, but you have a diary you can open up at anytime and it basically shows you the answers. You don't have to use the diary but if you do, it practically tells you exactly what to do. I would have liked it if the diary mabey showed hints instead of straight out answers, still that is the one and only tiny flaw in this game.

The SP experience also has alot of replay value as well with things like hidden treasures to find thoughout the levels and different challenges you can complete. There are also different difficulty settings, so there is always a challenge for those who end up feeling the normal settings arn't enough of a challenge. The SP is so enjoyable that you can play through it COUNTLESS times and never get bored of it. It's just so enjoyable and well put togehter that you'll want to keep coming back over and over again.

There is also a very well done MP mode aswell with alot of variety. You have co-op missions with up to 3 players tackiling some story based missions that are (slightly) different. Then you have survival type co-op modes where you defend against multiple waves of enemies, these are VERY hard however definately take alot of practice to get good at, espeically the later rounds. Then there is are the competitive online MP modes, you have your standard Team Deathmatch and CTF (well Capture the Treasur in this case) and king of the hill modes ect.. But the thing that makes these so fun and unique is the platforming and variety, you have so many different ways you can play. You can jump and climb to higher places to snipe or scout, or run and climb to escape, or you can sneak around or just go out guns blazing. The game has SO many different ways to play that anyone can jump in and have fun with it.

You also level up just like most other online games and you get new boosters (perks) that you can unlock for your charecter and weapons.

Final Verdict:

Overall Uncharted 2 is a masterpiece of a game that plays as great as it looks. It's simply one the greatest games I have ever played in my life and everyone I have recommended it to has simply loved it. If you already own a PS3 then you already have Uncharted 2 (well at least you should). If you don't have a PS3 then buy one and this game because you absolutely need to play this!

Uncharted 2 Among Thieves get's a 5/5