Munkeh111

User Score
9.7

Presentation - 10
Gameplay - 9.5
Value - 10

From the moment Uncharted 2 starts, your jaw will hit the ground. Hanging from a train dangling over a cliff, it really does get you excited. The graphics are stunning, and the story begins in an interesting way, with several new characters introduced. While the first few chapters may not be the most exciting after the initial start, after those the game goes from strength to strength to strength..... I literally spent the second half of the game with my jaw open.

The first point to look at is the presentation of the game. The graphics are simply stunning, very highly detailed textures, fantastic lighting and everything that you could want. A smooth frame rate, with a greatly decreased amount of frame tearing, with some tests claiming that the tearing percent is down to 0%! The animations are also incredible and look incredibly smooth and the Naughty Dog have implimented a system where several different animations can be blended together, creating a huge variety of animations, all of which look incredible.  Last game, the water was the real wow factor, but now the snow is Naughty Dog's next challenge, and they have certainly succeeded in making great snow. It reacts realistically and just looks great, and clings to Nate's clothes and just freankly looks fantastic. There is little to say beyond how stunning the game looks, simply the best looking console game yet released.

The gameplay has also taken a step up from Drake's Fortune. The gunplay itself has been sharpened greatly. The controls are much smoother and the guns are more varied with rocket launchers, the pistole (a pistol shotgun!) and several more added in. The enemies also take far fewer bullets, and the addition of some more heavily armed enemies helps increase the variety in the gameplay. The stealth is also perfectly implimented, apart from the first section, it is entirely optional and adds a great new element to the fighting. Naughty Dog have also done a great job at melding the platforming and shooting together, with the environment offering many more options to help with the fighting. The number of locales has also been vastly increased, with the adventure taking place across the world, whereas the first game was really just set in the jungle, and then the monstary, but there are far more in this game.

The melee combat has also been improved greatly. Along with stealth takedowns, the main melee system has been improved. There is the option to counter enemies attacks, and while fighting up close should really be reserved for occassions when there are only a few enemies around, so certainly is not as important as the gunplay, it certainly works well.

The key part is that the pacing is fantastic. You never feel bored, and the game does a great job of drawing you in. In particular, the levels based on the moving train are spectacular, and are so excited as you have so many things to think about and give you so many ways to fight. The game really ramps it up, and keeps on throwing more and more at you. The intensity continually increases, and the game really keeps you excited.

The key that binds it all together is the story and characters. The story is well fleshed out and has numerous twists and turns that will keep you interested. The real key is the characters. Drake is of course fantastic, a truly loveable hero with his half tuck. However, the way he plays off Elena and Chloe is the real key, their banter will keep you laughing throughout most of the game. Nate continually mutters to himself as well keeping you entertained those few times he is alone. The characters are brilliant, aided not just by the stunning graphics, but the fantastic voice acting too. Nolan North may be in almost every single game these days, but his performance here surpasses any of his other. Amy Henning's script work and direction deserve commendation as this truly does surpass every other game from a cinematic perspective. The extremely cinematic nature of this game does mean that the game is extremely linear, but the story is so great, and the action so intesnse it is not a negative.

The main criticism of the first was the lack of replayability beyond the campaign. To address the problem they have added in competitive multiplayer as well as a seperate co-operative campaign. While many, including myself, were intitally sceptical about the multiplayer, ND have done a truly spectacular job. The gameplay is like no other, and while some may compare it to Gears of War, the traversal element makes it feel completely different. There are a huge variety of modes, with Naughty Dog bringing their own ideas to many, like Capture the Flag with a throwable flag. They also have a level up system based on cash gained from kills and gaining medals for various things. This helps make the game addictive rewarding you with the equivalent of Call of Duty 4's perks once you reach certain levels, as well as extra costumes. While there is still some work to be done with matchmaking and decreasing time between games.

The co-operative games are also great fun to play. You and two other players play through distinctive levels, based on single player levels, while being hard they are great fun. Their structure is changed with waves of enemies entering the arena, and the focus is greatly retooled towards combat. While is certainly could have been expanded, I think that this is a better solution than simply letting two players play through the campaign, as the strength of the charcters would be decreased if it was your friend playing as them.

The trophies in the game are very similar to the first ones, and once again, quite easy to gain, with the platinum once again requiring two playthroughs and all the treasures to be found. The trophies are also supported by the in game rewards system with more in game trophies giving you cash for the single player store. This allows you to unlock tweaks, such as turning off gravity for some objects and infinite ammo, and single player skins, which have been vastly expanded.

Nate is back, and everything has been expanded on, even the half tuck which has become a 3/4 tuck! The graphics are simply stunning and the gameplay is fantastic. The key to the brilliance of this game, however, is the characters, in particular one Nathan Drake. He truly is one of the best characters in video gaming, and you do truly feel a bond with him by the end of the game. This is something that must be experienced by every gamer, the single player campaign is probably second to none, with its spectacular pacing and amazing intensity. With a fully fleshed out multiplayer mode, there really is no excuse not to launch into an amazing adventure with Nate and his friends.