Uncharted 2
11/9/2009
Title: Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
Platform: PS3
Genre: Platformer/Shooter
I still stand by my opinion that the first game is trash. Sure, a lot of care went into the aesthetics and attitude, but the game itself is abhorrent.
Fortunately, the sequel fixes enough of this to make it worth a go! The environments are actually varied this time (until the end, anyway), enemies don't take an entire armory to fell (usually), shooting feels tighter and more fair, and the story is worthy of a full playthrough. There are still some flaws - platforming is not perfect, progression is extremely linear (two or three times I though I had found an alternate path, but I ended up smacking into an invisible wall and, at one point, falling to my death), grenades are a step backward and are even harder to control now than with the Sixaxis bullshit last time, and some of the enemies are annoying as hell, and not in a good way. I'm talking about guys with riot shields who will literally kill you in one hit if you get within melee range. Bullshit.
Unforuntately, the biggest flaw is the last two chapters, where the game instantly reverts to the shitstorm that was Uncharted. You get the ultrageneric jungle setting, terrible terrible enemies that take far too long to kill, buggy map design (the invisible wall -> falling death got me more than once), braindead platforming, and one of the worst final boss fights in recent memory. It's a shame that this sequence spoils the other awesome 24 chapters. It's not enough to kill my opinion entirely, but it makes me lean toward a rental.
What's stopping me is the multiplayer additions, which are surprisingly well-integrated considering the style of the game. They could have phoned it in (like with those last two chapters, urgh) but they even went so far as to record new dialog and motions for these additions, which is a check mark in my book. Basically, if you just want to play for the story, rent it and blow through it in a weekend. If you're interested in all the unlockables and multiplayer, I won't stop you from a purchase. If you don't have a PS3 at all and really want to try this, then you may consider trading your 360 in as soon as it comes back from the repair center!
Platform: PS3
Genre: Platformer/Shooter
I still stand by my opinion that the first game is trash. Sure, a lot of care went into the aesthetics and attitude, but the game itself is abhorrent.
Fortunately, the sequel fixes enough of this to make it worth a go! The environments are actually varied this time (until the end, anyway), enemies don't take an entire armory to fell (usually), shooting feels tighter and more fair, and the story is worthy of a full playthrough. There are still some flaws - platforming is not perfect, progression is extremely linear (two or three times I though I had found an alternate path, but I ended up smacking into an invisible wall and, at one point, falling to my death), grenades are a step backward and are even harder to control now than with the Sixaxis bullshit last time, and some of the enemies are annoying as hell, and not in a good way. I'm talking about guys with riot shields who will literally kill you in one hit if you get within melee range. Bullshit.
Unforuntately, the biggest flaw is the last two chapters, where the game instantly reverts to the shitstorm that was Uncharted. You get the ultrageneric jungle setting, terrible terrible enemies that take far too long to kill, buggy map design (the invisible wall -> falling death got me more than once), braindead platforming, and one of the worst final boss fights in recent memory. It's a shame that this sequence spoils the other awesome 24 chapters. It's not enough to kill my opinion entirely, but it makes me lean toward a rental.
What's stopping me is the multiplayer additions, which are surprisingly well-integrated considering the style of the game. They could have phoned it in (like with those last two chapters, urgh) but they even went so far as to record new dialog and motions for these additions, which is a check mark in my book. Basically, if you just want to play for the story, rent it and blow through it in a weekend. If you're interested in all the unlockables and multiplayer, I won't stop you from a purchase. If you don't have a PS3 at all and really want to try this, then you may consider trading your 360 in as soon as it comes back from the repair center!