What we have here is a game that far exceeds expectation, but thats what you get when your competition is Drakes Fortune
-Whitty Cast and Voice Acting
-Solid Gun Fights
-Interactive Gameplay/Cutscene physics
-Involving Story
-Wow Moment after Wow Moment
-Forget that it is a game
Cons:
-Linear
-Not short, but not long either (depending on how you play)
-Enemies keep coming (is a plus though)
Back in 2007, I heard of Drake's Fortune, and thought nothing of it, but when I played it in 2008, I punched myself in the gut for thinking this game offered nothing special. Uncharted Drake Fortune was a breath of fresh air, but it still kept me comfortable in familiar waters. It was an adventure I would not forget, but sadly it was short and back to back enemies got irritating, but the true payoff came from the story and the point that you were able to keep yourself intact after each battle. Drake Fortune started off slow, but after the midway point, you couldn't help, but appreciate the brilliance of the art director, the screen writer, and whoever else contributed to sending that game into the history books. I always wondered what Uncharted 2 would be like, and now that it's hear, I can honestly say, this is the best game I have ever played.
Of course if lacks originality in the gun play department or puzzles, but everything is deliverd in quite a unique fashion that makes it original, or for better or worse, gives it is own distint personality. The gun play feels light which may feel weird after you have played a game like Killzone 2 or Dead Space, but that feeling adds to the fluidity of the game. The game doesn't introduce any new weaponary, but the way you use them is very unique. If you are able to acquire a machine gun or crossbow, those weapons are best used for armored enemies and stronger enemies. Each gun fight involves a strategy that can be tackled in many different ways. You can use stealth to take out as many enemies as possible so you can save ammo. You can take out turret enemies to make gun fights open space easier. You can take out the most poweful enemy before a battle as begun and take his weapon and knock off anyone in your way. Of course none of this is actually a new form of strategy, but it is better way to play this type of game and really soak up the experience. Gunfights compared to the first one are a little more fair, because you a given more health compared to the first game. 'Hard' in Uncharted 2 is 'normal' in Uncharted 1. That was one of my biggest gripes in UC 1, and even the patch could not fix that, but UC 2 difficulty are just right, making gunfights less frustrating and less unfair. Action sequences are handled much better this time around, because you are not just standing behind one wall, slowly picking off enemies, no this time you are using the enviroment to your advantage and going from one area to a next picking off a sniper or sneaking up on one of those annoying shotgun totting bastards. Quite rewareding.
The story and charater development is great. There is no wasted time giving backstory to new cast members. We learn their personality as the game keeps passing one checkpoint to another. Handled much better than lets say MGS4, which is no shot at it, but it does become tedious. Drake is more wellrounded this time around, with that "I all Man" type of glow around him. The story has the same pace as the last game, but feels fresh due to the fact that we have a whole bunch of characters working around the motives of one another. The last game is more action paced, but this game feels like everything is on the line. We are given an enemy this time who feels like he is a power man, unlike Navarro from the first game. He is driven by power and you feel it. The story follows the same, 'I need to find this, this is not it, that's probably it, no its over hear, I had it wrong, its here' fashion from the first game, but this one is done on a larger scale and most of the turn points are not predicatable, though you know when they are coming. Overall the story is not emotional like MGS 4, but it is action paced mixed with emotion. I loved the story, but none of it was actually original, but then again, I have never heard of that stone they were looking for, so I guess it is original.
If you have played the first game, then you know what to expect, but there is more here than expected. I could not believe how may Wow moments popped up in this game. They are all done brillantly and none of them were predictable. I am not talking story wise because the story is pretty predictable at certain points, but during the gameplay. The game is definitely as must play, and even a must buy. This game can definitely be experienced in one rental, but if you want to keep reliving the adventure and enjoy the multiplayer, I would buy the game and that is what I did. I honestly believe the is the game of the year so far. PS3 delivers again. (not a fanboy)