Pitting two franchises as dear to our hearts as Uncharted and the ICO/Shadow of the Colossus series against one another is like forcing your two favorite children to contend in brutal ladder-style death tourneys to determine which of them gets a kiss before you tuck them into bed. Sometimes, it just has to be done. Why? Because we say so.
Also, it’s fun. And hopefully, it’ll start you lot of readers at one another’s throats like the pack of rabid fanboys you are. On that note, Microsoft fans need not apply to this one – the rest of you, allow me to take your coats, and please enjoy the article.
Uncharted 3 and The Last Guardian are both set to hit shelves this coming Fall/Winter – also known as the “Holiday Season” – and they may end up singing strikingly similar tunes. Tunes that go something like, “Our success is inevitable, so give us all your money and award nominations now, please.” But to the layman PS3 owner (or those strapped for cash), it won’t be as easy as strolling into the local boutique and letting seven $20 bills drift casually onto the counter. Some of us have got to make choices.
They’re both action games played from a third-person perspective, and while The Last Guardian may focus more on puzzles than combat, the emphasis both titles will no doubt place on exploration is enough to land them in the same category. If both series stay true to form, their respective protagonists will be traversing beautiful, ancient ruins and enormous landscapes filled with mystery and echos of the supernatural.
Which title is right for you depends ultimately on what kind of gamer you are. Shadow of the Colossus is gaming’s Pulp Fiction; its strength is in its subtlety and nuances, more style and substance than in-your-face action. Overlooked by some in the mainstream, but ultimately recognized as one of the greatest works of its form. As its successor, The Last Guardian has got a lot to live up to, but art game fans who don’t roll their eyes at anything published by a major studio will be hard-pressed to pass it up.
If we’re to keep the movie metaphors going, Nathan Drake is going to have to stack up against Indiana Jones, and I can guarantee you who’d win that fight (hint: he’s named after the dog). Still, Uncharted games have pretty much got it all: a lovable and well-voiced cast of characters, international and exotic locales, practically unending action, graphical supremacy, and a precise controls. Scripted events reign, as trains crash, centuries-old towers topple in eruptions of stone and dust, and various things careen over the brinks of waterfalls and cliffs. Uncharted is an action movie at its finest; no frills, no pretension, just thrills, kills and intrigue.
At this point, little is known about the gameplay and story of The Last Guardian. All we have are a few trailers and the words of series creator Fumito Ueda: “I want to create a strange and fantastic world.” Of course, the same could be said of Uncharted 3’s world, which will no doubt also be strange and fantastic, and will likely be graphically superior, as well. But while both games will be the culmination of an entire studio’s work and collaboration, only The Last Guardian represents the vision of a single man, and a true artist, at that.
If you’re truly on the fence, that alone should determine your decision. Uncharted 3 will be a solidly executed, thrill-a-minute, edge-of-your-seat explosion-fest, but The Last Guardian will be a true work of art. It will have a purpose and reason to exist, a message to impart, and the ability to make players experience more than just a rush of adrenaline. There’s a reason why ICO and Shadow of the Colossus are so popular; they’re better than any other games at breaking our hearts. Even the name – The Last Guardian – implies finality and loss. True emotions are difficult to come by in games, but Ueda is better than anyone else at the subtle blend of fantasy and real life that tugs at our heart strings just so.
So which type of gamer are you? If you don’t bat an eyelash at Nathan Drake’s indiscriminate murder of hundreds of relatively innocent guards and foot soldiers for no real reason, then you might as well go with Uncharted 3, since it will probably end up being more fun. But if you can see the value in an experience like The Last Guardian, the choice is easy. It’s the choice between Indiana Jones and the Crystal Skull of Dumb Alien Origins and Kill Bill Volume 2; the former is a fun ride, but the latter will leave you feeling something more than the butter residue on your fingertips.
Then again, I’ll still be picking up both.
