Ranking the Uncharted games

[fgdj2000]

I think of them all, I like UC2 and UC4 the most. Can't really decide between the two though. UC4 has the better story and I like the open ended environments and the different modes of transport and also how the story of the pirate colony was actually revealed gradually. On the other hand, UC2 still has a great story and has the more memorable set-pieces and great pacing. And since the PS4 also 60fps which makes a lot of difference when it comes to shooting for me. So, if I had to, I'd put UC2 above UC4. UC3 is a close third for me, because it has some great gameplay sections and set pieces and I like desert environments. Although the story isn't really cohesive and nothing important really happens. You can probably skip it in terms of story and jump straight from UC2 to UC4. UC1 is the weakest. It has failry derivative gameplay, quicktime events, only one location really, and the infuriating Jet Ski sections. I haven't played Golden Abyss and THe Lost Legacy isn't even out, yet.
So for me, the ranking is:

1. Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
2. Uncharted 4: A Thief's End
3. Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception
4. Uncharted: Drake's Fortune

So, that's my ranking. For whatever it's worth.

[Cerberus_0408]

Well, you should get GA.

[A.G.]

I watched a playthrough of Golden Abyss on YouTube as I refuse to play another PSP game. Wasn't a fan of the story or the gameplay. As for the rankings:


1. UC2 - no contest here. Hands down best pacing in any video game I have ever played.
2. UC4 - pacing suffers but overall a great finale.
3. UC1 - gameplay suffers but love the story and setting.
4. UC3 - for me this was an example of trying too hard. The new characters, the big reveal, the humor, most of the settings... just didn't land. Gameplay was good, but it seemed to want to do big things for no reason outside of topping UC2. The game felt disjointed.

[Cerberus_0408]

For the fourth game, does pacing refer to story or the gameplay elements?

[A.G.]

Both.

[fgdj2000]

Uncharted 2's pacing was exceeptional, indeed. First the climbing section in medias res, than the flashbacks and the fairly laid back istanbul and Borneo sections, leading into the increasingly intense Nepal section that culminates in the train, followed by the calm village and the fairly laid back mountain expedition with Tenzin, leading to the village Siege, convoi chase, monastery and ultimately shambala sections. Great stuff.

As for UC3: To me it seemed like they wanted to tell a more serious story and explore Nate as a character more, which UC4 ultimately did gracefully, it didn't finish turning the corner and tried to live up more to UC2's loud-blockbuster-style.

How did you think, the pacing suffered in UC4?

[Cerberus_0408]

Well, in 3 the pacing was kinda like 2. First you started with a bar fistfight, then go into a flashback (what with a pretty intense pursuit sequence), a good ol' shoot-em-up in London, the chateau, then the citadel, getting captured in Yemen, finding Sully (or trying to), chasing the plane and jumping out, the fairly relaxed desert sequence, arriving at the village of sorts, and culminating in the hallucination that Victor got shot. Damn fun for me.

[A.G.]

The whole 3rd act in UC4 is a drag. Waaaaaay too long. I felt the game just slammed on the breaks when we finally get to the island.

[fgdj2000]

Funny, I actually liked that we spent so much time on the island and gradually uncovered more and more of its messy history. It was the first time that I actually cared about the McGuffin in these games. Unlike the lost cities in UC2 and UC3 which felt more like set pieces, UC4's lost city felt like a real place.

But that's just a matter of taste.

[Cerberus_0408]

Really? Can you explain the distinction between the 'treasures' of UC4 and the previous games?

[fgdj2000]

Well, in UC 2,3 and 4 you are looking for a lost city (Shambala in UC2, Iram of the Pillars in UC3 and Henry Avery's Colony in UC4), but in UC 2 and 3 you only arrive there at the very end, have a couple of gunfights, a final boss and it's over. So you don't spend very much time in that location and also don't really get to see a whole lot of it. By contrast, in UC4 you arrive at the colony at about the halfway mark - much earlier than in the previous games - and spend a lot of time there. While there are a lot of gunfights, there is also more time for quiet exploration sequences where you discover gradually what happened to the colony. As a result, you get to know the place and its history much more intimately and for me it made the place feel more real. Whereas the lost cities in 2 and 3 were just little more than a backdrop for the final few gunfights, the pirate colony in UC4 is a much better developed place with an actual history that you get to experience.

[Cerberus_0408]

Hmm... how about this?
In 2 and 3 the game really builds up to a climactic point - which is when you find the 'treasure'. Everything before that is an accumulation until you hit that certain area. So the games were rather rushed in order to wrap everything up in the resolution. But in 4, because the 'treasure' is revealed MUCH earlier, there's still plenty of time to explore the place. But maybe that's because the dialogue, conversations etc in 2 and 3 were intended to make you feel excited for the finale.

I dunno. I haven't played the first two games, and since I don't have a PS4, it's not like I can judge 4. But there's my two cents, for what it's worth.

[fgdj2000]

Absolutely. They do different things and both have their merits and issues. For A.G. the game became too slow, while I enjoyed the more fleshed out lost colony. There are just different tastes.

I didn't mean to say one was better or worse. It's also why its so hard for me to decide whether I like UC2 or UC4 better because they both do slightly different things, but excell at what they do imo. UC4 is slower, less exciting, but more personal and more fleshed out, while UC2 is faster and more exciting and a bit tighter.