Uncharted 2 spoilers below
23. Uncharted 2: Among Thieves – Locomotion
Many of the moments on this list are those that catapult a game from being really good to being awesome. This one is no exception. Up to this point, Uncharted 2 had been a lot of fun, non-stop action, some good banter and character interaction, among other things. I think it might be the most perfectly paced game ever. I know this may sound strange, but even with some of the big setpieces in the game up to this point, the game still lacked that big, “Holy crap that really just happened” moment…until this.
First of all, the graphics in this area are gorgeous, especially in the first part with all the plants and stuff everywhere. It’s kinda nice that you can enjoy the scenery in the beginning of this sequence since there’s not a lot happening yet, which leads me into my second point. This whole chain of events builds up to a climax gradually and, again, at a solid pace. At first, it’s just Nate kinda moving along the train with no bad guys in sight, and then they start slowly appearing. Then the helicopter shows up and now it’s chaos. You can kinda see how scripted Uncharted’s set pieces are in sequences like this if you just stand around and do nothing while the helicopter just kinda flies around waiting for you to activate the next set, but as long as you don’t do something like that (and why would you unless you’re one of those silly people who likes ruining your own personal enjoyment of something?), it doesn’t really break the immersion of the scene.
But the crap really hits the fan when you reach the end of the train and find Chloe. She’s none too happy to see Nate because she feels he betrayed her in favor of Elena, but he assures her he’s had her back all along. After a heated argument, Nate decides to leave her behind, only to get shot by Flynn as he turns back to get in the last word to Chloe. I gotta admit, I was pretty stunned when that happened. I certainly wasn’t expecting that. I wasn’t expecting him to die or anything, but it was a surprise nonetheless.
Finally, Drake hobbles off trying to escape, with Chloe trying to prevent Flynn from landing a killing blow. Then we see Nate slumped in the floor with his gun aimed at something. The camera cuts to show him preparing to shoot at a few gas tanks, and I’m thinking, “No way. He’s not actually going to…is he?” Then Drake says, “Here goes nothing,” and everything goes boom. The Uncharted games are excellent in their presentation of moments like this, where Nate pulls some crazy stunt only to survive by the skin of his teeth. I’m sure some people feel like it gets overdone to the point that it becomes less fantastical, but not for me. It was also a cool feeling to get to the next part and be like, “Oh hey, this was the prologue. I remember this part. So THIS is how we got to this point!” Great moment from a great game.
Bonus Question: What is your favorite Uncharted 2 moment?
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"I couldn't stand a day without a past or future. I need to live each moment to keep fighting here and now."