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[BruceLeeRoy]

Your comparison isn't doing UC2 Elena in favors.

She looks weird when she first shows up(must be the lighting or something), but she looks fine afterwards.

I thought the same thing. She looks odd when she is introduced and it seemed like her lip synching or something was off as well. Later on though she looks fantastic.

 

[dwebo]

More like because

Spoiler

the enemy would be shooting at a kid

. I still would have liked the option.

He would've been

Spoiler

harder

to hit as well.

 

[Papercuts]

I just got through with the spoiler tagged part, the exact same thing happened to me. I was ticked, and to make it worse the game autosaves right after that so you can't even retry the stealth bit.

I've been noticing this happen every time you can stealth. If you get spotted and die it starts you against hostile enemies.

 

[paperheart]

Out of curiosity, how many treasures did you guys pick up on your first play through in the time you did?

Around 40 I believe.

 

[Violater]

The game has been on my shelf in plastic for 3 days now.
Just too much damn schoolwork

 

[ProfessorMoran]

I don't want to harp on Elena's face too much, lest I seem like some obsessive weirdo, but it really boggles my mind how they went from

to

Different lead character designer, the last guy joined blizzard.

 

[leng jai]

Man these are some fast horses.

 

[BruceLeeRoy]

I am halfway through batman AA, I am dodging

Spoiler

Myrrah on her Mothra

epic mount in GOW3, I have unopened copies of Dark Souls and BF3. I have beaten UC3 and yet all I want is more Uncharted. These games ruin me.

 

[gray_fox224]

Ch 12 is hard as fuckkk

 

[AwakenedCloud]

I've been noticing this happen every time you can stealth. If you get spotted and die it starts you against hostile enemies.

Not only that, but that place you in the worst of scenarios. Sometimes, enemies will be shooting at you within 3 seconds. One of mine was absolute BS, I actually managed to stealth kill everyone in the area but my partner refused to move from behind his cover to trigger the next scene. I ended up throwing a grenade at him and somehow it alerted everyone and their grandmother.

 

[BruceLeeRoy]

I've been noticing this happen every time you can stealth. If you get spotted and die it starts you against hostile enemies.

What! No way man I purposely kill myself when I alarm the guys just to start over and it never starts over with them alerted. Where does this happen? Ill test it right now.

 

[Sean]

Honestly... I liked the slow start. I appreciated being able to walk around the environments and it was different from the other two games. It definitely made the ramp up into extreme action all the more intense later on.

Those levels have absolutely no replay value though. It's not really fun to replay puzzle segments once you know exactly how to solve them.

Halfway through the game and the only three parts I'd ever care to replay are the chapter 3

Spoiler

Young Drake chase/escape

, the

Spoiler

burning chateau

in chapter 7 and

Spoiler

Talbot chase

at the very end of chapter 11. And two of those three parts I mentioned only last about five minutes.

 

[Tuck]

So up to Chapter 21,

Spoiler

just got to the typical obnoxious twist. I won't comment on it, yet, but it seems standard Uncharted stuff. Not as obnoxious as zombies (U1), or the mutant men (U2), which is good.

So, the fire fights in this game are on crack. Two turrets, A bunch of snipers, a guy with a rocket launcher, like five guys with shotguns, one heavily armored, and a few extra baddies just sprinkled in. All of this, in a sandstorm where you can't see for shit. Holy fuck that's awesome. It was hard, and I died a bunch of times but holy fuck. The game regularly showers you with about twice as much as you think you can handle. Having guys with snipers and rocket launches is a regular occurrence once you get to the ship yard.

The graphics are amazing. The water - holy shit the water in the shipping yard was the best water I've been in any game, period. The desert was pretty as well. Ubar was slightly disappointing at first, just because it didn't seem as grand as Shambala. Ran around a bit and it seems better, but Shambala certainly seems bigger and more gaudy.

Air plane sequence was fun, somewhat frustrating. At the end when he is in the air, I didn't realise we had control and died. But I deserve that. It was cool that it wasn't a cutscene. But the parts leading up to it were amazing. Desert sequence sort of dragged on, but I was okay with them slowing the game down for a bit. It was me doing very little for ten minutes, but I enjoyed it.

The game really picks up around chapter 11. The first half of the game was slow, save for the ending of the chateau. Thats alright there were a ton of moments when I was like 'Okay ENOUGH PUZZLES LET ME SHOOT SOMEONE!'

Elena and Cloe don't play a very large part, which is disappointing. Charlie especially, since he is a new character. I'm hoping they make an appearance at the end, but I doubt it.

The platforming plays a much larger role, but it still needs work, in that it still feels quite automated. Though, maybe the game would be worse if the platforming required more... effort. Also, sometimes its very difficult to see where to jump.

Finally, the aiming. Its been said all over these boards by now. The aiming does not feel right. I made do, and enjoyed the entire game so far. But the aiming is wonky. One I tried moving my analog stick in a diagonal direction, and it moved the cursor horizontally. Other times it would do it in a staircase pattern, which is serviceable, but not ideal.

2 chapters to go. Very excited. At this point, I don't think its better than U2, but its still fantastic.

 

[Augemitbutter]

Different lead character designer, the last guy joined blizzard.

poor soul.

 

[Skel1ingt0n]

Aaaaand the credits are rolling. What a great, great roller coaster ride! Man, I thought nothing could top the action set pieces we had seen in trailers; but I gotta give it to ND, that last sequence gave them a run for their money. At the end of the day, though, the

Spoiler

ship

part was still my favorite, and possibly the best thing out of all three games.

I'm gonna let it settle for a little while, as I don't like to "rate" a game right after finishing; but I'd wager I'd give it something in the 8/10 range now that all is said and done.

Based off a playthrough on normal, here are some tidbits:

+Graphics are freaking amazing. Best graphics on consoles, period. Outside of some jaggies, ground textures, and shadows, I'd say they're breathtaking. Animations are superb, too, if just a little exaggerated.

+Voice work. Easily some of the best VA in a video game.

+Characters. As always, all the characters are fun and entertaining. The villains are a bit one-dimensional, but Drake and the crew are awesome. Sullivan is hilarious, and the girls are so "real." They're lack of over-sexualizing makes them... well, more sexy, I think. The friendships and relationships are just great.

+Action set pieces are the best in the biz. Period.

+Some creative game play elements later in the game that mix it up.

- Puzzles are pretty lame. Too easy/obvious or just "hope you're looking at the right area" type of puzzles. Wish there were multi-room puzzles ala Zelda.

-Some firefights are just stupid. There were many times I just died out of nowhere at a respawn. I'd have to immediately run toward a certain direction to avoid being one-shoted. I wish there was more "strategy" in the fights rather than "shoot these guys" and "shoot armored guys more."

One of the later chapters dragged a bit and would have been better off a cutscene.

-Not enough screen time with the ladies.

 

[Papercuts]

What! No way man I purposely kill myself when I alarm the guys just to start over and it never starts over with them alerted. Where does this happen? Ill test it right now.

Hmm, seriously?

Spoiler

Chapter 12, in the shipyards, I was being stealthy in the water, taking people out, eventually got seen and got killed by a guy using a hammer. It started me taking cover behind some box I never even saw before with people jumping off the boats shooting at me.

Happened again on chapter...14 or 15, in the cruise ship, the big room with the chandeliers. I took out two guys, took out another, got seen, died, they were attacking me. That's all the farther I am in the game though.

 

[Yoshichan]

poor soul.

Yeah, what a poor soul that he's now working with the company where the employees are having the best time of their lives every day that goes by.

 

[Teknoman]

Wow...daytime areas are so beautiful in this game. Just hit Chapter 10 and I had to put my controller down a minute just to take in the detail. Also I actually like the new melee fighting system compared to the last two games.

 

[Augemitbutter]

Wow...daytime areas are so beautiful in this game. Just hit Chapter 10 and I had to put my controller down a minute just to take in the detail. Also I actually like the new melee fighting system compared to the last two games.

i like it too, but hate when you get stuck in combat and get shot by bazillion other guys while you fight.

 

[Dynedom]

I just got through with the spoiler tagged part, the exact same thing happened to me. I was ticked, and to make it worse the game autosaves right after that so you can't even retry the stealth bit.

I was actually furious when I got to those last 2

Spoiler

in the airstrip part

. Like, all my hard work for nothing. On top of that, I swear the game spawned 2 more enemies, one of them being an armored soldier. I sure as hell did not see him around anywhere. -_- Something like 15 restarts for fuck all.

 

[JaseC]

So, 7-8 hour campaign? Really? Naughty Dog you're lucky I love you or I'd be pissed right now.

The timer doesn't take into account checkpoint restarts (e.g. deaths). Let's say you spent 20 minutes battling through enemies only to die and the game puts you back at the beginning of the area prior to the fire-fight - those 20 minutes you just wasted are erased. The timer in both Drake's Fortune and Among Thieves, on the other hand, factored in checkpoint restarts.

I completed the game somewhere within 9 hours according to the timer (closer to 10 than 9), though I imagine I put at least 12 into it. I'd say the campaign is longer than Drake's Fortune but an hour or two shorter than Among Thieves.

 

[JaxJag]

Pretty disappointed overall. I think I let all the 10s get to me.

The pacing in Uncharted 3 is just off. Almost everything goes on for longer than it feels like it should. The multiple chase sequences and hallucinations go on for what feels like forever.

The A.I. is very poor, especially at the start of the game when your partners just do nothing but get in the way and stand out in the open.

The armored enemies aren't fun to fight, then again maybe they would be more fun if the game didn't control so poorly.

Still a good game, but all the 10s it's received sort of blows my mind. In my book it deserves around an 8, maybe a 7.5.

Needed better controls, pacing , and A.I... some more enemy variety would had been nice too.

 

[AwakenedCloud]

I was actually furious when I got to those last 2

Spoiler

in the airstrip part

. Like, all my hard work for nothing. On top of that, I swear the game spawned 2 more enemies, one of them being an armored soldier. I sure as hell did not see him around anywhere. -_- Something like 15 restarts for fuck all.

I feel ya man, it's amazing how you get surrounded after you took out everything up to the last couple guys. It's one thing they all go into alert phase, it's another that it doubles the enemies you have to take out. Not only that, they also have some type of spider-sense where they know where you are no matter how you move after being detected, it's stupid. Great waste of climbing potential.

 

[Lord Error]

Forest before the chateau looks great! It's got that crispy morning sunlight look. I actually went and compared it with The Dig chapter in UC2 which is the closest in terms of looks. There's definitely improvement to just about everything in terms of overall looks of chateau forest, but it also has to be noted that 2xMSAA and motion blur in UC2 gave it a softer, less clinical look. While UC3 is still antialiased, distant objects are not as antialiased and look crisper but also more shimmery. It's interesting how much 2xMSAA softens the image really. Considering that UC3 uses some sort of edge blur AA method, akin to FSAA, you'd expect it to look softer and blurrier, but it's the exact opposite.

Both levels allow you to rotate the camera in such a way that you can take a closer look at Drake, and UC3 Drake looks pretty damn strikingly better, both in terms of shading and in how his face and idle movements are animated. Was very nice to see.

 

[JaseC]

The point is, we don't know for sure whether the effect was removed intentionally or not. The fact that it is supported by the engine doesn't mean anything, and neither does the implementation of motion blur used in that trailer or in older builds. I seriously doubt the lack of motion blur is due to a human error; it's too conspicuous an effect for people to overlook it, which is especially true for top developers like Naughty Dog.

The simplest explanation is that the effect was removed out of performance issues. Sure, they can implement MB easily via a patch, but, as you say, it wouldn't make any sense to patch it in if that was the case. If it wasn't, though, that would be a great addition to an already fantastic-looking game.

And my point is that it appears as though motion blur was removed in error. "No, we removed motion blur due its impact on the framerate" would be a much more natural response to arne's high-level internal inquiries if it were removed with reason than something to the effect of "What do you mean it's not present in the GM?", not to mention the initial insistence that the effect was indeed in the retail build. You're clinging to Occam's Razor while there is information that suggests otherwise.

In any case, I'd say we'll have official word on the matter some time next week.

Edit: Motion blur being supported by the engine most certainly does mean something: the effect can be easily patched into the game, which is what I was implying in my previous post.

 

[canadian crowe]

I'm stuck on chapter 12:

Spoiler

I killed all the guys in the ship graveyard, but I have no idea where to go after that. All I can do I jump from ship to ship. Where is the exit?

 

[jax (old)]

Pretty disappointed overall. I think I let all the 10s get to me.

The pacing in Uncharted 3 is just off. Almost everything goes on for longer than it feels like it should.

The A.I. is very poor, especially at the start of the game when your partners just do nothing but get in the way and stand out in the open.

The armored enemies aren't fun to fight, then again maybe they would be more fun if the game didn't control so poorly.

Still a good game, but all the 10s it's received sort of blows my mind. In my book it deserves around an 8, maybe a 7.5.

Needed better controls, pacing , and A.I... some more enemy variety would had been nice too.

Hey some spoilers in here. Damnit people edit that shit.

 

[hamchan]

Up to chapter 16 now. My feelings on the game:

Chapters 1 to 5: Interesting story wise, but a bit zzzzzz in the gameplay.
6 to 16: Amazing holy crap.

 

[Dynedom]

I'm stuck on chapter 12:

Spoiler

I killed all the guys in the ship graveyard, but I have no idea where to go after that. All I can do I jump from ship to ship. Where is the exit?

Spoiler

You need to climb the mast of one of the ships. The one that you can swim into through a whole in the outer hull underwater. Just look at all the masts and you'll eventually notice one you can climb up.

 

[Shadow780]

I'm stuck on chapter 12:

Spoiler

I killed all the guys in the ship graveyard, but I have no idea where to go after that. All I can do I jump from ship to ship. Where is the exit?

Spoiler

There's a ladder on the ship where you climb to get the grenade launcher, the part where enemies with RPG spawned at the oil ship far away. the color of the ladder is yellow.

 

[Augemitbutter]

I'm stuck on chapter 12:

Spoiler

I killed all the guys in the ship graveyard, but I have no idea where to go after that. All I can do I jump from ship to ship. Where is the exit?

yes, that part is terrible.

ed: already been answered.

 

[canadian crowe]

Spoiler

You need to climb the mast of one of the ships. The one that you can swim into through a whole in the outer hull underwater. Just look at all the masts and you'll eventually notice one you can climb up.

Thanks! I can't believe I missed that.

 

[Tallshortman]

Man desert section after crashing the plane looks insanely good, I kept thinking it was a cutscene and not moving lol.

On chapter 19 I think? This game has been amazing so far, though the second half definitely seems more exciting than the first.

 

[jax (old)]

I don't want to harp on Elena's face too much, lest I seem like some obsessive weirdo, but it really boggles my mind how they went from

to

aaaaahhhhhh :'( yikes looks way worse in motion too.

 

[JaseC]

Elena circa Drake's Deception has the appearance of a love doll.

 

[nomis]

The inside-top part of her eyelids is all of a sudden very curved. Can't unsee.

 

[thetrin]

I'm in

Spoiler

the desert now, and I'm at the sand storm stealth portion after taking out the caravans. I manage to stealth kill one or two guys, but I always end up alerting everyone. Normally that's fine, but FUCK this guy with the heavy machine gun who appears out of nowhere and always magically finds me no matter which way I approach. Not to mention that he's not wearing any armor, yet 7 shots to the face with any gun doesn't kill him.

It's the shit like this that makes me hate late-game Uncharted. The enemies take for fucking EVER to kill.

Stopped there for the night. Got fed up of having zero cover and being shot at constantly until I died.

I'm having a lot of trouble even on normal. Some of these combat situations are just plain bullshit.

The more I play, the more I love the puzzling and climbing, and the more I fucking hate the combat and "Stealth".

Pretty disappointed overall. I think I let all the 10s get to me.

The pacing in Uncharted 3 is just off. Almost everything goes on for longer than it feels like it should.

Spoiler

The multiple chase sequences and hallucinations go on for what feels like forever.

The A.I. is very poor, especially at the start of the game when your partners just do nothing but get in the way and stand out in the open.

The armored enemies aren't fun to fight, then again maybe they would be more fun if the game didn't control so poorly.

Still a good game, but all the 10s it's received sort of blows my mind. In my book it deserves around an 8, maybe a 7.5.

Needed better controls, pacing , and A.I... some more enemy variety would had been nice too.

From where I am in the game at the moment, I have to agree wholeheartedly.

 

[Raonak]

The inside-top part of her eyelids is all of a sudden very curved. Can't unsee.

Actually, it appears they changed elena to look more like her voice actress.

 

[Interstellar]

Up to chapter 16 now. My feelings on the game:

Chapters 1 to 5: Interesting story wise, but a bit zzzzzz in the gameplay.
6 to 16: Amazing holy crap.

Yep, just got to chapter 11, loved the end of the

Spoiler

chateau

, most of

Spoiler

Syria

and the start of

Spoiler

Yemen in daylight

looks beautiful.

The puzzles so far are a definite improvement over U1 & U2. Hand combat is more satisfying too, although I feel a block button(L1) would have added a bit more depth and made it less QTEish.

Gun combat is starting to get a bit easier(or noticing aiming problems less) with using more weapons but still isn't as enjoyable/precise as U2 or even U3 multiplayer - still not sure why sp aiming isn't the same as multiplayer and co-op.

 

[Angry Grimace]

As much as I love the Uncharted series, something's gotta give in any further installments with the invincible bad guys that take six shotgun blasts and just keep walking at you because they have magic body armor that is completely impenetrable while the helmet is still attached.

 

[partime]

poor soul.

I jog by Blizzard Ent. every week,
I don't believe his soul is poor, that place is top notch.

 

[Hazelhurst]

Just made it to chapter 13.

I have to say it started off slow, but it's amping up. Oh boy @ Chapter 12. That chapter alone makes me like this more than U2. Also, I loved Chapter 2.

There seem to be more puzzles than U2 and they're more challenging.

This is the funniest Uncharted. The dialogue, delivery, and reactions put a huge grin on my face. It's genuinely funny and not forced.

The acting is just incredible so far.

 

[Angry Grimace]

Assuming ND keeps developing the Uncharted games on PS4. Their history shows them working on one franchise per console. As much as I like Uncharted I hope they do something new on PS4.

None of those franchises were nearly as popular or money printing as Uncharted. Things change when you produce series like this one.

 

[thetrin]

As much as I love the Uncharted series, something's gotta give in any further installments with the invincible bad guys that take six shotgun blasts and just keep walking at you because they have magic body armor that is completely impenetrable while the helmet is still attached.

Considering how frequent they become as you get farther in, the combat is just a nightmare, especially if you just happen not to have weapons that can kill them quickly. Sometimes I just have an AK, a Para, and no grenades, and I'm of course unable to get to a better vantage point or run away. I just have to run around limited cover until they don't see me, and try to punch them the fuck out.

Too bad some enemies just can't be punched because of....reasons. They introduce melee as a good combat resolution if you want something to end quickly, and are low on ammo, but you still encounter enemies that you cannot melee. That seems really stupid to me.

You can thankfully melee the shotgun guys most of the time, and it's far safer than going toe to toe with them from gun range, but the heavy machine gun guys just plain cannot be punched.

 

[canadian crowe]

I must be in the minority, but I'm not enjoying chapters 12-14 at all.

The game is at it's best when you aren't shooting anything. I love the brawls though.

 

[BocoDragon]

I'm in

Spoiler

the desert now, and I'm at the sand storm stealth portion after taking out the caravans. I manage to stealth kill one or two guys, but I always end up alerting everyone. Normally that's fine, but FUCK this guy with the heavy machine gun who appears out of nowhere and always magically finds me no matter which way I approach. Not to mention that he's not wearing any armor, yet 7 shots to the face with any gun doesn't kill him.

It's the shit like this that makes me hate late-game Uncharted. The enemies take for fucking EVER to kill.

Stopped there for the night. Got fed up of having zero cover and being shot at constantly until I died.

Lol. I just saved one checkpoint ahead. I died a couple times on that big brute but a grabbed that first enemy's sniper rifle and headshotted him a few times before he got near me. Was easy.

If you're just firing away at armored guys, it's not that "you're doing it wrong" but, well, there are quick ways to take them out if you're skilled.

There's no cover.. but that doesn't mean you're supposed to just stand there in the open and fire, either.

Too bad some enemies just can't be punched because of....reasons. They introduce melee as a good combat resolution if you want something to end quickly, and are low on ammo, but you still encounter enemies that you cannot melee. That seems really stupid to me.

I've never found a guy you can't melee. It takes a long time, but even the armored brutes will go down with enough "triangle" dodging and attacks.

 

[thetrin]

I must be in the minority, but I'm not enjoying chapters 12-14 at all.

The game is at it's best when you aren't shooting anything. I love the brawls though.

I agree with you. The chateau is still my favorite part of the game, because of the traversal stuff at the end.

Lol. I just saved one checkpoint ahead. I died a couple times on that big brute but a grabbed that first enemy's sniper rifle and headshotted him a few times before he got near me. Was easy.

If you're just firing away at armored guys, it's not that "you're doing it wrong" but, well, there are quick ways to take them out if you're skilled.

Other than melee and grenades, what other option do I have? Because of the aiming issues, I can't hit things in the head unless they're standing still and I have a few minutes to aim.

And even then, this guy takes like, a billion shots to the face.

(I never get enough sniper shots off before I'm dead)

There's no cover.. but that doesn't mean you're supposed to just stand there in the open and fire, either.

Well obviously, but the machinegun guy can track me when I'm running, and rolling means I can't shoot.

 

[Teknoman]

Wow... the gun counter disarm is awesome.

 

[Fix The Scientist]

I like the combat in co-op story mode SO MUCH more than single player combat, the gunplay feels better, melee is actually helpful, the level design encourages experimentation. I wish there was a way to play it on my own.

 

[partime]

The color, detail and clarity in this game is unreal. I can't wait to play it on easy and pick up all trophies while snooping around. I sold my 360 a while ago, and with games like this I have no regrets.