Uncharted 2 Review: A video game epic for the ages.
Uncharted 2 is a blockbuster that catches the true essence of both a great movie and a great video game and combines it into a mesmerizing tale that once experienced, will live in your mind rent free for the rest of your lives.
Reviewed by Fatzeus Gaming.
As a little kid who always had affection for History and adventure, I grew up watching movies like Indiana Jones, National Treasure and Tomb Raider. These movies always gave me this sense of thrill and adrenaline rush that made me feel like that I was always in touch with history. One thing that all of these movies had in common were that they had a charming/witty hero looking for a treasure that was long lost. These movies gave me some epic moments and stories that will always remain very close to my heart, but there was one thing that these movies couldn’t do. That is fulfilling my fantasy of feeling like an actual treasure hunter. But that changed when I was introduced to Uncharted 2: Among Thieves. Video Games are very different from Movies. Unlike sitting back and watching things unfold in a movie, the player can actually take control of the main character and accompany that character on his/her journey while going through the same emotions and scenarios. And Uncharted 2 did such an unbelievable job in putting me through those emotions and action-packed scenarios that me wanting to feel like a treasure hunter wasn’t a fantasy anymore.
Uncharted 2 is an action-adventure game that was released in 2009 on the PlayStation 3. Although this game was a sequel and there are 3 more (4 if you count the spin-off) incredible games in the series, but Uncharted 2 takes the crown as the best of the series. Uncharted 2 puts you into the shoes of Nathan Drake, a very handsome treasure hunter who is trying to find the Chintamani stone. A jewel that has the power to make you invincible. The stone is hidden inside the lost city of Shambala and Drake must find it before Zoran Lazarevic, a war criminal who intends to use it to conquer the world. Drakes quest for the Chintamani stone takes you to places like Istanbul, Borneo, and the Himalayas. And this journey keeps you on the edge of your seat the entire time.
Uncharted 2’s charm lies in it’s story and the way it’s told. The story itself is so beautifully written that it sucks you into this world right from the start. It has everything you would expect from a great story and so much more. It is full of twists and turns, jaw dropping secrets, betrayals, action, and some romance thrown here and there. But writing is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Uncharted 2’s storyline. Developers of Uncharted 2, Naughty Dog, have a way of telling their Stories in video games like no one else. And Uncharted 2 was probably the first example of that. A big part of this were the cinematic cutscenes. Each new cutscene the player goes through is so well shot and so unrealistically beautiful. The Environments chosen for these cutscenes perfectly catch the vibe of what was going on in the story. From Torn down Temples, old underground cities, and the snowy Himalayan Mountains, every place you visit told a story. Each environment in this game is so gorgeous that despite being a 2009 game, the graphics in Uncharted 2 still hold up 12 years after it’s release.
When it comes to the story, we have talked about the writing and we have talked about the environments it’s told in, but it was the performances of the voice actors and the short but sweet cast of characters that drive it home for me. Uncharted 2 used motion capture for its cut scenes and in 2009, that was rarely being used in any other game. The performances by the characters in each and every cutscene seemed so real and breathtaking. Nolan North, the voice actor for Nathan Drake does such a phenomenal job at making Drake feel like a charming treasure hunter who could be deadly whenever he wanted. During a cutscene that has Drake trapped with his back against the wall, Nolan North does such an amazing job in executing his witty remarks in a tense situation that you are guaranteed to laugh in the face of adversity.
There are not a whole lot of characters in Uncharted 2 but they make Uncharted’s story what it is. Take Nathan Drake for example, he’s the heart of the story like any hero should be. He’s funny, charming, and VERY smart. And he’s followed by a strong cast of side characters including Victor Sullivan, Drake’s business partner. Chloe Frazer, a badass woman who is loyal to the core. And Elena Fisher, Drake’s love interest who keeps on finding her way back to Drake no matter what. Uncharted 2’s story is monumental, and these characters are the cherry on top.
For a video game to be great, it has to have great gameplay and Uncharted has that. But what Uncharted did better than any other game of its era, were the set piece moments. Climbing on big platforms, including huge statues, mountains, and temples. Going through a moving train, climbing your way in from the sides and fighting your way through carriages do get to your objective was Epic. Those 20–30 minutes on the train is said to be one of the best set piece moments in video game history. It takes you through so many emotions so quickly that you are almost as exhausted at the end of it as the main character. The feeling of going through that sequence was unmatchable and it is very difficult to put into words.
The in-game puzzles are another big part of what made Uncharted 2 so great. The puzzles weren’t too difficult but solving them gave me a sense of accomplishment that even scoring 10/10 on a math’s test couldn’t give me. Making sure the sun light fell on top of the right object, pushing the correct button at
the right time. It was all so satisfying to go through. Puzzles in Video games can be a bit dry at times but uncharted 2 makes those puzzle feel so much more enjoyable.
Uncharted 2 is an excellent game. And that’s not the opinion of a single person. As of March 2015, Uncharted 2 had sold 6.5 million copies according to Naughty Dog and God knows how many people bought it after that. Uncharted 2 was a revolution when it came out and it received a lot of awards.
Uncharted 2 was a trend setter when it released. It was beautiful, it was nerve wrecking and gave players an experience that would still be fresh in their memories even now. Uncharted set the bar for story telling in video games so high that other Video game developers were forced to take notice. It opened up so many new avenues with the way it handled its cinematics during cut scenes. It took the video game industry to a whole new level, living in 2021 and looking back, you realize how big of a shift it was for the Gamers and developers alike. Uncharted 2 also the set the standard in terms of what was to come from Sony’s first party studios. After its release, Sony gave us games like The Last of Us, Uncharted 4, Days Gone, Ghost of Tsushima and the list goes on and on. And if ever there was a game that deserved the credit for pushing the developers to make these masterpieces, it is Uncharted 2.
I absolutely love Uncharted 2. You might have figured that out if you’ve read this review thus far. It was the game that sparked a lifelong interest in Video games for me. It made me believe that you could be something that you always wanted to be through the power of immersion in Video games. It made me feel like the treasure hunter I always wanted to be. Uncharted 2 is exciting, its jaw dropping and it’s fulfilling. I never knew that you could feel so many of these things just by playing a video game. Playing Uncharted 2 on a Sunday afternoon on my PlayStation 3 without a care in the world is one of my most favorite childhood memories and I will cherish this memory forever.
