The Nathan Drake Collection is a game series thaT brings about many feelings of nostalgia for me. When I first got my Playstation 3 in 2008, UNCHARTED: Drake’s Fortune was the very first game I played on it. I still remember the hours that I would put into that game. Then a couple years later the second game in the series came out: UNCHARTED 2: Among Thieves. Of course, I had to get it right away, and when the third game came out: UNCHARTED 3: Drake’s deception I had to pick that up too. These are the three games I’m including in this review because they are all the games included in the Nathan Drake Collection, which is available for free during Sony’s Play at Home campaign.
UNCHARTED: Drake’s Fortune
The game that started it all. At the time that it came out on PS3, I specifically remember being amazed at how good the graphics were and how realistic everything seemed in this game. If you don’t know, the Uncharted series is an arcade-style shooter with puzzle and adventure elements mixed in. The games in the collection are all linear for the most part (as opposed to open world) and take the player to many different historical and exotic locations. I remember specifically playing one of the levels in this game over and over again. It puts the player and their in-game companion on a jet ski where you switch back and forth from navigating through ancient canals and dodging obstacles to switching to the person on the back of the jet ski who was equipped with a grenade launcher to deal with the enemies pursuing. I have played the game recently and obviously, the graphics and gameplay don’t look and feel as crisp as they did when the game first came out, but the storyline still holds up pretty well and my favorite level in the game is still a blast.
Rating: 3.5/5
UNCHARTED 2: Among Thieves
Uncharted 2: Among Thieves still keeps up with the fast-paced and puzzle-solving formula used in the first game. At the very first level, the player has to navigate through a train dangling off the side of an arctic cliff. I could go on about the story and gameplay but not much changed from the first game mechanics-wise. They added a few new guns and added some more complexity to the puzzles. The story is still just as good from the first to the second game but you don’t absolutely have to play the first one to understand the second. I will say there is one part of this game that sets it apart from the first one and that’s the game modifiers. As you play through the game the first time you find a bunch of collectibles and antiques that you can pick up. These were in the first game as well but it was more for earning trophies and having the player explore the levels more. In the second game, however, they unlock unique game modifiers that can add a whole new level of fun to the game. For example one of the modifiers is low gravity so any time something explodes or an enemy gets punched out they soar to the heavens. As a younger kid playing these games I would spend so much time just seeing what kind of ridiculous things I could get to happen with the modifiers on. Besides this, it’s still a very enjoyable game that I would consider worthwhile.
Rating: 3.7/5
UNCHARTED 3: Drake’s Deception
Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception is an extremely enjoyable game. As with the other two games in the series, the story is compelling, gameplay is still very fun, and it includes more complex and interesting puzzles. My best way to describe it is a more polished and good-looking game than the first two that still includes some of the best elements from each and combines them into one experience. The amusing modifiers from the second game are still in it and it does a great job of connecting the stories from the first to games but without making it too confusing if you jump straight into the third game. There’s not too much more to say about it that hasn’t already been mentioned about the first two games. This usually doesn’t hold true for game series, but I think that this installation is the best one in the whole collection.
Rating: 4.1/5
Side note: I am aware that there is a fourth game in this series that was released as a PS4 game, but I wanted to do a rating on The Nathan Drake Collection, which doesn’t include the fourth game. Plus I think it would be unfair to judge a game when its being compared to games made for a console a generation behind.
This is a series that I have always wanted to give a try, but I never found myself getting around to it, even when my sister got a PS4 last year. Adventure games like this are always something I have enjoyed.
When I purchased my PS4 it was the bundle that included the Uncharted for PS4. That game was really good, I still always wanted to play through the first three but I haven’t played many storyline games since. I think the last storyline game I played was Fable which is way outside my realm of video games. It was cool though to read through your blog and see just what I have been missing out on!
What a great series of games! Even without including 4 this trilogy is pretty awesome, even though my favorite was the fourth, due to my love of pirates. The first game I actually played from this series was 3 and then 1 and lastly 2. I think this order made it a little harder for me to appreciate the first two games in the series since I was starting from the game with the best gameplay in my opinion (not including 4). I am curious, which of these 3 is your favorite? I see that you have the 3rd the highest rating, which I agree with, but I am wondering which one maybe brings back the most memories.
Its very cool to think how these games have a similar sense of nostalgia for me as well. When I got a PS3 for Christmas years ago Uncharted was among the first games I played. The games have a sense of familiarity for me, I remember playing them for such a long time. I agree with your ratings as well, they are all very solid but I agree the 3rd is the most polished of the 3. I also think one of the reasons I was very excited about these games was that I loved Tomb Raider games and the uncharted games gave a very similar feeling of exploration and combat.
semoga berhasil yaaa