Uncharted 2: Among Thieves Review
Uncharted 2: Among Thieves is like a Michael Bay film: you correctly anticipate every plot twist and the characters are one-dimensional archetypes yet despite that you still have a great time. You know Nathan Drake. You know Elena, Sully and Lazarevic; you can probably recite their lines for them. This is a pulp adventure serial come to life, only this time you get to take the reins and save the day.
Uncharted 2 is a brilliantly executed game fleshed out into an engrossing experience through the tiny oft-overlooked details, whether it’s the characters’ lifelike body language, Drake’s running banter or the way your clothes get wet when you take a swim. The combat is smooth and well executed, the gameplay is varied and the pacing is rarely too slow or too frenetic. Finally, the comedic vein that infuses the whole experience is charming.
Among Thieves is not a perfect game. There are minor control issues, the action set pieces can be a bit much and there are minor checkpoint annoyances. That being said, if you own a PS3, you can’t go wrong with Uncharted 2.
What went right?
Story: It is ridiculous how cliché the plot of Uncharted is, and how each character is lifted straight from Indiana Jones. That being said, the narrative moves along at a speedy clip and keeps your attention relentlessly focused on the next goal. Locales change rapidly; you really feel like you’re on a globe trotting adventure. What truly makes the game special, however, is the characters. The dialogue is witty and endearing, the villains are believable, and wandering around listening to Drake’s stream of consciousness is delightful. I think the final lines were the most amusing of the whole game and I for one can’t wait to revisit the cast in another adventure. Hopefully a Victor Sullivan spin-off: “From Port to Port.”
Gameplay: Run & gun, cover based shooter, stealth-action game, platformer, rails shooter, puzzle game. I’m not referring to multiple games. Every one of these game mechanics is included in Uncharted, but the real magic is how they are all knit together into a cohesive whole. Jumping between these styles feels natural as they’re integrated into the narrative. The pacing is superb throughout and you’re never burnt out after too many arena gun battles, jumping puzzles or stealth sequences in a row. The only thing missing from this game is inventory management and a leveling system, which I hear is being incorporated into Uncharted 3: Origins.
I said I wanted this place clean when I came back! Now we're going to have problems.
Combat: Gone are the enemies from Drake’s Fortune that I believe were called the T-1000. While these are still videogame enemies, they don’t suck up 100 bullets before death (maybe only 5 or 6 this time). Another step forward from the original Uncharted is in the variety of enemy. It’s now greater than ‘Pirate’ and ‘Bandana Pirate.’ Mr. Riot Shield, Sir Body Armor and Mean Mr. Gatling Gun make an appearance, along with the classic Demon Yeti. This isn’t even mentioning helicopters, tanks or collapsing buildings (the only natural enemy of Nathan Drake). Finally, Drake has been going to the gym and has greatly expanded his stealth repertoire with a variety of silent hooks, jabs and neck snaps.
Graphics: I don’t want to make too big a deal of this because I’m firmly in the ‘gameplay, not graphics’ camp, and this game can be hit and miss with the character models and environments in some places looking just great, not spectacular. That being said, when everything comes together as it does in mountain villages or ice caves, for example, this is the best looking game ever made. There were two or three (or ten) moments where I was literally exclaiming ‘holy shit’ while alone in my apartment. The neighbors have installed an extra lock on their door.
Humor: There are many funny little touches in Uncharted 2, but the best of all is Drake’s journal. The margin notes and comments Drake has added to the clues he finds are side-splitting and in keeping with his personality. Naughty Dog should branch out into travel book writing.
Hey check it out, I'm going to make this look as stylish as possible! Time to turn the gun sideways
What were they thinking?
Checkpoints: Among Thieves is great at not forcing you to replay completed segments of the game, with one notable exception: the ‘arena battles.’ These are where you walk into a large area and have to kill several waves of enemies before progressing. While these are fun gameplay segments, sometimes it’s frustrating when you kill 19 out of the 20 enemies and then accidentally fall off a cliff and the autosave restarts you at the beginning of the arena. This problem is exacerbated by the lack of any indication of which falls you can survive and which you can’t. It is merely a binary value: either you are completely fine on landing, or the jump was two feet too far and you instantly die on impact. Enjoy fighting those demon yetis again.
Getting Lost: While Uncharted 2 is a linear experience, there are a few segments where I was hopelessly unsure of where to go. I would wander around climbing bookcases and abandoned cars until the helpful tooltip appeared that told me to climb the street sign. While this may merely be a symptom of my crippling incompetence, it would have been helpful to have less subtle lighting cues pointing towards where to go next.
If i move very very slowly I don't think they'll even notice I'm here. If I can't see them they can't see me right?
Jumping Puzzles: These are generally pretty good, and Nathan is adept at grabbing ledges that are in arm’s reach. That being said, these puzzles can be frustrating either if you miss a jump in the right direction, assume it was therefore incorrect, and spend minutes searching for alternatives, or if you do the opposite and repeatedly attempt something that looks like it could work but won’t.
Cinematics: I am conflicted on this one. The action set pieces are exhilarating, but sometimes they felt too limiting. While it’s nice that many of them weren’t strictly cutscenes, holding down one button and watching the action unfold as I flee from a truck down an alleyway is hardly different from simply watching. The experience felt too guided in parts.
Verdict
It is worth mentioning that the game also has a very robust multiplayer mode with multiple game modes and a few interesting elements such as very quick close-up combat options and vertical gameplay. I hesitate to put too much stock into its staying power, however, considering an online juggernaut named Modern Warfare 2 is fast approaching. The single-player experience is a must play and the multiplayer is just gravy.
Is Uncharted 2: Among Thieves a perfect game? Of course not. Don’t get caught up in the 11/10 hyperbole. The flaws are minor, however, and they are vastly overshadowed by the positives in the experience. There are more than a handful of ridiculously over the top action sequences that get your adrenaline going and make you marvel at Naughty Dog’s creativity. In the end my biggest criticism of the game is that there isn’t enough Victor Sullivan, something they will hopefully rectify in the future.
