Although it isn't perfect, Uncharted is quite possibly one of the finest video game experiences available today.
Uncharted draws its gameplay inspiration from rudimentary elements of two very different game categories---the daring adventure platformers like Prince of Persia and cover-based third person shooters such as Gears of War. The player will be immersed in an expansive world that takes full advantage of these genre-types to their fullest effect. From lush, green jungles to abandoned temples and fortresses occupied by the scourge of the criminal underworld, the game does a brilliant job bringing them as close to life as possible with realistic lighting, shadows and meticulous real-world details. For an average plum like Nathan Drake, he is surprisingly athletic---able to scale most manner of vertical surfaces, shimmy across ledges, leap long distances across wide chasms and cheat death in places no other ordinary schmuck would ever hope to survive. Controlling that bit of action is effortless, responsive and pretty forgiving in some cases ---which might be a slight deterrent for those looking for something tougher to navigate.
But as Nate will soon discover---this is far from a vacation. He'll be shoehorned into volatile circumstances against angry, gun-toting pirates, which is why Uncharted effectively emphasizes the core principality of cover-based third-person shooters. There's no doubting the severity of some of the game's most intense gun battles, and a lot of them can prove difficult and overwhelming. Your enemies come armed to the teeth with rocket launchers, grenades, machine guns, gun batteries---everything but the kitchen sink; they'll throw it all at you, leaving you with little room to breathe. So, it is crucial for the player to improvise a temporary cover to protect themselves from immediate lead poisoning. The circle button allows you to make use of nearly every aspect of the immediate environment as a temporary shield (i.e.barrels, rocks, trees, walls, etc.) when you want to escape enemy fire in a hurry as well as answer back with a few shots of your own from the comfort of a low-end brick wall. Whatever seems handy in the field, you can probably use as an effective cover so long as it isn't blown to bits by a rocket-propelled grenade. In fact, Nathan Drake is so nauseatingly adaptable---he can even shoot while hanging from a ledge. The cover system is a lifesaver, but it can be a little iffy. It doesn't always work well in your favor when you need it to, and its somewhat clumsy execution can get you shot if you're in the wrong place at the wrong time. Still, it's far from complex; so long as you keep a constant awareness of your surroundings (especially during heated fights) you should be fine.
When you need to fight back, you'll be pleased to know that Nate is surprisingly proficient with a wide variety of firearms that he can find either lying around the environment or picked up from the warm, dead bodies of each and every enemy you've slain. Aiming with the analog stick is pretty straightforward and accurate most of the time, but it can be difficult to pull off specific headshots especially when you're being attacked, so be patient. (If that fails, you can run and gun it like John Rambo on a drunken binge.) As great as Drake is with firearms, he can only carry two specific types at a time---for example, if he runs into a Desert pistol, he would have to drop the Beretta he was holding, or a Grenade Launcher would have to replace the AK-47. Compared to other games where the player is allowed to possess up to five or so weapons, this restriction might seem like a frustrating disadvantage especially when a dozen or so bad guys and their tree-sized chain gun batteries are shoving themselves down your throat. Yet, somehow, the game makes it work as long as you're willing to improvise on the fly and make every effort to stay alive and fight back. And should you ever run out of ammo, don't fret---you've also got a few expendable grenades in your pocket as well as good old fashioned hand-to-hand combat to compliment your impressive firearm skills. Grenades are extraordinarily powerful against a cluster of enemies and can be thrown using the motion functionality of the Sixaxis controller, but it can be unreliable and will work against you when you're trying to aim a grenade at a specific target. (Plus, there is no way to opt out of the Sixaxis motion control scheme.) Hand-to-hand combat is typically a last resort, and requires incredulous guile. An enemy will counter your attack blows when given the window of opportunity, so it pays to be constantly aware of when that happens---- mess it up for even a fraction of a second and the consequences can be deadly. It is also possible to instantly kill enemies by stealth attacks---similar to the likes of the Metal Gear Solid games. For someone as ordinary as Nathan Drake, you have a surprisingly diverse portfolio of different methods to deal with your enemies in a variety of interesting ways, and that gives you a lot of options to work with.
All of this brings a great deal of depth to Uncharted's gameplay infrastructure and encourages as much a player's creativity as their natural improvisation, and you'll not go unrewarded for all the blood, sweat and tears that you invest. Performing a certain number of stealth kills, head shots, kills with specific weapons and finding hidden treasures interspersed throughout the environment will count towards an unlockable incentive system that paves the way towards a bevy of bonus content that includes concept artwork, behind-the-scenes videos, additional costumes and game tweaks. Plus, it doesn't hurt that there are trophies to earn for beating the game in higher difficulties and, while they are challenging to say the least, you will have already known the tricks of the trade to prepare for what's ahead (provided you've beaten the game in Easy) and a second playthrough in a tougher setting would be that much more fun.
The storytelling is perhaps one of Uncharted's strongest elements. As I noted before, Nathan Drake is a kind of guy you can relate to because of his ordinary, everyman nature, and his in-game dialogue suggests that he's saying what you're probably thinking. His dry sense of humor and quick wit go hand-in-hand with his physical abilities, so all that reckless bravado and courage come naturally and can be as every bit as entertaining as the game. In the face of danger, he sees absurdity, and often makes light of situations that would have easily killed him. Although some elements seem a tad underdeveloped, character interactions bring believability and authenticity to the supporting cast with strong dialogue and solid voice-acting to compliment the story sequences. The music is also noteworthy for its eclectic, rousing orchestral sound befitting of the adventure genre----comparable to that of a film score.
There aren't a lot of games of this quality that come around all too often, so it's no surprise that Uncharted: Drake's Fortune brings an immeasurable level of appeal that few other titles (if any) would ever hope to match. It isn't entirely perfect, but it is perfectly solid with enough depth and content to keep you coming back for more. Blending the best of two different game genres, it's safe to say that there's really nothing quite like it on the market now. That is, if you don't count Uncharted 2, which was released way later. In the meantime, if you are looking for a solid interactive gaming experience that rivals an expensive blockbuster Hollywood movie (now for only $20), chart a course for Uncharted: Drake's Fortune. And enjoy the ride.