Top 10 Games of E3 2015

05. Uncharted 4: A Thief's End

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Created by game studio Naughty Dog exclusively for the PlayStation 4 video game console, Uncharted 4: A Thief's End is set to be published by Sony Computer Entertainment tentatively in March 2016, in addition to telling the next chapter in the saga of the character and protagonist Nathan Drake, it is also something more.

You see A Thief's End was not lightly named: Uncharted 4 has been confirmed to be the final chapter in the story of Nathan Drake! That's right, the final chapter. Not that we are saying that Nathan does not end up rich, retired, and living in a luxury beach house on some tropical island somewhere good, but long-term fans of the series are going to want to truly drink in and enjoy this one for that reason.

What has been traditionally an action-adventure third-person shooter and platforming game exclusive to the PlayStation platform, Uncharted 4 returns with solid RPG elements and a story whose immersion levels are actually deeper than any previous game in the series.

The return of well-known and well-loved supporting characters as well as enemies means that in addition to telling an all new story, ATE delivers some closure as well for long-time fans.

Based upon the preview and demo content at the show as well as the trailers and press briefing, ATE takes place something like three years after the events of Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception, and shows us a slightly aged, travel-worn and more experienced Nathan Drake, who nevertheless has not lost his edge or his eagle-eye with a pistol!

Drake has officially retired from the whole fortune-hunting scene, and with his wife Elena, has adopted the role of regular guy (with tropical beach home in paradise of course), but all that normalcy ends up getting messed up when his older brother Sam, who we actually thought was dead, suddenly appears in Nathans life needing help.

So naturally enough they embark on one last globe-spanning adventure that takes them to a succession of islands as they work to solve the mystery of a long-lost pirate colony -- and the treasure it conceals Now if we had been asked to set out the facts for the swan song of Nathan Drake, a long-lost pirate colony and treasure? Yeah, that would be in there!

If you still need an excuse to buy a PS4 (though seriously how you have existed this long without one we cannot say) Uncharted 4 s the PERFECT excuse. Need more? Fine, tell your SO that you plan to put the PS4 on the bedroom TV, so you two can watch Bluerays, Hulu, Netflix, and rental movies in bed together because yeah, the PS4 is totally an entertainment console not just games. Just saying if that does not work, tell her we said you had to.

The demo was not hands-on in the sense that they did not cut us loose with a copy of the game, but they did demo live game-play, and as we watched we saw the iconic level of high-tension play and acrobatic combat that Nathan Drake is well-known for!

As we watched the game played for us we began to notice some elements that are new - or perhaps not so much new but an extension of previous elements of game play that have gone deeper and more involved than ever before.

The world is crowded with humanity, unexpected events happen, and death lingers around every corner! The third-person view feels more intimate than ever before, the combat more dangerous and challenging, and the combination of tactics more physical than that of the previous games of the series.

Another element that, while present in the past games, was not so intense is the personal relationships and emotional ties between the characters. In fact at points Uncharted 4 feels more like a movie unfolding before you in those respects than a game.

But remember Nathan is re-connecting with a brother he thought was dead, maintaining a relationship with a wife he loves, and a partner in Sully who is like the father he always wanted.

Where Uncharted 3 was more formula and too much like Uncharted 2 in game play terms, by the time the demo was completed we went away with absolutely no doubts that ATE would not only deliver a fitting end to the Drake Saga, but offer the players a measure of excitement, immersion, and story with the potential to fully deliver the sort of play satisfaction the saga is worthy of.

In fact the only negative here is the fact that the game is not going to arrive until some time in Spring 2016!

Posted: 22nd Jun 2015 by CMBF
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Xbox One, Xbox 360, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, PC,