Nathan, a notorious treasure hunter and vandal, receives a visit from his brother, who everyone thought was dead in prison in Panama. In truth, he offers Nate to follow him in his new scheme, as smoky as it is messy: to go in search of the treasure of the pirate Henry Avery. As in any Uncharted game, we know that it will end in an explosion, with a hero hanging from a ledge by one hand and his feet in the void. For anyone else, this may seem exceptional, but for Nathan Drake, it's just another Thursday.
The adventure of Uncharted 4 begins very slowly, almost awkwardly. Then, without understanding why, everything accelerates. The pursuers become the pursued, and very quickly, everyone wants to kill Nathan. Uncharted always gives that feeling of a daring race on a galloping horse, sometimes so fast that you don't take the time to think about what it is doing or where it is going.
It's pure Hollywood blockbuster, an almost uninterrupted stream of cinematic delusions, all methodically arranged. Every scene is a dilemma between cinematic ambitions and the desire to be a game. Uncharted has the actors, the sense of spectacle and the endearing and slightly scoundrel personality of its hero. It's hard to hate Nathan Drake, even though he's an actual cultural criminal who has destroyed several ancient ruins. By holding back before falling, he has become the forever young Harrison Ford that video games deserve to have.
But there's a noticeable shift in tone in Uncharted 4. Nathan is older, more married, more tired, and, frankly, more boring. When he finally arrives at a beautiful, legendary place, he tells his amazed brother that "this is not the first lost city" he has discovered. On the game cover, he looks at his feet with sadness. The willingness to make him a hero in his downward phase seems consistent with the direction Naughty Dog has taken.
If Nate has changed, Uncharted hasn't changed its formula one bit. The series relies on the constant amazement of the player. It is an escalation, literally and figuratively. Each episode tries to surpass the previous one, to set even higher mountains to climb to achieve incredible scenery. It's the money shot of an Uncharted. When you're there, you think you've done the best thing in the world. Unfortunately, everything has an end, and you're quickly caught up by the opposing mercenaries who rush in at twenty to rip you to shreds. The robotic battles are not up to the rest.
The game's peak is reached in the middle of the adventure. In this Madagascan escapade, Drake and his crew drive a Jeep from ruin to ruin in search of clues, as treasure is never far away, hidden by a myriad of absurd puzzles. But in a game where every wrong step means death, it's an enjoyable take on freedom - three guys in a car, extraordinary landscapes and a similarity of movement.
Uncharted 4's direction is flawless, a mix of craftsmanship and finish that exceeds all ambitions. But what works the most are the moments when these adventurers take the time to be a tiny human without exterminating the enemy camp.
Often imitated, always so linear, Uncharted remains one the best action game in the history of video games. The others are still far, far away. A typical adventure of the HD generation, Uncharted 4 is as enjoyable, routine and gently vain as a Marvel movie, which ends up having the same tone.
