Gamescom 2011: Uncharted 3 Extended Gamescom Demo Impressions

Following an impressive demo at the Sony Gamescom 2011 press conference, we were itching to find out how Drake would get out of his latest ordeal, hanging out the back of an airborne plane. Well, luckily we got to meet with Naughty Dog's community strategist, Arne Meyer, to see a little bit more of the plane-based level. If you've yet to see the Gamescom demo, be sure to check it out, especially if you're a fan of cinematic action set pieces.

The Gamescom demo ended with our hero, Nathan Drake, hanging out the back of an airborne plane, clinging on to some netting for dear life. He'd just dispatched an evil henchman by opening a parachute attached to a vehicle, thereby emptying the plane of its cargo, along with the enemy and Drake himself. He managed to catch onto the netting holding one of the vehicles, only just stopping him from hurtling to his death in the desert below.

Leaving off where the demo ended, Arne Meyer hauled Nathan Drake along the netting and back toward the plane. But as he progressed, more henchmen appeared and began opening fire, while other enemies got sucked out of the plane and landed on the netting. In one amazing move, Meyer was able to pull the bad guy off the netting and take his gun, using it to take shots at the two guards on the loading ramp. Gradually, he hauled himself from one vehicle to the next, eventually making it back onto the plane, taking the enemies out for good measure.

Things weren't all good for our hero at this stage, though--more bad guys came down the plane and started opening fire. Meyer gradually moved Drake up, using whatever he could as cover, although the erratic movements of the plane meant such cover slid around and was useful only temporarily. The stress of the open cargo bay had also caused the plane to start ripping itself apart in midair, with a large hole appearing in the side. The resulting draft pulled out the remaining enemies and also caught Drake, sending him hurtling through the air in yet another cliff-hanger moment.

It was a cruel moment to end the demo on, but Naughty Dog knows how to keep us wanting more. Before we left, we were able to talk to Meyer about more of the game. Naughty Dog plans to reveal more about the game's antagonist, Katherine Marlowe, before release, shedding light on her psychological torture methods. Meyer also claims that the developer has learned a lot from the recent multiplayer beta, with gameplay and traversal mechanics currently being tweaked at the studio's Santa Monica home. We got to play a new multiplayer desert-themed map behind closed doors, which provided many hiding places and high ground for those who like their Uncharted multiplayer a little more tactical.

It's fair to say that Uncharted 3 enjoyed a great reception at Gamescom, but there's clearly more the team has up its sleeve. As always, keep it locked to GameSpot to be the first to hear more about the game ahead of its release.