Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End Review: Console games have a new gold standard

The Uncharted series has clearly come a long way from its humble beginnings. Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune was a brief, if action-packed take on the Indiana Jones/Tomb Raider formula which stood out thanks to its Hollywood blockbuster style presentation.But it was in Uncharted 2 when we saw what developers Naughty Dog were truly capable of. Widely regarded as one of the greatest console games of all time, the game’s second instalment was a triumph in game design, storytelling and a technical marvel which pushed the PlayStation 3’s hardware to its limits. While you could argue that Uncharted 3 faltered compared to its predecessors, there was some good technical progress made—the shooting system we’ve seen in developer Naughty Dog’s games since, for instance, have been based on Uncharted 3’s.You could argue that originality in the series has diminished over the course of time, and this is a fair point, particularly since Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End can come off as lacking imagination when it comes to combat or its many jumping puzzles. But as a package, you would be hard pressed to find a game which is even in the same ballpark as Uncharted 4 in terms of presentation, storytelling, production values and gameplay; this is as close to perfection as we have seen in a videogame. From its outrageous opening to its subtle finish, Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End is the best ride we’ve seen in the Naughty Dog theme park.At the outset, we see Nathan Drake and his brother Sam brave rough seas while evading gunfire. The opening seems appropriate for the series—mysterious, yet completely devoid of subtlety. In the opening minutes of Uncharted 4, you’ll see Nate engage in maritime gunfights, frantically steer a boat to avoid rocks, go for an unexpected swim in the middle of the ocean and more.The series has really come into its own over the years, and its hallmark has been the storytelling. It isn’t just the opening—the tone dramatically shifts constantly. Be it confrontations with the game’s antagonists, shady dealings with a prison guard, moments of true vulnerability shared by Nate and Elena, wisecracking during combat or laughing in the face of near-death experiences. There are a wider range of emotions being conveyed than you could imagine.Uncharted 4 is a remarkable improvement over its predecessors in this respect—a great achievement since we didn’t know the previous games could be improved upon in the first place.We later learn that it was the quest for Henry Avery’s pirate treasure that landed the Drake siblings in cold water. The recurring theme of lost cities, wild theories and the promise of treasure is once again a mainstay. It is also the best kind of excuse that encourages our protagonists to travel to exotic locations and do their jobs as explorers—with guns, of course.Uncharted 4 takes us to more locations than the previous games, each more idyllic and danger-filled than the previous. The graphics engine paints some astonishing pictures of all the game’s locales. There’s so much going on visually that it’s difficult to do anything but stop, admire and fully utilize the game’s photo mode to try and capture the perfect image—an easy task given that every frame of Uncharted 4 looks like a postcard.Pushing the very limits of the PS4 is one thing, but doing so in a meaningful way and with this degree of polish is another entirely. Since the game’s cutscenes are all rendered in engine, the transition between cinematic to gameplay is seamless (a term whose usage will need to be retroactively reevaluated after a play-through of Uncharted 4). It certainly helps that the pacing is just perfect, thanks to a good mix of story, exploration and combat, with each effectively breaking up the pace, slowing down or speeding things up as necessary.The shooting sections of previous Uncharted games were easily my least favourite parts of those games. They felt a little forced, enemies were bullet sponges and while the gunplay and cover system were good, it just paled in comparison to the puzzles, exploration and story content. There is better balance in Uncharted 4—environments are more open, there’s a basic stealth system and there appears to be better thought put into the design of the arenas where these encounters take place. If you’re not a huge fan of the gunplay, just use auto-lock aiming feature which snaps onto targets instantly, dramatically speeding up the time taken to complete the combat sections of the game.Uncharted 4’s elaborate set-pieces reminded me why the phrase “cut to the chase” was coined in the first place. There’s nothing that justifies it more than some of the ridiculous action sequences involving vehicular mayhem present in Nathan Drake’s latest adventure, featuring everything from motorbikes, trains, cars to boats and airplanes. These segments are truly next-level stuff, surpassing not just the ones in previous iterations, but pretty much every other game you’ve ever played. The game engine handles the chaos perfectly, and I was surprised that frame rate drops were rare when the going got tough.In addition to competent multiplayer (not much appears to have changed since the beta—you can read my impressions of it here), there’s replayability in the strangest places. You can choose to experience the game’s shootouts separately with varying levels of difficulty thanks to its “Encounters” mode, and there are a tonne of unlockables which can be purchased with in-game currency (Uncharted Points, which unlock cosmetic upgrades for your multiplayer avatar can be bought with real money as well). Single player unlocks include modifiers (such as infinite ammo) or visual filters (cell shaded Nate, anyone?).Seriously, you shouldn’t be on the fence for this one. If you own a PS4, it’s time to drop some of your hard earned moolah on Uncharted 4 if you haven’t already. Not only is it an unparalleled visual spectacle, there’s over a dozen hours of pure entertainment in store not counting PvP.The Digital Edition of Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End is can be purchased at this link on the PlayStation Store.  RATING: 10/10What’s GoodSets a new standard for graphics on consolesWriting, voice acting, pacing, production valuesThere isn’t a story better toldSheer volume of contentWhat’s BadYou could argue that the gameplay lacks depth—but only if you were nitpicking