Let me just qualify this by saying I'm a HUGE Uncharted fan, check my user reviews for Drake's Fortune and Among Thieves (9.0 and 10.0, respectively). Uncharted 2 was an amazing experience front to back and I consider it one of my favorite games of all time. From start to finish the single player story was great and the multiplayer was great fun with friends and could get decently competitive (prior to patch 1.05).
Fast forward to present day. After beating Uncharted 3 I can confidently say that it's a great game. It feels like it falls short of Uncharted 2 for me. Perhaps it was hype, or perhaps it was the fact that I never felt like the addition of MP in UC2 affected the single player. In UC3...I definitely feel it.
So one's a linear action-adventure game and the other's an open world game. Why even compare the two? Well, here's why:
- Both third-person shooters. In this category, Saints Row excels. Both by having more awesome weapons and a wider assortment (yes, I know some of the weapons in SR are goofy) and by having a much more response and accurate aiming system (though I do wish there was an option to disable aim-assist) without having to resort to a lock-on system like Red Dead's "Normal" aiming mode. I don't how or why Naughty Dog would break something that wasn't broken, but the sensitivity settings (or lack thereof) and aiming in UC3 feels like such a chore to use. I feel like they copied these aiming mechanics from GTAIV. They're laggy and unresponsive, even on the highest sensitivity. Naughty Dog says that they're working on a patch for that, which is odd considering the aiming for MP is tighter and more response. I hope this doesn't mean ND is starting to regard UC single player the way fans of Call Of Duty view its campaigns.
- Both feature huge, cinematic moments. Uncharted's might be more glamorous, Hollywood-like moments, but Saints Row still manages to best them, the whole while being completely playable. I know UC gives you control during the best parts, but in the plane sequence in UC3 you almost fall out of a plane and have to fight your way back on before it inevitably ends up crashing. In Saints Row: The Third, you fight your way off a plane, skydive through debris to save a gang member who's free falling, and you mid-air shootouts like in the movie Shoot 'Em Up. You then dive back into the plane, killing more of the remaining crew on your way out the back.
- Customization! Now I know that Uncharted is all about the controlled, scripted aspect of the single player game, but this time they included character customization in the MP. That's great and it's a welcome addition, however I feel that compared to the quality that Naughty Dog normally puts out, it's a half-hearted effort. No hair or facial hair choices. No different facial features. Limited clothes / color choices. No sliders for anything. Hell, PlayStation Home has more customization options. Then again, this IS ND's first attempt at this where Volition has had experience.
- Upgrades. Along with all the character, vehicle, and gang customization there's weapon customization. Being able to upgrade your weapon's proficiency throughout the course of the game lets you feel like you're making progress and that your weapon's abilities are also scaling with your skill at the game. It's part of the reason I loved Resistance 3's campaign. They're in the MP portion of the game now. All that would had to be done is adding them in a meaningful way to the SP.
- Surprising story. Saints Row may be over the top and ridiculous, but the story still manages to be cohesive, funny, and it makes sense. The added fun of seeing and hearing YOUR character in those cutscenes greatly adds to that. Uncharted is starting to become a little TOO formulaic. UC1 and UC2 basically followed the same story arc...with a few twists. I feel like, in a way, ND kinda phoned it in for UC3. It's not a bad game by any means, but other than some graphical upgrades it feels like a step backwards...especially considering things like unlockable cheats that were in the first and second game AREN'T in the third (Seriously, who does that?). As for my use of "surprising" describing either story, I'll put it to you this way: One of the games had the guts to kill a main character in the first 15 minutes.
TL;DR: While not as polished, Saints Row: The Third manages to be better than Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception through customization options, more responsive aiming, crazier cinematic moments, weapon upgrades, more freedom, and a story that keeps you guessing while being entertaining the whole time.
Log in to comment