Greatness From Small Beginnings

Naughty Dog is one of my favorite gaming studios. They’re one of the few that values making quality games without sacrificing their integrity. You won’t find any micro transactions, day one DLC or content that should be available on the disc but blocked by paywalls.

Naughty Dog first rose to fame by creating Crash Bandicoot, the mascot for the original PlayStation. It was a platformer that proved very successful, even rivaling Nintendo’s Mario for awhile, and created two sequels and a racing spin-off. The developers then moved onto the Jak and Daxter series for the PlayStation 2. As with Crash, this was also a platformer, though the series got progressively darker and mature as it went on. An early sign of what was to come.

Enter Uncharted, a third-person action adventure series that’s part Indiana Jones and part Tomb Raider. The intention was to create a more grounded story driven experience. Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune was released in 2007 as one of the first exclusives for the PlayStation 3. With a six hundred dollar price tag and games that were not living up to expectations, Sony really needed a hit to justify buying such an expensive console. As of writing this, the Uncharted series has concluded with the team working on The Last of Us Part 2. So I thought it would be fun to go back and analyse each entry and to see if they still hold up today.

Story

“There must be a beginning of any great matter, but the continuing unto the end until it be thoroughly finished yields the true glory.”

Sir Francis Drake, 1587

Drake’s Fortune opens with treasure hunting expert Nathan Drake, descendant of famous explorer Sir Francis Drake. He and reporter Elena Fisher discover the supposed coffin of Sir Francis off the coast of Panama. Instead of a body they find his lost diary with a map to the treasure of El Dorado. After a brief fight with some pirates, you’re rescued by your partner and mentor Victor “Sully” Sullivan. Picking up the trail you head to an uncharted island in the Pacific ocean and from there the adventure begins.

Now in terms of plot it’s pretty straightforward; you’re looking for the treasure before the pirate enemies get to it first. There is a twist that happens in the final third of the game and it’s one I didn’t see coming at the time. However, the story is pretty shallow on the whole, especially when compared to it’s sequels. Even the characters don’t have much depth but it’s there personalities that make you care about them.

Speaking of characters, they’re arguably what makes these Uncharted games as memorable as they are. Nate is your typical wise cracking rogue, Elena is the get the story at all cost reporter and Sully is the cigar chomping older partner who’s in debt with some dangerous people. As I said, there isn’t much depth to them but it’s because of some witty dialogue and excellent performances by Nolan North, Emily Rose and Richard McGonagle that bring them to life.

The only criticism I have in terms of characters is the villains. The performances are fine, it’s just that they’re pretty forgettable. The two primary villains are barely in the game and don’t really feel threatening so I never felt any danger. A secondary villain, Eddy Raja, was the one that stood out do to his past with Nathan Drake. Their scenes together are funny, especially as Eddy gets more frustrated as his plans fall apart and Nate just keeps messing with him. I think it would have been better if they had removed one of the other two or made him the primary threat.

Gameplay

So with the story out of the way, now lets talk about gameplay. Uncharted’s gameplay is split into three categories; combat, exploration and puzzle solving. This is easily the weakest aspect of the game and unfortunately, its age hasn’t done it any favors. Nate’s movement can feel very stiff at times which can be very frustrating in certain angles when you’re trying to platform. There’s only a few puzzles in the game, though I wouldn’t even call them that since they’re ridiculously easy and your journal flat out tells you how to complete them.

Combat definitely makes up the bulk of the gameplay. I personally don’t have an issue with the combat as much as others do, though there are some problems. Drake’s Fortune really suffers by having enemies that are basically bullet sponges. On the harder difficulty levels it can take several clips before an enemy will go down. It can get frustrating when you have to fight wave after wave of them which happens regularly. I found that the handgun seemed to be the most powerful weapon in the game. That and the shotgun. Assault rifles don’t seem to pack a punch. The cover system works fine since it’s the same from Gears of War, not much more to say about that.

There are a couple of vehicle sections, such as getting behind a turret while you’re partner drives. But, the most notorious part of the game is the dreaded jet ski sections. As you’re driving up the river, which in of itself is tedious, you have to do it while avoiding exploding barrels and gunfire. Elena, who you also control, can fire back but you can only control Nate or Elena one at a time, leave you a sitting duck. I should point out that you have to do this twice.

Presentation

Though it won’t pass as a game from 2019, this game still looks good. The original PlayStation 3 trilogy was remastered as the Nathan Drake Collection in 2015. I should point out that this is the version that I’m reviewing. The first game definitely needed the most attention. The way Nate’s clothes change when they get wet or how the grass and bushes sway as you walk past shows the attention to detail Naughty Dog put into the game.

One of the things that’s praised about the Uncharted games is how they seamlessly blend story and gameplay together to create a cinematic experience. Unfortunately they don’t quite nail it here. There’s a lot of archaic elements present that kept taking me out, reminding me that this is a video game. I already mentioned the explosive barrels that just appear as you’re driving through the river. There are areas in the game where enemies will appear that make no sense in terms of the narrative. For example, Nate and company discover a secret passage that’s only revealed after solving a puzzle. No one else knew about this passage, yet when you regain control of Nate you’re swarmed by pirates and mercenaries in the caverns. How did they get in here? In terms of plot there’s no reason other then to have another shootout.

Overall

So in conclusion, Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune is a great blueprint for the rest of the series. The story is a basic but fun action adventure romp with likable characters that continued to grow in the sequels. The gameplay is what really lets it down with stiff animations, repetitive waves of enemies and frustrating vehicle controls. I still enjoyed my time revisiting this and I’d still recommend it for those who haven’t experienced the series. Since it comes with the Nathan Drake Collection it’s at least worth a look and it’ll give you a better appreciation for the following games.

7/10

Enjoyable