Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune

From Across the Net – “Let’s Play: Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune”

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I love where the Uncharted series goes.

Josh, over at his blog Keep Thinking, writes on the character of Nathan Drake in Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune. I credit the Uncharted series as one of the primary reasons I still game today. The mixture of humor, drama, adventure and platforming, set in a cinematic world, reminded me that video games could be fun. I’ve since loved Nathan Drake as a character, especially in regards to his relationship with Elena.

Don’t get me wrong. Uncharted 1 is not the most narratively deep or thought-provoking game. It’s a fast and furious treasure-hunting romp. Moreover, there is plenty of objectionable content (thankfully, nothing sexual) that players should be mindful as they play. However, despite all its flaws or over-used tropes, the game nevertheless offers a tidbit of truth worth remembering. In a world where it’s easy to be more focused on earthly treasure and pleasure, there are some things that are just more important. Friendship is a gift from God that should be treasured. Relationships where we give and receive love are worth more than anything that glitters or glows.

You can read more here

My Top 10 Games List of All Time

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I’ve been gaming since well before 1989 and yet I’ve never compiled a list of my top games, until now. In no particular order, you’ll find these games listed below.

Race the Sun is the Book of John of video games for me. Which is to say Race the Sun is the first game I pull out when I have someone over who is new to gaming. The simplicity of controls and the pure speed of it all wins people over every single time.

BioShock Infinite is not a perfect game. The game’s gunplay is an absolute mess. Turn the difficulty setting down though and you have a front row seat to a Disneyland gone awry. Infinite allowed me to overcome horror elements due to the world constantly being soaked in sunlight. The story told gave me a glimpse of a world of possibilities impacted by the choices we make.

“I loved The Final Station. The level design reminded me of the army bases I used to draw as a kid. Tunnels, secret bunkers, pathways into the darkness. Imagination allowed to run wild.”

One word comes to mind when thinking about Super Mario Odyssey, joy. I love this game! However, I’m not a fan of the collectathon gameplay that occurs after the credits roll.

Metroid Fusion was my first Metroid game. Helped me understand the Metroid mindset.

Super Mario Galaxy was the first game my wife and I ever beat together thanks to the great co-op feature. Animal Crossing: Wild World should probably share this spot too.

Mass Effect 2 hooked me hard. To this day, due to how much I played, my wife will still say, “I am KROGAN!”

Final Fantasy VII will always hold a special place in my heart as will Final Fantasy XV. Nothing like sharing games with family.

Ezio was the man. Loved playing through his life in Assassin’s Creed 2 and Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood (Assassin’s Creed: Revelations, not so much).

Nathan Drake (Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune) got me back into gaming at a time I was ready to quit playing. Will never forget rounding the corner in the jungle and seeing a submarine just sitting there.

Honorable Mentions:

  • Castles II: Siege & Conquest
  • Diablo II
  • Fire Emblem: Awakening
  • Fire Watch
  • God of War
  • Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne
  • RollerCoaster Tycoon
  • Super Mario Land
  • Tales from the Borderlands
  • That Dragon, Cancer
  • The Journeyman Project
  • The Movies
  • World of Warcraft

2011 Reflections: Part 2

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Gaming-wise, 2011 was a high mark for me as a gamer. I completed more games last year than I ever have in my gaming career. Part of this has to do with how much I enjoy gaming on the PS3; the other part being how short games are becoming. In 2011, I completed:

  • Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune – Which was excellent.
  • Uncharted 2: Among Thieves – Which was even better.
  • Call of Duty Black Ops – A massive disappointment due to boring set pieces and a ho-hum story line.
  • Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 – One of the greatest games I’ve ever played. A roller-coaster screaming to be ridden at least once. I wrote a few words about the game’s “No Russian” mission you can read here.

I also played a few other games last year:

  • Enslaved – Repetitive level design bored me.
  • Mario Galaxy 2 – Still working through it.
  • Final Fantasy 13 – Gave up on it due to a hard to follow story line.
  • Dragon Age Origins – Nothing fresh to see here.
  • Tiny Tower – You can a few words about it here.
  • L.A. Noire – I have a love/ hate relationship with L.A. Noire. The game is amazing in what it does but becomes highly repetitive over time. I came within 4 cases of finishing this game. 4 cases! I will no doubt pick this up again when I have the time and drive to plow through to the end. I did learn a few lessons from L.A. Noire which you can read about here.
  • Batman: Arkham Asylum – I’m truthfully not sure what I think about this game. It did make me question what I play in front of my 2 year old, which you can read about here.
  • inFamous – Cool game with a great concept. Somehow not compelling enough for me to finish.

I‘m sure there were more games that I played but I can’t think of them right now. What did gaming in 2011 look like for you?

Dreams

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Sorry the picture is so grainy…no flash photography was allowed in this part of the game. Might scare the zombies!

I do not do well with scary stuff. Take for instance a sudden twist in the Uncharted storyline last night. Everything had been going along swimmingly, when suddenly a past Nazis influence was introduced. Poof! Cue the supernatural elements such as killer Zombies -thankfully not armed with weapons, yet!-. After battling through darkened corridors with only a flashlight, I finally thought I had gotten away from this demonic horde. I was wrong. Very wrong. The game’s developers then decided to chuck not only zombies at me, but terrorists as well. A deadly combination burrito. Without the cheese.

Jurassic Park. Apparently not a fun place considering all anyone does is run and die.

All of the above to say that I had some pretty intense dreams last night. I dreamed of a zombie apocalypse that was somewhat akin to the movie Jurassic Park. Except this time…all of the golden retrievers died.

Dreams can take us to the wildest of places. Sometimes making sense and other times not. I am thankful not to live in a dream world…the nightmares are far too intense.

What crazy dreams have you had recently?

Fridays with Nathan

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Awhile back, Nathan Drake and I set out on a whirlwind trip to discover some secrets related to a relative of his. We found an ancient temple, a submarine in a waterfall, and even back tracked through the same ancient temple just to escape with our lives. Exciting stuff huh? Not really. From there our relationship, and adventure, started to get complicated. You see, the difficulty, in Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune, has suddenly spiked. I went from killing a handful of goons to small jungle legions of them. Certainly not cool. For now my adventures with Nathan have come to an end…but I am sure they are only just the beginning of a long and frustrating future. Cheers!

1:50pm Update:

There is that scene in The Matrix where the character Trinity suddenly finds herself in need of being able to fly a helicopter. Almost instantly, the knowledge is given to her via download, and she is ready to fly!

After posting earlier this morning, I now realize I was having a Trinity-like moment. My gaming skills had yet to adapt to the game, Uncharted, at hand. After spending a few hours playing, I finally have the feel of the game and am flying quite nicely. Massive gun battles, crazy stunts, and a love to rescue are just the order of the day. Good times.