One of the most anticipated PlayStation games of the year, Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception is one of the reason I play video games. From the opening bar scene until the end I could not stop enjoying this poignant, stunning, fun and engaging game.

The Back Story

The game is highly evocative of the Indiana Jones series with a touch of James Bond, embodied by the main character in the Uncharted series, Nathan Drake. Nathan Drake or “Nate” to his friends has the looks, charm and wit of the perfect action hero.

Courtesy of Naughty Dog

Over the duration of three “Uncharted” games, the characters of Nathan Drake and Victor Sullivan “Sully” have evolved an unforgettable friendship. These two treasure hunters are always finding themselves in hot water and

nearly getting killed in the process. It may seem weird to care about the fate of two characters that are not only fictional but also immortal (since you have unlimited lives in the “Uncharted” games, there’s no way to lose, and we the consumer know, they will live for another adventure) but I honestly do.

The Story

This time Nate and Sully are confronting Katherine Marlowe and her right hand man Talbot. Katherine Marlowe is part of a shadow organization and she is after Drake’s ring, which will help lead the way to the lost city of Ubar (Atlantis of the Sand). Ubar is a city destroyed by the ‘Gods’ for its arrogance. This lost city was sought out before by legendary explorer Sir Francis Drake (Nathan Drake’s ancestor) and later by archeologist T.E Lawrence, more famously known

Courtesy of Naughty Dog

as Lawrence of Arabia. Legend was that the city possessed immeasurable wealth. While this setup may seem too familiar to ‘Uncharted’ fans, the game manages to keep the narrative fresh and engaging with some truly well written dialogue.

There’s a twist in the tale; this time around, you aren’t competing against a psychopath villain who thinks he can rule the world (Uncharted 2). No, you are competing with a rival. The villainess is Katherine Marlowe and is she ever mean! Right from the start where her character is introduced to the end, you can’t help it but hate and fear her. And she is a little reminiscent of the treasure hunter villain from Drake’s Fortune.

The story does have its usual twists and turns and the relationship between Nate and Sully is explored to greater depths including exposition involving their first encounter. It is nice to see that this late in the series there is more still to learn of the characters’ backstories.