LTTP: Uncharted 4 is a mediocre game that is really pretty.
- Thread starter dr3upmushroom
- Start date
Always-honest
Banned
Haha Exactly. Even realistic looking games have art-direction. Some have great art-direction even. It doesn't have to be stylized, fantasy or cartoony to be considered art-direction.
Uncharted has great Art-direction. Uncharted4 in particular.
That's a pretty bold statement. I can't stand "cinematic experience" games, and don't really NEED a plot in my game to enjoy it, but a great plot still helps. Calling any of the uncharted games as stories with strong narratives is baffling to me.
Very few games manage to have truly great plots that take advantage of the medium though. Something like 999/VLR and Yoko Taro games take great advantage of the gaming medium by developing very creative stories that can't be replicated by any other medium (as effectively).
Why bother making playable movies? Most games are cringe when it comes to their aping of movies, with terrible acting and dialogue, filled with cliches and other nonsense that would never fly in a decent movie. They do the "cinematic" part right, but fail spectacularly on the plot side because game developers don't usually seem to hire talented writers.
test_account
XP-39C²
Why did you buy, or at least play Uncharted 4 if you cant stand these types of games? Just curious. And do you think that a different artstyle (which art style would you have liked to see instead?) have made you enjoyed the game more? The gameplay itself would be the same regardless of that. I think you're selling the creative aspect short when saying that it doesnt require much creativity to go with a realistic look approach. A lot of the locations in the game are made up, requiring creativity to make things look interesting.
Wait, lack of consistency where? Uncharted 4 is one of the most graphically consistent games. Also, the art direction, while aiming for a more realistic look, is outstanding.
In addition, most mediums offer freedom to express whatever art style you like. That doesn't mean you need to go out of your way to make super colorful, fantastical art styles. Imagine if all movie directors went with what you consider proper art direction... Imagine Goodfellas looking like Alice in Wonderland. You seem to have a problem with variety and appeal.
Cheat Code
Member
I loved the ending because it implies the series might finally be fucking over.
Thank god The Last of Us Part 2 is inbound wih its actual character depth and interesting stealth combat.
Thank god The Last of Us Part 2 is inbound wih its actual character depth and interesting stealth combat.
Imp the Dimp
Member
Have to agree. I like it though. OK gameplay + amazing graphics make for a pretty enjoyable game. Not sure how it won GotY on GAF but I think the game is overliked and overhated, both. Just very little middle ground for a good-ish game, which is surprising.
Effigenius
Member
Its definitely one of the weakest goty's we've ever seen. But thats not really its fault. 2016 sucked for new games.
That is a hundred percent not true, 2016 was one of the highest quality years in a long time.
Haha no way. If you want to look at mediocre GOTYs go back to 2014 with Shadow of Modor and Dragon Age Inquisition
Insane Metal
Member
OP is wrong, the game is great.
Imp the Dimp
Member
Yeah, I liked 2016 a lot too. I would say there was no breakthrough game better by a landslide than anything else, but just many A tier games that were really damn good spread across all year. Can't see how people didn't enjoy last year's gaming output at all.
I can agree with that. I love downtime in my games, and I thoroughly enjoyed Uncharted 4 (Scotland really did push it with the slow moments though), but I can understand people who expected more excitement. I love Neil's approach to games so I didn't mind the similarities to TLOU in structure and pace at all, but I also would've liked to experience Hennig's take on the game tbh.
Oh you! ND may be done with the franchise, but Sony certainly isn't.
That's just objectively wrong. While the PS4 exclusives where rather average (apart from FFXV which was good) Pc had a fantastic year.
I liked it well enough. I normally can't stand cutscene and walk-and-talk heavy games, but Naughty Dog seems to make them interesting enough to keep my attention. I also appreciated how much of the game could be stealth'd.
If I had one criticism, it's that U4 felt a bit too long and kind of worn out its welcome before the end.
If I had one criticism, it's that U4 felt a bit too long and kind of worn out its welcome before the end.
Fancy Clown
Member
I think it's a lovely game tbh. I have some problems with it, with the biggest being that the combat is too paired down for its length, but a lot of the criticisms people have don't ring true to me. I don't want horrid arbitrary scrap or xp to collect to make exploration meaningful, I thought the world was its own reward with the little dialogue and notes to find that actually tie in to the narrative in an elegant way. It's the best game in the series at providing a true adventure feeling, too imo. You have a very tactile relationship with the levels, all the locations feel properly fleshed out.
I think ND do need to balance the openings of their games better though, there has to be a better solution to easing players into the narrative than witholding the more complex (and fun) game systems for several hours. All of their games have this issue and Uncharted 4 suffers the most from it, which for a pulp adventure should not be the case.
But I still love replaying it, for the same reason I do the whole series. A really fun story, excellent combat, and capturing the feel of a true adventure without any extraneous bullshit or open world tedium.
I think ND do need to balance the openings of their games better though, there has to be a better solution to easing players into the narrative than witholding the more complex (and fun) game systems for several hours. All of their games have this issue and Uncharted 4 suffers the most from it, which for a pulp adventure should not be the case.
But I still love replaying it, for the same reason I do the whole series. A really fun story, excellent combat, and capturing the feel of a true adventure without any extraneous bullshit or open world tedium.
Can Crusher
Banned
One of the best action games ever, and one of the few games ever with great character development. A beautiful send off.
Opinions are opinions, but mediocre? No accounting for taste. I'm glad it's so commercially and critically acclaimed, because it trully deserves so.
Opinions are opinions, but mediocre? No accounting for taste. I'm glad it's so commercially and critically acclaimed, because it trully deserves so.
I don't think the game felt tonally inconsistent, but I don't get why you'd laud Last of Us and deride Uncharted 4. Jak & Daxtwr lightheartedness is okay, Last of Us grim & grit is okay, but the interim is not?
Anyway personally I wish Hennig had completed her vision of the game. That first trailer was dark. It would explain some demons about why we hadn't heard about Sam.
Anyway personally I wish Hennig had completed her vision of the game. That first trailer was dark. It would explain some demons about why we hadn't heard about Sam.
test_account
XP-39C²
He/she just ment that saying "no art direction" would be to say that it would be a case of lack of consistency, but that isnt what he/she ment when he talked about art direction. Rather ment to say that going for a realistic art direction isnt that exciting to him/her and is not particularly creative. I disagree with the creative part because i think that going for a realistic look still requires creativity to make things look interesting, but fair enough, of course, that he/she doesnt like this type of art direction that much.
I agree with this. I can understand why people dont like certain art directions, and that is fair enough of course, but i appreciate variety. I also think going for the realistic art style is the best fit for Uncharted. I am curious what type of art style people would like to see instead, which they think would make the game be more intersting.
I'm hoping the ending was implying we get to play as Cassie when Uncharted returns.
I'd rather have Uncharted 5 than another TLoU. I didn't like TLoU at all, the story had me rolling my eyes after a few hours in. Couldn't even finish it.
I enjoyed 4 more than 2, shrug...
R_thanatos
Member
The only mediocre uncharted game in the franchise is golden abyss.
UC4 has the best gunplay , the best interractions, the best NPC blanter , the best use of space for the gunplay in the franchise.
It's crime is to have worse puzzle than UC2 , a slower pacing than UC2 and a less varied set of set pieces than UC3.. If that's the standard i'm judging , then UC4 is still a good game
UC4 has the best gunplay , the best interractions, the best NPC blanter , the best use of space for the gunplay in the franchise.
It's crime is to have worse puzzle than UC2 , a slower pacing than UC2 and a less varied set of set pieces than UC3.. If that's the standard i'm judging , then UC4 is still a good game
Neff
Member
Funny, I thought it was the dullest gaming year in my three decades plus of playing games.
Acerac
Banned
I find the gameplay is about a 6.5/10 but the total experience (story, sound, graphics, immersion, fun factor, ect.) makes it a sold 8.5/10 game.
I never get bored with it during the play through, doesn't overstay its welcome but isn't short either. And it's good for the occasional replay every once and a while, like re-watching a movie.
I never get bored with it during the play through, doesn't overstay its welcome but isn't short either. And it's good for the occasional replay every once and a while, like re-watching a movie.
RedlineRonin
Member
Hmmm......
I feel the same way about TLoU also. Might have to bump TLG up the list a bit. Is it short? Could always just redbox it too I suppose, if it's short enough.
Serge85
Member
I Bought Uncharted 2 at launch, you know the hype and all that stuff.
After that I borrowed from a friend uncharted 3, and recently uncharted 4.
They were what I expected, technical marvels, (lots of moments that make you say "wow" )with scripted and mediocre gameplay, I don't hate them or think they are bad, if I did, I wouldn't have finished those games, but to me they are like watching a michael bayle movie, (lots of explosions, visual effects, booom) entertaining for a little while but nothing to write home about ( I like to replay games, do it all the time, I'm sure I'll never come back to these games).
I understand that games with high visuals, presentation and narrative are very popular nowadays, but for me, gameplay will always be the most important part in a videogame, and for *me*, recent naughty dog games just fall flat in that department.
Can Crusher
Banned
Also I think it's pretty much impossible for anybody to have played all 4 of the games and say they are all mediocre with weak gameplay, and a lame story.
Because if you played them all and didn't think much of any of them, you clearly have no life, holy fuck. I could never waste my time like that, good god.
Because if you played them all and didn't think much of any of them, you clearly have no life, holy fuck. I could never waste my time like that, good god.
Around 12~14 hours.
Opinions and such I guess but it's always funny how many critically acclaimed games are secretly average to bad for a vocal segment of people.
For me that game is GTA5.
Things being popular or critically acclaimed is in no way a measure of something being actually good. The Oscars, Avatar and Tailor Swift teach us this.
Theslammer
Member
No, critical acclaim definitely measures something being actually good. Things that are bad tend to not get that.
People want to dismiss critical acclaim when it doesn't fall in line with their opinions, but it doesn't work like that.
Actually, it might just mean that you have different taste. Overwhelming acclaims from peers and critics is actually a good gauge of quality.
My friend is my polar opposite, can't stand games that are out there, prefers the highly marketed AAA western games.
Meanwhile I can't stand cinematic games anymore (mostly because there's too many games that use that look).
That said he's still one of my closest friends and I go over a lot, so I get my AAA fix when I go there. He's not very flexible though, can't stand my "weird weeaboo games". Goddamn.
Btw, I don't automatically hate all games with realistic looking characters (see my avatar), but when you combine that with gameplay you've seen many times before, the game just honestly doesn't seem very special at all. That's why I don't understand why people find UC4 to be so special, graphics aside, what sets it apart from other games in terms of plot? In terms of music? In terms of gameplay?
Bear in mind, I'm not saying UC4 is BAD, I don't just see why people think it's so special.
The pacing was absolutely horrendous in UC4 and a huge factor in how much of a let down the game was for me. It simply didn't feel like an Uncharted for a significant portion of the game. That said, where you left off is where it really gets going. The back half is much stronger than the first half of you're after that Uncharted feel like I was.
No, critical acclaim definitely measures something being actually good. Things that are bad tend to not get that.
People want to dismiss critical acclaim when it doesn't fall in line with their opinions, but it doesn't work like that.
No, sorry. I've read too many bat-sh*t crazy movie reviews that are praising something so patently rubbish and visa versa. And if someone wants to come and tell me that Avatar is a brilliant piece of cinema then you have sh*t taste and you don't know what a good movie is, I'm sorry.
This is not a comment on Uncharted 4 since I haven't completed the game but people pointing to critic reviews as some kind of objective arbiter of quality are misguided.
Don't say that around thebeardofknowledge, he'll personally insult you in a heart beat, X-D
Theslammer
Member
Avatar didn't get widespread critical acclaim that called it a brilliant piece of cinema. Its world and use of 3D were praised highly, however.
But now we're coming back to your tastes being different than most, and to dismiss that uniformly by saying everyone else is wrong because you know objectively what a good game is, is misguided and doesn't make sense on a critical level. Critical acclaim is one of the best ways to measure a game's quality because stuff like Mortal Kombat Advance and Superman 64 aren't kicking ass on the critique front.
People dismiss reviews when they don't align with their view. The problem is the world doesn't revolve around any one person's views.
I haven't beaten UC 4 but it was a pretty game and the gunplay felt way better irrc. The only one I beat was UC2 because of hype and thought it was alright but I played it so late and felt the clunky gunplay itself being a cause of my deaths more than anything else which caused frustration especially near the end. Granted I don't own a ps4 so it'll be awhile before I play UC4 again to form a full opinion on it.
Now TLOU is another game I haven't played beyond an hour or two but it sucked me in with the intro and watching my gf play it is fun on its own due to the story alone which UC as a whole never did to me.
Now TLOU is another game I haven't played beyond an hour or two but it sucked me in with the intro and watching my gf play it is fun on its own due to the story alone which UC as a whole never did to me.
Okay I've read reviews of Avatar that praised it across the board including one by the late Robert Egbert. It's at 88 on metacritic but that's off topic. There is accounting for taste but there is also being able to judge something's worth as a piece of art.
Are we already forgetting Dragon Age 2, Final Fantasy XIII? History seems to have judged these two games quite harshly yet they garnered much praise in their time. Not saying the critics get it wrong every time but they certainly don't get it right every time and I think it's naive to think so.
CannonFodder52
Member
TLOU has interesting stealth combat?
Arkham vision, no depth and allies that run circles around enemies while in stealth.
To be honest I can't answer this question, I'm not saying it has to be cartoony or wacky. Maybe a good example is Yakuza, it's clearly using a realistic art style, but at the same time there's a clear aesthetic that reflects the dark nature of the story (coupled with wacky animations and dialogue for the side-quests, which is all the funnier because of how it contrasts it so much)
Off topic but can I say that I appreciate how reasonable and nice you're being in this discussion
I think it was really good. Not goty good but very enjoyable nonetheless. Great visuals were huge part of it so I wonder will it be remembered as fondly let's say in ten years.
The gameplay isn't great but not bad either. But when every location looks absolutely gorgeous I didn't mind the simple platforming and combat that much. My biggest gripe was the lenght which was maybe 2-3 hours too long.
Story and character interactions were pretty solid too so I don't see a problem it being the goty of 2016.
The gameplay isn't great but not bad either. But when every location looks absolutely gorgeous I didn't mind the simple platforming and combat that much. My biggest gripe was the lenght which was maybe 2-3 hours too long.
Story and character interactions were pretty solid too so I don't see a problem it being the goty of 2016.
test_account
XP-39C²
I understand, fair enough
This is subjective, but for me, its the whole package combined. The graphics, the set pieces, the story, the gameplay itself. I would also say that it depends on how big of a fan one is of the Uncharted serie/story, peronally i really enjoy it. I feel that the production value of all these things are great, which makes it a stand out game for my sake. I also love the multiplayer, but thats another story
Its a bit the same with other critical acclaimed games as well. I mean, GTA5 for example, its a GTA game, nothing really crazy that we havnt seen before. The new story however makes it an experience on its own, in my opinion. The new Zelda game as well, we've seen open world games before and i havnt really seen any revolutionary gameplay mechanics in general there. However, this is the first open world Zelda game and i think that it has several of game mechanics that we havnt seen in a Zelda game before (like cooking and weapons breaking). Those things makes it something new in that regards.
I havnt played the Yakuza games, so i cant say too much about them other than what i've seen on Youtube and such, but how does the art direction reflect the dark nature of the game? What type of art styles are being used and how does this affect the games? The wacky animations and humor in the game are indeed funny and makes the game different from being completely serious, even if those things arent really related to the art direction (i know that you're not saying this, i'm just generally speaking).
Thanks, the same to youOff topic but can I say that I appreciate how reasonable and nice you're being in this discussion
Came like 3 chapters away from the end and didn't even finish it because I wasn't invested at all with it. Don't get what people love about the story, just bored me as with every Uncharted story, and this didn't even have enough blow out action setpieces to make up for it. Only thing that stands out in my memory is that jeep motorcycle chase.
Same. I guess Druckmann did what he could but thank god it's over now so he can focus on drastically better material like TLoU. Though I do think Hennig was better suited for this series, the attempt to make an inherently absurd franchise all serious and weighty fell flat to me.
Same. I guess Druckmann did what he could but thank god it's over now so he can focus on drastically better material like TLoU. Though I do think Hennig was better suited for this series, the attempt to make an inherently absurd franchise all serious and weighty fell flat to me.
test_account
XP-39C²
Was UC4 really that much different in that regards compared to the previous Uncharted games? UC4 still had its momemt of humor etc.. Cant really remember it feeling much more serious compared to the previous games at least.
I agree that the Nate and Sully relationship is better though =)
Melfice7
Member
No lies detected