I can't speak to her vision, but I feel like her story might have been.
The pacing of Uncharted 4 is just unfortunate
- Thread starter shockthrill
- Start date
Would it have?
The game received widespread acclaim from critics and gamers. It's pretty hard to imagine it having a better reaction from people. No matter how good a game is, it's going to of course have detractors, especially on message boards.
Crossing Eden
Hello, my name is Yves Guillemot, Vivendi S.A.'s Employee of the Month!
Uncharted 3's plot felt just as unnecessary and poorly written as this one so....
WAY more studios actually include downtime in their games. And a lot of the downtime in UC4 isn't really character driven moreso Troy Baker and Nolan North ad libbing for stretches of really uninteresting gameplay.
Inf3cted_b3ast
Member
Amy was behind UC3... The most hated UC game in the series.
So what?
Net_Wrecker
Member
The game's only about 3-4 hours longer than UC2 if you play both of em at a steady clip. Pacing is why UC4 is hard to replay for some of us. I wouldn't touch the game again if they paid me to. Just a ridiculous amount of braindead climbing throughout, alongside a reduced number of encounters and generally less variety in encounter intensity, type, and size.
The philosophy behind the kind of action/adventure game they were making with UC4 is completely different. It's distinctly less gamey and less outwardly crowd pleasing (in terms of action). This is great for someone who was playing for the story or complained about combat in previous titles. For someone like me who loved the balance and tone they struck with UC2, there's little to love here. While I can appreciate a good story in a campaign, that's not what keeps me coming back. UC2 has multiple stretches of sustained, or even escalating momentum that UC4 rarely hits. And make no mistake, I fully understand that it was a deliberate design decision on Naughty Dog's part. I've been wondering recently that If I was prepared for this kind of experience, would I have found more to like. Can't say for sure.
The WEIRDEST part of this whole thing is that The Last of Us, a game which on paper is more reserved, intimate, and toned down compared to UC4, is a million times more exhilarating.
visiblemode
Member
I think the pacing is great. Not liking something doesn't make it bad. Maybe it's not "unfortunate" but rather "unfortunate you don't enjoy it."
Uncharted 4 is a fascinating game. In my mind, it's the only game in the series that actually gets storytelling and characterization mostly right. It's a technical marvel and the combat feels substantially better than it does in the first three games. But I do agree that the pacing isn't quite rightit drags in places and feels rushed in others. And for everything it does right narratively, there are still portions of the writing that just don't work for me.
I'm interested to see if The Lost Legacy is better still or if it regresses in important ways.
I'm interested to see if The Lost Legacy is better still or if it regresses in important ways.
AudioEppa
Member
That's one thing I loved about U4. That extra room was good for looking nice, And that's all I wanted it to be. A linear path works best with the kind of games they do.
No disrespect to Amy, she's good. But no. I'm happy Bruce and Neil took over.
Eh, very much no. This game is a walking simulator where I just pressed forward on my joystick and the gameplay is extremely forgettable.
MGSV is the king of controls in the history of TPS.
hipsterpants
Member
The game is decent but falls off a fucking cliff once you hit the island. A truly unbearable amount of climbing.
And apparently I'm in the minority because I thought the combat was vastly inferior to the earlier games. I vastly preferred the tight linear combat to the open arenas with too much emphasis on stealth.
And apparently I'm in the minority because I thought the combat was vastly inferior to the earlier games. I vastly preferred the tight linear combat to the open arenas with too much emphasis on stealth.
shockthrill
Banned
I was actually thinking of doing a thread about what Gaffers thought had superior mechanics MGS V or Uncharted 4
I wonder how it would of turned out
Ascenion
Member
It would've been better if only for continuity with Uncharted 3. Uncharted 4 retreads and retcons backstory that should've been handled in Uncharted 3. It's like Druckmann basically remade Uncharted 3. I really wanna know what Amy had planned and how much of that made it in.
I agree OP. I loved UC1, UC2, and really enjoyed UC3, yet only mildly enjoyed UC4. I bought all of them on launch day.
I didn't dislike UC4, persay, I think it just felt tired. I'm surprised they resorted to so much of the same old platforming.
The real shame for UC4, for me, was how fun and well-realized the TPS mechanics were. Shootouts were really fun, and generally all the combat/chases/action are impeccable. I would love a Naughty Dog action game, where they cut out all the filler. The story chapters, walk-and-talk chapters, lame exploration chapters, and climbing chapters were a bore. That's just my opinion though.
I also want to note, as blah as UC4 is, that one part where you are being dragged by the trucks in the mud is one of the highlights of this generation for me. It was a very, very well done segment.
I didn't dislike UC4, persay, I think it just felt tired. I'm surprised they resorted to so much of the same old platforming.
The real shame for UC4, for me, was how fun and well-realized the TPS mechanics were. Shootouts were really fun, and generally all the combat/chases/action are impeccable. I would love a Naughty Dog action game, where they cut out all the filler. The story chapters, walk-and-talk chapters, lame exploration chapters, and climbing chapters were a bore. That's just my opinion though.
I also want to note, as blah as UC4 is, that one part where you are being dragged by the trucks in the mud is one of the highlights of this generation for me. It was a very, very well done segment.
I think it comes d own to TLoU having more varied non combat scenarios.
While I don't believe/agree with the notion that UC4 was just shooting and climbing, I do know that TLoU seemed to feature more diverse down time.
BennyBlanco
aka IMurRIVAL69
Well made game, but just gotta accept ND games aren't for me. TLOU is the only one I finished.
Polygonal_Sprite
Gold Member
TLOU and U4 are a certain type of game and not for everyone. I personally thought they were both masterpieces. I do have to be in a certain mood to play those sorts of games though.
James Scott
Banned
Not sure about pacing but it's a bit too long and a bit dull.
It's the longest one, right?
Story wise I'm not sure we needed 3 "here's the location of the treasure...oh, wait, it's just a clue to the next location" so cutting one out and having the game be 13 hours or so would've helped.
Less climbing and more emphasis on stealth would've probably better suited the game.
Also, for a game about exploring ruins...there sure isn't any exploration.
Not what the game is going for, but it's a bit weird
It's the longest one, right?
Story wise I'm not sure we needed 3 "here's the location of the treasure...oh, wait, it's just a clue to the next location" so cutting one out and having the game be 13 hours or so would've helped.
Less climbing and more emphasis on stealth would've probably better suited the game.
Also, for a game about exploring ruins...there sure isn't any exploration.
Not what the game is going for, but it's a bit weird
No worries man, you're definitely in the majority of gamers with that opinion. Remember, it won game of the year here on GAF too.
Crossing Eden
Hello, my name is Yves Guillemot, Vivendi S.A.'s Employee of the Month!
I think both directors have flaws in how they handled things and UC2 from a design and pacing standpoint was a miracle. As the game's shooting mechanics actually weren't anything besides serviceable and the melee was just genuinely unsatisfyingly bad. Now they had a somewhat competent but simple combat system and really visceral feeling shooting and....barely used them in favor of climbing that's just as monotonous as before.
Leafhopper
Banned
Can't help but agree with this.
PeakPointMatrix
Member
What was Amy's vision?
family_guy
Member
Play through it once and then use the encounter select afterwards.
I found that because of the cinematic quality of the game (and I mean that in the best possible way, the graphical fidelity and voice acting are sublime), the more game-y aspects of the game stick out (hence the jokes of nathan being a mass killer, despite the "kill count" being par for an action game).
In the same way the pacing seemed consciously redundant: Nathan finds himself exploring a new location, running, jumping, and climbing to get to his destination. Along the way he comes across a few enemies and takes them out. He then enters the destination, solves a few puzzles, only to find that this isn't the final location for the mcguffin. But watch out its an ambush! Nathan then spectacularly high tails it out of there. Now repeat that.
I know that I could easily find that redundancy of pacing in 99% of games, but due to Uncharted's more cinematic and serious style, its harder to ignore.
In the same way the pacing seemed consciously redundant: Nathan finds himself exploring a new location, running, jumping, and climbing to get to his destination. Along the way he comes across a few enemies and takes them out. He then enters the destination, solves a few puzzles, only to find that this isn't the final location for the mcguffin. But watch out its an ambush! Nathan then spectacularly high tails it out of there. Now repeat that.
I know that I could easily find that redundancy of pacing in 99% of games, but due to Uncharted's more cinematic and serious style, its harder to ignore.
shockthrill
Banned
Sam as the villain and apparently not a "Drake" which I do think would have been better.
Making Sam the gensis for that persona was a terrible idea.
I feel like I could finish UC2 in the amount of time it takes to slog through UC4's Scotland. Not literally, but it -feels- like it.
UC4 is worth playing through once for the spectacular visuals and environmental art, but the pacing is so slow due to the self-absorbed story and the unfortunate priority it takes over the simple, quickly worn-out gameplay loop.
Things were interesting enough up through the heist, but my patience wore thin with the increasingly elaborate tests these pirates constructed for their ridiculous goose chase, and the absurd amount of walk/talk/climb to reach each one.
It was boring enough that DOOM interrupted my playthrough for two weeks, leaving Nate at Ch. 12 until I returned.
Also, UC4 desperately needed another major setpiece outside of the one shown at E3. It's the series' calling card.
UC4 is worth playing through once for the spectacular visuals and environmental art, but the pacing is so slow due to the self-absorbed story and the unfortunate priority it takes over the simple, quickly worn-out gameplay loop.
Things were interesting enough up through the heist, but my patience wore thin with the increasingly elaborate tests these pirates constructed for their ridiculous goose chase, and the absurd amount of walk/talk/climb to reach each one.
It was boring enough that DOOM interrupted my playthrough for two weeks, leaving Nate at Ch. 12 until I returned.
Also, UC4 desperately needed another major setpiece outside of the one shown at E3. It's the series' calling card.
2blackcats
Member
Just finished it a few hours ago.
Thought the pacing was perfect. I enjoyed the "down time" and long cut scenes just as much as the heavy action bits.
I just finished them all recently and my order of preference is 4,3,1,2. I don't think that's most peoples view so I understand that some might not have liked things that I did and vice versa.
Thought the pacing was perfect. I enjoyed the "down time" and long cut scenes just as much as the heavy action bits.
I just finished them all recently and my order of preference is 4,3,1,2. I don't think that's most peoples view so I understand that some might not have liked things that I did and vice versa.
J_ToSaveTheDay
Member
Agreed, OP. I love 2 and 3 to death and feel that they stand as some of the most memorable gaming I did during that generation.
I like Uncharted 4's technical prowess - it looks damn gorgeous in a lastingly impressive way. I also like the way the characters were handled in the game, I think they ended up feeling a lot more genuine as a result of Uncharted 4's story.
But as I played through Uncharted 4, I literally felt bored and perhaps borderline "turned off" at points. I had to force myself to finish the game. I felt that there were long periods of relatively uninteresting gameplay, where there was too much time spent doing kinda easy-but-long platforming, or firefights lasted just a bit too long with multiple waves of enemies, or a puzzle just took a bit too long to complete. I was dying to get from character moment to character moment and I often felt that the actual gameplay felt long in the tooth in almost every regard. I had replayed 2 and 3 via the PS4 remasters just months before 4 came out and they still held up. Playing 4 honestly felt like a chore sometimes, but I still think it's overall a positive experience... But it didn't feel as brisk, light on the feet, snappy as my experience with 2 and 3.
I like Uncharted 4's technical prowess - it looks damn gorgeous in a lastingly impressive way. I also like the way the characters were handled in the game, I think they ended up feeling a lot more genuine as a result of Uncharted 4's story.
But as I played through Uncharted 4, I literally felt bored and perhaps borderline "turned off" at points. I had to force myself to finish the game. I felt that there were long periods of relatively uninteresting gameplay, where there was too much time spent doing kinda easy-but-long platforming, or firefights lasted just a bit too long with multiple waves of enemies, or a puzzle just took a bit too long to complete. I was dying to get from character moment to character moment and I often felt that the actual gameplay felt long in the tooth in almost every regard. I had replayed 2 and 3 via the PS4 remasters just months before 4 came out and they still held up. Playing 4 honestly felt like a chore sometimes, but I still think it's overall a positive experience... But it didn't feel as brisk, light on the feet, snappy as my experience with 2 and 3.
WrenchNinja
Member
The climbing in the previous games was to mask loading and give you a breather for shootouts. Here they somehow thought people wanted to climb for the sake of it.
Net_Wrecker
Member
Why is it always All Or Nothing with the internet? MGSV is fantastic at what it does, UC4 is fantastic at what it does. Considering the sheer amount of animation and animation priority in UC4, it controls like an absolute dream. Fluid, tons of near invisible stitching and contextual moves, more weighty than the previous games, and painstakingly detailed. MGSV is a very different game doing very different things from a very different lineage of character control/animation.
I wouldn't even care if it was just shooting and climbing, it's about how these elements are used and subverted. UC4 just doesn't do enough with the traversal to keep the game interesting when it slows down. The traversal puzzles are boring, the scripted traversal jumpscare moments are tired, and the gimmicks are overused.
NotTheGuyYouKill
Member
I think it has brilliant pacing.
ProgenitorCastle
Banned
Well...I kind of get were you're opinion's coming from...more often than not, I feel the exploring around gets old...and yet, I appreciate it greatly because it makes the other stuff stand out even more when they happen (combat encounters, cutscenes, music, etc.)
facetheslayer92
Member
The Xtortionist
Member
Fun, but not as good as 2
Yeah, too many fronts.
I had no issues whatsoever with pace, on the contrary.
I loved the more bombastic, action oriented prequels, but I really appreciated the shift in direction with A Thief's End.
That's not to say that I wouldn't have wanted to play Amy's version. Still, I love Neil's approach to games.
I loved the more bombastic, action oriented prequels, but I really appreciated the shift in direction with A Thief's End.
That's not to say that I wouldn't have wanted to play Amy's version. Still, I love Neil's approach to games.
Ascenion
Member
Eh, Sam is always a Drake. Druckmann just doesn't reconcile the fact that Rafe is Sam. Old Sam is basically split into Rafe and New Sam. Watch that trailer again and just assume Stashwick is Rafe and Sam isn't in the game. It works doesn't it? It also makes the stuff Rafe says in game make more sense if he was Nate's Brother. I feel like Rafe was basically rich Eddy Raja until they made him into what we got. New Sam is basically pre-twist Sam and Rafe is post-twist Sam. Or at least that's what makes sense.
pretty done
Member
Um, or just play Uncharted 1-2-3
I somewhat enjoyed 4 but how can you act like the pacing isn't completely different from the trilogy? The first ~5 hours is literally holding up on the analog with maybe 5 other button presses.
Like I mentioned, UC4 is like a walking simulator, a boring game to control/interact with and forgettable gameplay.
OP said it is probably one of the best TPS to control, and it is not. MGSV is though, since we're just referencing the gameplay aspect.
chrisPjelly
Member
This is what irks me about Uncharted 4 tbh. All the fine tuned and new mechanics are amazing, but there's sooooo much downtime that I start to lose interest really fast. Ffs, I want to play an Uncharted game, not Last of Us featuring Nathan Drake.
El-Pistolero
Member
No thanks!
Jawbreaker
Member
I will say, it's the only game in the series that hasn't given me the urge to play it again. I tried once, but I stopped around the beginning of the Scotland section.
ffejeromdiks
Banned
Right from the start you could tell something was horribly wrong. They start the whole thing off by lazily repeating the in media res trope, it worked excellently in Uncharted 2 because you are dealing with the immediate aftermath of a monumental disaster The game starts with such a bang that it's exciting to think about how the plot is going to catch up to that moment. It also helps tremendously that when you do catch up to that moment, the build up to it is epic as hell.
In Uncharted 4...it's just a boat chase...woopee. Was anyone genuinely interested in catching up to such a boring moment? The scale of the previous games just doesn't exist here outside of the convoy chase. UC2 also didn't throw you into an insultingly mind numbing tutorial as kid drake immediately afterwards either, instead the opener was the tutorial, you learn how to climb and navigate right from the bat.
In Uncharted 4...it's just a boat chase...woopee. Was anyone genuinely interested in catching up to such a boring moment? The scale of the previous games just doesn't exist here outside of the convoy chase. UC2 also didn't throw you into an insultingly mind numbing tutorial as kid drake immediately afterwards either, instead the opener was the tutorial, you learn how to climb and navigate right from the bat.