In the beginning of Uncharted 4, Nathan Drake is a normal guy living a normal, boring life. He has a regular job, a beautiful wife and an attic filled with mementoes of his glory days as a thief and discoverer of lost cities.
But everything changes when Sam, his brother who was presumed dead for 15 years comes back into his life and asks him to go on one last adventure and help locate the greatest pirate treasure of all time.
Given that this is the final chapter of Nathan Drake’s story, Uncharted 4 is a little more serious and mature, which fits well within the narrative of the game. The banter is still present and it is as funny as it has ever been, but the changes made to the tone of the game are in service to its central theme.
The same goes for the breathtaking set-pieces which are still as explosive, but just a little spread out. It’s not Uncharted 3.5, which itself was too similar to Uncharted 2.
Most aspects of the game have also undergone major changes. It is much longer, the pacing is slower and some areas are massive with huge open spaces. You will find yourself spending a lot more time exploring, climbing, jumping or swinging to the next platform.
As a result, the gap between set-pieces and combat encounters increases. The slow pacing isn’t an issue for most of the game, but a few climbing sequences run a bit too long. I also would’ve liked more combat especially considering how well the game plays and how effectively the new mechanics have been integrated into its level design.
The shooting feels really smooth and melee looks and feels exhilarating. You can also mark enemies and fully sneak past most encounters in the game. But Nathan Drake now has a rope which, when combined with fully destructible cover completely changes the dynamics of the game.
As expected, you can shoot while swinging but you can also land on top of enemies and knock them out with one punch. This combination of traversal, stealth, cover shooting, run and gun, melee and the rope makes every combat encounter a treat.
As expected, the animations and sound design are excellent but to say that Uncharted 4 is gorgeous would be doing it a disservice. The graphics, draw distance and level of detail perhaps outclass every other game in the market. It’s definitely the prettiest game I’ve ever played.
While the crux of your Uncharted experience is most definitely the single player, the game does come with a multiplayer component which is quite enjoyable. The same mechanics carry over in silky smooth 60fps and the gun play along with mystical abilities based on previous games make it quite fun.
With so many additions and improvements, Uncharted 4 exemplifies excellence in all departments. It is not only the best Uncharted game, it’s a new landmark and a crowning achievement in the action-adventure genre.
