Review - Uncharted Legacy of Thieves Collection (PS5)

This series couldn’t possibly look any better, could it?

If you have been involved with PlayStation in the past 15 years then you will have likely heard of Nathan Drake and if you haven’t then where have you possibly been all this time? Nathan Drake is kind of a big deal in the gaming world. He is well known as a fortune seeker that always seems to be in the worst situation making the best use of his wits, charm and frivolous nature to overcome any trial before him. Nathan Drake has had many adventures over the years and his latest adventure Uncharted 4 A Thief’s End which was back in 2016 saw him reunite with his thought to be dead brother Sam. Since Naughty Dog would then release a DLC which ended up being a full game which involves Chloe and of Nathans arch enemies known as Uncharted Lost Legacy.

It has been a few years since these adventures came to fruition on PS4 but now they are back in a single Collection exclusively on PS5 with both graphical and performance enhancements, great timing especially with the upcoming Uncharted Movie hitting Cinemas real soon. 2022 is just another great year to be an Uncharted fan.

Uncharted 4 A Thief’s End is the final game to be released in the Uncharted series and follows the story of retired fortune hunter Nathan Drake living his life at home with Elena Fisher, Drake now lives a simple life as a deep-sea salvager, that all changes when Nathans brother Sam who he thought had died pays a visit to him with a proposal for another adventure, during the opening of Uncharted 4 you find out more about Nathan and Sam’s relationship as a Child and how they became separated as they got older, it’s all very comforting and emotional at the same time. It really shows the true nature and portrayal of the characters as they have grown over the years. Nathans adventure then begins alongside Sully, Sam and eventually Elena. It may be obvious by this point but neither of these games comes with the Multiplayer aspect of Uncharted 4 which is still available on PS4, what it does feature though is a Fidelity mode which offers a 4K resolution being able to play at 30 frames per second. The performance mode offers better frames per second with an upscaled 4K resolution. You can even play at 120 frames per second at 1080p should you have a compatibly 120Hz TV able to do so. I think playing on either mode is dependable on your setup and personal preference, the Fidelity mode for me felt the most dynamic and refreshing and definitely has given me a true cinematic experience that I would expect from an Uncharted game. Despite playing at 30 frames per second I encountered no slowdown even in the most explosive scenes, especially the driving scene which is my personal favourite. Coming back to this game after a few years always feel so great because of the fast-paced gameplay, dynamic changes in the action-paced set pieces and the feeling of taking out a whole colony of enemies with stealth.

Not only does Uncharted Legacy of Thieves come with performance and graphical enhancements, it supports the adaptive triggers of the PS5 controller which adds to the feel when shooting, something which happens a lot in both games, it also takes the haptic feedback power of the PlayStation 5 controller and breathes new life into it allowing it to react to almost every situation, Nathan Drake is sliding down a gravel lidden path will feel like that in the palms of your hands, there also nice little touches even just navigating a menu where you will feel each tap lightly as you do. Haptic Feedback is something I have always admired and something which many games still aren’t taking advantage of so it’s great to see it being utilised still in this way.

The best thing is that all of these features apply to both games so if you have yet to play either or at least one of these adventures then you are in for a treat. Uncharted Lost Legacy takes place after Uncharted 4 A Theif’s End and is the first Uncharted game that does not feature Nathan Drake as the protagonist, instead you play as Chloe Frazer, Nathans previous love interest who is absent in A Theif’s End. Chloe alongside Villain Nadine Ross the secondary antagonist in A Theif’s End are both allies and set out to find the Tusk of Ganesh against a new antagonist Asav. Lost Legacy is the first game in the Uncharted series to feature a semi-open world where you are able to drive around and explore each one if you wish to do so. The game itself features many secrets and Collectibles so is key for unlocking everything should you wish to do so. The story is great, it also has some of my favourite puzzles from the series. Chloe and Nadine’s relationship with each other is also applaudable.

Uncharted Legacy of Thieves Collection is a worthy addition to any PS5 system although those who already own copies of the game may be hard-pressed to spend more money for the experience, you can however upgrade should you own either one of the games on PS4 for £10 which isn’t a lot but if you like physical copies then there isn’t much of an option, also if you own the disc versions of the game but only a digital PS4 this also becomes an issue, however, this is a nice upgrade to relive the experience and for less than the price of a day out you can’t go wrong with one of the best looking games this generation.