Uncharted test: Legacy of Thieves Collection, the sublimated treasure hunt on PS5

Conclusion of a mythical saga at PlayStation, Uncharted 4 and its spin-off The Lost Legacy land on PS5 in a compilation simply titled Uncharted: Legacy of the Thieves.

This test has been updated from Audrey Oeillet's original test.

To find Nathan Drake and his companions almost 5 years after the release of Uncharted 3: The Illusion of Drake is to dive back with a touch of nostalgia into one of the franchises that made all the salt of the PlayStation 3. Baby of the Naughty Dog studio, which has worked exclusively with Sony since the very first PlayStation (Crash Bandicoot, it was them), the Uncharted saga knew how to punctuate the existence of the PS3.

Then Naughty Dog made him infidelities with The Last of Us, one of the last major titles released on PS3, in which a formidablely effective gameplay rubbed shoulders with a plot and an equally controlled atmosphere. Certainly, The Last of Us is one of those games that are hard to get rid of, so much so that Sony had seen fit to bring it out in an improved version on PlayStation 4.

Uncharted test: Legacy of Thieves Collection, the sublimated treasure hunt on PS5 View PriceRead ConclusionUncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection

Onion gameplay
Show all the time
Renewed graphic slap

Flavorless and too many gunfights
More multiplayer modes

What does Uncharted on PS5 look like?

Since the release of the PS5, many hits have been updated to take advantage of the power of Sony's new console: God of War, Ghost of Tsushima, Days Gone, Horizon Zero Dawn, Death Stranding and The Last Of Us 2 all took advantage of a free patch to unlock the frame rate and target 60fps. All except Uncharted 4 and its spin-off The Lost Legacy.

For the modest sum of €10, you can upgrade your version of Uncharted 4 or The Lost Legacy to the Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection compilation including the two games optimized for the PS5. We would have preferred a free patch for existing owners of both games, but those who only own one of the two will be consoled with a very advantageous price for the second.

This compilation brings a technique revisited on several aspects. Loading times are reduced to a bare minimum or become non-existent thanks to the PS5's SSD, audio is improved with 3D sound support, and controls now support DualSense haptic feedback. But the bulk of the work is on the visual aspect, with three new graphics modes at your disposal:

Fidelity: Native 4K (2160p) resolution with a frame rate that targets 30fps.
Performance+: Full HD resolution (1080p) with a frame rate that targets 120 frames/sec for compatible TVs.
Performance: dynamic resolution with a frame rate that targets 60 frames/sec.

Performance mode is selected by default and in our opinion this offers the best balance between performance and image quality. On a 4" 55K TV, the difference with the fidelity mode is minimal, but on a much higher diagonal the difference will probably be much more marked. In all circumstances the game remains perfectly fluid, the action scenes each more grandiose than the next. others take on a new flavor with such exemplary fluidity.

Purists will prefer the fidelity mode to keep a cinematic rendering, particularly suitable for many cutscenes. Finally, for owners of 120 Hz compatible TVs, the performance+ mode will unlock the framerate at 120 frames/sec. In this mode, responsiveness is maximum and gunfights really benefit from the increased fluidity to improve aiming accuracy. Counterpart of this fluidity, the image is really degraded to reach the FHD. This graphic mode would have particularly benefited the multiplayer, too bad that it is no longer part of the game!

Naughty Dog also took advantage of the switch to the PS5 to adapt the controls to the haptic feedback of the DualSense. Might as well quickly break the suspense, it's not bad, but not phew. Far from the rendering of good students such as Returnal or Astro's Playroom. Here the service will be minimal: a pressure effect in the left trigger on the aim and vibrations a bit more precise in the right trigger during a shot, and that's it.

Whether you've never played Uncharted 4 / The Lost Legacy, or want to play them again, this compilation will undoubtedly be the best way to enjoy these two masterpieces.

If you're wondering why start by unpacking Naughty Dog's CV before talking more concretely about Uncharted 4, the answer is ultimately quite simple: this fourth and final installment of Nathan Drake's epic turns out to be a compendium of this that the Californian studio has accumulated over the past decade. We will not go so far as to say that it is in old pots that we make the best soups, because Uncharted 4 still knows how to innovate when necessary. But it is impossible to deny, while playing the game, that The Last of Us has been inserted between the third and the fourth installments of the adventures of Drake, Sully and company.

The importance of storytelling

If Uncharted 3 was already interested in the youth of Nathan Drake, Uncharted 4 goes much further by exploring in more depth the first steps of the hero, and especially his relationship with his brother Sam. The beginning of the game gives pride of place to a evolution largely guided by the establishment of the plot: the introduction of the game itself easily lasts a good two hours, before the opening credits appear. On the scale of the life of the game, we are in a cinematic appetizer.

These first two hours also have a tutorial value, since it is an opportunity to have a refresher shot of the basics of the gameplay, but also of some new features, such as controlled slides or the grappling hook. These are far from the only developments Uncharted 4 has to offer, with the latter sometimes taking their time to reveal themselves after the first half of the game.

However, what is most striking in the game is probably the importance given to the staging and the narration. The Uncharted has always been very staged, with a convoluted storyline, mostly tied to the quest occupying Nathan Drake. Admittedly, the characters have been developed in the previous installments, as well as their relationships. But Uncharted 4 pushes the protagonists to their limits. Naughty Dog takes the opportunity to put the nerves of the fans of the first hour to the test as it should: we end up literally getting caught up in the game, and sometimes, the quest for pirate Avery's treasure counts less than that, human, of the brothers. Drake.

Open heart

Generous on the scenario side, Uncharted 4 is also generous in terms of lifespan: allow 15 hours in normal mode to go from one end of the story to the other. But in reality, to fully fold the game and get your hands on all 190 collectible 'items' - hidden treasures, notebook notes and optional conversations - you'll easily need 5 more. And all this is without counting the maximum difficulty mode, which is unlocked from the first launch of the game, and which will certainly give a lot of problems to many players.

Collecting all of the items is a real challenge in large part because the game boasts very large morphing areas, for the most part, at least. This is one of the great novelties of the title, largely inspired by The Last of Us, as in many other aspects: there are no corridors in Uncharted 4. The main criticism that could be made of Uncharted 3 disappears completely thanks to a level design that could be described as semi-open.

JVFR

Whether crowded or out in the wild, Uncharted 4's levels make sense.

Result: exploration occupies a majority of the game time, the player is free to reach his goal as he wishes, quickly or by taking his time, to be sure not to miss anything. Obviously, the title also knows how to stress when necessary, in a good number of moments of bravery of which the franchise has the secret. But it turns out to be pleasant, in return, to be able to stroll through magnificent landscapes, while seeking (or not, for that matter) to recover all the secrets of the game.

The heirs of Ellie and Joël

If Uncharted 4: A Thief's End turns out to be so successful and immersive, it's largely because Naughty Dog has been able to apply the winning recipe of its previous game, The Last of Us. From enriched gameplay to level design , and the interactions between the characters - the optional dialogues are directly inspired by those of the DLC of TLoU, Left Behind - the proximity between the two titles is obvious. And that's good: these improvements, coupled with the computing power of the PS4 which allows you to display breathtaking scenery in real time, it all hits the mark.

JVFR

The traditional gunfights are back, even more acrobatic!

But the fact that Uncharted 4 takes a lot of inspiration from its elder doesn't mean it loses the franchise's original substance. First-time players will find everything they're used to seeing in the adventures of Nate Drake: lots of climbing, lots of puzzles, and gunfights whose difficulty is increased in the second half of the game. At this point, on many occasions, the player has the possibility of choosing between a frontal attack, the one we know well, and a more discreet approach, where it is possible to eliminate enemies without being detected. What we can possibly blame the game on this point is that it forces confrontation in the vast majority of situations. Whether we play it discreetly or brutally, it will be necessary, in any case, to clean up. And Drake and his companions, just like their enemies, are resolutely not in the lace.

JVFR

What would Uncharted be without Elena?

Uncharted 4 is therefore less subtle than The Last of Us on this point. But he is easily forgiven for this observation, insofar as gunfights have always been an integral part of the gameplay of the franchise. The experience, overall, is sufficiently pleasant and refreshing for this type of defect to be erased by what the game of Naughty Dog has to offer positive. And faced with this revival, we would almost come to regret that this fourth part is displayed as the last. But if you take a good look at all of what the studio offers us, you realize that it's all quite logical, and very intelligently done.

Too cinematic a staging?

As we have already mentioned, the staging of Uncharted 4 is particularly polished, and the approach of pushing the game towards cinematographic canons is obvious. Whether through particularly realistic cutscenes, or action scenes worthy of the biggest Hollywood blockbusters, Naughty Dog's game does not deprive itself of anything, and easily justifies 4 years of development.

The small criticism that can be made in relation to this is that by dint of being too cinematic, the game sometimes gives the player the impression that he can put down his controller. This is mainly the case in the hand-to-hand combat phases, and in the scripted action scenes. There are no QTEs per se, and yet the on-screen actions require the player to react. But sometimes, we don't really know how or what to do, carried away by the scene unfolding before our eyes. Fortunately, the game places enough checkpoints so that this kind of situation is not blocking, but by mixing cinematic ambitions too much with immersive gameplay, we sometimes find ourselves with some confusion.

JVFR

In fight scenes, you sometimes don't really know when you should act...

Uncharted 4 : l'avis de JVFR

Beautiful, funny, immersive, challenging and satisfying when needed, Uncharted 4: A Thief's End is definitely a smart game. And this intelligence that shines through in the work of Naughty Dog also appears in the overall approach of the studio, vis-à-vis the franchise born on PlayStation 3. The real performance is to have been able to stop in time, without using and abusing the codes of a saga of which we could perceive certain signs of shortness of breath in the previous part.

Not only Naughty Dog was able to correct everything that was wrong in The Illusion of Drake, but managed to go much further. Driven by experience, but also by a new generation of consoles, the Californian studio offers a high-end finale to its franchise, and manages to conclude in the most beautiful way. If no game is perfect, Uncharted 4 erases its few flaws through an experience of undeniable quality.

JVFR

Get ready to climb like never before!

Come to think of it, Nathan Drake seems to be asking himself, in the game, exactly the same question as the development team: when should we stop, and how to do it in the most beautiful way? Either way, the answer is correct, and die-hard fans should be pleased. The others, those who have never touched an Uncharted before this one, should think twice before launching this final installment without going through the box The Nathan Drake Collection, compilation of the first three games released on PS4 the year last. It would be really, but then really a shame to make such a beautiful trip only halfway.

Uncharted : Legacy of Thieves Collection

Uncharted is coming back up to date on PS5 and is being exported (soon) to the PC, to the delight of fans and to introduce the priceless Nathan Drake to a whole new audience. This collection pays a superb tribute to a monument of the action-adventure genre, from masters of the field in the person of Naughty Dog.