Uncharted 2 is a fantastic game that pushes the PS3 to its limits. Whether it’s gunning down enemies in a train car, hanging onto handholds or sniping from a perch, the gameplay never feels repetitive.
Whether it’s stealth or combat, the realism in the world and characters makes the gameplay feel very real. And with a great story, this is one of the best games out there.
Story
Uncharted 2 has a fun and exciting story. The game opens with a action setpiece that is also a flashback and a narrative setting heist sequence that gives players a clear idea of what to expect from the rest of the adventure. The story itself revolves around treasure hunting and adventure as Nate Drake infiltrates train after train in pursuit of a magical sap that has a unique power.
Naughty Dog understands that games can’t just rely on story to keep the player interested, but they do an incredible job of seamlessly merging gameplay and cutscenes into one fluid experience. This is best demonstrated during a stage that takes place on board a moving train, where players must evade enemy fire and dangle from the side of the train while shooting enemies on the move.
While Uncharted 2 suffers from the same sluggish movement of the original, it does a far better job of making combat exciting through the use of interesting set pieces and environments. Players will find themselves running from helicopters, climbing across trains, surviving intense firefights on collapsing platforms and buildings, and running through villages avoiding tank shells and gunfire.
Co-op
Among Thieves takes the franchise to an even grander scale, with bigger locales and more expansive action setpieces. Those sequences are typically reserved for non-interactive cut-scenes in other games, but here you can actually play as Nate Drake running from a helicopter or climbing across a train, or frantically avoiding enemy fire in the midst of a massive warehouse collapse.
Naughty Dog also expands the game’s multiplayer options to accommodate up to three players. The co-op mode features instanced cooperative “story” missions and a survival mode in which players must cooperate to survive waves of enemies. These modes allow players to earn cash and increase their level, just like the competitive multiplayer game types.
Uncharted 2: Among Thieves is a fantastic sequel, blending smooth platforming with top-notch shooting and a clever story into one of the best PS3 titles this year. Its few flaws (touchy cover controls in tight spaces and some linear platforming sections) are overshadowed by its overwhelming wealth of features.
Platforming
Naughty Dog’s Uncharted 2 is the videogame equivalent of a comforting adventure film. It improves on its predecessor in almost every way, and combines top-notch shooting with fluid platforming and clever puzzles.
While combat in the previous games in the series has always been a bit of a letdown, Among Thieves manages to keep things exciting and engaging thanks to a variety of situations and set pieces. Shooting enemies on a train, hanging from handholds in the middle of a raging waterfall, running through a village evading gunfire and tank shells – all of these elements make for a more interesting and entertaining combat experience.
The multiplayer portion of the game is also quite good, featuring a number of maps taken from the single player campaign and several brand new ones. The gameplay is free flowing and natural without being too difficult, and a more frequent checkpoint save system helps to prevent frustration during long sections of combat.
Shooting
The Uncharted series combines third-person, cover-based gunplay with Tomb Raider-style platforming and a globe-trotting treasure hunter aesthetic. Naughty Dog has kept the same gameplay from its first entry, Drake’s Fortune, while adding a lot more action and exciting set pieces to this sequel.
Uncharted 2 has a good range of guns to use and encourages movement, using the player’s physical agility to scale narrow ledges and wall faces. The game also offers a few different types of melee attacks.
The action in Among Thieves is exciting and fast-paced, and it never gets repetitive or boring. Whether Drake is hanging from a train as it plummets down a mountainside, fighting off a horde of mercenaries with a sniper rifle, or running through a village dodging tank shells and helicopter fire, every encounter is an adrenaline rush. Besides gunfights, the game also has some interesting action setpieces that don’t involve shooting at all. For instance, players can avoid instigating a shootout by sneaking up behind enemies and snapping their necks.