A real treasure (Uncharted: Drake's Fortune (PS3))

Member Name: tommy7

Product:	Uncharted: Drake's Fortune (PS3)
Date:	01/05/09 (99 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Hugely enjoyable

Disadvantages: Very few, that annoying high pitch noise probably the worst

"Uncharted: Drake's Fortune" is the story of Nathan Drake, a descendant of Sir Francis Drake. He follows the path his great ancestor took in the hope that he can find El Dorado, the City of Gold. The story element is enough to keep you interested throughout and takes you from one location to the next. There are inevitable comparisons with Indiana Jones and Tomb Raider but there is enough here for Drake to make his own mark.

The graphics in this game are magnificent. You also are able to take an almost 360 degree view from any platform. This leads to amazing views from the top of waterfalls, mountains, or even U-boats!

The sound is also a real plus point but this leads to one of the few negatives I had about the game. When someone throws a grenade near you and you have the expected explosion there then follows a high pitch whine which I imagine is to signify the damage caused to your ears in real life. However, if you have the sound up at a reasonable level this noise is irritating in the extreme. The music throughout the game is also excellent. I seldom notice the music in a game but this one has its own tune which sounded like the score to a Hollywood movie.

Gameplay is what consoles used to be all about but that is an element which has been lost over the years as the graphics have got better. This game is a great example of how to combine both. Drake has a variety if options, weapons and missions available to him over the game. It is always fresh and there seems like a different challenge in each mission.
What I liked about the game was how difficult it was to get lost. Although I normally credit games for letting you do your own thing this is an extremely linear game and there is nothing more frustrating than walking around wondering what you should be doing next. In this game there is always a clue if you get lost for more than a couple of minutes.

The game, as is almost traditional for these types, has a number of hidden items, 60 in all, which are spread throughout the levels. They are not overly difficult to find, they glint in the sun. In my initial run through I think I found around 32 of them without specifically looking for them. It's a fairly minor side issue but it adds another element to the game. The other aspect was the award of reward points for doing certain things. Usually killing a set number of enemies in a certain way or with a certain weapon. A lot of these rewards are hidden until it pops up that you have unlocked them so it encourages you to vary your weapons and activities.

What I really liked about this game was the length of it. Too many titles can be completed in less than ten hours these days. This was definitely not the case here. There are 22 chapters to be completed and some of them are very challenging. If I had to guess I would say that it took around 25 hours of playing time to finish the game.

Where the developers were also clever is that as you progress the enemies become a kind of powerful animal type zombie thing (possibly the worst description you will ever read on Dooyoo!), which is much harder to kill than the humans. Also the human enemies have laser sighted weapons which can kill you with one bullet so you have to be a lot more careful.

I mentioned there were very few downsides. I think the only other main one I can think of was the way that you lose health. When you are shot the screen begins to lose colour. If you take on too much damage the screen goes black and white and eventually you die. However to replenish your health, and the cover, you just need to hide and it comes back to full health. This made some of the missions a bit easier than if you had a finite amount and relied on health packs.

Having sold over two million copies it is easy to see this is an extremely popular title and was one of the first to appear on the PS3 platinum range, signifying sales of over 400,000 copies.

This is my second favourite title on the PS3, running GTA IV very close. It is great fun and is easy to get into. The sequel is scheduled for the end of this year and if they improve on this title I will be very impressed.

I paid either £30 or £40 for this on release (can't remember, was 18 months ago) and think it was fantastic value for money. If you can pick this up for £10-£12 it will be an amazing bargain.

Summary: An absolute bargain