Yeah, so Uncharted 4 isn’t coming out this year. Kind of a bummer, I know. But even though it’s just another remaster compilation, there will at least be some Uncharted goodness to relive or experience for the first time on PlayStation 4 this year to make the wait for Nate’s new-gen debut a little easier to endure.
Sony and Naughty Dog have announced Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection, a PS4 collection featuring enhanced versions of Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune, Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, and Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception, all in one beautifully blue PS4 game case. (Or you can buy it digitally from the PlayStation Store and get no box or disc.)
The remaster specialists at Bluepoint Games, the studio behind the God of War, ICO & Shadow of the Colossus, and Metal Gear Solid HD collections on PS3, are working closely with Naughty Dog to bring the three PS3 action-adventure classics to PS4, bolstering the trilogy with a 1080p and 60fps upgrade, enhanced lighting, textures, and models, a Photo Mode, and even new Trophies to make Platinuming all three games a whole new challenge.
The Nathan Drake Collection will include only the single-player campaigns from the three Uncharted games. Venturing into the cesspools of ignorance and petty fanboyism that are the comment sections of YouTube and the PlayStation blog, it seems that a lot of players are pissed that the multiplayer from the second and third games won’t be ported over. I don’t get why, though, because the PS4 collection will also come with access to the Uncharted 4 multiplayer beta. So why would anyone want to play old multiplayer when early access to multiplayer from the real PS4 Uncharted will be included? Gamers just can’t let any announcement go by without bitching and moaning about something.
Thus concludes my mini-rant for the day. Back to The Nathan Drake Collection — it’ll be out October 9th for $59.99. Pre-ordering the game
Continuing a partnership that has already produced excellent books including The Last of Us: American Dreams, The Art of The Last of Us, and The Art of Naughty Dog within the past year or so, Dark Horse Comics and Naughty Dog are now set to publish The Art of the Uncharted Trilogy on April 28th.
As indicated by the title, The Art of the Uncharted Trilogy will contain artwork and developer commentary encompassing the core PS3 titles Drake’s Fortune, Among Thieves, and Drake’s Deception. (I guess Golden Abyss from the Vita didn’t make the cut since it was only overseen, not directly developed, by Naughty Dog. Plus, adding a fourth game would have ruined title options, because something about the word trilogy in a title just sounds right.)
Anyhoo, The Art of the Uncharted Trilogy will be 240 pages long and retail at a list price of $39.99, though pre-order prices at online storefronts like Amazon
No disrespect intended to Dark Horse–I am a happy owner of a number of their art books–but part of me wishes Ballistic Publishing still had a partnership with Naughty Dog and Sony. Ballistic’s sadly short-lived ‘Art of the Game’ series, which previously covered Uncharted 2 in a standalone book (along with God of War 3 and Gears of War 3), produced some of the highest quality premium video game art books around.
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The next two titles to enter the hallowed halls of the PS3’s Greatest Hits library were quietly revealed Thursday afternoon. Tucked away in a media alert I received from SCEA promoting the PlayStation brand as the ultimate “Entertainment Hub” and making a feature-by-feature comparison of the PS3 to the Xbox 360 (Arcade model of course) and Wii, a short blurb confirmed the standalone version of SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs Confrontation and Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune as the latest games to join the Greatest Hits club.
Both games will drop to the Greatest Hits $30 price point beginning August 16th. That’s not much of a drop in price for SOCOM: Confrontation, which was only $40 to begin with, however at most retailers Uncharted is still selling for upwards of $50. I know a lot of PS3 owners have been eagerly waiting for Uncharted to go Greatest Hits, so I’m sure this news will make many of you very, very happy. Now’s the perfect time to catch up on the story before the sequel drops in a couple months. No more excuses!
I’ve posted the email alert on the jump, if you’re interested in reading the full release.
PlayStation: Your Entertainment Hub
PlayStation continues to set the standard for entertainment at home and on the go. With three successful platforms that deliver a decade’s worth of entertainment in every box, an unparalleled line-up of 350 first and third-party games hitting across its multi-platforms this fiscal year, and a rich offering of games, movies and entertainment content, the company is staged yet again for a tremendous holiday season and year.
PlayStation 3 (PS3) is Just Getting Warmed Up
We know our consumers demand a premium entertainment experience. When you compare all the features against other industry offerings, there is no doubt that the PlayStation 3 provides the most complete entertainment system on the market today – right out of the box. Not only are consumers provided a best-in-class Blu-ray player that comes with 80 GB of storage for photos and music, built-in Wi Fi, and thousands of innovative games that appeal to hardcore gamers and families alike, the PS3 offers future-proof technology and free access to rich and ever-evolving PlayStation Network content and services.
In only its third year of its lifecycle, the PS3 system has sold 24 million hardware units and nearly 190 million software units worldwide. In the first half of 2009 alone, PS3 exclusives Killzone 2, MLB 09 The Show,and inFAMOUS received critical acclaim and success with continued sales expected throughout the year. The PS3 software library also features a higher percentage of titles scoring 80 or above than any other console of its generation according to Metacritic data.
SCEA will continue to raise the bar this fiscal year with more than 25 exclusive titles to hit the platform. The highly-anticipated titles include UNCHARTED 2: Among Thieves, Ratchet & Clank Future: A Crack in Time, God of War III, MAG, ModNation Racers, Heavy Rain and many more. In addition, SCEA will expand its “Greatest Hits” library with two new best-selling titles. Starting August 16, stand alone version of SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs Confrontation and Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune will be available for $29.99 MSRP.
PlayStation Network Feeds the Living Room with Compelling Digital Content
With more than 26 million user accounts and more than 540 million pieces of content downloaded worldwide to date, there is no denying the tremendous user appetite for digital content. In July 2009, paid downloads on PlayStation Network increased 114% over the past year.
There are more than 200 downloadable games and 1500 pieces of add-on game content for the PS3 and PSP systems available via the PlayStation Store, including innovative exclusive smash hits such as Flower, Fat Princess: Fistful of Cake and PixelJunk Eden and dozens of PS one Classics, such as Final Fantasy VII. Leading into the launch of PSPgo this fall and into the holidays, the PlayStation Store will expand significantly with downloadable content for the PSP platform, including highly anticipated titles such as Gran Turismo and PSone classics. In addition, the PlayStation Network’s video delivery service provides PSP and PS3 owners access to over 13,000 hours of video content. Today the service features more than 2,000 movies and 12,000 TV shows for all tastes and interests.
PSP (PlayStation Portable) Sets the Bar for Best-in-Class Entertainment on the Go
With nearly 53 million hardware units sold to date around the world, PSP is the only mobile entertainment device to offer console-quality gaming, music, movies, photos, wireless Internet, Skype, and on-the-go access to your living room’s entertainment content through PS3 interconnectivity. PSP is on pace for a truly break-out year, now with direct access to the PlayStation Network’s video delivery service, new digital content services such as Media Go!, and nearly 100 titles launching this fiscal year, including LittleBigPlanet PSP, Gran Turismo PSP,SOCOM: U.S Navy SEALs Fireteam Bravo 3, Jak and Daxter: The Lost Frontier, Final Fantasy Dissidia, Madden NFL 10 and more. PlayStation is also offering many new hardware options to meet consumers’ varying needs and preferences, including the PSP-3000, the brand new Limited Edition Hannah Montana PSP (PlayStation Portable) Entertainment Pack with a lilac PSP, and PlayStation’s first digital-only portable device, the PSPgo system, coming this October.
PlayStation 2 Continues To Prove It Still Has Game
Now in its ninth year, more than 139 million PlayStation 2 entertainment systems and an unprecedented 1.4 billion PlayStation 2 software units have been sold life-to-date around the globe. With a $99 purchase price, a library of over 10,240 titles, plus more than 100 additional titles slated this fiscal year — including SingStar: Queen, MotorStorm: Artic Edge and more — PlayStation 2 continues to offer a great value for budget-conscience families and gamers.
No other company can offer the strength of three healthy platforms and is better positioned to deliver the most complete entertainment experience to consumers for many, many years to come.
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Earlier this month, Naughty Dog released a patch for last year’s hit PS3 game Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune, a patch of tremendous significance for making Uncharted the first full-blown PS3 production to feature trophies, as designated by the one and only platinum trophy currently up for grabs. Since the patch went live, I’ve spent the past two weeks exploring Uncharted’s dense jungles and dark catacombs, playing it, replaying it and replaying it some more to unlock every last trophy. After three trips through the game and nothing short of 20 hours worth of adventuring, I’ve come out the other side — platinum trophy proudly in hand, of course – and figured now would be as good a time as any to fill you in on the addictive beauty of the new trophy system and finally review this wonderful work of action/adventure gaming.
Before getting into the trophies, though, let me first sing the praises of the game itself for a moment. As I’m sure you’ve well heard by now, Uncharted absolutely rocks. In quick summation, it’s like Tomb Raider – tomb diving, treasure hunting and acrobatic adventuring — crossed with Gears of War – intense, cover-based gunplay — infused with the brash, swashbuckling tone and attitude of an Indiana Jones movie (the old ones, not the crap new one).
From start to finish, the story, following the handsome, young treasure hunter Nathan Drake on a quest to find the legendary treasure of El Dorado, is a breathtaking cinematic thrill ride rivaling any modern-day Hollywood blockbuster action flick. It has the gameplay to back up the narrative, too, with its smooth controls, challenging gun battles and abundance of platform-jumping, vine-swinging, wall-climbing adventure moments. It’s even got a few vehicular action sequences that not only don’t completely suck but are actually a heck of a lot of fun. That’s not to say it’s perfect, though. I do wish that the level and puzzle designs were more free flowing (this is a very linear game), and the cover system could’ve used a little extra fine-tuning (when there are multiple cover points in close proximity Nate doesn’t always duck behind the one you want). But in the grand scheme of things these are minor flaws.
Graphically, it’s magnificent, too. Other than MGS4 and maybe Heavenly Sword, you won’t find higher-end production values anywhere else in gaming. From lovely jungle environments bursting with lush vegetation and rich lighting to water effects that rival BioShock’s to animations and facial mapping so realistic they’ll leave you dumbstruck, Uncharted is a showpiece of some of the most sophisticated graphics and animation technology in game design today. And of course I can’t leave out Nate’s famous half-tucked shirt which wrinkles realistically with every single movement he makes and wets and dries in real-time. I know it’s just a shirt, but the tech behind it is impressive. The occasional Unreal Engine 3-like texture load-in bug, on the other hand, is a yucky, unfortunate glitch in Naughty Dog’s powerhouse engine that I wish could’ve been cleaned up. Fortunately it’s a split-second blemish that really only ever happens when loading into a scene for the first time (like after a story sequence), so it’s not that unsightly.
Now, my friends, let me tell you about the trophy system. It’s built upon the game’s existing medal system, so the unlock requirements are exactly the same (the trophies aren’t retroactive, though, so even if you’ve earned all the medals before you’ll have to start all over from scratch to get the trophies). That means you’ve got a total of 48 trophies to earn (36 bronze, 8 silver, 3 gold and the elusive platinum) by completing a wide range of challenges, be it basic things like killing a certain number of enemies with all the different weapons, completing the game on all four difficulty settings, or hunting down all 60 of the hidden treasures (you get a trophy in increments of five discovered treasures), or more advanced tasks such as killing five enemies in a row with one punch after first softening them up with gunshots or killing three enemies with one explosion five separate times. Beating the game on the Crushing difficulty is no joke either. You better have mad patience and precise shooting skills if you hope to survive.
It may be hard to believe, but the introduction of trophies has had a skyrocketing effect on the game’s replay value. At least for me it has. Sure, you could already perform the same challenges and earn some sweet bonus material for the effort (behind-the-scenes videos, costumes, cheats, etc.), but for some reason having the extra trophy incentive makes the accomplishments even more satisfying. My experience is proof of this, too. I only played the game once last year when it first came out and that was it, but since the advent of trophies I played it through three times in succession. You may say “so what?” to that, but for as many Xbox 360 games as I own and have played, not a single one has ever enticed me to replay it multiple times for the sole purpose of achievement hunting. I don’t know why but I simply couldn’t stop playing until I had all the trophies. That’s proof positive of how rewarding a trophy/achievement system can be, it’s just surprising that it has taken this long for a game to pull the feature off so perfectly.
Until Metal Gear Solid 4 came along, Uncharted was the best thing going for the PS3, and even now it’s still right up there with Kojima’s masterpiece. The addition of trophies and DualShock 3 support (oh yes, rumble was also added recently in case you forgot) have only made it better with age, too. If you have a PS3, Uncharted should be in your collection. If you plan on picking up a PS3 anytime soon, you’d be wise to make it one of your first game purchases (Sony’s making that choice super-easy this holiday season with the upcoming 160GB bundle, and it’ll also surely be going Greatest Hits sometime soon, so you’re running out of excuses). And of course if you already own Uncharted, now is the best time to go back, relive Nate’s adventure and earn yourself some trophies along the way.
Pros:
+ Trophy system adds new replay value and an extra layer of reward to the existing medal system
+ Rock solid gameplay all around: gunplay, puzzles, platforming… it’s all great
+ Compelling story accentuated by superb music, voice acting and characters you become attached to
+ Out of this world production values
Cons:
– Levels and puzzles are extremely linear, as you’ll notice over repeated playthroughs
– Occasional texture load-in bug uglies up what is otherwise a gorgeous game
– Trophies aren’t retroactive
Game Info:
Platform: PS3
Publisher: SCEA
Developer: Naughty Dog
Release Date: 11/16/07
Genre: Action/Adventure
Players: 1
Like the PSP, the PS3 is also getting a new model this holiday season. As unveiled by SCEE at the Leipzig Games Convention today, a new 160GB PS3 is on the way. Here in the US, though, we’re not just getting the system by itself like Europe, we’re getting it in a limited-edition Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune bundle. Due on North American store shelves this November at a $500 price point, the bundle will contain the 160GB PS3 system, a copy of Uncharted, a download voucher for PSN title PAIN and a DualShock 3 controller.
“As PLAYSTATION Network continues to evolve with our recently launched video delivery service and more exclusive games, PS3 owners are demanding more storage capacity,” said Jack Tretton, president and CEO, SCEA. “Consumers also are utilizing PS3 as an entertainment hub for their digital media, placing content such as their entire music collection on the hard drive. The 160GB PS3 system addresses this growing consumer demand in a compelling bundle that delivers significant value.”
Hit the jump for the bundle content list and the official 160GB PS3 system specs. Also check back later in the day for an updated Uncharted review I was already prepping for today before this bundle news.
The Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune PS3 bundle includes the following components:
— 160GB PS3 system — The 160GB PS3 is a complete entertainment system comprising a Blu-ray(TM) Disc player, HDMI output, an integrated Wi-Fi connection, and Cell Broadband Engine(TM).
— Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune — A 400-year-old clue found in the coffin of Sir Francis Drake sets a modern-day fortune hunter, Nathan Drake, on an exploration for the fabled treasure of El Dorado, leading to the discovery of a forgotten island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. The search turns deadly when Drake becomes stranded on the island and hunted by mercenaries. Outnumbered and outgunned, Drake and his companions must fight to survive as they begin to unravel the terrible secrets hidden on the Island.
— PAIN PLAYSTATION Network Voucher* — PAIN boldly tackles a rarely explored area of video-gaming … comedy. The unique mechanic of the game allows the player to load a character into a human-sized, ultra-powerful slingshot, and fire the character into an active, physics-controlled environment, filled with precarious and humorous situations. Download PAIN from PLAYSTATION Store (http://store.playstation.com) to your PS3 system with the included voucher.
— DUALSHOCK 3 Wireless Controller — DUALSHOCK 3 wireless controller provides the most intuitive game play experience with pressure sensors in each action button and the inclusion of the highly sensitive SIXAXIS(TM) motion sensing technology.
PLAYSTATION(R)3 160GB Specification:
Product name PLAYSTATION(R)3
CPU Cell Broadband Engine(TM) (Cell/B.E.)
GPU RSX(TM)
Sound Dolby 5.1ch, DTS 5.1ch , LPCM 7.1ch, AAC, others *1 *2
Memory 256MB XDR Main RAM, 256MB GDDR3 VRAM
HDD 2.5″ Serial ATA 160GB
I/O USB 2.0 x2
Communication Ethernet X1 (10BASE-T, 100BASE-TX, 1000BASE-T)
IEEE 802.11 b/g Included
Bluetooth 2.0 (EDR) Included
Wireless controller (Bluetooth) Included
AV Output Screen size 480i, 480p, 720p, 1080i, 1080p
HDMI OUT x1 *3
AV MULTI OUT x1
DIGITAL OUT (OPTICAL) x1
BD/DVD/CD Maximum Read Speed BD 2x (BD-ROM)
Drive DVD 8x (DVD-ROM)
(Read Only) CD 24x (CD-ROM)
Dimensions Approximately 12.75in(W) x 3.86in (H) x 10.8in (D)
Weight Approximately 11 lbs
*1 A device compatible with Linear PCM 7.1 Ch. is required to output 7.1 Ch. audio, supported by Dolby TrueHD or a similar format, from the HDMI OUT connector.
*2 This system does not support output from the DTS-HD 7.1 Ch. DTS-HD 7.1 Ch. audio is output from a 5.1 or lower channel.
*3 “Deep Color” and “x.v.Color (xvYCC)” defined by HDMI ver1.3a are supported.
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