Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception

Just made it to Chapter 8 as well. The game is definitely picking up steam as it goes along. The Chapter 7 set-piece was especially entertaining (even if overly scripted). The combat remains an irritant (I hate the melee additions and the gunplay is still stiff) but the plot is interesting and the characterization top-notch, as always. I'm a little surprised at how easy the hard difficulty has been. I've died far more from bad jumps and the "run away, run away!" sequences than in actual combat (which granted, there hasn't been much of). It'll probably pick up before too long but I was already sweating bullets in U2 by this point.

Angela wrote:

Funny thing is, the multiplayer's gunplay is reportedly unaffected by the problems that's bogging down the single player.  Curious to see if this is true, I fired up a few rounds of MP.  Sure enough, the aiming is MUCH more fluent.  It's still not Uncharted 2 levels of speed and accuracy, but at least you're hitting all the directional points with ease -- and given the current state of the SP, it feels worlds better.

NeoGAF's got a designated thread discussing the issue right now.  It's carried on over to Naughty Dog's own community forums, so hopefully a remedy will come out of all this.

What amazes me is that NONE of the reviews I've read mention this, even though apparently a lot of people are reporting the problem.

Even the much maligned Eurogamer reviews speaks of "robust combat", which I can't help but disagree with.

i'm at ch. 13 now, playing on hard. i like the improved close combat and the higher frequency of it. i don't like the story so far, i have zero interest in what's going on right now. just when nate got captured things got more interesting, but still......hopefully it'll get better soon.

that's it. great graphics and sound, but same old people. let's see how it turns out.

Wanderer wrote:

The difficulty definitely spikes in Chapter 12. I'm getting my ass handed to me in this exceptionally well-designed (and pretty) area.

Just got past Chapters 12 and 13 myself, and I think I can speak for a lot of folks when I say the game finally, FINALLY feels like its hitting its stride here.  It's pitch perfect Uncharted: spectacle-filled scenarios that are as much fun to play as they are to watch.  If they can keep up this clip for the remainder of the game, I'd be willing to overlook its lethargic first half.

Soundtrack wise, I just can't stop listening to Museum Bust.  Easily one of Edmonson's best musical contributions to the series thus far.

Beat it. Eh. This game needed a little more time to cook. Obviously, there's the mentioned gameplay issues but the story is surprisingly weak. After a great opening, it loses steam midway through and then ends with a whimper. Taken completely out of context (and if U2 didn't exist), I'd probably view it as a terrific game... but unfortunately, it had the misfortune of being the sequel to one of my favorite games of all-time.

What does work? Well, it looks gorgeous. The Chateau, Syria, the docks, the desert, all top-notch visuals. Greg Edmonson's score is effective (albeit not terribly memorable, main theme aside) and the characterization of the leads is excellent.

ENDING SPOILERS: It goes without saying in an Uncharted game that the final boss was a disappointment (although at least this time, not nearly as frustrating as U2's) but even the ending fell somewhat flat to me. Loved the Nate/Sully talk but then it became about Elena and as much as I love her, too much went unexplained between games for me to feel that their reconciliation was earned. And as usual with this series, it all ended too quickly. Would it hurt them to make a properly lengthy epilogue that wraps everything up?

well, i beat the game two days ago or so. set pieces, character models and sound quality is simply amazing, you have to expierience it yourself to believe it.

pretty standard gameplay. i had no problems playing through the shooting sequences like some other people, platforming is pretty much still automatic and the melee fighting got some entertaining improvements. stealth seemed worse and unpolished, even more than in U2. i don't feel like the AI is up to the stealth challenge. that's a bummer, since i love stealth gameplay more than actual shooting.

story and characters are the weakest link of this game. you'll long for more background and information about past events, but nobody will hear you. it's a constant tease, so i'll just assume this game didn't get the development time it deserved, judging by past efforts. it left me disappointed.

Beat the game twice, once on Normal to gain all 101 treasures, and again on Hard.  I'm in agreement with most of you; I rank it higher than Uncharted 1, but nowhere near as high as Uncharted 2.  The game feels rough around the edges when compared to its predecessor: poor first half pacing, stiffer aiming (I too kinda got used to it; head shots and snipers from a distance are still a major chore, but I got along just fine blasting guys in non vital areas until they dropped), and aggressively misplaced AI. (The heavily armored soldiers with shotguns running right up to you were especially painful -- especially when you're already engaged in melee combat with a bunch of grunts.)  Some mechanics felt like they were used ad nauseam, such as the..... spider-avoiding sections, and the hand to hand battles against the big brute characters.

Happily, the game manages to find steadier footing toward the second half of the game.  Spectacle and gameplay go hand in hand beautifully from Chapter 12 onward, and the momentum doesn't let up till the end.  Noteworthy set pieces include.... the ship graveyard, the ballroom battle, the sinking cruiser, and the caravan horse chase.  Also, the hallucinatory sections were, suitably put, artfully trippin'.

Story-wise, the ending left something to be desired.  I see where Naughty Dog's coming from with their "leaving things unsaid" method of story telling, but I was disappointed we didn't get any sort of resolution when it came to.... Chloe and Cutter.  (I really dug Cutter; I hope he becomes a series regular. ^_^)  As villains, I thought Marlowe and Talbot were handled well enough, but there are two glaringly nagging plot holes I wish were answered: 1) How is it that Talbot survived that gunshot from Cutter in Syria?  Did it even happen?  Or was Cutter still under the influence of the drugged dart?  And 2) What exactly was the significance of that tarot card that Cutter had in his coat pocket after he got shot? 

It did take me a second playthrough to pick up on the subtext between Nate and Elena's current relationship, but yeah, I did wish they had embellished a little more on what transpired between UC2 and UC3.

Wanderer wrote:

What motivated Marlowe? Your guess is as good as mine.

Her motivation seems straightforward enough.  She's.... the current head of a secret organization that dates back to Elizabethan England, and what she wanted was to fulfill said organization's long sought endeavor of exploiting the potential power of the Atlantis of the Sands.  Francis Drake placed a snag in the organization's plans when he discovered the horrible power involved, and attempted to hide all evidence of his findings.  Marlowe has it in for Nate because he stole the crucial piece needed to begin unraveling Drake's findings: the ring in Cartagena from twenty years ago.

Last edited by Angela (Nov 08, 2011)

Adam Corn wrote:

I'll be curious to hear what you guys think of the changes.

It's too little too late as far as I'm concerned.
I've finished the main campaign, and I have no interest in going through again, or in spending time in multiplayer.

It's definitely a better aiming scheme (and unfortunately, not selected by default for any new players). Of course, at this point, it's too little too late as I'm finished with the SP part of the game.

I haven't tried Crushing on either of the three games yet. Maybe one of these days, I'll get ballsy.

Just finished Crushing Mode, and consequently, snagged the Platinum Trophy.  Maybe it's the result of the improved aiming after the patch, but I breezed through plenty of areas that gave me trouble on both Normal and Hard.  Was almost sure I'd be tearing my hair out during the..... cruise ship's ballroom battle and the encounter with the fire spirit guys toward the end, but nope.  Instead, stupid shit like the scene where Nate gets his foot trapped in the chateau's staircase and he has to take out the two guys with just the pistol had me dying over and over.

Rendering a final opinion on Uncharted 3 (the single player portion anyway), I'd say it's a game that got considerably better with subsequent playthroughs.  It's not just the patch that made the shooting component more enjoyable, but also coming to grips with what I initially perceived as shortcomings my first go around.  Flaws seem less pronounced; the pacing feels less deliberate during the first half, now that I know exactly how to proceed -- and with solutions in hand, puzzles are less the overbearing presence. (At worst, they're like the minor but irksome speed bumps that made up the last two titles.)  UC3 is still no UC2, but even with its warts, the game is a seriously solid adventure that's as much fun to play as it is to watch.