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Uncharted is an action-adventure third-person shooter platform video game franchise developed by Naughty Dog, and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment. The series was first developed for the PlayStation 3 hardware, before others such as PlayStation Vita and PlayStation 4.

The series follows the adventures of treasure hunter and fortune seeker Nathan Drake as he sets off to uncover the truths behind numerous mythical treasures and lost cities, resulting in clashes with rival hunters and thieves. The series features several supporting characters, including Nate's mentor Victor Sullivan, love interest Elena Fisher, and former flame Chloe Frazer, who also serves as the main protagonist of a spin-off game.

The series was generally met with critical acclaim and numerous end-year awards, as well as honors for its technical achievements, storytelling and level design; Drake's Fortune was very well-received,[1] with each of its numbered sequels receiving universal acclaim from critics.[2] The series' spin-off titles Golden Abyss and The Lost Legacy were also positively received. The success of the franchise led to expanding into other forms of media such as novels, comics and an upcoming movie.

Gameplay

While minor changes occur throughout the games, gameplay often involves a combination of platforming, gunplay, elaborated set-pieces and puzzle-solving. Collectibles known as treasures are also featured in each game, while some games also feature other types of collectibles.

Ambushed gameplay 2

Nate performing a Fast and Furious Combo in Drake's Fortune.

In each game of the mainline series, the player takes control of Nathan Drake. The Lost Legacy, uses a different protagonist serving as the main playable character. Gameplay involves performing several platforming tasks that must be completed to progress through the storyline. Such tactics include jumping, swimming, grabbing, shooting, climbing structures, sneaking along ledges, and swinging from ropes. Actions such as driving and boat riding were added or developed further in later titles.

The Uncharted series is part of the action-adventure genre, however, an ideal amount of freedom is provided through the design of the maps. Elements of open world design are featured in later titles, as a way to encourage free-roaming to discover scattered treasure as part of side quests or utilizing stealth to avoid enemy detection. In A Thief's End, role-playing was enhanced to include optional conversations between characters. The series as a whole follows the structure of traditional action games, with players being navigated through third-person perspective and following a single line of chapter with linear gameplay.

Shooting is a central gameplay aspect in the series, as players must fight through several groups of enemies. The player is only limited to two weapons at a time, such as a hand gun and long gun (rifle or shotgun), plus a total of up to four grenades. However, each game features a wide variety of weapons. Such weapons can be obtained from defeated enemies or found scattered around the environment.

If the player dies, whether it is from being gunned down, blown up, beaten, or taking a huge fall, they will respawn at the previous checkpoint.

A Thief's End introduced the function of jeeps in a large, open-world environment, which is also carried over into The Lost Legacy. This gives players full freedom to drive where ever they please, but still, must explore certain areas to progress through the story.

Multiplayer was first introduced in Among Thieves. It features both competitive and co-operative gameplay. Co-op mode supports up to three players, taking the roles of Nate and two other companions. Also included are missions that involve the usual firefights and platforming, but also team-based objectives. If partners become critically injured, or are grabbed by an enemy, players can assist them.[3] Competitive mode supports up to ten players that can compete against each other in two teams, both with five players. Six competitive modes are featured, including team-based objectives and single or team-based deathmatches. Survival mode was introduced in A Thief's End. It involves fighting several waves of swarming enemies and completing other tasks.

Multiplayer allows players to accumulate points and move up the rankings. This can be used to purchase additional skins for both heroes and villains.

Installments

Main games

Uncharted: Drake's Fortune

Drake's Fortune front cover (US)

Released in November 2007, Drake's Fortune is the first installment in the Uncharted series, as well as the first title Naughty Dog developed for Sony's then-new PlayStation 3 console. It remains a highly acclaimed game in the series with a Metacritic score of 88/100, making it the fourth highest rated title in the series. It was well praised for its cinematic storytelling, characters, gameplay and presentation. The game has sold over three million copies.

The title introduced and established Nathan Drake as a treasure hunter who believes himself to be the descendant of legendary English captain and explorer Francis Drake. Joined by mentor Victor "Sully" Sullivan and reporter Elena Fisher, Nathan follows Drake's trail to the lost El Dorado as he and his allies are being pursued by Atoq Navarro's mercenaries and Eddy Raja's pirate gang, both employed by criminal and rival fortune seeker Gabriel Roman.


Uncharted 2: Among Thieves

File:Among Thieves front cover (US).jpg

Released in October 2009 for the Playstation 3, Among Thieves is the second installment of the Uncharted series, sequel to Drake's Fortune, and the first title in the series to include a multiplayer mode. It remains the highest rated and most acclaimed title in the series, holding a score of 96/100 on Metacritic and making it the most critically acclaimed game of 2009.

Set two years after Drake's Fortune, Among Thieves follows Nathan Drake as he embarks on a journey to find the lost city of Shambhala and the sacred Cintamani Stone said to be located in it. He is joined by his returning allies Sully and Elena, as well as former love interest Chloe Frazer. Throughout his adventure, he clashes and competes with notorious war criminal Zoran Lazarević, fellow treasure hunter Harry Flynn and their enormous military force.


Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception

File:Uncharted 3 Boxart.jpg

Released in November 2011, Drake's Deception is the third installment of the Uncharted series, and the last to be released on the PlayStation 3, as well as the second to have a multiplayer mode. It is also critically and commercially acclaimed with a 92/100 score on Metacritic, making it the third highest rated title in the series, as well as being nominated for many Game of the Year awards. It has sold over six million copies as of March 2015. 

Two years following the conclusion of Among Thieves, Nathan Drake and Victor Sullivan search for clues after the lost Atlantis of the Sands as the two men's friendship is challenged by the quest's hardships and obstacles, including Drake's ambitions. Throughout Nate's journey, he is forced to compete against old adversary Katherine Marlowe and her secret Hermetic society, including right-hand man Talbot, as well as pirates led by Marlowe's ally Rameses.


Uncharted 4: A Thief's End

File:Uncharted 4 A Thief's End cover art.jpg

Released on May 10, 2016 after numerous delays, A Thief's End is the fourth main installment of the series, the first one to be released on the PlayStation 4, and the final one to feature Nathan Drake and to be developed by Naughty Dog. Released to critical acclaim, it has a 93/100 score on Metacritic, making it the second highest rated title in the series, behind Uncharted 2: Among Thieves.  It also became the highest selling game in the series, with over 15 million copies sold, making it the best-selling PlayStation 4 game of all time.

Set three years after Drake's Deception, A Thief's End follows and older and more tired Nathan Drake as he embarks on his final adventure to hunt for the long-lost treasure of Captain Henry Avery and the long-lost pirate colony Libertalia. In this adventure, he is aided by his mentor Victor "Sully" Sullivan and love interest-turned-wife Elena Fisher, as well as by his older brother Sam Drake. Against Drake and his allies are Rafe Adler, along with Nadine Ross and her private military company. They are rival treasure hunters who seek to kill Drake and his brother at all costs and get to the treasure first before them.


Side games

Uncharted: Golden Abyss

Released on December 17, 2011 in Japan and early 2012 in other territories, Golden Abyss is the first spin-off and handheld title in the Uncharted series, having been developed by Sony Bend Studio (with overseeing by Naughty Dog) and published as a launch title for Sony's PlayStation Vita console. Uncharted: Fight for Fortune, a companion turn-based card game, was released as well. Golden Abyss was released to generally positive reviews. Golden Abyss received the first award at the Gamescom 2011 for Best Mobile Game before release. It was also nominated as Most Wanted Mobile Game at Computec Games Award.

Set an unspecified amount of time prior to the events depicted in Drake's Fortune, Golden Abyss follows Nathan Drake as he searches the lost city of Quivira, aided by fellow treasure hunter Jason Dante and archaeologist Marisa Chase, while competing with exiled general and wanted dictator Roberto Guerro and his military force.


Uncharted: The Lost Legacy

The Lost Legacy front cover (US)

Released on August 22, 2017 in North America, The Lost Legacy is the first major expansion pack within the Uncharted series, and the sixth overall installment of the Uncharted franchise. It was the second to be released on the PlayStation 4. It is a standalone expansion to Uncharted 4, and the first Uncharted game not to feature protagonist Nathan DrakeThe Lost Legacy received generally positive reviews, with praise for its design, characterization and chemistry between the characters, and writing.

Set several months following the conclusion of A Thief's End, The Lost Legacy follows treasure hunter Chloe Frazer as she joins forces with mercenary Nadine Ross to search the Tusk of Ganesha in a war-torn India, as the two women must avoid the ruthless rebel Asav.


Future

According to Neil Druckman, a different studio could make a fifth Uncharted game. If such a game is made, Naughty Dog will be involved in some capacity.[4]

Other media

Motion Comics

Uncharted: Eye of Indra is a four-part motion comic prequel which sets up the events of Drake's Fortune. A few weeks before the first game, it follows Nathan Drake and Eddy Raja in Indonesia, as they attempt to steal an artifact called the Eye of Indra from a crime lord named Daniel Pinkerton.

A motion comic of the prologue to Drake's Fortune was created, using the same voice clips from the game.

Other games

Uncharted: Drake's Trail (2009) was an internet game located on the official European Uncharted website. As a private investigator in the hire of Elena Fisher, the object of the game was to find Nate by following his trail using various clues left behind by him. This game is no longer available.

There is also an Uncharted 2 minigame released on the official European site that is still currently active.

Uncharted Dual Pack is a 2011 compilation of the first two action-adventure games within the Uncharted franchise. It was released for the PlayStation 3 on September 6, 2011, to promote the release of the then-upcoming sequel Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception. It contains Uncharted: Drake's Fortune, a Game of the Year edition of Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, and Uncharted: Eye of Indra motion comics. It also includes a Super Voucher, which has Uncharted 2 DLC from Uncharted 2 as well as an avatar and a dynamic theme from Uncharted 3.

Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection is a remastered compilation of the first three Uncharted games released on October 9, 2015 in North America for the PlayStation 4.

Novels

Uncharted: The Fourth Labyrinth is a novel written by Christopher Golden, and concerns Daedalus' Labyrinth, a maze used to hold the mythical Greek monster; the Minotaur. The book was released on October 4, 2011.

Drake's Journal is a book that chronicles the making of Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception. It was by Nolan North, Nathan Drake's voice and mo-cap actor, and published on November 1st, 2011.

Others

Uncharted 3: Race to the Ring is an reality TV/game show that aired on October 31st, 2012 at 11:30pm on Spike TV.

Film

A film, Uncharted: Drake's Fortune, was announced by Sony, based on the original game. David O. Russell was scheduled to write and direct, but has since quit the project citing "creative differences" as a reason.[5] A new director, Neil Burger, was brought in to work on the movie.

References

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