Welcome to my review of Uncharted 4. I gotta say I've been loving this game! Uncharted 4 is made by Naughty Dog, who have done three previous Uncharted games as well as the hugely popular, The Last of Us. I was late to the party with this series and ended up playing the first three in a row to get caught up with the story for the new one. The cast of characters and the story are the main focus of these games, they're very cinematic, and some of the best looking games I've ever played.
If you've never played an Uncharted game, well, you're just missing out on a really fun experience. But seriously, the character of Nathan Drake is very similar to Indiana Jones, he goes to exotic locations, looking for priceless artifacts. The difference is, unlike Indiana, Nathan is out to make a name for himself and hopefully get rich in the process. The game puts you in amazing set pieces and makes you feel like you're in a big budget blockbuster movie. In each Uncharted they put you with a different set of people that join you on your journey, except for Sully, he's in every one. Sully is a father figure to Nathan and also a mentor. Sully taught Nate everything he knows, he's also one of my favorite side characters in this series. Uncharted 4 gives you more information about Nate's childhood, and how he came to be who he is now, something we never really got to see before.
At the start of this game you play as a more mature Nathan Drake. He's no longer going on adventures looking for valuable treasures, he's working a day job as a diver, and is married to Elena, a main character from previous games. It also brings you back to when Nate was a child living in an orphanage, and introduces you to his older brother Sam. You get to play a sequence as young Nathan, as Sam helps break you out of the orphanage one night. You then fast forward to adult Nate and Sam, and join them on a mission where you're purposely in prison to find information on a valuable artifact. Upon trying to escape something happens to Sam and he is proposed dead, this is why Sam's not in any of the other games.
This is the set up for the rest of the game, as we rejoin Nate at present day. One night Nathan is finishing some paperwork getting ready to head home, when suddenly there's a knock at the door. As Nate opens the door he's blown away to see his older brother Sam standing there to greet him. Sam explains how he survived the prison escape all those years ago and has been in there ever since. He managed to finally escape with the help of a dangerous drug lord who was Sam's cellmate, but Sam promised the man half of a long lost treasure, and if he doesn't pay up in six months the drug lord will find and kill Sam. So of course Nathan agrees to help his brother and the grand adventure begins!
This game is beautiful, as it takes you through many different locations, each is highly detailed and very well done. I mean, look at some of these screenshots for crying out loud, they're beautiful! Nolan North and Troy Baker do a great job of playing the parts of the two main brothers, with entertaining dialog and believable scenes of brothers joking or arguing. This entry in the series is much less linear than the previous three, but doesn't really give you a reason to explore except for the stunning visuals or shiny collectibles. The combat is pretty much the same as the rest of the series, it does introduce the grappling hook, letting you wildly swing around from place to place. This game is pretty impressive in many ways and was a lot of fun to play. The third act dragged on a little too long and the climbing became tedious after awhile, but the story keeps you going and having fun regardless. This is the last game for Nathan Drake and they did a good job of making it a grand send off. This series is a masterpiece of gaming that everyone should experience, I give the final entry of Uncharted an:
A+
