First off, the elephant in the room needs to be acknowledged. Uncharted 2 was wonderful and ground breaking, so Uncharted 3 didn't have much chance of meeting the grand scale expectations laid before it. The kicker here, however is that, despite a few little issues, that I will discuss, I think Uncharted 3 was just as much of an advancement in the series as Uncharted 2 was.
Personally, I do try to avoid spoilers whenever possible, so while you won't have to worry about that, I may explain big action events in the game that you may want to experience before hearing about them. In which case, go play it now!
The biggest complaint that I'm seeing about this game, is that the ending leaves you exactly where Uncharted 2 did. I don't think this is the case. This game is all about Drake evolving his relationships with people and trying to deal with his fears of letting people be too close. He relies heavily on only one person, good ol' Sully, who has always been like a father to him. The issue there is that he is taking Sully a bit for granted, and it feels to me like Sully, is starting to realize that he won't be able to go adventuring forever. This game is about Drake confronting his fear of loss and Sully not wanting Nathan to be alone after he's gone. At least, that's what I got from it.
This game isn't completely perfect however. In particular, the first quarter of the game lacks something. Perhaps it's too serious or perhaps it's just not exciting enough. I really couldn't figure out what the issue was, but I know what fixed it. The second Elena show's up, this game just feels right again. As great as all of the other characters were, this whole series has been built upon Drake and Elena's back and forth banter. Another let down, that has been consistent throughout most of this series is the final battle. It wasn't terrible, it just felt a little rushed, despite being pretty fun.
Now, another huge complaint that I have seen multiple times, is that this one character shows up, captures you and basically has a whole sequence where you have to escape a cruise ship. The complaint is that this whole sequence, on a narrative level could have been erased and we wouldn't have known. It was honestly an excuse for a remarkable action beat. The thing is, however, that this action beat is amazing! Sure I wish they tied it on a little better, but it isn't like it didn't work with the story. The person who captures you explains why he captured you in a very plausible way and though it could have been removed without noticing, it doesn't in any way hurt the narrative. In fact, after it's over, I felt it strengthened the scene right after.
This game is a masterpiece of imagination. The action sequences are things that I would never have thought possible in any medium, let alone one where you are being interactive with it. Whether it be surviving a plane crash, a burning building, a flipping cruise ship or getting lost in the desert, it is a unique experience that you couldn't find anywhere else.
The controls are pretty much the exact same as ever, which is great, but with the addition of the ability to pick up enemy grenades and throw them back. Some have been complaining about the shooting feeling different. I don't know if that's true, but I was able to pull off 5 headshots in a row first try, so, I don't see the point of complaining. The custom animations are great, and the sequences where certain characters are drugged and the world around them is going trippy and bizarre are really creative.
Uncharted 3 is an amazing feat! It took what I love about the series and turned it up to 11. Great job Naughty Dog! I honestly LOVE this game.
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