With or without Nathan Drake, Uncharted is one of the workhorses of the PlayStation brand. And despite the relative youth of the series, at least compared to other great banners of Sony video games, has established itself as a benchmark within action and adventure games. Something that is understood when seeing the signatures of the most involved in each installment: Neil Druckman, Amy Hennig, Shaun Escayg and a Naughty Dog that, in general terms, is today positioned as one of the most powerful and recognized video game studios.
A film franchise, it must be said. The PlayStation treasure hunter demonstrated from his first adventure that he was much more than a substitute for Indiana Jones or Lara Croft’s umpteenth attempt to slipstream: the Californian studio’s narrative and the weight that the plot has taken on in each installment have always weighed as much as the action itself. And in Uncharted There has been plenty of action, for the record.
Of course, the big hit came with Uncharted 2: Kingdom of Thieves. Naughty Dog made it clear through an outstanding sequel that Drake could already rub shoulders with the great icons of PlayStation. After all, many of the characters most loved by DualShock players had been created by the Californian studio. But the tone and feeling of the game of the Uncharted They were very different.
The secret? None: in Uncharted everything is always in sight. Heroes and villains chiseled with the ambition of Hollywood productions, epic plots, endless levels and, like Lucas Pope would admit years later, several nuances that were borrowed from the Gears of War gaming experience and that Naughty adapted to its terrain, to its new style of making games, until making them its own.
The challenge of establishing the definitive Uncharted when (almost) everyone is essential
When narrative and history have so much weight in the gaming experience, it is logical that some deliveries end up having more impact and better than others. Not only between players, but on an individual level. The explanation is very simple, the cinematographic element is essential in the saga and it has been gaining shape and volume in each new installment. Sometimes retroactively.
That’s not a negative thing. Quite the opposite: each new release of Uncharted It has had to be measured head-on with the previous one in each of its sections.
Therefore, objectively establishing what Nathan Drake’s greatest adventure has been is a challenge. Of course, after having shared so many good and bad moments with him, it is natural that we also like challenges.
At iGamesNews we have organized all deliveries of Uncharted and we have ordered them from worst to best. And we have used the same process as with the God of War or The legend of Zelda sagas: considering and scoring the individual quality of each game, the key scenes or the impact inside and outside the saga, and even adding new nuances that seek to correspond to the extra effort that has been put in to achieving excellence in narrative.
We have always started from the idea that consensus is almost impossible in this type of exceptional experiences, but we are also clear that there are deliveries that stand out among the others and that deserve a special position.
Without further ado, all games in the Uncharted sagaincluding oddities and spin-offs, ordered from worst to best.
8. Uncharted: Fortune Hunter
That you see Uncharted: Fortune Hunter Closing the list doesn’t mean it’s a bad experience. In fact, it is quite attractive despite being a mobile game whose main purpose is to cover the exit of Uncharted 4. Which does not mean that he pales before others.
Developed by PlaySpree, Fortune Hunter is a puzzle game starring Nathan Drake in which each scenario is, literally, a puzzle. The best? With a little time and some skill we can unlock rewards for the PS4 title.
7. Uncharted: fight for treasure
Bend Studio not only signed the only title in the saga that was not developed by Naughty Dog, but -also- dared to give a total twist to the franchise that did not leave us indifferent: a digital card game based on the universe of Uncharted.
It’s not that it was a crazy idea, of course: the experience is based on the typical battles between two decks facing each other in turns. Of course, the fight for the treasure had an extra addition: it is possible to associate it with Uncharted: The Golden Abyss to unlock new cards based on our progress in the game.
6. Uncharted: The Golden Abyss
Entering fully into the main saga we find Uncharted: The Golden Abyss, the only installment developed for Sony laptops and, as we said a little above, Drake’s only adventure that was not developed by Naughty Dog. And, despite everything, a title that shone with its own light and deservedly in the PS Vita catalog.
That you see The Golden Abyss At this point it is not due to the limitations of the console. What’s more, an attempt was made to take advantage of the hardware through its playability. But, to be fair, neither its plot nor its scale equaled what we saw after dinner. Which, all things considered, doesn’t make it a bad game either. Quite the opposite.
5. Uncharted, Drake’s treasure
He Uncharted original was a very pleasant surprise. Although he already pointed out ways through the first advances of it, with the controller in hand it turned out to be a delight, becoming in record time one of the great claims of a PS3 that was having a hard time getting off the ground.
Drake’s Treasure It is the title that laid the foundations for what the saga will be, and that is unquestionable: the characters, the gameplay, the gaming experience… everything is there. But it will be in the later installments where Naughty Dog will end up taking the real leap in quality and magnitude.
4. Uncharted: The Lost Legacy
Uncharted: The Lost Legacy was originally conceived as a DLC for Uncharted 4, but its development reached such a large scale that it ended up becoming a complete game. And also, a Uncharted own right.
The only installment that does not star Drake is a formidable adventure that stands on its own and once again demonstrates Naughty Dog’s touch and mastery. Surprising in its technical aspects and action scenes, however, it fell short of matching the previous installments. The bar was very high, all things considered.
3. Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception
Naughty Dog fired the series Uncharted of PS3 with a third installment that sought to constantly surprise: action in abundance, scenarios that further cemented that purpose and a Drake who, despite being constantly against the ropes, managed to keep the player glued to the controller.
Logically, there was a price to pay: although Drake’s Betrayal It was a technical and visual delight in its day, the pace of this adventure forced us to reduce another of the key elements of the saga: the plot and narrative. Although not enough to deservedly enter our podium.
2. Uncharted 2: Kingdom of Thieves
Naughty Dog slammed the table loudly with Drake’s Treasurebut the true driver of the saga in each and every one of its aspects was its sequel: not only did it contribute the perfect balance between action and narrative, but – as we commented in our analysis – it stood in its own right as one of the best PS3 exclusives. And those are big words.
The Kingdom of Thieves was the mold for everything that would come after, a source of inspiration beyond Uncharted, and one of the essential classics of any PlayStation console, masterfully blurring the playable and cinematic experience. Offering An unforgettable experience from start to finish.
1. Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End
Anyone who has completed the saga Uncharted knows that there are only two possible options to lead this list. However, what corona a Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End It is not its avant-garde appearance, its impeccable narrative or its way of injecting adventure into every part of the experience.
The key to understanding the magnitude of the best Uncharted of all is his way of bringing together the best of each installment (and of Naughty Dog’s legacy), elevating it above our own expectations and, finally, give the whole a finishing touch to match. And that is not easy.
As our colleague Alex commented at the time, Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End It is a carousel of emotions from beginning to end, but also an experience in which it manages to strengthen our bond with Drake – and, through him, with the entire saga – before saying goodbye. From that moment on, it occupies a privileged place among our best memories in front of a console.
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