Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection
For: PS4
From: Sony
Rating: (R16)
Five stars (out of five)
Naughty Dog, in my opinion, are the masters of game development, perhaps even the greatest developer out there.
After creating the acclaimed Crash Bandicoot series for PSone, and Jak and Daxter for PS2, they created the character Nathan Drake for the PS3.
I'm not sure even they knew how good these games would turn out.
These are no half-boiled efforts either.
The team at Bluepoint Games has worked wonders upgrading the games in almost every aspect, and the results are stunning.
It's almost as if they've rebuilt them from the ground up, rather than the spit and polish job you see on many remasters.
The games looked sensational to begin with, but now they're looking even better. But more importantly, the way they play and the small problems that were part and parcel with PS3 games have been removed, and the experience is now supremely satisfying.
For those unfamiliar with the series, Uncharted follows treasure hunter Nathan Drake as he and his merry band of mates travel the globe uncovering conspiracies, supernatural phenomena and, of course, treasure.
They are played from a third-person shooter perspective, utilising cover (a la Gears of War), mixed with the exploration of the Tomb Raider series.
To be honest, I think most if not all PS3 owners have played at least one of the Uncharted games.
Is it worth revisiting from their perspective? Emphatically yes.
The upgrade work (particularly in the first game) is noteworthy, but these are three superbly written, well paced and well balanced games that achieve the same magical balance that Pixar does with films, managing to entertain young and old at the same time.
Among Thieves and Drake's Deception were when Naughty Dog hit its stride.
You fight helicopters across rooftops in Nepal, undead monsters in a snowstorm, get ejected from a plane high above the desert ... and yes the iconic scenes are just as memorable as they were all those (five or six) years ago when the games were first released.
What about for those who never owned a PS3?
This is your killer app.
Consider Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection as the pinnacle of what was available on the PS3.
The only thing this collection is light on is multiplayer, and new modes.
They've omitted multiplayer entirely, which is a shame because of how brilliant it was in the originals.
In terms of new modes there's a speed run mode, and an increased difficulty, as well as the now seemingly ubiquitous photo mode.
The ability to compare statistics with your friends now is also a welcome addition.
Playing through these games reminded me again of just how uniformly brilliant they are.
Hope it can hold me over until Uncharted 4: A Thief's End releases in March next year.
• Simon Bishop
