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The Red-Headed Stepchild of the Uncharted Collection?

The Red-Headed Stepchild of the Uncharted Collection?

We’ve heard a lot lately about Uncharted: The Nathan Drake collection. Fitting, since the compilation of the three PlayStation 3 games is coming to the PlayStation 4 on October 7. What we’ve heard about more lately is explanations as to the exclusion of the other Uncharted game, Golden Abyss .

Naughty Dog has had a lot to say about why the Vita game didn’t make it nto the PS4. The company has tried to say it’s about the narrative and how Golden Abyss , a prequel to the original Uncharted, just doesn’t fit in story-wise. But there’s probably another reason too. Now that enough time has passed, we can say it. Uncharted: Golden Abyss just wasn’t that good.

I’m not saying Golden Abyss was bad. For a launch window title and portable Uncharted game, it was fine. But when compared to the other three games released so far, it’s sorely lacking. The story is a good example, and the one Naughty Dog itself cites. It’s not the series’ best work, the characters in it that aren’t Drake and Sully don’t have any major effect on the rest of the series, and honestly the best thing you can say about the narrative is that it was great the original voice actors all reprised their roles. That’s not a good sign.

It also faced the same issue as many Vita launch games. Developers felt forced to use every element of the new hardware. This meant using the touch screen for actions like cutting bamboo, climbing cliffs, and brushing dirt off of things. It’s filled with gimmicky sections that, in real Uncharted games, would take an instant to complete. Here, they’re extended into a “moment,” and it gets old fast.

The Red-Headed Stepchild of the Uncharted Collection?

Especially since this gimmick extended into the combat, which is usually one of the most entertaining parts of an Uncharted game. Naughty Dog does a wonderful job of making Nathan’s adventures engaging. Fights never take too long or feel too short. The pacing is perfect and people are comfortable with the controls. The Vita version, however, dragged things out by suddenly stopping everything so you could paw at your screen. It wasn’t cool.

If Golden Abyss had been in Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection , it would have weakened it. The story isn’t as good as the console installments and the gameplay is littered with Vita-based gimmicks. It would have been nice to have nearly every Nathan Drake adventure in one package, but Naughty Dog made the right decision.

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