Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
A cinematic action-adventure game from Naughty Dog mixing shooting, climbing, puzzles and set-pieces.
Where Uncharted 2: Among Thieves comes up1 episode or test
Uncharted 2 kept Game Maker's Toolkit's Mark Brown almost unable to put it down by alternating combat, climbing, puzzles, set-pieces and cutscenes. It also varied intensity, moving from a city firefight to a train set-piece to the calm Tibetan village before the siege. The lesson: switch activities before any one gets stale, and pace calm against frenzy. The sources give no numbers.
- 1Puzzles and climbingCalm opening stretch
- 2City firefightIntensity spikes
- 3Train yardCalmer recovery
- 4Train set-pieceVery intense peak
- 5Tibetan villageCalmest stretch, before the siege
From Mark Brown on Uncharted 2
What was said about Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
Uncharted 2 swaps gameplay types before players tire of any one. Naughty Dog splits the game into pillars (combat, climbing, puzzles, cinematic set-pieces and cutscenes) and moves between them constantly, so the game switches activity as soon as shooting starts to wear thin.
"Naughty Dog swaps between these pillars constantly, never lingering on one type of gameplay for too long." Mark Brown found Uncharted 2 almost impossible to put down.
Intensity rises and falls so players are neither bored nor exhausted. Uncharted 2 moves from calm puzzles and climbing to a city firefight, a calmer train yard, a very intense train set-piece, then its calmest stretch in the Tibetan village before the siege.
Too much calm bores the player, while "trying to keep the game at max intensity for too long will lead to exhaustion or desensitisation." The practical method is to plot the intensity of each section and alternate peaks with recovery.
How to Keep Players Engaged (Without Being Evil)
Alternates combat, climbing, puzzles, set-pieces and cutscenes, and moves from a city firefight to a train fight to the calm Tibetan village before the siege. Mark Brown found it almost impossible to put down.
Uncharted 2 swaps gameplay types before players tire of any one. Naughty Dog splits the game into pillars (combat, climbing, puzzles, cinematic set-pieces and cutscenes) and moves between them constantly, so the game switches activity as soon as shooting starts to wear thin.
"Naughty Dog swaps between these pillars constantly, never lingering on one type of gameplay for too long." Mark Brown found Uncharted 2 almost impossible to put down.
Intensity rises and falls so players are neither bored nor exhausted. Uncharted 2 moves from calm puzzles and climbing to a city firefight, a calmer train yard, a very intense train set-piece, then its calmest stretch in the Tibetan village before the siege.
Too much calm bores the player, while "trying to keep the game at max intensity for too long will lead to exhaustion or desensitisation." The practical method is to plot the intensity of each section and alternate peaks with recovery.
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