Uncharted: Golden Abyss Preview
Naughty Dog’s latest gaming entry redefined the modern adventure game. It challenged what we really expected from the world that Lara Croft once dominated, and arguably it brought narrative and storytelling to the foreground of its gameplay aims. For Sony Computer Entertainment’s Bend Studio the task of creating a new entry into the Uncharted series is a daunting one, however from our hands on time at the Playstation Vita Rooms Launch Party it seems that they are right on track for creating another golden entry into the winding and wild adventures of Nathan Drake.

Split into two sections, the demo starts with the more clamber happy antics of Nathan, before sliding into introducing the shooting and cover mechanics on the PS Vita. Starting the first section of the demo, its instant that Bend Studio are going for the same sense of scale as Naughty Dog’s entries, and they’ve done it rather nicely; waking up in a burning building, you must take control of Nathan and save him from his potential flaming tomb by climbing and clambering over boxes and pipes. Straight away it feels familiar, not only does Nathan stand, move and interact in exactly the way you’d expect him to, but more importantly the staples of the series make a return. All those climb points are there with the slight yellow hue making it easy to see where you should go next, the collectible treasures are still there, and Nolan North has understandably come back to play Nathan Drake.
The first section is a really good showcase for the intuitive controls of this Vita entry into the series. Although you don’t have to use them, you’d be silly to not start touching the climbable ledges and tracing your line across so you can watch Nathan really leap about like the monkey he is. It’s a neat feature, that at first does feel like is wrangling the direct control away from you – but thanks to the Vita’s second stick – moving the camera around whilst Nathan automatically clambers around allows you to see what’s ahead and plan your clambering route accordingly. The touch screen also game in for a somewhat QTE-esque sequence of tearing through a sheet blocking the way into the next burning room. Some quick finger swipes, on the highly responsive screen, saw Nathan machete the sheet in the desired directions; although we have no clue why it took him three swings of his blade to cut through it when one vertical slice would have worked fine.

The second part of the demo seems to happen straight after the first, but without the narrative context it could have easily just been plucked from elsewhere in the game, after all I’m sure Nathan leaves many buildings via a window. This section shows you the gunplay side of the game, an area that has improved with each sequel, and it’s safe to say that it feels great on the Vita. Once again thanks to that second thumbsitck aiming is natural and the controls all fit just like you think they would, and tapping the rear touchscreen reloaded your weapon effortlessly. The tension of battle was still there, even in this handheld version, having to protect your female compadre from snipers was enjoyable and frantic when the pace of things stepped up. Unfortunately without context, and the ability to hear what was going on, it’s hard to say how well done the supporting characters are played, something that Naughty Dog have always managed to do very well.
Visually this title is stunning for a handheld game, and it hits the high bar you’d expect from the series. Unsurprisingly it isn’t quite up to the smooth and soft visuals that are in the PS3 titles, but they still show all the characteristics of an Uncharted game. It’s a sure sign of what the PS Vita can really do. Just like every new console that surfaces on the market, the launch games are generally some of the worst lookers around. But here, and in other titles like Wipeout 2048, Motorstorm RC and Super Stardust HD, it already looks incredible and so seeing what the next few years of Vita development can bring is surreally exciting.

If you’re a big Uncharted fan, or indeed a general fan of action adventure titles, then this game wont let you down. From our hands on demo, this title felt exactly like a Naughty Dog Uncharted game, it is unfair on Bend Studio to keep comparing their work to the big ND, but its what the fans will do the moment they get their hands on it. Personally we believe from the gameplay alone, those who didn’t know Bend developed it, they wouldn’t be able to tell the difference between this and a PS3 entry into the series. If you are unsure of a game to pick up for the PS Vita on launch, then this is set to be one extremely tempting prospect for your wallet.
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