Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is one of the most pleasant surprises of 2024.?? MachineGames' latest title sends the famous archaeologist around the world for another exhilarating adventure, combining elements of stealth, combat, and puzzle gameplay.

If you've just finished Indiana Jones and the Great Circle and are ??looking for something similar to satisfy the same urge, why not try?? out some of these action-adventure games from over the years?

Wolfenstein: The New Order

MachineGames doesn't have a monopoly on the "fighting Nazis" niche, but it does it as well as any developer out there right now. Before Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, the studio was putting a modern spin on a classic franchise with Wolfenstein: The New Order.

This 2014 game spawned several sequels, but the original is well worth revisiting. Wolfenstein: The New Order takes place in an alternate timeline where Nazi Germa??ny won WW2, and you're there to fight back. In this sense, it scratches the same itch as the new Indy game.

Tomb Raider (2013)

Lara Croft is the closest thing we have to a female Indiana Jones, but there's a lot more than that to her, too. Nothing shows this off better than 2013's Tomb Raider, a gritty reboot that sees Croft fight to survive on the dangerous island of Yamatai. In classic adventurer fashion, you'll also raid ancient tombs and solve complex puzzles, making it a great complement coming off the back of Indiana Jones and the Great Circle.

Crystal Dynamics' Tomb Raider is the start of a trilogy, but I recommend starting at the beginning. In terms of tone, it's most similar to Indiana Jones, but all three titles hold up extremely well if Tomb Raider tickles your fancy.

Uncharted 4: A Thief's End

Uncharted 4: A Thief's End has you solving puzzles from a third-person perspective with a mix of stealth, melee, and firearms combat while hunting for treasure on a worldwide adventure. It's an Indiana Jones game in all but name.

While I'd recommend playing the first three Uncharted games, you can definitely jump in with A Thief's End. You'll learn more about the overarching story and characters by revisiting the older titles, but if you're after something similar to Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, you'll still have plenty of fun with this as a standa??lone title.

The Last Guardian

After years of delays, The Last Guardian was finally released in 2016. It was worth the wait, telling the touching story of an unnamed boy and his adventure with his huge d??og-like companion, Trico.

There's almost no typical combat in The Last Guardian. Instead, you must use your wits to solve puzzles to keep the boy and Trico alive throughout the trials they face on their adventure. It's a change of pace from something like Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, but the puzzle gameplay ??gives them a su??rprising amount in common.

Dishonored

Dishonored is a game that will make you think about every action you?? take. Every situation has multiple solutions and gives you ample time to prepare before you make your move. Will you meticulously eliminate your enemies stealthily or go in swinging? It's up to you to decide.

While 2012's Dishonored embraces a grittier aesthetic and more fantasy elements than Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, it's difficult to imagine liking one and not the other. Th??ey share many strands of DNA.

Assassin's Creed Origins

While Assassin's Creed Origins is tec?hnically an RPG, it has all the hallmarks of an excellent action-adventure game. Explore the beautifully rendered Ancient Egypt as Bayek, founder of the Hidden Ones, as you attempt to avenge the death of your son.

Indy fans will find the tomb and pyramid exploration here a lot of fun, but that's only a minor part of what Assassin's Creed Origins has to offer. Some might even say it's too big, given the enormous ??size of the op?en world to explore.

Indiana Jones and the Emperor's Tomb

If you're craving Indiana Jones, what better way to scratch the itch than to play another Indiana Jones game? In terms of style, Indiana Jones and the Emperor's Tomb is the closest you're getting to The Great Circle, a third-person action game that takes Indy through a series of d?ank c??rypts around the world.

With clunky controls and a camera that is a nightmare to control, Indiana Jones and the Emperor's Tomb feels every bit like a game released in 2003. But it captures the spirit of Indiana Jones as well as a?nything, and isn't that what re??ally matters?

Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order

Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order offer??s a surprising amount of puzzles to solve using the Force. It's a key pillar of the game's exploration, which also takes heavy inspiration from Metroidvania games. It's a surprising mix??, but one that works extremely well with the game's Soulslike combat mechanics.

The Lucas connection between Star Wars and Indiana Jones is clear. If you're looking for a fresh action-adventure game to lose yourself in off the back of Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, you shouldn't look further than Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order. Its sequel, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, is a blast, too.

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HBO's The Last of Us has found its Abby. Kaitlyn Dever, of Booksmart and Dopesick, will play the Part II lead in Season 2 of The Last of Us.

Naughty Dog and HBO confirmed the news on Twitter. She was previously rumored to play the character, ??but now it’s official that De?ver will take on the role.

The Last of Us, starring Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey, is fresh off eight Creative Emmy wins and is nominated for five main Primetime Emmy awards, including Best Drama. The show was a massive hit for HBO and fans alike.

Speaking on the casting to Variety, co-creators Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann said, “Our casting process for season two has been identical to season one: we look for world-class actors who embody the souls of the characters in the source material. Nothing matters more than talent and we’re thrilled to have an acclaimed performer like Kaitlyn join Pedro, Bella, and the rest of our family.�/p>

Abby is the dual protagonist and main antagonist in The Last of Us Part II, which HBO will adapt with its second season. Once a Firefly, the death of her father set her on the road for revenge as a Wolf. Laura Bailey (Marvel’s Spider-Man 2) was the actor for Abby in the video game The Last of Us Part II, garnering her a Best Performance award at the The Game Awards 2020.

Brains and Brawn

Kaitlyn is a very inspired choice for the second protagonist/main antagonist of The Last of Us sequel. She’s a big up-and-coming actress whose biggest roles include her Emmy-nominated role as Betsy in the mini-series Dopesick. Many people might know her as the dual protagonist in Olivia Wilde’s coming-of-age comedy Booksmart, which was one of the funniest films I’ve seen in recent years. Recently, she starred in the Hulu-exclusive alien film No One Will Save You.

Funny enough, this isn’t her first time working with Naughty Dog. Spoiler alert for Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End, but she actually played Nathan and Elena’s da?ughter, ?Cassie. Furthermore, when The Last of Us was in the movie stages, creator Neil Druc??kmann in a Hollywood Reporter interview revealed Kaityln was among the actresses who table read for the role of Ellie, alongside Maisie Williams (Game of Thrones).

The Last of Us Season 2 is scheduled to film later this year and release sometime next year. If you want to refresh yourself on Abby's journey, The Last of Us Part II Remastered arrives for PS5 next week on January 19.

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Be the hero of your own story

Sappy. Sentimental. Downright cheesy. If there's a video game story (or really any other media, for that matter) that is going to make me cry from pure emotion, you can bet your bottom dollar that I'm going to love it. With the world becoming an increasingly horrific dumpster fire that ??somehow burns hotter every day, media can be a welcome respite from the chaos.

Don't get me wrong here, I love dark, provocative stories in certain contexts, but sometimes, what you really need is something that knows what it is, and leans as hard as it can into that fantasy. I'm not talking about dragons and wizards, but a different kind of fantasy �the fa??ntasy of play (although there is quite a bit of overlap between those two). Allow me to explain.

Stating the obvious here, but when we play a video ga?me, we're engaged in very active play: pressing buttons to manipulate what we see on the screen, and engaging with gameplay systems that designers have put in place to provide us with a fulfilling experience. We love exploring the constraints of those systems, and using their rules to create scenarios where we come out on top.

Another kind of play

But when we add in the storytelling elements of a game �the setting, characters, plot,?? and so on �we're engaging with another type of play: make-believe. Similar to how a child might play princess or knight, there's something in us that loves the fantasy of being someone else. It's the same thing in us that loves immersive experiences, which can include anything from an engrossing movie to an all-enveloping real-life experience like going to Disneyland or a Renaissance Faire. In those scenarios, we allow ourselves to shed our identities and put on new ones �something that can be incredibly freeing �and we do the exact same thing when we allow ourselves to give in to the fantasy of a video game.

A lot of games tend to be pieces of genre fiction like sci-fi, fantasy (now we're talking about the dragons-and-wizards variety), and even westerns, and that's because genre fiction is especially good at helping us get out of our own heads and into something that feels like more of an adventure. The best genre fiction knows what it is and leans into it hard, and by that, I mean that its creators understand the conventions and tropes of a piece's respective genre, and instead of shying away from them, they embrace those conventions whole-heartedly and without irony. What's even better is when a game's mechanics allow for emergent storytelling, because when we create ou??r own story beats without any ??scripted help from the game, we feel even more ownership of our own narrative that we're playing out.

Think of the rousing speeches spoken triumphantly over the intercom on the Normandy in Mass Effect, or the swell of the music when you first lay eyes on the beautiful pirate ships that you know contain treasure in Uncharted 4. These moments could definitely be considered cheesy or over-the-top to some, but giving in to those indulgent moments is what helps us really feel like we're living our dreams as a space commander, or a treasure hunter. People joke about games like God of War being nothing but a power fantasy, but honestly, that's what it's supp?osed to be, and I don't think there's anything wrong with that.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYjCGSLX8VE

The Blank Slate

In other media, having a Blank Slate protagonist can be more of a problem, because they can come off as bland and uninteresting most of the time. But in games, having your main character be a?? hollow shell can actually be a big advantage, because, given the nature of play, players already have a tendency to project their own chosen persona onto that c??haracter.

There are some instances where having a more specific character can be just as affecting, too �my go-to example is always The Last of Us, because that game does a great job of using play, specifically how intense and harrowing it can ?feel at times, to make you feel for t??he characters and the journey they're going through. If you let yourself give in to the fear and desperation that some of the more intense moments of that game present you with, suddenly the emotional highs and lows hit a lot harder.

Giving in to the fantasy

When we talk about games being so emotionally impactful, I think this is why. Giving ourselves over to story, ?especially in such a strong and sometimes personal way that games a?sk of us, can mean really moving and enriching gaming and storytelling experiences.

Not all, but a vast majority of beloved, classic games give into one form of fantasy or another. Pokémon: going on an adventure with companions who fight loyally at your side. The Legend of Zelda: becoming the stoic, loyal, heroic warrior who saves the princess and the rest of Hyrule. Stardew Valley: moving to a quaint seaside town and living the peaceful life of a farmer while also making friends and?? finding love. The list goes on and on �there are an endless number of little fantasies like this, and an endless number of games that help us fulfill them.

We don't have a lot of occ??asions in life as adults to get to engage in make-believe, but we do have video games. Having a consistent place where we can go and be a hero or fall in love with an imaginary friend for a while may sound silly to some, but if we're willing to let go of the part of us that cringes a little bit and embrace the cheese, engaging in play can be an incredibly gratifying experience.

Story Beat is a weekly column discussing anything and everything to do with storytelling in video games.

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This post contains major spoilers for the Uncharted movie. If you still want to be surprised, come back to this one later!

Strap in folks, this one's a doozy

I like to consider myself a pretty devout Uncharted fan. I've played all of the games, some of them multiple times, and I even worked at Naughty Dog for a hot minute there. When I heard there was going to be a movie based on the series, though, I was skeptical. Part of that is the usual skepticism that comes along with video game movies, but then there's also the fact that Uncharted are some of the most movie-like games out there. Why would they need to make them into actual movies? Cer??tainly it's because they have their own fresh take to put on it.

That's what I was ??thinking�at least un??til I saw who they cast as Nate and Sully. Look, I'm all for giving everyone a chance to prove themselves, but I was unsure of those choices from the get-go. Even if we were going for an aged-down origin story take, sure, that's something I can get behind in theory.

[caption id="attachment_309901" align="alignnone" width="1920"] _{[Image Source: PlayStation]}[/caption]

Questionable casting

Honestly, the cast?? was one of the most egregious things about this movie. I think the issue was that everyone just made boring choices. They were saying the lines, but there was no flavor, you know what I mean? It wasn't giving me anything, let alone ge??tting close to capturing the essence of these characters, who are larger than life in the games.

Sure, Tom Holland is an action hero type, but he's lacking a certain mat?urity that's innate to Nathan Drake. If he's supposed to be younger, that's fine, but he still didn't have that charisma that we're used to from Nate. There are moments in there where the writing is capturing Nate, for sure, but Tom's delivery was a bit too flat for me to make it work. I'm sorry Tommy, I love you as Spider-Man, but this one's a no from me.

Sully was also lacking his usual charms. Mark Wahlberg is still the worst ??casting choice for reasons al?ready stated, but he also just spoke in his normal Marky Mark voice. There was no zest, no flavor in his voice, which is a letdown from the booming presence that Sully's gravelly voice has in the games. That's not to say that Mark Wahlberg couldn't have ever worked as Sully, but his white bread acting choices certainly didn't help.

[caption id="attachment_309896" align="alignnone" width="1920"] _{[Image Source: GamesRadar]}[/caption]We do get to see a credits sequence where Sully gets a mustache, and I can't for the life of me figure out why they didn't give him one in the movie. It makes him look so much mo??re like the character, and they eve??n could have written a funny quip about why he chose to grow it. Seems like a real waste of an opportunity to me.

Side note: seeing Sully's arc reduced to "gold or friend" was honestly so laughable to me. He's o?ne of my favorite characters of the games �he obviously cares about the treasure, but he also has a heart of gold and we can really tell how much he cares for the people in his life. He is more than a greedy loner who just wants gold! Justice for Sully!

Chloe ??wasn't my favorite either. In the games, she's so charismatic and mysterious. In this movie, well, she's just as boring as everyone else. I also don't understand why they changed her backstory when the one in the game is so much cooler.

//www.tiktok.com/@des??tructoid/video/7068083942594743558

What is Uncharted really about? Friendship.

The single worst thing about the Uncharted movie to me, though, is that it misses the one quintessential piece of what makes Uncharted what it is �it's not the treasure, but the camaraderie. To me, Uncharted is j?ust as much about people as it is about swashbuckling adventure. All anyone in this movie seems to talk about is how you can't t?rust anyone because they'll turn their back on you.

Then they all betray each other and it's like, yeah no shit, that's all you've talked about. Why not show me how these characters come to trust each other and become real friends, but then when the betrayals happen they actually feel like they hold some weight? Not only does the constant (and I mean constant) contention make the twists visible from a mile away, but it also doesn't evolve to reveal anything new to us about the characters, or help capture the spirit of "the real treasure is the friends we made along the way" vibe that Uncharted always nails.

[caption id="attachment_309897" align="alignnone" width="1926"] _{[Image Source: GamesRadar]}[/caption]

Who is Nathan Drake?

Take Nate's character, for example. Sure, he wants the treasure because he w?ants to be rich �who wouldn't? But more than that, he grew up in a broken family, and more than anything, he wants to feel like he's a part of something greater than him??self. That's why he and his brother hold so tightly to this idea of being descendants of Sir Francis Drake. It ties them to a family that has done great things, something they always wished they could have. Sic parvis magna, remember?

This idea is core to Nate's character �it's why he's so proficient in treasure hunting in the first place, having studied it his whole life. It's why when the wonders that he finds are destroyed so that they will never be able to show anyone (and monetize off of it), he brushes it off, because he loves the thrill of finding it in the first place. It's why he is always willing to chase what he's after to the point that it might even hurt the people he loves, which was explored at length in the story of Uncharted 4.

[caption id="attachment_309898" align="alignnone" width="1920"] _{[Image Source: The Nerd Stash]}[/caption]Naughty Dog did a great job of fleshing out Nate's character over the ?course of the game series to be more than just a bland treasure-hunting dude, and it's what made the series shine brightest. That's why I was so disappointed to see any similar characterization? missing from the film, even in short. We get the setup that Nate and his brother think they're Drakes, which explains their fascination with history, but that's about all we get.

It's also missing the implication that this is entirely untrue, which is what gives that idea its depth in the first place. If these characters are willing to convince themselves of an untrue lineage t?o connect to a feeling of ??greatness and a family to be proud of, that tells us a lot about who they are and the choices they make. If it's just another fact spit out at us, it's just exposition and nothing more.

Another small but incredibly important gripe I have is about the accents. Sam's Boston accent was nowhere to be found, and that's a huge problem for me and my roommate. It's fun, it's kind of his thing, and not having it that was a huge bummer. Chloe's accent was�not good at ??all. She's played by Sophia Taylor Ali, an American actress, and while she looked a great deal like Chloe (or a younger version of her), I could not distinguish what kind of accent she was going for. It changed every other line, and there were times that I couldn't even understand what she was saying.

Some positives

The most enjoyable parts of the Uncharted movie for me were the action and puzzle sequences, for sure. There would be moments where they step away from the lousy character stuff and just focus on treasure hunting, and those were such a blast. I'm already a huge fan of thi??s genre, so they already had me going in, but I have to admit that seeing the characters use artifacts to follow clues to solve puzzles felt more like the games than any other parts of the movie.

We get nods all the way through the film to iconic moments from the game, like the cargo plane set piece from Uncharted 3 that we saw in the trailers. There's Chloe's introduction and a bar scene like Uncharted 2, but it pulls most heavily from Uncharted 4 with Sam, an auction scene, and the pirate ships.

[caption id="attachment_309895" align="alignnone" width="1155"] _{[Image Source: Distractify]}[/caption]It was cool to see how the Uncharted movie took on some of our favorite moments from the course of the series, but with all the referencing, it often just made me wish I was playing the games instead. It's evoking these moments from the games that, for the most part, feel really strong in their respective contexts. When you pull them out of that format and just throw them into a blender with other vaguely Uncharted elements, they don't quite h?ave that same punch behind them. I think they would have been much better off either picking one game and adapting that, or just making an e??ntirely original plot and going from there.

There was one sequence in the mo??vie that I thought was spectacular, aside from the fact that it was the biggest set piece of the whole run. The climactic scene features two giant pirate ships that are helicoptered out of a cave, and then all of the characters have to fight each other on these giant flying ships.

This was really the only moment in the movie where I looked at it and went, "that's SO Uncharted!" It's something I would expect to see in one of the games, but it was an entirely original set piece for the movie that had just the right am?ount of ridiculou?sness to make it feel really fun. Unfortunately it's the only time where I felt like they took the inspiration of the games and iterated on it, giving us something original and fun, but at least I was able to enjoy it as it was happening.

Fun in a bad way

[caption id="attachment_309899" align="alignnone" width="1920"] _{[Image Source: Pinterest]}[/caption]Overall, the Uncharted movie wasn't the best experience. Any scene where the characters were talking had me saying "I hate it," but then we'd jump to an action scene and I'd be having a great time. It was a "so bad it's good" movie until a brief, shining moment that I was actually able to enjoy it unironically, befor???e it would revert back to blandness. This is definitely something I would only want to watch on the big screen, so I recommend it if you can do so safely. I'd see it again too, but only if I was drunk, you know what I mean?

The thing is, as much as I kind of hate this movie for missing some of t?he most important parts of its namesake, I had a really fun time watching it. I had to go in with an "it's so bad it's good" mentality, and in that sense, I was having a blast. Then, a moment would come out of nowhere and be genuinely enjoyable, and I was able to drop the irony for just a second.

So we're obviously getting a series out of this �Sony has said as much. Knowing me I'll probably go and see the second one in spite of my mostly negative feelings. That line of reasoning is likely why the movie is doing as well as it is in the first place. In my heart of hearts, I'm an Uncharted fangirl, which means I probably liked it more than someone who doesn't care about the games would. Sadly, Uncharted is yet ?another?? in a long line of disappointing video game movies, and the only thing that carries it are those moments that remind us of the moments we love from the games.

Story Beat is a weekly column discussing anything and everything to do with storytelling in video games.

The post I have mixed feelings on the Uncharted movie appeared first on Destructoid.

No date for the PC version just yet

It looks like Sony is geared up to kick off 2022. Today, Sony Interactive Entertainment confirmed that the PlayStation 5 version of Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection will go live on Jan. 28, 2022.

In a PlayStation blog, they broke down exactly what upgrades are coming to the PS5 collection that contains both Uncharted 4: A Thief's End and Uncharted: The Lost Legacy. Three options are available for graphics: Fidelity, Performance, and ??Performance+.

Fidelity will go for native 4K resolution, targeting a 30 FPS framerate. Performance, meanwhile, will aim for a 60 FPS, and if you're ??really looking for frames, Performance+ will target 120 FPS at 1080p, for those with 120hz displays.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=QyJ7sRru7LM

Load times should also be "near instant," so jumping into the actual action should be pretty quick. Spatial 3D Audio will also be an option, as will haptic feedback and adaptive triggers through the PS5 DualSense controller. The Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection will ??be available both physically and digitally for PS5 at $49.99.

If you already own Uncharted 4 or The Lost Legacy, or have the PS4 digital bundle, you have the option to upgrade to the Legacy of Thieves Digital Version for $10. The upgrade option will go live on Jan. 28, 2022. Importantly, if you own a physical PS4 copy, you'll need to put the disc in every time you want to download or play the PS5 version. And if you got Uncharted 4: A Thief's End through PlayStation Plus, you're???? not eligible for the upgrade. Multiplayer is also not included in the collection.

No date has been set yet for the PC version, but that's just two weeks after another major PlayStation 4 exclusive hops to a? new platfor?m. God of War (2018) is set to hit PC on Jan. 14, 2022. PC specs and information for the Uncharted collection, however, will be coming in the future. Sony says it will be revisiting and revealing more about the PC launch of Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves headed into 2022.

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Nathan Drake preparing to explore your desktop

It looks like the next PlayStation exclusive in-line for a PC port will be Naughty Dog's rock-climbing, treasure-hunting, neck-snapping adventure Uncharted 4: A Thief's End, which originally launched on PS4 back in May 2016?. Yes, it was that long ago.

The whispers began after the third-person adventure was name-checked in a Sony Investor Day Presentation. As you can see in the linked document, a slide was shown noting Sony had more PC ports planned, specifically referencing Uncharted 4 alongside recent PC arrival Days Gone. Sony itself is yet to publicly announce the port, but does have a Horizon-themed State of Play event scheduled for later today, so it's not impossible confirmation might be made of Uncharted's port status.

Detailing the twilight days of Nathan Drake's adventures, Uncharted 4: A Thief's End sees Drake — alongside long-time companions Sully and Elena — don the hiking boots for one last death-defying journey into lost civilizations' past. The sequel was universally acclaimed by press for its gorgeous art design, frenetic action, and worthy conclusion to the engaging story of Drake and his pals. Uncharted 4 would ??become one of the PS4's best-selling titles, having ?shifted over 15 million copies to date.

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Commander-in-Grief

Developer Naughty Dog has announced that it is pro?moting its Vice President, Neil Druckmann, to the position of Co-President. Druckmann will now work alongside President Evan Wells, overseeing the ?Sony partner studio going forward.

"Neil Druckmann now joins me as Co-President of Naughty Dog, after serving almost three years as Vice President," said Wells in an official press release. "In addition, we’re welcoming Alison Mori and Christian Gyrling as Vice Presidents of Naughty Dog. Prior to becoming Vice President, Alison served as our Di??rector of Operations and Christian served as our Co-Director of Programming."

"We have such an incredible team at Naughty Dog and being able to work alongside each and every one of them is especially meaningful these days. I feel proud of the team when I’m able to recognize their accomplishments and contributions to the studio. Please join me in giving them?? all a big congratulations!"

Druckmann has worked with Naughty Dog almost his entire video game career. Joining the company in 2004, The Israeli-American worked as an intern before taking up coding roles on titles such as Jak 3 and Jak X: Combat Racing. Druckmann's break came as a designer on the Uncharted series, which would eventually lead to a celebrated creative director role on uber-grim adventure The Last of Us.

Druckmann was promoted to the position of Naughty Dog Vice President during the lengthy production of equally dark sequel The Last of Us Part II. Druckmann's new role as Co-President arrives in the wake of the title's release this past summer, where it sold over four million copies worldwide in its opening week. Druckmann will also serve as a producer on the coming The Last of Us television adaptation.

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Also, adorable stickers for your iPhone

Uncharted 4 will be getting an update upon the launch of the upcoming Uncharted: The Lost Legacy. The update will add new skins for Chloe Frazer and Nadine Ross, as well as the inclusion of new antagonist Asav, for use in Uncharted 4's multiplayer mode.

The update, announced on the PlayStation Blog, will also include a new Survival Arena m??ode, which will feature new siege zones, modifiers and never-before-seen enemy types. Clearing the new mode will unlock the "Savage Starlight Skeleton" skin.

The new goodies will arrive when The Lost Legacy releases August 22. The multiplayer of both games is?????????????????????????? being combined to crea?te one pool of players across both titles.

In other fun news, a range of Lost Legacy iOS sticke??rs are also en route, featuring cute versions of the game's characters busting out emoticons and responses. These will be made available on the App Store this week

Uncharted 4 getting Lost Legacy update [PlayStation Blog]

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Hands-off E3 preview

I ended up really liking Uncharted 4: A Thief's End because of its story. The wild action setpieces were well paced and there were plenty of smaller, quieter moments that resonated. Everything felt in service to a story about people and their relationships, the same threads that underpin classics like Indiana Jones. 

When Sony announced the standalone, Chloe-led Uncharted: The Lost Legacy, the trailer seemed a bit different from Uncharted 4.

But between last night's trailer and the 15 minutes of uninterrupted gameplay I saw in a meeting on the E3 showfloor, Uncharted: The Lost Legacy actually looks a lot like its predecessor. Chloe and Nadine still use the grappling hook that added a new wrinkle to A Thief's End's platforming. At one point the floors breaks away under Chloe and she goes careening down a mud hill with an "Oh shiiit,"? ?which I hope is her "Crap! Crap! Crap!"

Even the giant armored vehicle with a mounted heavy gun that menaces Drake in the last game almost like Friday the 13th's?? Jason is back. There was a lengthy shootout deep in India's the Western Ghats mountains where one of those trucks managed to find enough traction in the rubble of ancient civilization to keep busting through walls like the Kool-Aid mad trying to fuck up Chloe and Nadine's day.

Actually the presentation peaks with the pair, after escaping briefly combat in an aqueduct, getting roughed up by that truck when busts through another wall. In a cutscene, the truck door opens and the game's bespectacled villain, Asav, exits to reclaim an artifact Nadin?e and Chloe knicked and deliver a menacing monologue about war and sacrifice.

The demo ended with a quick cut to black after he points a gun at Chloe's head, presumably about to kill her, though that feels a bit dramatically inert given that she's the main character. A Thief's End did add enough to the gunplay and its pacing that The Lost Legacy will probably be fun enough to play, but it's going to be Naughty Dog's story that puts it over the top if anything. We'll find out in Augu??st.  

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Uncharted 4: A Thief's End

Naughty Dog's holding up its end of the bargain. PlayStation's list of flagship franchise candidates looks something like this: Uncharted, God of War, The Last of Us (as of this month), and maybe inFamous. Half of those are entrusted to Naughty Dog, and, ignoring how some people feel about Drake's Deception, the studio never really falters.

This year's Uncharted 4: A Thief's End was a particularly important entry into the Uncharted series. In a broad sense, all of these flagship candidates are important because they don't come along all that often; Sony undoubtedly wants to make the most of every opportunity. From a business perspective, this was the first Uncharted on PlayStation 4 which almost guarantees high sales -- both of the game and the console. A new Uncharted surely caused some holdouts to cave.

But, the most significant impact (at least for us resolution-loving types) was that it ended Nathan Drake's story arc. It took everything that we've come to expect from an Uncharted game -- all the set pieces and action and ??exposition -- and it did all of that very well. But it also had the dignity and self-respect to just stop when it was time to sto??p. Entertainment has a tough time making this call because wrapping things up means the money quits rolling in. Good on Naughty Dog and Sony for definitively putting a bow on Drake's narrative.

Our contribution to Drake's sendoff is the most fitting one we can think of. The man spent a large chunk of his life chasing treasure an??d fortune. We're adding one last piece of hardware to his collection: Destructoid's award for Best? PlayStation 4 Game of 2016. He earned it.

In a year full of worthy nominees, Naughty Dog proved again why it's PlayStation's finest and most consistent developer. Uncharted 4 excels in so many areas that you wouldn't necessarily expect. The action's fine, sure, but it's the relationships, the attention to detail, the animations -- that's the stuff that makes Uncharted 4 the best of the year. To take the last phrase from Steven's review: A thief couldn't ask for a better end. Something tells me Drake would approve of me stealing from ??Steven.

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Terrors and wonders await you

Uncharted 4 has been updated with a huge, free expansion that came out earlier today. Called the Survival update, the patch adds a new cooperative mode as well as a plethora of options for those who play the competitive multiplayer. Uncharted 4 has had that com?petitive mode sinc??e day one, but the new Survival gametype allows players to work together to fend off waves of enemies. 

The update takes up 3.8 gigabytes, so you may need to clear some space on your hard drive before starting the download. It includes two new maps, including one based on the crashed train that was a huge story point in Uncharted 2. There are also 5 new weapons based on older Uncharted games, and music from Uncharted 2 and 3 will play in menus and other places throughout the game. Additionally, there are 10 more levels to?? earn in competitive mode, and nearly a hundred new taunts, vanity items, and character skins to unlock. Players who complete 50 waves of the new Survival content can earn 12 new trophies as well.

Th?e Survival mode sees the heroes teaming up to defend against hordes of enemies, including heavy troopers and skeletal pirates. Up to three players can work together, though all of the content can be played in solo mode as well. The trailer shows Nathan, Elena, and newcomer Sam working together,? but later on we can see some of the series' villains joining in. Both Uncharted 2's top bad guy Lazerevic and Uncharted 3's Katherine Marlowe are shown taking up arms against the undead pirate hordes. 

While it's my belief that multiplayer comes a distant second to the story mode in Uncharted games, it's nice to see Naughty Dog giving out such a substantial freebie to their players. I remember the co-op missions in Uncharted 2 being quite good, with brand new voice work and motion ca??pture, thoug??h I could never get a group together to finish all of them. With the multiplayer dominance of the PS4, I'm guessing that won't be as much of a problem these days.

The post Uncharted 4’s free Survival expansion is now available appeared first on Destructoid.

Cheap PS4 deal

Sony has put out a new PS4 bundle for last-minute holiday shoppers. It takes a 500GB PS4 -- the newer, slimmer one (normally $300), but not the "Pro" -- and adds in a copy of Uncharted 4: A Thief's End.

All this, for $250. The deal will b?e available December 11 through December 24.

Not as good as this Black Friday PS4 deal, but not bad. Plus, you've already missed tha?t one. I'm just letting you know what yo??u missed, you know? Sorry.

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'Survival'

Buried underneath the salvo of announcements at PSX was another mode for Uncharted 4 -- Survival.

It's nothing new, as it's a wave-based horde mode (with integrated challenges) for up to three players, but it's something else to do if you've already tapped out of multiplayer and grabbed all the collectibles from the campaign. It's also nothing new even by Uncharted te?rms, since the la??st two games had a co-op arena mode.

I appreciate Naughty Dog's efforts to keep Uncharted 4 r??elevant with DLC updates months down t?he line, but I think the campaign speaks for itself.

The post Oh yeah, Uncharted 4 is getting a horde mode appeared first on Destructoid.

Coming for free in mid-December

Ever since its May release, Uncharted 4's multiplayer has been solely dedicated to killing other players. Soon, you'll be able to shoot bullets with them instead of at them.

Naughty Dog took to PlayStation Blog today to outline Uncharted 4's Survival mode. This is the cooperative endeavor that the developer has promised as part of its roadmap of free updates. Survival's a wave-based affair -- 50 rounds with eve?ry tenth bringing about a particularly challenging boss. Pirate warlords are the enemies, and notable names from the campaign pop up.

While Survival supports up to three? people, it can also be played solo. There's a separate progression system dedicated to Survival, with the likes of new items and weapon upgrades as rewards. Different difficulties are also an option, as it sports both Hard a?nd Crushing.

This seems like a mostly standard fare horde mode, but Survival has a few features to distingu??ish it from just mindless shooting. Some rounds will have objectives where it's necessary to nab headshots, use only pistols -- stuff like that. Additionally, there's a currency system where cash pickups can be spent buying better armaments.

It won't be long until we can try Survival for ourselves. Naughty Dog is showing it off first at PlayStation Experience in Anaheim on December 3 and 4. After that, it's set to release for free in mid-December. Even though Uncharted 4 was supposed to be a thief's end, Nathan Drake's adv?entures just keep on go??ing.

Uncharted 4: Surviv??al Revealed, Play it at PS Experience [PlayStation Blog]

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'It will be a while'

Straight from the No News Is Sometimes News (Kind Of) file, Naughty Dog has dismissed the notion that the most important follow-up to Uncharted 4 will release in the near future. T??he game's single-pla??yer story DLC is still a ways off, and the developer doesn't really have any plans to talk about it anytime soon.

The (mostly) non-news came during today's Uncharted 4 multiplayer livestream, and was reported on by Gamespot. A Naughty Dog employee said "It will be a while" before we hear any specifics about the add-on. It was also pointed ou?t that the developer didn't start produ??ction on that content until after the game had released in May.

Those who are itching for more multiplayer action will be placated quicker than those looking for supplemental narrative. The first multiplayer DLC releases tomorrow with new maps, new team deathmatch, and some weapons and cosmetics. As Naughty Dog revealed a while ago, all future mutliplayer content will be free. Don't expect the same affable treatment whenever this si??ngle-player add-on eventually comes to b??e.

Uncharted 4 Single-Player DLC News Not Coming ??Soon [Gamespot]

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'Not you, too, Naughty Dog!'

Major spoilers for Uncharted 4: A Thief's End. Duh. We're talking about the ending. It's in the headline. Speaking to Rolling Stone's new games-focused site Glixel, Naughty Dog's Neil Druckmann explained how the studio didn'??t want to pull a cheap soap opera move in killing off a character for effect.

"I knew we didn't want to kill Nathan Drake, or kill any of the main characters, because tonally that felt wrong," Druckmann said. To my mind it was a smart decision to worry about executing a pulp adventure story well, rather than try and morph a pulp adventure story into Last of Us heaviness. Which isn't to say it's shallow. Druckmann still addresses interesting subjects, asking if it's possible to "balance passion versus settling down,?" and highlights well drawn inter-personal relationships.

As for the latter, some of them evolved. The flashback where you play as Yung Drake going through the mansion was initially just a cut scene. Which means we would've been robbed of polaroid selfies in ancient hats -- it would've been a shame! Team samurai hat! "We needed to show that Nate, even at a young age, was intrigued by all this stuff," Druckmann said. "And it was important to show how much Sam cares for Nate." Like the toy gun attic scene, it was a way to do the Uncharted shtick in a slightly different, thoughtful way.

The old woman in possession of momma Drake's journals, too, was changed: originally it was a d??ying old man. Same with the game's really well-done, touching epilogue. "Initially, in the epilogue, it was Nate's son," D??ruckmann said. "When I'm introducing and describing a new character to our lead character concept artist, constantly she will ask, 'What if it was a girl?' And I'm like, Oh, I didn't think about that. Let me think, does that affect or change anything? No? Cool, that's different. Yeah, let's do it."

These decisions didn't sit well with everyone, however. One focus tester got so angry over the fact?? that Nate has a daughter that he had to be asked to leave. Th?ere were some, "focus testers who were really upset by Nadine beating up Nate, and really upset at the end when it was Nate's daughter," Druckmann said.

"To the point where we had to ask one guy to leave. In his core, it just affected him. He was cursing, 'Not you, too, Naughty Dog! Goddammit. I guess I'm done with Uncharted, if you guys ever make another one, w??ith his daughter. This fucking bullshit.' And I was like, 'Wow, why do?es that matter?'"

Apparently it doesn't to most people. Uncharted 4 received rave reviews partially on the strength of its story and characters while also selling 2.7 million ??in its first week despite only being available on PS4.

Neil Druckmann: The Postgame Interview [Glixel]

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Drake's Fortune, indeed

PlayStation doesn't have to go play an Uncharted game if it wants to find untold riches; it just has to turn to the revenue from the most recent title in the series. After ju??st one week, Nathan Drake's newest adventure is off to a great start.

Sony revealed Uncharted 4: A Thief's End's first week sales statistics on the PlayStation Blog. According to sell-through data for both physical and digital versions, 2.7 million copies of Uncharted 4 were moved in the game's first seven days on shelves. That makes it the fastest-selling PlayStation 4 first-party game ever in North America -- a statistic that makes sense when you consider that Uncharted 4 is likely the most prolific?? exclusive release on PS4 to date.

However, that figure probably isn't enough to make Uncharted 4 the most immediately-successful of the Uncharted installments. In 2011, Sony shipped 3.8 million copies for Uncharted 3's release date. It's unknown how many of ?those sold-through in the first week, but Sony would've had to wildly miss its prediction to not clear 2.7 million sales. Drake's just a man who's accustomed to treasures turning up everywhere he goes.

Uncharted 4 First Week Sales Surpass 2.7 Million [PlayStation Blog]

The post Uncharted 4 moved 2.7 million un??its in its first week appeared first on Destructoid.

A thief's end would be selling it...

Uncharted 4: A Thief's End is a richly-detailed walking simulator. Early on in the game, Nate can examine a travel guide for Bangkok, Thailand which lists a webpage, //www.bangkokthetravelguide.com, on the back.

I guess no one at Sony or Naughty Dog regi??stered that URL so someone on Redd?it did.

If you clicked it above, you'll note that it redirects to the Reddit posting by Dacvak, explaining that he bought the site because it was available and, "[has] zero plans for it" and "will probably just link it back to ND's websit," which has him missing out on a pretty low-hanging way in which he could've fucked with folks ("Uncharted 5 to take place in Thailand?")

Anticlimactic.

Here's an actual Easter egg from Uncharted 4 (that I missed when I played!) to make?? up for it.

The post Someone bought an unclaimed URL from Uncharted 4 appeared first on Destructoid.

Hahahaha

As of the time of this writing, there are 90 "positive" reviews for Uncharted 4 on Metacritic,? zero "mixed," and one "negative." That negative review is from the Washington Post, and people aren't happy.

Going so far as to target the reviewer directly, fans have also produced a petition (that's nearly at its 5,000 signature mark) to remove the entry from Metacritic. Note: this is one guy's opinion on a video game. What started off as a few hundred signatures has rocketed into near completion partially due to Troy Baker's efforts, who tweeted out a link to the Change.org URL yesterday. He followed it up with another statement.

But you might be saying to yourself "Chris! Troy Baker isn't Nathan Drake, that's Nolan North," and you'd be right! But Baker (who, along with North and Steve Blum make up 90% of gaming voice acting these days) actually plays Sam Drake, Nathan's brother.

I mean, if I was a Sony fan, and this was one of the only exclusives slated for 2016, maybe I'd be mad too. Well, actually I wouldn't, because Uncharted 4 is a damn fine game (probably the best in the series even when compared to Uncharted 2), and ??E3 is j?ust around the corner, as is PlayStation VR.

Video games!

Troy Baker [Twitter]

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A Thief's End

One of the many reasons I was so impressed with Uncharted 4: A Thief's End is how, as a generationally-separate tag-along to a trilogy, it deftly puts a cap on the whole thing, while also paying homage to its predecessors. I was just watching the opening cutscene from Uncharted: Drake's Fortune and a throwaw??ay joke line about a Panamanian ??jail suddenly becomes meaningful and filled with import (plus, I think Drake repeats Elena's "nothing years of therapy won't fix").

It also manages some meta moments and nods?? tha??t feel real endearing. That extends to the trophies, too, apparently. I couldn't go through them pre-launch (they just don't show up on your profile), but there are two cute ones.

"Stage Fright" alludes to last year's live E3 demo which kicked off with Drake just stuck in place (more like Uncharted: Drake's Frozen! -- a joke I am a year too late with). If you stand around for half a m?inute ahead of that climactic car chase, it unlocks.

Naughty Dog also called the trophy for killing 1,000 enemies "Ludonarrative Dissonance," a nod to the term Far Cry 2's Clint Hocking came up with when writing on BioShock. It's a bit of a catch-all since, for when gameplay doesn't quite jive with narrative, like when Nathan Drake is a happy-go-lucky charmer we root for but also kills the equivalent of a small city.

The post Naughty Dog snuck a couple cute Ea???ster eggs in the Uncharted 4 trophies appeared first on Destructoid.

Sic parvis magna

Nathan Drake has a brother. That is the plot device that sets Uncharted 4: A Thief's End into motion. The once orphaned and alone boy Drake who sought a father figure in Victor Sullivan and,?? after three adventures, settled into a life of domestici?ty with Elena Fisher, has more family than we knew. And more than he knew, as Sam Drake, a ghost of Nate's past, comes back into his life after 15 years of absence.

It's a pretty big plot point on which to hinge a fourth, rider entry -- the end of Nathan Drake's story -- onto a series that was summed up pretty effectively as a trilogy five years and a new PlayStation ago. The ghost of Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception, remembered less fondly in retrospect than the first two games, hung over A Thief's End, too. Neil Druckmann and Bruce Straley returned from The Last of Us to completely take over for series director and writer Amy Hennig, who was absent the duo on Uncharted 3 and is no longer at Naughty Dog.

Uncharted 4: A Thief's End (PS4)
Developer: Naughty Dog
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment
Released: May 10, 2016
MSRP: $59.99

A Thief's End opens with a showy, bombastic hint at the mayhem to come, but then pulls back to Na?te's new, normal life working as a diver pulling junk out of a smelly city river when he's not hunched over a desk stamping forms. While donning scuba gear and hauling up crashed cargo containers might seem exciting to us desk jockeys, it's a bit less so for someone who spent three adventures discovering lost cities and dropping 1,500 bodies along the way. But even when Nate's boss offers him a job in Malaysia promising a big payout, the lack of requisite permits is enough illegality to completely dissuade him. He skips beers with the boys and heads home to Elena. 

While the eventual stunning vistas spanning several continents impress -- this is probably the best-looking game I've ever played -- Naughty Dog channels the environmental storytelling of The Last of Us to paint a detailed picture of Nate's domestic life that sells the fact that he's put the adventuring life behind him. Back home, he files away the folder for the Malaysia job in an attic that's stocked with interactable trinkets nodding back to his past adventures and there's one particularly heartwarming scene where he rekindles old glory before headin??g back down to his grounded, suburban life.

I have never seen carpets so plush in a video game. Nate and Elena's carpet feels like the carpet I'm currently threading between my toes. The bathroom counter is covered in lotions and product and hair dryer still plugged in. There are towels on the floor and a scale. When Nate looks in the mirror, he fixes his hair with one hand. The level of detail afforded to Drake's new, unexciting life offers a believable level of intimacy. He picks up a DSLR and the camera moves to quasi-first-person, like when he looks at his journals in past games, and you actually see his thumb tap the directional buttons to go through old vacation photos. A Thief's End is littered with moments?? that left me with a warm, genuine grin.

It fully captures that sense of interest I get when I enter a stranger's home and see the person's intimacies externalized, but without the distance a lot of "environmental storytelling" ??contains, because these characters are familiar, not just two skeletons sitting on a random futon. Before Nate even makes it downstairs to eat dinner with Elena, there's a pretty full picture of his life, and the ensuing dialogue carries with it the familiarity and idiosyncrasies of long-term cohab??itation.

Of course things cannot stay placid for long. Sam Drake eventually surfaces and in serious trouble: it seems that the brother Nate thought he saw die in a Panamanian prison 15 years ago and never talks about again had lived -- that fact covered up by corrupt prison officials. But Sam was excised from prison by his cellmate, a notorious drug lord who demands half of the $400 million in fabled pirate treasure Sam talked about over the years to whittle away at his time served. The same treasure the brothers got themselves imprisoned in that jail to try and find (naturally, they simply found a clue, ?the next breadcrumb). 

So while things get exciting quickly enough, with Nate lying to Elena about taking that Malaysian job after all to instead globe trot with Sully and Sam, the relative restraint exercised by Druckmann and Straley to sell the idea of homebody Nate is appreciated in the greater context of the story. In fact, save for the in medias res opening, Nate doesn't even pick up a gun for the first third of the game. Nate enlists Sully specifically to execute the first leg on the trio's tour -- a public robbery in a high-stakes, criminal auction in Italy -- without even throwing a punch or picking up a gun. When Nate finally does get to shooting -- and I downed something like 700 people over the whole story -- it is under duress, in self-defense, and feels more earned because of the preceding restrain?t.

It's still a shooting-heavy action game after all, but gone are Drake's Deception's uncomfortable, wave-based shooting galleries and awkwardly paced, Frankenstein'd set pieces. The insertion of more stealth mechanics also serves to counter Nate's otherwise sociopathic tendencies. You can, in a few instances, sneak by entire platoons of assholes who want you dead. A lot of areas are larger and less linear -- the new grappling hook lets segments of natural and man-made geography breathe a bit as every ledge no longer needs to be in arm's reach. Enemies also have awareness indicators, meaning you can break line or sight or duck in tall grass to: 1) avoid being spotted or 2) lose enem?ies after they've spotted you. At the least, you can stealth kill some folks to make ensuing battles easier. Often you can pick off, undetected, just the one or two enemies i?n your way and keep on trucking, affording Nate the sensible option of minimizing the amount of murder he has to commit.

There are still video game contrivances. The Last of Us' wooden pallets make a spiritual return in the form of giant wooden crates. These often offer light puzzle-ish breaks in the platforming, which is as fluid and dynamic as ever with the addition of the grappling hook and a lot of sections with Nate sliding down steep inclines, even when Sam tossing you his rope and hoisting you up a ledge seems like it ??would've been a simpler solution.

Still, there are also unconventional, and unexpected decisions. Quiet moments that the team lets play out, in no hurry to jump to the next bit of excitement. Unique story framing, fluid use of flashbacks across several time periods. Rare, moving use of complete darkness hardly seen since Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater -- actually, there are a few real idiosyncratic moments that do kind of remind me of last year's Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain. Exceptional underwat??er movement that's likely? to fly under the radar (same for the vehicular segments).

Naughty Dog pays homage to its roots by making a game where moving is as rewarding as more action-packed segments. Part of this can be attributed to an unrivaled animation team. Where the recent Tomb Raider games, for instance, can feel somewhat jerky and tight for the sake of responsive controls, Uncharted manages to control well in a way that feels effortless: it's fluid, organic, and natural, whether Nate is reaching towards a distant handhold or slinking down lower and lower behind cover that is getting progressively destroyed. The other reason traversal is so ??rewarding, though, is that's when much of the game's dialogue is delivered ??outside of major cutscenes.

Lead writers Neil Druckmann and Josh Scherr have written strong dialogue across the ensemble cast that deftly mixes chuckle-worthy ribbing and quips, the occasional unforced reference (there's a great wink to Raiders of the Lost Ark), and a rich ??conversational tapestry. Emily Rose delivers the strongest performance in the bunch as Elena, perfectly and subtly conveying the intricacies of her relationship with Nate over the course of the story. Aforementioned bold hinge Sam, too, fits in nicely, despite his inscrutable accent (the butt of a lot of "chowdah" jokes in my head) and it's nice to see my hairline represented in the medium, and a flock of birds neck tattoo on someone who doesn't look like they make yearly sojourns to Coachella. Even the petulant little rich boy antagonist, who shares both name and personality with a ??soap opera character in a mental association I can't unlink, is a welcomed move away from a camp villain like Lazarevic.

It does feel weird to keep using the word "restraint" in praise of a violent action-adventure romp about a worldwide race towards hundreds of millions in pirate treasure, but in A Thief's End, more than ever in the series, Naughty Dog ?has done?? the little things right, using well-written dialogue and strong performances to tell a deeply personal story among a beloved, connected cast set against a larger-than-life backdrop.

That the interpersonal relationships aren't overshadowed by $400 million in pirate gold, or by hundreds of dead mercenaries, is a testament to the caliber of storytelling. Even the ways Uncharted 4 retrofits in previous entries in the series -- Young Drake's shirt in Uncharted 3 seems to be a hand-me-down from Young Sam in this one -- to bring it all to a well-earned, cohesive conclusion is impressive. Stunning art direction; satisfying game feel; a willingness to shake up third-person action convention?s, to know when to introduce variety, or let a foot up off the gas; excellent dialogue that reveals a lot wit?hout oversharing; and a heck of a conclusion. A thief couldn't ask for a better end.

_{[This review is for the single-player content based on a retail bui??ld of the?? game provided by the publisher.]}

The post Review: Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End appeared first on Destructoid.

From $5 to $50

Although the multiplayer element of Uncharted 4 was live for reviewers to test as of the past week or so, exact microtransaction listings were not available. Today, at launch, we now know the pri?cing scheme.

The cheapest option is 500 Uncharted Points, which goes for $5. Then there's $10 for 1,500, $20 for 3,200, $35 for 6,500, and $50 for 10,000 points. So what do they help you unlock? Cosmetics, basically -- characters and outfits -- and as usual, both lack any special parameters or skills that im??pact gameplay.

Players can also use Relics (anoth?er currency earned in-game) to buy cosmetic mystery boxes, and eventually unlock larger outfits and costumes by assembling all of the pieces. As a note, characters are 500 Uncharted Points each and full outfits are 200, so it's pretty damn pricey if you're going the real money route.

Uncharted 4 [PlayStation Store]

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Uncharted 4: A Thief's End is out tomorrow!

Uncharted 4: A Thief's End is out tomorrow and no doubt you've already read my review, but perhaps you'd like to hear longtime Nathan Drake voice actor Nolan North chat with new-Drake Troy Baker (Joel from The Last of Us) about the series as a whole and the ??culmination of the Drake story (spoiler-free). 

Or maybe you just want to hear North threaten Baker, "I will cut you. I will open you up and bleed you out." Or hear Baker laugh when North mentions that there was an Uncharted Vita game no one will remember, hah.

The post Nolan North and Tr?oy Bak??er chat about the end of Uncharted appeared first on Destructoid.

'See you at E3!'

Xbox boss Phil Spencer has congratulated Sony and developer Naughty Dog for Uncharted 4’s “amazing work.”

Sony boss Yos??hida responded by thanking Spencer, adding: “see you at E3.”

“Should be an excitin??g year,” Spencer added. “Good luck with the planning.”

In our Uncharted 4 review, we gave it a 9.5, stating: “Stunning art direction; satisfying game feel; a willingness to shake up third-person action conventions, to kno??w when to introduce variety, or let a foot up off the gas; excellent dialogue that reveals a lot without oversharing; and a heck of a conclu?sion.

“A thief couldn't ask for a better end.”

The post Xbox boss praises Uncharted 4’s ‘amazing work’ appeared first on Destructoid.

Gotta save up for Battlefield 1, after all

Reviewers are drooling over Uncharted 4: A Thief's End, but if you haven't hopped on board the hype train yet, you may have lucked out monetarily since eBay deals has a rare pre-order discount on Tuesday's release. It's discounted to $49.99 via Antonline. Shipping is free in the continental US and sales tax is imposed only in CA and GA. A great deal for those wit??hout an Amazon Prime or Best Buy Gamers Club Unlocked membership (which receives 20 percent off but is subject to taxes almost everywhere).

Another big release next week is Friday the 13th's Doom. PC gamers can take 25 percent off Steam copies of the game and also receive a free copy of Doom 3: BFG Edition ($20 value). Console games can always go the aforementioned Amazon / Best Buy route OR check out Dell Home where? there's a $2?5 eGift Card bonus through May 12.

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• LucasArts Jedi Knight Bundle — $4.99  (list price $20)

More PC Deals

• StarCraft II: Legacy of the Void (PC DVD) — $29.99  (list price $40)
• Killing Floor (Steam) — $3.59  (list price $18)
• Endless Legend: Guardians (Steam) — $3.40  (list price $10)
• Wooden Sen'SeY — $3.20  (list price $10)
• Legends of Persia (Steam) — $3  (list price $20)
• Puddle (Steam) — $2.56  (list price $8)

Console Game Deals

PlayStation

• PS4 CoD: Black Ops III Bundle +  BB-8 App-Enabled Droid — $409  (list price $500)
• PS4 CoD: Black Ops III Bundle + Battleborn — $349  (list price $410)
• PlayStation Plus 12-Month Card — $39.99  (list price $50)
• Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4 (PS4) — $37.39  (list price $60)
• Tales of Zestiria (PS3) — $14.99  (list price $30)

Xbox One

• Xbox One 1TB Th??e Division Bundle + $100 eGift Card — $399.99  (list price $400)
• Xbox One Quantum Break Bundle + $100 eGift Card — $349.99  (list price $350)
• Xbox One Kinect Bundle + five free games (Refurbished) — $279  (list price $750)
• Alien: Isolation (Xbox One) — $9.99  (list price $30)

Wii U

• Super Mario Maker (Wii U) — $49.99  (list price $60)
• Xenoblade Chronicles X (Wii U) — $49.99  (list price $60)
• Splatoon (Wii U) — $49.99  (list price $60)
• Yoshi's Woolly World (Wii U) — $39.99  (list price $50)
• Mario Tennis: Ultra Smash (Wii U) — $39.99  (list price $50)

Hardware Deals

• Intel Core I7-6700K 4.00 GHz Processor — $309.99  (list price $420)
• Kingston HyperX Fury 16GB RAM + Rainbow Six Siege — $58.99  (list price $66)
• Western Digital Blue 4TB Hard Drive - WD40EZRZ — $119.99  (list price $170)
• Toshiba 2TB 7200 RPM Hard Drive — $59.99  (list price $90)

Game deals from Dealzon. Sales help support Destructoid.

The post Weekend Deals:?? Uncharted 4 and Doom for a little less coin appeared first on Destructoid.

Rare console pre-order discount

You've been able to "pre??-order" games on eBay for some time, but usually,&nbsp;the reason would be to find a sold-out collector's edition offered at marked-up prices. Today, we're looking at a straight-up discount on an upcoming title.

At Antonline's eBay page (an authorized Sony distributor), they have copies of Uncharted 4: A Thief's End for only $49.99 with free shipping. Along with the $10 off discount, you'll save on sales tax pro??vided you don't resid??e in California or Georgia.

• Uncharted 4: A Thief's End (PS4) — $49.99  (list price $60)

What's the catch? None, except free shipping delivery gets you the game on Friday,?? May 13, or about three days after the May 10 release. If patience is your virtue, here's a chance to save a few bucks. Note: You'll have to add to cart to see the discount, as price cuts like these before release (without special membership) is generally a no-no from publishers.

Game deals from Dealzon. Sales help support Destructoid.

The post $10 off Uncharted 4 pre-order discount discovered appeared first on Destructoid.

Nice moves, Naughty Dog

It's not a new trend, but it's a good one. Xbox's flagship property did it last year in Halo 5, and now PlayStation's biggest name is doing the same in Uncharted 4: A Thief's End. Over the course of Uncharted 4's lifetime, all added m???????????????????????????ultiplayer maps and modes will be free for players.

Naughty Dog announced the news via the PlayStation Blog. Lead game designer Robert Cogburn writes that this means the "multiplayer community won't be fragmented by different types of DLC." Everyone will have access to the major features without any additi?onal cost.

Where the developer makes room for monetization is with the cosmetic and gameplay items. Uncharted 4 implements a "relic" system of currency. Relics can be earned through play and then spent on chests that award random items. This method is entirely free. Alternatively, players can spend real money on "Uncharted Points" and buy these items straight away.

When Uncharted 4 launches, the included multiplayer modes will be ranked, command, team deathmatch, plunder, a warm-up playlist, and trials. Over the course of a year, Naughty Dog will slowly add to that. A roadmap was published that gives a rough timetable for many of these features. The ac??tual game ??is still a week away from launching, but we already have a good idea what to expect a year from now.

Uncharted 4 Multiplayer Guide [PlayStation Blog]

The post Uncharted 4’s future multiplayer maps and modes will all be free appeared first on Destructoid.

We'll be 'very vigilant' about leaks, says Yoshida

Copies of Uncharted 4: A Thief's End have been stolen in the UK, says Sony.

In a post on PlayStation Blog, Sony boss Shuhei Yoshi??da stated that the company was working with police to resolve the matter as part of an ongoing UK criminal investigation. 

“We have some unfortunate news to report that a number of copies of Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End were stolen while in transit,” Yoshida said. “While we are continuing to work with the police to resolve the matter – which is the subject of an ongoing criminal investigation – it appears that a few copies of the game have surfaced in? the UK.”

“We know that very many of you have been looking forward with great anticipation and excitement to the latest mast?erpiece from Naughty Dog,” he added. “From what I have played of Nathan Drake’s latest adventure, I can tell you that it is very much worth the wait.

“The unfolding story is such an integral part of the experience and for this reason we wanted to w?arn you to beware of the potential for spoilers to be posted by people with? access to stolen copies of the game.”

Yoshi?da finished on assuring worried fans that Sony would be “very vigilant?” to protect against spoilers to ensure we can all “enjoy Uncharted 4’s experience to its fullest on May 10th”.

Eurogamer reports that the eBay listing that popped up yesterday (and has since mysteriously disappeared) was listed by “Dave”, a seller who ins?ist he happened across the game following an HM Revenues and Cus??toms seizure because of unpaid VAT. Apparently, HMRC is selling the copies on. For £100 a shout. Hmm.

The post Sony contributes to?? criminal investigation ?following Uncharted 4 theft appeared first on Destructoid.

Or should I say 'for the last of us'?

I'm not sure headline limitations and economy allow for it, but "One last Uncharted 4 trailer for the last of us" was my initial joke, but then I felt like it'd take explanation and at that point you're pushing the boundaries of what is a "good" headline or not. I promise this is not a harbinger of another week of meta-writing writing where I ??write out every story by way of discussing the employed rhetorical devices, thanks and god bless.

The point is that "the last of us" flows grammatically, and is oft compared to The Road, thus becomes a stand-in in phrase "for the road." Look it makes sense t?o me but there's a reason I d?idn't do it, ok? Just let me have this long-winded explanation.

Uncharted 4: A Thief's End is coming to PlayStation 4 on May 10 after a final, brief delay. Last we saw Nathan Drake, a lot of boner jokes were involved, and we remembered that time that he was a Subway sandwich mascot because ca??pitalism. ¡Ay, caramba!Nnobody better lay a finger on my butterfinger!

The post One last Uncharted 4 trailer for the road appeared first on Destructoid.

Boner joke!

Along with four separate editions of the game (get it, Uncharted FOUR?), Naughty Dog's alleged last entry in the series (or in Drake's story, at least) also has pre-order boners bonuses, including retail-specific ones.

Quote Chris, "DLC is being teased in the form of a 'Triple Pack,' including the 'first-ever single-player story add-on' for the series, and two multiplayer packs. Essentially, the Digital Deluxe pre-order is the game and a $20 Season Pass -- you can even 'upgrade it' at a later date. All pre-orders will get a 'Bonus Pack,' which consists of outfits, golden weapons, and 'Naughty Dog Points.' GameStop, Amazon, and the PlayStation Store all have their own a??dd-ons as well."

So here's GameStop's exclusive taunt. What a time to feel the vibe (whoo!). Of course, Uncharted 2 has a great dagger/boner joke that fits right up A Thief's End.

The post Is that a Phurba dagger in his pocket or is Nathan Drake just happy to be ‘powered’ by GameStop? appeared first on Destructoid.