Great effort Raikoh. Very detailed, informative and insightful review.

Their were some places where commas were misplaced, or not there altogether. Also, in the second last paqragraph, you wrote "At times the controls feel a little unresponsive and don't always make Nathan do what him to". This sentence is incomplete. Maybe you wanted to write "make Nathan do what you want him to". The sentence structure could've been stronger, but overall. a great effort. Keep up the great work! 

Yeah... I tend to get ahead of myself when I write hence the broken sentences.... I'll fix in a sec.

Also, I'll give someone a cookie if they can find the hidden star wars episode 3 quote.

Uncharted 2 review by Calvinsora

SCORE: 9,5/10

Pros:
+Long, entertaining story with brilliant pacing and allure
+Exciting and improved gunplay and added stealth element
+Gorgeous visuals and varied environments
+Mood-setting soundtrack
+Fantastic multiplayer components
+Lots of extras and replay value

Cons:
-Cover system is still unwieldy at times
-Sometimes imprecise controls can be a hassle

Time spent playing to date: 20-40 hours

Difficulty: Just Right

Verdict: Bigger and better, Uncharted 2 manages to amaze on every level.

Review:

Once in a while, there comes a game that just sweeps you off your feet, leaving you amazed and stunned at how unbelievably great the game is. Uncharted 2 is one of those games. With improvements of an already great formula, engrossing graphics, a subliminal soundtrack, presentation to die for and a exceedingly good multiplayer on top of that, Uncharted 2 is one of the most complete packages to arrive on the PS3.

The story starts off with Drake suddenly waking up on a train. It doesn't take him long to realize that there is something wrong. He's badly hurt, and the train he's on is literally hanging off the side of a cliff. Drake will have to climb the train to save his life, and while he tries to find a way to seek help, flashbacks play to further inform the player as to why Drake is in this mess. It turns out Drake is on a hunt for Shambhala, or as it is more commonly called, Shangri-La. As expected, this hunt has put him on a certain someone's enemy list but the events that precede and come after the train accident is up to the player to discover.
Uncharted 2 plays and feels exactly like a Hollywood blockbuster. Terrific set-pieces, witty dialogue, entertaining characters and the constant introduction to something new separates Uncharted 2 from almost any other game that has ever been made. Not only is it a joy to watch, but playing it is even more fun.

Uncharted 2 takes all of the aspects of the first game, improves them and then adds a few bells and whistles to make it something truly special. In it's core, Uncharted is not much different from the famous Tomb Raider series, and the series' influence is apparent. However, Uncharted 2 manages to make this well-known formula it's own, by smoothing it all down and making you feel like you could do pretty much everything: jump large chasms, take down hordes of enemies and solve gargantuan puzzles. Drake manages to do this and more, showing superior athletic ability and unrivalled mastery of gunplay to show the enemies whose boss.
Drake is even easier to play this time around. Jumping doesn't have to be nail-bitingly precise, and the cover system proves to be just as much fun now as it was in the first. One problem, though, is that it is still difficult to use in a smooth and easy manner. Drake literally sticks to the wall and traversing corners is a hassle, especially in more stealthy areas. However, the system still works great and can be used in a multitude of ways to further amplify the experience. It is also an improvement to the system in the first game, which was a bit stiff and didn't offer nearly as many options.

As in the first game, you go around with an array of different weaponry, taking down any who oppose you and smack them down. A new feature in Uncharted 2 is stealth. Some of the game's moments require you to take down enemies without making your presence known and Drake has the abilities to do so. By sneaking behind an enemy, you can initiate a silent takedown, and if you're careful, you can take down a whole group of soldiers without ever being noticed. This is immensely satisfying to do, but can be hard to do at times because of the sticky cover system. A key operanda in stealth is to stay behind cover and being able to smoothly traverse around corners. However, Drake tends to stand up in the process, alerting the guards to his presence. This is not a desirable circumstance, obviously, so it puts a slight damper on the new stealth system. It is still not a game-breaking problem so it can easily be over-looked as a slight annoyance and nothing more.

At times, you are required to stop and think for a bit to solve some puzzles. You have Francis Drake's diary (Francis Drake, the grand explorer) to help you solve these puzzles, and some are quite difficult to solve. However, some logic thinking and smart deduction will get you through them in the end. These puzzle offer a great change of pace, making the experience a bit more cerebral than when you are just picking off soldiers.

Stealth is, of course, not the only way to take out these soldiers. You are also given a large number of other ways to take down your enemies. You can take them down with melee, which has been greatly improved. Instead of pressing buttons in a certain order to perform different combos, all you have to do now is punch and, if the enemy manages to get you in a hold, break out of it and deliver a finishing blow. It is much more streamlined and easier to use, and you might at times even choose your fists over guns, which never happened in the first game.
There are also a lot of different weapons: rifles, shotguns, pistols, crossbows and RPG's are among the weapons you can wield with great effect. You can only wield two at a time, one two-handed weapon and one pistol weapon, which adds some strategy to what weapons you choose to have. You can also have grenades and at certain point use stationed machine guns to mow down enemies.
Using these weapons, you can defeat enemies in different ways. You can hang on a ledge and shoot from there, you can blindly shoot from behind cover and also shoot straight from the hip. Blending these elements togeter with the standard aim option is the best way to get through the game in a quick and efficient manner.

However, you might not even want to get through the game quickly. There is so much to see, so much to do, that it is almost overwhelming. Treasures are back, little infinitesimal specks of light that are scattered about the world, just waiting to be found. There are a total of 100 treasures, all different in look and these treasures add greatly to the replay value seeing as you'll most likely want to find each and every piece of it.
This is only helped by the stunning environments. You'll travel from frigid mountaintops to oriental temples in the search for Shambhala. In each area, Drake changes his outfit to suit the environment. Detail abounds in every part of the game, beautifully blending atmospheric locales and enchanting effects of all sorts: trees lazily swaying in the breeze, a fierce blizzard billowing while bullets whizz by your head, jumping from roof to roof in a city being torn down by the effects of war. Gaming has rarely been this beautiful.

Of course, this would all be trivial if the game didn't boast such phenomenal graphics. Everything looks pretty much picture perfect, smooth and colorful. The game also manages to use shadows as perfectly as the first game did. Cascading waterfalls are as pretty in-game as in real life. Watching the sun set over a calm Tibetan village is almost unparalleled in it's scenic beauty and majestic glory. When coupled with incredibly smooth frame-rate and fantastic animation, Uncharted 2 becomes an art form in itself. It is truly astounding to look at, and will make you realize how far gaming has gone in the last few years.

The sound is just as terrific, adding either tension, majesty or grandiosity to any situation. The music slows down when puzzle-solving, speeds up in battle, and tenses up when something is around the corner.
The voice-acting also manages to reach cinematic quality. Everyone is voiced perfectly, especially Drake, who has just as much charisma and charm as in the first game. Witty remarks and a great sense of personality characterize not only Drake, but almost everyone else as well.
So all in all, Uncharted 2 is aesthetically perfect in almost every way. You will never cease to be amazed with what the game will come with next.

The story is just as long and epic as in the first game, not sacrificing quantity for quality. Throughout the game, there is a multitude of goals to reach by achieving certain goals. This will earn you money that you can use to buy a large amount of extras, like different costumes, videos and other tweaks and baubles. After the initial playthrough, you can go through the game again and use money to buy weapons you can use at any time and also costumes and tweaks like infinite ammo and one-hit kills. This is mostly for fun, but you can also go through the game on another difficulty to ramp up the challenge. This makes Uncharted 2 a game that warrants another playthrough.

On top of the brilliance of the single-player campaign, there is also a stellar multiplayer. You can partake in a traditional deathmatch or objective-based multiplayer, and also go into the ranked versions of the modes. This is an incredibly smooth experience, and other than the small wait between matches and while finding other players, this is a seamless experience. There is also a co-op mode, where you can play with your friends either against a wave of enemies or finishing a variety of objectives. Multiplayer is a novelty in the Uncharted series, and considering this is the first time it is implemented, it is simply amazing to think the developers managed to reach this level of quality in their first outing.

Uncharted 2 is everything a sequel should be. Improving upon the first game, while maintaining both the atmosphere and overall feel of the game. Adding to that the multiplayer and other added elements, Uncharted 2 is not only the best PS3 game of the year, but quite possibly the best game of the year and one of the all-time best on the console itself. It is a astoundingly complete package that will last you longer than you can imagine. When all is said and done, Marco Polo said it best when nearing death's door: "I did not tell half of what I saw, for I knew I would not be believed.".

Story: 9,4/10
Graphics: 9,7/10
Sound: 9,4/10
Gameplay: 9,6/10
Replayability: 9,6/10

Final score: 9,5/10

-Calvinsora

(After my lacklustre review last time, I decided to work hard and came up with this review. I hope you guys like it! )