Uncharted 4 – PS4 Game Review

I’m just going to cut right to the chase! Uncharted 4 is incredible! It’s easily the best game of the franchise and in my opinion it’s the best game currently out on the PS4! In fact, I would go so far as to say that Uncharted 4 is the best game I have ever played! Now, granted that might change next week when Home Front Revolution is released, but at the time of this writing, it is the best game I have ever played!

The first thing you need to know, is that this is supposedly the final chapter of the Uncharted series. I say supposedly, because franchises have a habit of continuing past their final chapter(I’m looking at you Mass Effect!). Since it’s the final chapter, I guess Naughty Dog Games wanted to take the series out in style! The brought back all our favorite characters like Sully, Nate and Elena, then went and introduced a few more!

In terms of gameplay, it doesn’t really stray from the tried and true Uncharted formula. So, expect to be climbing cliffs, jumping across rooftops, finding collectibles and stumbling through tombs and ruins in order to achieve your goal. It however did add one new gameplay mechanic, and that’s an all-purpose grappling hook that will allow you to swing across chasms, jump punch enemies, pull items and reach hard to get places. It’s so handy that you will wonder how Nate got around without one before now!

The game really does have everything! On top of all that, there’s optional dialogs which give the game almost an RPG like feel to it, and keeps the gamer looking around for those “Optional dialog” moments. They could be anything from a companion with a speech bubble just wanting to chit-chat, to some interactive chairs that lead to a brief heart to heart discussion. Then, there’s also that kinda cool easter egg!

Vehicles are also now a major part of the game! Past entries in the Uncharted series had vehicles, but they never played as big a role before as they do now! Also, the driving segments are much more enjoyable than they were in Uncharted, Uncharted 2 and Uncharted 3..Although Uncharted 3 had horses! I miss horses!

If you are curious how much time you should set aside to play this masterpiece? Well, the game is fairly long! It took about 14/15 hours of gameplay to complete, but I spent a lot of time hunting down collectible treasures. Still, it took me longer to finish it, than it did to complete any of the other games in the series. Your time frame maybe less, or even longer, but that’s a general idea of the length of the campaign. Plus, once you finish the campaign, you have a Multi-Player mode that you can participate in! Be a hero, or a villain, and swing around maps collecting treasures and blowing up your enemies! Use your treasures to hire sidekicks, and other nifty upgrades! I have only lightly dabbled in the MP mode, since I am more of a single-player/story-mode gamer, but from what I have seen the MP mode is very well done, though I did encounter a bug which freezes the game during the introduction/tutorial of the MP mode.

When all is said and done, this really is a must own for the PS4!

 

 

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Unearthed: Trail of Ibn Battuta – PC Game Review

I am just going to come out and say it: Unearthed is an Uncharted/Tomb Raider clone. It’s basically a generic version of uncharted targeted toward the budget PC game market. The game makes no attempt to mask this at all! In fact, they seem to take pride in the fact that they are a cheap knock-off.

Still, as far as knock-offs go, the story isn’t half bad! It’s an episodic game, and has a decent plotline that could evolve into an interesting story. Though, it seems as if we will never really know for certain, since Episode 1 came out in 2014, and no episode 2 has ever followed! Will one eventually pop up? Possibly, though I wouldn’t hold my breath for it! The first episode ends in a cliff hanger too! So, if you are someone who really enjoyed the game? Too bad! No ending for you!

The game is made by Semaphore, but a part of me has to wonder if this is the gaming branch of Asylum films. It’s just insane how much of a blatant knock-off this game is. Still, that doesn’t bother me much! I actually don’t mind cheap knock-offs! In fact if I am being completely honest, it being a knock-off of Uncharted was the main reason for buying it. (That and it was on sale for only 99 cents!)

Anyway, like I said! The game is an Uncharted knock off, which means it features many of the same elements from Uncharted. Stealth kills, rooftop chases, driving, riding passenger while firing guns at pursuing enemies…Everything you would expect from an uncharted game, just in a miniature format. Everything is shorter.

So, how is the game? Well, it starts out ok! everything seems to be textured nicely. Unfortunately, while the textures used were fantastic, a lot of people had a shine to it. This made people, and their clothes occasionally look like plastic! It’s not present in everything, but the few times it occurs is a bit of a distraction.

As far as the acting goes, I wasn’t that impressed. The voice acting wasn’t that great at all! In fact, it was some pretty poor voice acting! Maybe some of the worst that I have heard in a video game. They really should have just went with no voice over! That would have been an improvement!

As I start actually playing the game, the first thing I notice is the poor animation! Still, this is an indie game, and I am sure the company isn’t set up with motion captioning studios. I have seen worse in Indie games…Hell, I have seen worse in some AAA titles too! So, the characters move stiffly and nothing feels smooth! It’s about on par with what you would expect from a 5 dollar game in terms of animation.

What isn’t on par with what you would expect is the amount of glitches! Seriously, was this thing even beta tested? I was killed by invisible enemies, detected and shot through walls(Which kinda defeats the purpose of taking cover really), Died from fall damage while going down some steps and even jumped THROUGH a pillar and off a ledge instead of jumping onto the pillar! All that was just what I encountered during one play through! I can only imagine the bugs that I haven’t yet encountered!

The game is 100% Xbox 360 gamepad compatible, but the controls are also very shoddy! You can use them, but everything feels clunky, and I just can’t seem to move exactly the way I want or need to! This makes it especially annoying when trying to maneuver across thin walkways above a deep chasm.

The “Puzzles” are also very simple. There’s no way you will have trouble solving any of the puzzles in this game, but apparently it has a hint feature just in case! I am kind of curious if anyone has actually used it, but I am assuming they haven’t, and if they did I doubt they would ever admit it.

Lastly, the game is SHORT! I mean, obviously you expect it to be short, but it’s REALLY short. The game can be complete in an hour and a half! Most of that isn’t even real gaming either! A good portion of that is just walking down a street, driving around repeating roads and “Fist fighting” foes!

Is it worth picking up? I suppose if you get it on a 99 cent sale like I did, and you enjoy cheap knock-offs and the chuckles they can bring..then sure. Otherwise, 5 bucks is asking way too much for what the game provides.

PROS

• cheap!
• Good textures!
• Rips off Uncharted!
• Nice Variety of levels
• Gamepad support

CONS

• Low asking price is STILL too expensive.
• Poor animations.
• Poor voice acting.
• Incredibly glitchy
• Flawed controls.
• Simple Puzzles
• Incredibly short.
• Incomplete game that ends in a cliffhanger.

Overall rating: 2.5/10

Rise of the Tomb Raider – PC Game Review

I had been looking forward to playing Rise of the Tomb Raider since it was announced, and decided to pick it up on steam, because it was on sale for fairly cheap! I can’t remember the exact price, but it was cheap. Did it live up to my expectations?

Here’s the thing about ROTR: It’s very much like the original Tomb Raider. It doesn’t really bring anything new to the table! In fact, the graphics are very similar to the graphics found in the original Tomb Raider PC Release(We’re talking about the reboot of course, not the very first original Tomb Raider game). This isn’t a bad thing! The graphics in the original were absolutely breath-taking! I am completely happy with the graphics in both games, but it does leave me confused on why ROTR requires such a beast of a computer to run! The game is currently one of the current higher requirement games out there, and I just don’t understand why. Granted, I am not a game developer, so there is probably much that I don’t understand.

As I said, a lot of the game is very similar to Tomb Raider. This statement also includes gameplay mechanics. There are very few new tools at your disposal, The few new tools that DO exist don’t even come into play til toward the end of the game, and even then aren’t that interesting. It boils down to the same Ledge Climbing, Rock Scaling gameplay as the original. Complete with sliding down snowbanks/waterfalls and having to move left and right to avoid obstacles.

What the game DID do right however was the storyline! It had a very appealing any interesting storyline the focuses on an artifact that can grant eternal life. It also has an evil group which is a secret society who is seeking the artifact for themselves, and a group of rebels who are trying to keep the artifact from falling into the wrong hands. It has some twists, Moments of betrayal, Moments of loyalty…It has everything you could want from an adventure story of this type.

One thing that might upset some people, is that Rise of the Tomb Raider doesn’t have a multiplayer mode. What it does have instead is an expedition mode.I haven’t really mucked around with expedition mode too much, but it seems to offer you a variety of different modes that let’s you replay chapters of the story, while also giving you the option to increase or decrease difficulty through the use of cards which can be purchased using an ingame currency(Or using real cash apparently). Personally, I don’t find the lack of a PVP based multiplayer game disappointing at all. I love the fact that a game company still focuses on the creativity and story based captivation of the single player campaign.

Don’t get me wrong, I like when a game has both a rich and full single player campaign as well as a PvP mode. It’s just that more often than not developers go the lazy route and just toss in some half assed single player campaign that is completed in a half hour and basically serves as a tutorial for the online game mode. Other developers even go the more incredibly lazier route and toss out the campaign mode all together and stick you with a multiplayer only FPS, that when the servers eventually go down, or people quit playing..you are stuck just running around shooting bots. At least with a campaign, you have that to fall back on when the servers are gone.

Speaking of rich storylines! Rise of the Tomb Raider is an incredibly long game! It took me 22 hours to complete it, and that’s just the main story. That’s not including all of the optional tombs and side missions. I did a few of them, but there’s still plenty more for me to go back and do! There’s also the expedition mode which as I said before I have only lightly dabbled in.

Now, this long storyline might be good or bad. Depending on your view. I loved the game and the story, but even I was getting to the point where I was wishing the game was just over. There is such a thing as too much of a good thing I suppose. Like I said, I enjoyed the game. but 22 hours is a long time to find out what’s going to happen. For me, the perfect length of a main campaign is about 15 hours. Any more than that, and my attention starts to wander. This is mainly due to my ADD, so it may not apply to you.

Overall though, it was an enjoyable game. If you were a fan of the last Tomb Raider game, or the Uncharted game series(Which the gameplay shares similarities with) then you will most likely enjoy this title.

PROS
-Gorgeous Graphics.
-Long and in-depth story.
-Many Side missions to keep you occupied.
-Decent replay value
-Flawless gamepad support
-Impressive voice acting & Mocaping.

Cons
-No PvP based Multiplayer
-Game might be TOO long for some players.
-Micro transactions.
-High system requirements

Overall score: 7.5/10

Unofficial Uncharted Timeline

Uncharted 4 is due out very soon! This got me to thinking about Uncharted, and made me go through the franchise and get caught up, so that it’s all fresh in my memory, and thought I would share with you what I interpret the order to be in the franchise.

This is in no way an official timeline, in fact many of stories outside of the main game series can be read/played in any order. They don’t specify what period the tale takes place in. I just prefer them in a certain order based on the lack of certain characters and so fourth.

So, without further ado: The Unofficial pre-Uncharted 4 timeline(or the best way I prefer to experience the saga)!

Uncharted: Eye of Indra (Motion Comic) – I generally assume this is the first story in the Uncharted setting, since it has Eddy Raja and Nathan Drake as friends, where as by the first Uncharted game they are bitter rivals.

Uncharted: The Fourth labyrinth – This book never really specifies when it takes place, and doesn’t really have anything to do with the series. The book follows Nathan, Sully and a new character named Jada as they search for 4 ancient labyrinths!

Uncharted Comic – Another stand alone story, and no real time frame is stated but since it has Drake meeting Chloe for the first time, and still working with Flynn, one can safely assume it takes place before Uncharted 2. It feels like a story that fits in right before the golden abyss.

Uncharted: Golden Abyss – This PSP Vita game has a whole bunch of new characters not present in any other Uncharted medium!  The game could literally take place anywhere in the series, though I like to assume this takes place right before the first uncharted game. That way all the console games fit nicely together.

Uncharted: Drakes Fortune – The game that started it all! Nathan meets Elena for the first time as Nathan and Sully go on a quest for a city of gold! Available on PS3, or in the remastered collection on PS4.

Uncharted: Among Thieves – Features Chloe and Flynn working together again…just like old times! Available on PS3, or in the remastered collection on PS4.

Uncharted: Drakes Deception – The gangs all here and Cutter too! Chloe, Sully, Elena and Nathan all work together to seek out the Atlantis of the sands! Available on PS3, or in the remastered collection on PS4.

Uncharted 4: A thiefs End – Not a lot is known right now about this upcoming PS4 game. We do know Nathan and Sully are both in it though, and apparently it’s the last game in the series. It’s also a safe assumption that it will follow the events of Uncharted 3: Drakes deception. All of the core games play in chronological order with the exception of a few flashbacks….There’s no reason to assume this will be any different.
NOTE: I never played Uncharted: Drakes Trail, as it was on a European website, and existed before the first game came out. It was an ARG as far as I know, that detailed Elenas search for Uncharted prior to the first game. Still, I haven’t played it..so can’t be sure..so not adding it to the timeline.

uncharted The Nathan Drake Collection Review

I am a huge fan of the Uncharted series. The original Uncharted game was the main reason I originally got a PS3 as opposed to replacing my xbox 360 After it broke down for the third time. It seemed like a modern day version of Indiana Jones(Which I love) in video game form! It also had pretty slick looking graphics, and at the time Uncharted 2 was to be released soon. So, I went for it, and I have never regretted it.

Since then I have bought and played every Uncharted game, bought and read the comic series, bought and watched the animated comic, and bought and read the book. So, it was kind of a no brainer that I was going to pick up Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection for the PS4 eventually, but the real question is: Is it worth it for YOU to pick it up? Well, since the release of Uncharted 4 is right around the corner, I will try my best to give you my opinion of the game.

It’s not an easy answer really! If you have already played and completed the original trilogy on the PS3 game console, then this doesn’t really have much to offer! Sure, the graphics and have been remastered, and they look absolutely gorgeous, but the enhancements are really only exceptionally noticeable on the first game in the series, the second one is slightly noticeable and the 3rd one doesn’t look very enhanced at all. Let me show you comparison photos!

How are they different?

As you can see, there is a huge difference! The PS4 graphics look crisper and more detailed. You can see that Drake has whiskers, as opposed to what might be dirt smudged on his face, the skin looks less like skin and more like plastic and the lighting is just better! In fact, the only thing I don’t like is Drakes eyes in the remake. On occasion they seem almost white from the light reflection. The eyes just don’t seem as natural as the original.

Like I said, Uncharted 2 has more subtle enhancements. It’s still noticeable. the PS4 version allows you to see the threads in his clothes and the leather of Drakes holster looks more worn instead of just being a solid tan color. Again, the lighting is more natural, but it is only a slight improvement over the PS3 version.

Now uncharted 3 doesn’t have much differences at all. Basically some improved lighting and that’s pretty much it. The reason being is that Uncharted 3 is the newest and latest PS3 Uncharted game, and each game got progressively better looking. What this remastered collection did was basically bring all the games up to the same quality is the third game in the series.

Should you get it?

You should get it if you are a hardcore fan of the Uncharted series and would like to play through them again before Uncharted 4 releases, so that you can refresh your memory on where the story is. You should also get it if you have not yet played the Uncharted games. The Uncharted series, is hands down one of the best game franchises out there, both in terms of game play and storytelling!

If you have recently played the whole series on the PS3 and are completely refreshed on the story line, you can prob skip over this collection. You can also skip the collection if you have it on PS3, and don’t really care about having them all in one program with enhanced graphics and on a newer system. You can also skip this set if your favorite part of Uncharted 3 was the online play. This collection is just the single player campaigns, so there are no online features built into the game.

Is it worth it?

Well, for me it def was, but I picked it up on sale during black friday for 15 bucks. Would it be worth the current asking price of $59.99? Hell no! I love the uncharted games, but would never plunk down 60 bucks for a remastering of a game series I already own on another console. The only way it would be worth it to me, is if you found the game on dirt cheap sale, bought a cheap used copy of the game or have absolutely never played the game before and don’t own them on the PS3.

Don’t get me wrong, the games are great, just not 60 dollars worth of great when they are games I have already experienced. Not to mention the lack of online play is a bit of a letdown. Granted, I never played it online but it was nice to know that it was there and was an option in case I got in the mood or something.

Overall Rating: 8/10

Amazing Spider-man Game Mini-review

The Amazing Spider-Man: The Game, is based on the new movie of the same name. It’s not a typical remake of the movie in game form either, it actually serves as a sequel. The events are tied to the events of the movie, and takes place a few months after the movie.

I will say, right out the door, that this game was better than the movie(Although, to be fair, it kinda would have to be right?) and is currently the best spider-man game I have ever played(taking the title away from Ultimate Spider-man game)

The first thing you are going to notice is that the graphics are eye explodingly beautiful! The attention to detail cannot be praised enough, and it feels more like a movie, than the actual movie!

Everything from the lens flares, to the window reflections, to the level of shine on cars! Even the water reflects so perfectly! I haven’t seen a game achieve this level of awesomeness in their graphics, since the last Uncharted game.

The controls are also top notch, and works well! They kind of have to, since the entire control mechanics is taken right from the much praised Arkham BATMAN games. In fact, much of the entire game plays like an Arkham game, with Spiderman instead of batman. Translation: Kick ass!

The DLC is where the game is lacking. I would love to have seen some campaign DLC. Mini-missions and so forth. Instead, I got Stan Lee swinging around gathering Pages, a few different “Be the bad guy and tear shit up” and of course, a spider-man inspired game of  Snake.

I would much rather have gotten a “Rhino is rampaging through time Square: Save the citizens and stop his carnage!” mission, or a “Vulture has been spotted above the city!” or some more Black Cat!

On the upside, while I am not looking forward to the movie Amazing Spider-Man 2, I am anxiously awaiting its game!

 

Related articles

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• ‘The Amazing Spider-Man 2’: Shailene Woodley Confirmed As Mary Jane For Next Two Sequels (screencrave.com)
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Uncharted Review

I just recently had the honor of playing the PS3 exclusive game “Uncharted: Drakes Fortune“. The game is fairly old, however you wouldn’t guess that by looking at the jaw dropping graphics. You might be wondering if it is so old, why did it take so long to play it? Well, to begin with I didn’t have any interest. I saw videos, and screen shots and to be honest, I thought it was going to be Tomb Raider with a male leading character, and I despised the TOmb Raider games, even more than I despised the Tomb Raider movies!

When I finally played it, I learned quickly that the ame is NOTHING like Tomb Raider, which is a good thing. In fact, the game is really unlike anything I have ever played. Sure, the story might not be original, and some of the dialog might be a bit cliché, but the gameplay it’s self is truly unique and entertaining!

Basically, the story follows Nathan Drake, who happens to be a treasure hunter. Kind of like a modern-day Indiana Jones, except not quite as cool. As you start playing, one of the things you will notice is the tutorial guides. They are extremely helpful and informative, and teach you how to manuever around the world of Uncharted. It is highly advised that you do not ignore these.

The controls are simple enough so that anyone can pretty much pick up a gamepad and begin playing, and if you are having trouble, the game guides you into the action. You aren’t tossed head first into life and death situations. So, by the time you are in the heat of it all, you will be quite comfortable with the controls and play style of the game.

Everything about this game is great, the Story, though not original is entertaining, and the voice acting os probably some of the best that I have heard in video games to date! There’s not a thing about this game anyone can complain about. Well, at least not til toward the end.

You see, as you begin nearing the end of the game, Uncharted decides to introduce a new enemy type to the game. This Enemy is a melee enemy which just so happens to pack quite a punch. This means all of a sudden you are forced to break away from the controls you are used to. The method of combat that you have lovingly been introduced to is pretty much tossed out on its ear. Gone are the days of taking cover and aiming down the barrel for accurate shots. In order to survive you simply have to run like a maniac and shoot from the hip. Yea, suddenly, the game becomes a standard Run’N’Gun type game. To make matters worse, the game doesn’t give you any indication that, now might be a good time to change your entire play style.

This sudden change made the game frustrating, however After I played it and finished it, and looked back at the game. I think it was a nice touch. Sure it was a pain in the ass, but it gave the game a sense of confusion and panic. It made the game seem to come alive.

Over-all I would say the game is top-notch and is a must own, and am throughly impressed with this game title. Never before have I been this pleasantly surprised with a video game title.

Looking forward to trying Uncharted 2 now!