Console: PS Vita Reviewer: Reid
Pros
* Stunning graphics
* Smooth level design and transition
* Many unique game mechanics, showing off the Vita’s capabilities
Cons
* Difficulty spikes rear their ugly faces
* Low replay value
* Aim mechanics can be tough to get used to
The Uncharted series are great adventure-style games that go the extra mile to provide the best graphics I’ve seen on the Playstation, in-depth stories, and top-notch voice-work. It is only available for the PS Vita currently, and I was hesitant to play it due to the fact that it was developed by Bend studios, instead of Naughty Dog, who did the main three titles. Looking into Bend’s resume I was surprised to see that they are the main developers behind another favorite series of mine, Syphon Filter. This was a big release for Playstation, as it not only involves one of their best franchises’ first time on a hand-held, but most importantly it was released to propel their new Vita hand-held. Expectations were high.
Presentation : A+
Maybe it is because this is my first game for the Vita, maybe it’s because I just got done playing on my 3DS’s tiny little baby screen and now I’m playing on the Vita’s 5 inch OLED qHD screen (quite a transition). All I know is, the graphics blew me away. Even expecting great graphics from my previous Uncharted experiences, it still really surprised me how beautiful this game looks. I spent most of my time in the first few chapters just looking at the details in the jungle, the carvings on ancient totems, and the sun setting over me while on the side of giant temple ruins. I took all kind’s of pictures with my in-game camera. This was the best choice for their new hand-held launch. Very impressive indeed.
The animation is very well done with no disappointments, even during the dialogue close-ups. The facial animations still aren’t as good as compared to their console counterparts, but it’s very close, and looks great for a hand-held, and better than a lot of console games I’ve played.
One thing that scared me having a different developer making this game was how it would affect the music. The Uncharted series offer a great soundtrack, and Golden Abyss does not disappoint. I didn’t hear anything to new, but the main theme, percussion, and sound effects have returned, and rightfully so. There is no need to tweak the main theme or combat sound effects, and I personally am glad they did not. Some people might wish for something new in this department, but I am glad they left it the same.
Single Player : B+
You know, if Bend Studio’s name wasn’t even on this game, after playing it I would have assumed it was made by Naughty Dog. If you have played any of the other Uncharted games, it has the same exact feel. The main theme get’s you excited while messing with the title menu and options. The way the game feels, controls, and the way Drake stumbles around seems like it was squeezed from Uncharted 3’s Blu-Ray disc and compacted into the Vita’s tiny flash memory card.
Golden Abyss is set before all of the other three games, but I would recommend playing at least one of them first to catch all of the fan nods that make this game come full circle with its franchise. Nathan Drake, otherwise known as the “wise-cracking casual explorer” who always ends up with an army trying to kill him because of a tiny relic in his possession that usually, unknown to him, is the key to a gateway to a forgotten world or map to get there, always seems to have a great story to tell. In some ways how the hero interacts with the world you control him in reminds me of Peter Parker, always making the small comments to himself, or the sarcastic one-liners to the main villain.
You are going to explore a lot in this game. Even though it is quite linear, they do have a major focus on finding hidden treasures, picking up dropped items, and charcoal sketches. Golden Abyss shows off virtually every feature of the Vita in its game mechanics. Sometimes you will have to clean the dirt off objects you find. You will do this by rotating the object with the rear touch-pad, and wiping it clean with the front touch-screen. At one point, you have to reveal invisible ink on a document by holding the rear touch-pad up to a large light source (light bulb). Sometimes you will have to piece together a map or a picture like putting together a jigsaw puzzle that has been shredded.
You have multiple control options when you are climbing cliffs, ropes, or aiming during combat. Though all of those options probably aren’t necessary, but it is nice to be able to choose exactly how you want to aim (either by the six-axis, or manually). Another great feature I found using a lot is the “trace the path” option. Instead of constantly pushing your thumb-stick and clicking ‘X’, you can actually use the touch-screen and trace the path in front of Drake you want him to climb or decend. It saves a lot of time and needless clicking. The charcoal sketches are a neat touch, and you will use this feature often, especially to complete your treasure hunt. The touch-screen works well with this, and it is a nice break from either exploring or combat. The hand-to-hand combat works very well, as when you are near any enemy, a small fist pops up to let you know you are close enough to dish out some pain. The quick time events return when you are finishing off fist fights, boss fights, or even machete swings or ledge grabbing. I don’t usually care much for this mechanic, but I feel that, especially in a touch-screen hand-held, it is appropriate. The only part of the game-play experience I think it takes away from is when you are trying to enjoy the boss fights. I couldn’t fully absorb the situation because my fat thumb was dangling over the screen, trying to swipe the next directional arrow.
Though the story has its plot holes, it is still very interesting, and the inclusion of your partner in crime ‘Sully’ really keeps you going. The relationship between Drake and Sully is the best part of the franchise, and it is nice to see them at it again, picking on each other while blowing away bad guys with RPG’s and 50 caliber armored machine gun turrets.
The aiming did take me a while to get used to, and I had to fiddle with the settings to get it right. Overall the combat is good, and not torture like in Uncharted 3. It feels more like the first Uncharted to me, which I feel had the best combat mechanics. Why they tweaked it in the later two games I’ll never know.
I guess this is the point where I should mention the difficulty spikes. Yes, they return, even though the game is made by a different studio. If you haven’t played any other Uncharted games, it’s a hard thing to explain. Oh, wait, no it isn’t. You will be rocking and rolling in the game, and then you come into combat situations and you will DIE 5 or 6 times in a row because for some reason, there is 6o bad guys at once, and I’ll be damned if they all don’t take 100 bullets to kill. This is a common feature in the Uncharted franchise, and it is at its worse in Uncharted 3. Though the spikes in Golden Abyss aren’t nearly as bad, there were a few times where I held my Vita in the air wondering how good of a boomerang it would make.
For a hand-held game, I was impressed by how long it was, especially since I was just casually treasure hunting. You can easily spend a few more hours trying to acquire everything to 100% the game. If playing on normal and casually looking for treasures and sketches it takes about 7 to 8 hours to complete.
Multiplayer : F
I have covered before my extreme dislike of including features to interact with other players where you can trade items collected or stats or so forth. The 3DS has ‘Street Pass’, and the Vita has ‘Near’. Although the Near feature is much cooler and more in-depth than Street Pass, in my opinion, it is not user-friendly, not fun, and offers no incentive to find things and trade them. Uncharted 2 and 3 both have great multiplayer with co-op and verses options. Why should this be any different?
Replay Value : C
If you are a casual treasure hunter you will play this game through once, and perhaps bust it out a year later or so for another play through. If you like treasure hunting, or even getting 100% completion, you will play through this at least twice, if not three times to find everything and acquire all the trophies. Other than that, there is no real incentive to keep coming back to this game, as great as it is, because of the linear paths.
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Is Uncharted: Golden Abyss a perfect game? No. It has its flaws like any other. But the epic scale that the game provides really feels like a full console game. I’m sure we will see a PS3 port sometime. It’s definitely good enough for one. This game is for Uncharted fans, someone looking for a great Vita game, or just plain adventure seeking gamers. I can highly recommend this game on its graphics and story alone. It is a great game for the Vita.
