A bit of fun is the fact that due to the lack of first-party games, the main title is PlayStation 3’s collection of three games that have undergone a facelift. Given that, according to Sony, 80% of PS4 owners themselves haven’t played a game with Nathan Drake, I’m not surprised by the advertising for such a set. Fortunately – this one is defending too, which I had serious concerns about.
Until a few months ago, I took Nathan through the jungle in the first part of Uncharted and occasionally helped my girlfriend through the game. Then I saw how old this title was. 8 years on the neck of the game industry is an eternity, and every second of handling the game you could – I’ll risk a claim – feel prehistoric solutions, mostly related to animation. Because of this, my concerns about the collection were serious. I feared that increasing the resolution and smoothness of the animation would be the only work Bluepoint would do. Fortunately, the team, aware of the age of the game, decided to join the game and change a little more. This is how much better the shooting appeared than in the original, the boards have been updated, which has been enriched in many elements with improved geometry, and Drake himself had a solid leap in quality in his model. Of course, the animation is still the same as it was in 2007, so the same errors in collision detection remain. But you can’t have it all.
For us, however, the biggest novelty will be the full Drake’s Fortune location. The texts in the form of subtitles have been translated and recorded lines have been added that just sometimes do not match what we read on the screen. I wasn’t concerned about the main characters in the game (Nate, Sully, and Elena), but I wondered how the supporting characters would fall out. Overall, it’s not bad. I can’t quite get used to Eddie Raja, whose Polish voice wants to be too “crazy” and instead we have a slightly exaggerated character. And if someone doesn’t like the Polish language, the menu offers a variety of configuration options that characters speak for.
Uncharted 2: Among Thieves offers a smaller graphical jump compared to the original, which shouldn’t surprise anyone. The game was ahead of its time on PS3, so it “just” looks a little better here in terms of resolution and fluidity. Of course, the improved textures are easy on the eyes, but we can’t pay too much attention to them. On the flip side, people with good eyesight will find that Chloe’s model has been slightly modified and their eyes are finally normal.
Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception is a game where the only difference is 1080p and 60 frames per second, and a revamped scene lighting system that is also available in the first and second parts of the game. While it’s clearly visible in these scenes (especially the first), here at times I got the impression that the scenes look a little worse than they did on PS3. Obviously, this is quite a deceptive impression, but three of them were hard to come by by surprise.
However, the full version isn’t just about graphic corrections. Bluepoint felt it was right to do something to reduce the number of potential torch haters. In addition to new trophies and a photo mode, two new difficulty levels and an additional mode have been added. Although the series is extremely simple on easy difficulty, another mundane one has been added. Probably just for the housewife to finish the game even if it rains in her hand, never held. On the other hand – if crushing was too hard for someone, don’t even grab the top level which is just plain brutal. Unfortunately, we sometimes suffer from a bit of slushy shooting and weird solutions for Drake stuck to the ceiling. And the new mode? Here it was decided to do a time trial so people could get the best results. Everything (including statistics) has the ability to compare points with friends. This is activated from the machine and appears during the game. Finally, what will hurt some – multiplayer has been taken out of the game, so we’re doomed to go through the campaign, collect all the treasures, and then put the game on the shelf.
The whole thing is a presentation of how Naughty Dog games have evolved. Drake’s fortune shows from a distance that the roots of game design were still in the PS2 era, and despite the shy approach to the spectacle, it’s just a game. Maybe that’s why I like this part the most. Uncharted 2 shows its claw and reminds us of what people were upset about when the game hit stores. The qualitative leap has not only been recorded in graphics, but also in the direction of scenes, filming, character moves, and the way the story is led, out of which extended stretches of a series of jumps or flies after successive killrooms flew out. A lot was said about Uncharted 3 when it was released. For some it is the best version, for others it is the worst. It’s technically at the top of the podium, however.
If you haven’t delved into the trilogy, buying the Nathan Drake Collection is obvious if you want to get into the upcoming Uncharted 4. What about those who, like me, have played the series on PS3? Here it is a little difficult to justify the multi cut and the price for a new title. On the other hand – only on PS4 will we play the improved version of the first Uncharted with Polish synchronization, which in many households can be a crucial point when buying. Bluepoint could improve a few things, such as the fact that Drake sometimes misses the edge, floats in mid-air, and falls off the board. It didn’t happen that often on PS3, but I had the illusion that someone would take care of it.
