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Uncharted 4: A Thief's End |OT| You're gonna miss this ass

I wish there was a raptor skin for the campaign. You don't know how often I've said "Don't go into the long grass!" when taking guys out in the stealth grass.

quote's from The Lost World (JP2) if it wasn't obvious.

Final boss showdown animation is mindblowing.
MAKE A PIRATE GAME!

Between the pirate lore, stealth grass and black flag painting, I'm not sure they want to go any further in AC: Black Flag's territory lol.
 
does playing on harder difficulties make the lack of combat encounters more bearable because maybe you die more? I rashly sold the game after I beat it because I was frustrated with the time spent climbing/walking/talking and I thought I would never play through it again. Lol, but seeing these awesome gifs is making me itch to play more, so maybe I'll just by it again and spend more time on encounter select? Did anyone find the pacing improve on second or third playthroughs (mainly asking people who were let down about the lack of encounters)?

I've been relaying a few of the chapters that feel like a set (2-3, 6-7, 8-9, 10-11, 13-15, 17-18) showing the game to people in the last few days, and no, rushing through it doesn't really help pacing at all. The stretches of downtime or walk/climb + talk still feel long, and pacing from encounter to encounter (or even the encounters themselves) still feels off. It's way faster than the initial playthrough, but it still kinda feels like you're detached for much longer periods than previous games, and hitting extremes (really slow. vs super hype) without feeling some kind of sustained momentum.

Was wondering how that level would be to replay. Specifically
is there any way to mix up the Nadine fight? Or do you just have to go through the same flailing motions a second time and play out the fight you can't win? Any way to really change things up at least?

Also,
I failed my first two attempts at pickpocketing, and have no idea whether thats how its designed or if I can actually manage it on a replay without Sam's help?

I did notice some different animations the 2nd and 3rd times around in the first Nadine fight, but it plays out pretty much the same. I've never been a huge fan of unskippable "CAN'T WIN" fights dating back to Mega Man X, personally, so it kind of gets on my nerves even though it's a well done sequence.

And you can definitely do the pickpocket without Sam's help. I also thought the failure was scripted, but it's not. Really good design there.
 
Thanks, CrichtonKicks and Net_Wrecker. Will keep that in mind for my replay.

Actually looking forward to it for the artistry of the game alone, but am also hoping I can squeeze some more interesting gameplay goodness out of it.
 

nib95

Banned
Man fuck these gatling gun guys. Who they hell thought it was fun placing one and a shotgun dude in one narrow ass alley with two wooden boxes as cover.

You don't need to kill the gatling gun dude, you only have to survive long enough. Trick is to watch his surroundings….Granted it's a little harder on crushing, and you have to be very tactical about when you move in and out of cover so those two crates last long enough.


I didn't realise Sully actually flies the plane down to where you need to be. Very cool detail I completely missed despite two play throughs.
 

brawly

Member
Okay, that ending was fantastic.

A fun ride overall. A handful of amazing adreline inducing scenes and a bit too much padding here and there. Graphics and animition in a class of its own. The improved gunplay and new rope mechanic really elevate it in terms of combat.

Would and will not replay completely though.
 

tr1p1ex

Member
Also the exploding mummy shit. Was this section designed by an intern or what. All these pointless explosions are only detrimental to the eerie atmosphere they were trying to build up.

yeah it's annoying.

You know you are not supposed to get blown up. And you know you have to move out of the way. But it isn't fun to move out of the way. Your guy is slow and clumsy. You can't tell where it's safe to go either for the most part. And so it's just a bunch of trial and error.
 
I finished on hard and I'm almost done with a moderate playthrough and I completely disagree. Hard is the way to go for sure. Moderate has been waaaaay too easy for me. I feel that I've had more epic moments on my hard playthrough than my moderate playthrough.

I think it depends on skill and approach, I had my moments on hard but failing set pieces is a sin to me, personally think that they're most enjoyable when you don't die, I hated chapter 20 on hard the first time and then I did it on moderate and had much more fun that it became my favourite set piece in the franchise or close.
I agree that it's way too easy on moderate but I don't mind that, I play for the spectacle.
 
After letting it all sink in a few days, I'm definitely more positive on the game than I initially was. I'm still disappointed that there's really not as much combat as I think there should be (ahem cough Druckmann and Straley if you're reading this...), but now that I've come to terms with that I've been able to fully focus on all the exceptional stuff in the game. I think a second play-through will probably be more enjoyable since I can go in without the burden of expectation, but then we'll really see if the more combat-lite approach can sustain multiple play throughs. I already want to play it again so that's a good sign at least.
 
yeah it's annoying.

You know you are not supposed to get blown up. And you know you have to move out of the way. But it isn't fun to move out of the way. Your guy is slow and clumsy. You can't tell where it's safe to go either for the most part. And so it's just a bunch of trial and error.

My only issue with the exploding mummies is that several times Elena would say "Watch your step" so I would think I was doing something to inadvertently set them off. Took me a while to realize that they couldn't be avoided.
 
My only issue with the exploding mummies is that several times Elena would say "Watch your step" so I would think I was doing something to inadvertently set them off. Took me a while to realize that they couldn't be avoided.

Yeah I was thoroughly confused at the mechanic behind the mummies. I also thought there were pressure switches that I was stepping on or something, and at the very end I assumed that it's vibrations in the ground (ie you'll set them off if you run or drop to the ground). Can they really not be avoided at all? That's gonna be a bitch on crushing.
 

Impulsor

Member
Yay!

Got my platinum trophy!

JDEzRtj.jpg
 

Impulsor

Member
Yeah I was thoroughly confused at the mechanic behind the mummies. I also thought there were pressure switches that I was stepping on or something, and at the very end I assumed that it's vibrations in the ground (ie you'll set them off if you run or drop to the ground). Can they really not be avoided at all? That's gonna be a bitch on crushing.

They can, I found an easy way to avoid them.

And also, forget running, smash X and jump around like a madman to get out of harm, it moves Drake way faster than running and rolling in that chapter.
 

TissueBox

Member
Those two chapters were the ones that convinced me that the game was gonna have spectacular set pieces and it delivered completely for me.
Fantastic stuff, reminded me to Mission Impossible Rogue Nation.

Haven't seen that one, but I have seen Ghost Protocol, *cough* one of the greatest action movies of the decade, by the way, *cough* and yes, yes, yes. That Mission Impossible/Ocean's vibe is honed to a tee and just felt rich throughout. The action segments felt just right, too.

Was wondering how that level would be to replay. Specifically
is there any way to mix up the Nadine fight? Or do you just have to go through the same flailing motions a second time and play out the fight you can't win? Any way to really change things up at least?

Also,
I failed my first two attempts at pickpocketing, and have no idea whether thats how its designed or if I can actually manage it on a replay without Sam's help?

Yeah as the others said,
there is flexibility in the pickpocket but your timing has to be pretty on-point. I still failed my first attempt (as I had in my first playthrough, lol >_<) but if you got the positioning right it should work. At least for the second one, as far as I know.

And yeah, the fight with Nadine doesn't really change at all, excluding the difference in the order of your inputs. Would be interesting if ND added a winning option, though that would probably merit an extra ounce of cutscene work.
 

Wootball

Member
Just finished it. The last boss is fucking dreadful on Crushing.

One hit kills you QTE boss? It's full speed, there's no button prompts, and one hit from him means starting it again. The rest of the game at least involves skill rather than blind luck.

I'll post full game opinions a little later once I've watched the end story. Although as before with other Uncharted games, it's far too bloody easy! At least this time it's a decent length though, even if chapters 16-20 are a real drag.
 

HMD

Member
Is it just me or did anyone else just lose all sense of direction in a lot of areas? I had no idea where I was supposed to go in most non-linear areas.
 
I thought the areas did a great job of using landmarks to highlight where you should be going in an organic way. Like in Chapter 10 you have the volcano and towers as markers in the distance, and the cairns line the path you should be going on.
 

cb1115

I Was There! Official L Receiver 2/12/2016
started my second playthrough last night and surprisingly the slow start didn't bore me. i figured i'd wanna skip cutscenes and stuff but nope.

also goddamn everything about the
auction
is so good. very different vibe from the rest of the game too.
 
started my second playthrough last night and surprisingly the slow start didn't bore me. i figured i'd wanna skip cutscenes and stuff but nope.

also goddamn everything about the
auction
is so good. very different vibe from the rest of the game too.


Yeah the
auction
is sweet. I love the moment when you finally get a gun too, when
Sam tosses it to you as you're clinging from the sign
. Shit got me pumped. I loved all the one off segments there too, like
the pick pocketing, and when you're searching for a tool to smash the gate as the auction is going on in your ear piece
. Plus, Rafe looked like a pimp in his white tux.
 
Just finished it. The last boss is fucking dreadful on Crushing.

One hit kills you QTE boss? It's full speed, there's no button prompts, and one hit from him means starting it again. The rest of the game at least involves skill rather than blind luck.

I'll post full game opinions a little later once I've watched the end story. Although as before with other Uncharted games, it's far too bloody easy! At least this time it's a decent length though, even if chapters 16-20 are a real drag.

Glad it cause you pain both, chapter 20 and final boss. Was getting a little nervous here.
 
Haven't seen that one, but I have seen Ghost Protocol, *cough* one of the greatest action movies of the decade, by the way, *cough* and yes, yes, yes. That Mission Impossible/Ocean's vibe is honed to a tee and just felt rich throughout. The action segments felt just right, too.



Yeah as the others said,
there is flexibility in the pickpocket but your timing has to be pretty on-point. I still failed my first attempt (as I had in my first playthrough, lol >_<) but if you got the positioning right it should work. At least for the second one, as far as I know.

And yeah, the fight with Nadine doesn't really change at all, excluding the difference in the order of your inputs. Would be interesting if ND added a winning option, though that would probably merit an extra ounce of cutscene work.

While I wish the second
Nadine
fight was longer and more elaborate I just love that
at the end of the game she is essentially the one Uncharted villain that goes undefeated.
 

nib95

Banned
started my second playthrough last night and surprisingly the slow start didn't bore me. i figured i'd wanna skip cutscenes and stuff but nope.

also goddamn everything about the
auction
is so good. very different vibe from the rest of the game too.

Yeah the
auction
is sweet. I love the moment when you finally get a gun too, when
Sam tosses it to you as you're clinging from the sign
. Shit got me pumped. I loved all the one off segments there too, like
the pick pocketing, and when you're searching for a tool to smash the gate as the auction is going on in your ear piece
. Plus, Rafe looked like a pimp in his white tux.

Yes to both of these. Auction was just incredible. The build up with the infiltration through the cliffs, forest, grape gardens etc, right through to the auction ballroom itself, to the rooftops, power generator room and final escape. Just sublime, and super slick. Felt more like Mission Impossible or James Bond than Indiana Jones.
 
While I wish the second
Nadine
fight was longer and more elaborate I just love that
at the end of the game she is essentially the one Uncharted villain that goes undefeated.

Her exit is amazing. She's like the only capable character throughout the whole game. Kicking everyones asses left and right and then just peaces out when she realizes it's not worth it
 
After letting it all sink in a few days, I'm definitely more positive on the game than I initially was. I'm still disappointed that there's really not as much combat as I think there should be (ahem cough Druckmann and Straley if you're reading this...), but now that I've come to terms with that I've been able to fully focus on all the exceptional stuff in the game. I think a second play-through will probably be more enjoyable since I can go in without the burden of expectation, but then we'll really see if the more combat-lite approach can sustain multiple play throughs. I already want to play it again so that's a good sign at least.

You my clown think just like me. I sold it cause I was so dissapointed and I thought I'd never play it again because of the bad pacing but I couldn't stop thinking about it so I went out and bought it again (and I hate myself for being so damn rash). Now playing for an hour I've been able to relax and enjoy it for what it is instead of my high expectations of what it should be. Im a gameplay first kind of guy, but I've told myself I'm gonna take my time for this and just go an adventure and not get pissy about how they need more of their awesome encounters!


I'm actually playing all 4 games at one time to judge the series. It's funny that in Uncharted 1 and 2 I want the action to ease up a little, in Uncharted 3 I find a good balance but it's just got some wonky oddities like hit reactions and Drake falling over himself and in Uncharted 4 every control and animation is pitch perfect, but not enough action. I actually think deleting all young drake from UC4 would have helped the pacing tons.
 
You should have i-frames for a few seconds when you attach to a swing point, at least on that first grapple (then every successive swing would have less and less i-frames to avoid cheese in the campaign). I don't understand the logic in putting these badass rope points into the game but being bombarded by hitscan weapons when you use it in combat. By the time you finish any decently great string of moves, your screen is probably black & white.

Like are we simulating adventure movie heroics or not? Reckless abandon should be encouraged.
 
Chapter 20 wasn't hard - it was just harder than the rest. It's still not a game where you'll need to try sections 6 or 7 times, aside from the daft final boss.

Yeah I know, is not a hard game but since it was so easy to you it's like a confirmation that chapter 20 is at least challenging. Final battle is cheap in that regard.

Edit: Even if the game is easy is the most fair of the franchise imo, the rest always had some segments that weren't, especially 1 and 3.
 

valkyre

Member
I actually think deleting all young drake from UC4 would have helped the pacing tons.

... and would have completely ruined the narrative and ,as a consequence, the game in general.

Maybe youdont care much about the story, but I do and these young Drake moments are beautiful and vital to the story ND wants to tell.
 

vpance

Member
You should have i-frames for a few seconds when you attach to a swing point, at least on that first grapple (then every successive swing would have less and less i-frames to avoid cheese in the campaign). I don't understand the logic in putting these badass rope points into the game but being bombarded by hitscan weapons when you use it in combat. By the time you finish any decently great string of moves, your screen is probably black & white.

Like are we simulating adventure movie heroics or not? Reckless abandon should be promoted.

You playing on Hard? I am and I can empathize.

I'm a little more than halfway through the game, but TBH I'm not really finding the vastly increased level size necessarily more fun or dynamic than the previous games. Going the stealth route doesn't feel as satisfying as I thought it would be either. The best moments I've had in the series were surviving by the skin of my teeth with bullets flying everywhere, and it feels like stealthing through encounters cheat me out of those opportunities.
 
... and would have completely ruined the narrative and ,as a consequence, the game in general.

No I don't think so. I think they could have built the Sam/Nate relationship in prison or maybe with an early cutscene. I hardly think it would have ruined the game. I think it's jarring in the first 4 chapters to go to four different locations in 4 different time periods.
 

valkyre

Member
No I don't think so. I think they could have built the Sam/Nate relationship in prison or maybe with an early cutscene. I hardly think it would have ruined the game. I think it's jarring in the first 4 chapters to go to four different locations in 4 different time periods.

How is it harring if it makes absolute sense in relation to the story they want to tell and explore the reasons and the consequences of their choices, how they became adventurers and how their lives and those of others were affected by said choices?

I think Naughty Dog knows a thing or 2 more, about storytelling.
 

nib95

Banned
After letting it all sink in a few days, I'm definitely more positive on the game than I initially was. I'm still disappointed that there's really not as much combat as I think there should be (ahem cough Druckmann and Straley if you're reading this...), but now that I've come to terms with that I've been able to fully focus on all the exceptional stuff in the game. I think a second play-through will probably be more enjoyable since I can go in without the burden of expectation, but then we'll really see if the more combat-lite approach can sustain multiple play throughs. I already want to play it again so that's a good sign at least.

I enjoyed my second play through more even though it was on crushing. I'm going to do a third on hard now, which I know will be a bit easy coming off of crushing, but should be a good middle ground between do as I please easy and still have to be thoughtfully strategic challenging. The only other ND game that's been this immediately replayable for me is UC2, but even that I didn't replay a third time till a good chunk of time had passed. With UC4 I'm feeling the desire to jump back in again (a third time), almost immediately. That's how I know it was never just hype and that this game is legitimately amazing.
 
Some of the bigger areas that "encourage" stealth (via high grass) feel like there's no real purpose to be sneaky since if you get caught, you're stuck in the middle of a massive open area surrounded by dudes instead of just marching from one end to the other like a typical Nathan Drake death machine. I tried stealthing the second encounter in Chapter 13 and just gave up since it a) apparently was not meant to be completely bypassed since they straight up stop giving you high grass halfway through and b) is so much easier to just shoot everyone than risk stealth. I've enjoyed the stealth in smaller encounters like mini outpost areas in Madagascar, but otherwise it feels like it does more harm than good.
 

cackhyena

Member
After letting it all sink in a few days, I'm definitely more positive on the game than I initially was. I'm still disappointed that there's really not as much combat as I think there should be (ahem cough Druckmann and Straley if you're reading this...), but now that I've come to terms with that I've been able to fully focus on all the exceptional stuff in the game. I think a second play-through will probably be more enjoyable since I can go in without the burden of expectation, but then we'll really see if the more combat-lite approach can sustain multiple play throughs. I already want to play it again so that's a good sign at least.

This is the pace I wanted with 3. 2 was one of my favorite games of last gen, but the encounter numbers were too high. I really like that it's more about exploration than combat overall in this one. I'm curious if most encounters can totally be bypassed if you stealth it right. I'm assuming pure a ghost run is out of the question. I'm only on Chapter 15, right now, but I'm already thinking of trying to go for that in a second play through.

I reeeeaaaallllly appreciate that they can lose line of sight and stealth is back on the table after an encounter, btw.
 
You should have i-frames for a few seconds when you attach to a swing point, at least on that first grapple (then every successive swing would have less and less i-frames to avoid cheese in the campaign). I don't understand the logic in putting these badass rope points into the game but being bombarded by hitscan weapons when you use it in combat. By the time you finish any decently great string of moves, your screen is probably black & white.

Like are we simulating adventure movie heroics or not? Reckless abandon should be encouraged.

I just don't like any game going black and white for damage. Wish there was a toggle or a better way to indicate getting hit. This series is just too beautiful to warrant desaturating the image like that. There are set pieces in the other games that are almost ruined because they play out almost entirely in black and white if you play on crushing.

Some of the bigger areas that "encourage" stealth (via high grass) feel like there's no real purpose to be sneaky since if you get caught, you're stuck in the middle of a massive open area surrounded by dudes instead of just marching from one end to the other like a typical Nathan Drake death machine. I tried stealthing the second encounter in Chapter 13 and just gave up since it a) apparently was not meant to be completely bypassed since they straight up stop giving you high grass halfway through and b) is so much easier to just shoot everyone than risk stealth. I've enjoyed the stealth in smaller encounters like mini outpost areas in Madagascar, but otherwise it feels like it does more harm than good.

Stealth is best used for:

a) Opening gambit to thin the heard. In particular to minimize the possibility you will get flanked or attacked from behind when you go loud.
b) To reposition after you break LOS.

While there are quite a few areas that you can technically ghost, I don't think that's really the intention. This isn't supposed to be MGSV.
 

Gorillaz

Member
Part of me feels like they will do a big setpiece/action in the DLC. I can see it revolving around
Chloe and Cutter, no point doing Sam/Sully, they had their time in the main game and C and C should get one last appearance
. Someone said Troy Baker was really into one of the Setpieces they had originally but it never made it in the main game. Hopefully we get that.
 

Creaking

He touched the black heart of a mod
No I don't think so. I think they could have built the Sam/Nate relationship in prison or maybe with an early cutscene. I hardly think it would have ruined the game. I think it's jarring in the first 4 chapters to go to four different locations in 4 different time periods.

5 actually. You had the In medias res opening, the childhood scene, the prison stuff, Nate's modern day job, and then Sam's later prison story.

Loved all of it though.
 
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