Playstation Uncharted 4: A Thief's End - All developers delay, but not equally -[Update: Delayed again to May 2016]

[Pseudonym]

This might be Naughty Dog's last Uncharted game but there is no way this is Drake's last.

 

[Journeys End]

Great interview! I was hoping to hear something like this from Druckmann/Straley - they're aiming to make UC4 a more grounded experience like TLoU mashed up with UC's epic set-pieces.

how on earth is this a good thing? if that is what they are planning then UC is as good as lost for me. i mean why would they want to destroy the UC feel by making it a clone of TLOU. i really really hope this is not true and UC remains as wild, hilarious, fun and insane as it was before.

 

[IzHee]

 

[BumperJumper]

Someone please explain to me how does a Dark Tone make Uncharted a TLOU clone? (facepalm)

Uncharted and TLOU are wholly different. One focuses on platforming with a lot of cinematic set pieces in between. The other focuses on story, narrative, with a lot of exploration. The two games are completely different and suddenly people are now calling Uncharted a TLOU clone because it has a darker tone =/

 

[CerebralTiger]

UPDATE 11/06/14 19:07:This report from GamingBolt.com suggests that the Uncharted 4 trailer is indeed running in real-time - a simply phenomenal achievement. We've studied the video in a little more depth and have concluded that it's definitely running at native 1080p resolution (as opposed to being rendered at a very high resolution, then scaled down - a process known as super-sampling). Small clipping anomalies, a touch of specular aliasing on Nate's shirt as he sits up, along with some shadow aliasing on his forehead also suggest a real-time render. On the face of it, we're still looking at some pretty incredible anti-aliasing here for a real-time technique on a game running at 60fps, particularly when it comes to the perfect, artefact-free rendering of Nate's hair - but the combination of the low contrast setting, slow camera movement, motion blur and depth of field would work well generally in making aliasing much less of an issue.

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-2014-watch-uncharted-4-and-the-last-of-us-at-60-fps

All things point to a real-time render. And there's this Beyond3D post:

No, it is definitely real-time, (as my post yesterday might hint) I had one of their devs explicitly confirm to me yesterday that it is running in real time, on a single PS4 and not pre-recorded.

Beginning with Uncharted 4, all Naughty Dog games will feature completely in engine, real time, 3D cutscenes (if they even stay cutscenes anymore), a huge performance departure from what they used to ship.

http://forum.beyond3d.com/showpost.php?p=1854335&postcount=265

how on earth is this a good thing?

Because that's the way forward in terms of game design. They didn't say anything about making it a clone of TLoU. Just that they're using what they learned from TLoU to evolve UC. It's not like it won't have its trademark set-pieces.

i really really hope this is not true and UC remains as wild, hilarious, fun and insane as it was before.

It's already happening. You can tell from the darker and grittier tone of the trailer.

 

[CerebralTiger]

https://twitter.com/ArtKusanagi/status/476861512359755776

If this guy is actually the senior animator for Ubi Montreal, then we need no further confirmation.

 

[Cerberus]

uncharted series had best graphics on ps3 that old hardware
so such graphics and 1080p/60 is obvious on ps4

 

[muddi900]

Some games feature real-time pupil dilation (including ND's The Last of Us) for when your character interacts with brighter light sources,

Also a game with pre-rendered cutscenes. Of course, the engineers probably destroyed their lives trying to complete that game.

https://twitter.com/ArtKusanagi/status/476861512359755776

If this guy is actually the senior animator for Ubi Montreal, then we need no further confirmation.

Because developers never lie...

Ever. like never ever.

 

[Shyber]

Why'd anyone doubt ND? I mean was there ever any example of them not living up to their promise?

Am only wondering how they'll try to make the game fresh. I really hope it sways more into the direction of an adventure game and less of a shooter.

 

[r3aper]

Other devs keep churning out recycled games year after year and no one bats an eye
ND releases a dark and gritty UC Teaser Trailer and ...

Everyone losses their minds!

 

[Chandoo]

Why'd anyone doubt ND? I mean was there ever any example of them not living up to their promise?

Uncharted 3 ?

 

[Shyber]

Uncharted 3 ?

Uncharted 3 was better than Uncharted 2, it just came after it.

 

[Necrokiller]

Why'd anyone doubt ND? I mean was there ever any example of them not living up to their promise?

Its not about doubting them. They should've stated it was real-time if it is, instead of using the exact words they did with TLoU reveal which ended up as pre-recorded videos.

 

[Chandoo]

Uncharted 3 was better than Uncharted 2, it just came after it.

I couldn't tell you, just based on my example alone I played the game past the young-drake stage and turned it off, that was almost a month ago, Haven't even thought of restarting it, it's that uninteresting. Uncharted 2 comparatively was at least a lot more compelling.

 

[r3aper]

I couldn't tell you, just based on my example alone I played the game past the young-drake stage and turned it off, that was almost a month ago, Haven't even thought of restarting it, it's that uninteresting. Uncharted 2 comparatively was at least a lot more compelling.

No way man! You haven't even seen anything yet! LET ME REPEAT THAT IN CAPS YOU HAVEN'T SEEN ANYTHING YET!
The desert levels are the highlight of the game. I have played that sand-storm level alone 5-6 times. Its fantastic!

 

[Shyber]

Its not about doubting them. They should've stated it was real-time if it is, instead of using the exact words they did with TLoU reveal which ended up as pre-recorded videos.

I think their statement is clear (now, not at the conference but at the E3 none the less) that from UC4 onwards, everything's gonna be in-engine and realtime.

I couldn't tell you, just based on my example alone I played the game past the young-drake stage and turned it off, that was almost a month ago, Haven't even thought of restarting it, it's that uninteresting. Uncharted 2 comparatively was at least a lot more compelling.

:|

Dude, something's really wrong with you. I just couldn't get enough of their brawling melee engine. The best thing about Uncharted that sets it apart from other shooters is the crazy action you can get yourself into gun to melee to gun etc. I mean smashing someone's jaw using the shotgun as a baseball bat is one of the most satisfying feeling for me.

 

[Radical]

Looks like Elena is in trouble & Drake's on a mission to rescue her.

Also, it is pretty clear it's the final chapter in Drake's story. Uncharted however, may continue in future with different characters.

 

[manigamer]

[h=1]Nolan North Has a Feeling Uncharted 4 is the Last in the Series[/h]

The plot details sure sounds like it'll be the last game.



Nolan North, a prominent actor in the games industry, is most notable for his role as Nathan Drake in Naughty Dog's Uncharted series. The Santa Monica-based studio just unveiled a new trailer for Uncharted 4: A Thief's End earlier this week at E3, the next sequel slated for release sometime in 2015 for PlayStation 4.


The trailer presented a dark and grim outlook in Drake's fourth numbered adventure in the series. Perhaps it's for a reason as North, who would likely be in a position to have some insight to the plot of the game, seems to think it'll be the last one in the series.


"It’s bittersweet but at a certain point you want to go out on top," North told IGN in an interview.


"If this is the last one indeed, and I believe it’s the last one – nothing’s confirmed, but I believe it’s the last one Naughty Dog wants to do, in which case I hope somebody else doesn’t pick up the mantle because they’ve done it so well for so long – but yeah, it’s one of those things where you just have to cross that bridge when you get to it.


"I like the idea of going out on top so we better do a hell of a job with this one… and it’s already looking pretty good."


The synopsis of the game follows:

Several years after his last adventure, retired fortune hunter, Nathan Drake, is forced back into the world of thieves. With the stakes much more personal, Drake embarks on a globe-trotting journey in pursuit of a historical conspiracy behind a fabled pirate treasure. His greatest adventure will test his physical limits, his resolve, and ultimately what he’s willing to sacrifice to save the ones he loves.


​

Neil Druckmann and Bruce Staley will lead development for Uncharted 4: A Thief's End. They previously served as creative director and game director respectively for last year's The Last of Us. Last week, it was teased that Naughty Dog has another project in early pre-production stages that is at the scale of Uncharted.


Naughty Dog is currently putting in the finishing touches to The Last of Us Remastered for PlayStation 4. It will release on July 29.



Source: IGN

 

[Raptorian]

I couldn't tell you, just based on my example alone I played the game past the young-drake stage and turned it off, that was almost a month ago, Haven't even thought of restarting it, it's that uninteresting. Uncharted 2 comparatively was at least a lot more compelling.

That is probably because you didn't have to wait much after finished UC2.
Just like I wasn't really able to appreciate MGS4 immediately after finishing MGS3 because of franchise fatigue. I played The Walking Dead (Telltale) episodes with a gap of 1 week between them and that is how was really able to appreciate them because I can't play something for more than a couple of hours.

Take you time and play UC3. If UC2 & UC3 swapped places, people would have said that UC3 > UC2. Your statement is very understandable and I thought the same.

 

[CerebralTiger]

Uncharted 3 ?

Dude, UC3 was directed by Justin Richmond and written by Amy Hennig. There's probably a reason why those two aren't working for ND anymore.

Druckmann and Straley's track record is at insane levels. The last 2 games they made (Uncharted 2 and The Last of Us) were GoTY winners from their respective years.