Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune Review PS3

When I first heard about Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune, my first impression was that it would be another bad Tomb Raider clone. I was pleasantly surprised when I bought my PS3 and tried the demo out. After playing the demo, I ordered a copy on EBay and enjoyed one of the best games ever made. Personally, I believe this game is the death of Tomb Raider.

Graphic and sound:

The graphics in Uncharted are breathtaking. From the lush jungles, the ancient ruins, and the gorgeous waterfalls, the player is left awestruck by what can be done on the PS3. I highly suggest walking around and taking in the scenery, as one will not be disappointed. The textures hold up well even close up and the levels seem enormous. The characters are highly detailed and the variation in enemies is enough that the player will not be distracted by mobs of clones.

The sound in Uncharted is well done; background sounds immerse the player in a live environment. The voiceovers are believable and the script has a few nice twists.

Gameplay and controls:

The game focuses around a character named Drake who is looking for the coffin of Sir Francis Drake who was buried at sea and supposedly left a treasure behind. From there, the player is chased by a group of brigands who are intent on retrieving the treasure for their own evil purposes. The game is fairly linear, but the story draws the player away from the fact that there is little choice of where to go. There also numerous collectables that unlock bonus items and a behind the scenes of Uncharted.

The game is played in the third person perspective with the player using a few guns and hand-to-hand combats for defense. The game consists of mostly platform jumping and a bit of mixed vehicle driving. I only found maybe one or two instance where the camera was an issue in occluding certain areas I needed to jump to; otherwise the free roaming camera was perfect. Also, unlike Tomb Raider, Drake uses a different approach to jumping. Jumping involves having the character look towards the area one wishes to jump to and pressing a button. The character will then automatically jump to the designated area and can jump to multiple outcroppings in this manner, unlike Tomb Raider where one has to constantly battle the camera and the wonky controls.

Overall thoughts:

     In my honest opinion, I believe Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune, is the Tomb Raider killer. Tomb Raider is plagued with horrible camera views, bad controls, and stale gameplay. Uncharted takes everything wrong with Tomb Raider and improves upon them to the point that the camera and controls are no longer an issue. It amazes me that a series such as Tomb Raider that has been around since the original Playstation, is continually plagued by these issues, yet Naughty Dog comes along and is able to develop their first iteration of Uncharted devoid of these issues. This is a game to buy and add to any gamers’ collection. The story in Uncharted is well done and immerses the player in a vivid environment with many memorable moments. Look forward to the next Uncharted game later this fall, as I’m sure it will surpass all expectations.