Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune Retrospective Review

I’ve got one hell of a mountain to climb with games here, so here we fucking go. I won’t bore people with massive reviews, just general thoughts and how much I enjoy these games, really.

Just so everyone is aware, I played the remaster from the Nathan Drake Collection, rather than going back and playing the original. So I’ve experienced a more cleaned up version, but you definitely still feel it’s age in some places.

The platforming can be janky, the controls occasionally fought against me, sometimes Nathan would just launch himself off a cliff, and I’d have a very puzzled look on my face. For the most part though, this game is fucking awesome, and it holds up well.

The biggest strength for me is the pacing; it just moves: you’re exploring ruins, climbing and shooting your way through hordes of enemies, jumping into another big set full of action before the game can let you catch your breath; it never got boring or bad.

Except for the jetski section, that can get fucked.

What I really wasn’t expecting was the borderline horror spin the game took towards the end. I went into this game expecting a full Indiana Jones-type experience, then suddenly I’ve got these mutant descendants crawling around everywhere. It completely changed the atmosphere, and it was a wild turn that was really good, by the way- nothing bad about it!

The characters are brilliant; I quickly become attached to Sully, and somehow I’ve avoided spoilers for any of these games. I genuinely thought he had died and messaged another one of our reviewers, Tom, claiming I’ll be “fucking fuming” if he’s dead. Elena is excellent as well and the chemistry between all these characters is one of the main reasons I’m excited to play the second game.

The level design is fantastic, the adventure rarely drags, and I never really struggled with anything. Despite some mechanics showing their age, I had a fantastic time with this game.

I feel like I’ve started very strongly here; I’ve got a lot to catch up on, and I’m very excited to finally get my claws into all these games.

If Uncharted is anything to go by, I’m about to have a wild couple of years playing catch-up.