What isn’t in doubt, is that that if there’s a writing team that can pull off a fitting sequel to the original it’s Neil Druckman and co. Speaking at a PSX panel last weekend, Druckman said the following:
“We knew that it needed to be a story worth telling and, perhaps more importantly, a story worthy of Joel and Ellie. After spending years on different ideas (and almost giving up), we finally uncovered a story that felt special – a story that evolved into an epic journey.”
And if we needed further evidence of Naughty Dog’s ability to exceed themselves with regard to storytelling, Uncharted 4 provides the case study. The game easily features the most compelling narrative in the series – a new benchmark of storytelling that transcends far more mature themes than its predecessors. And in doing so, the game’s characters show a level of depth that we hadn’t seen before – a more gritty and realistic tale that wasn’t shy of portraying whimsical Nathan Drake as obsessive and, importantly, as a selfish husband. Of any of the Uncharted games, with Uncharted 4, Naughty Dog created a convincing tale of adventure that nods its hat to previous entries but still manages to hold up perfectly well as a standalone game. It was an impressive showing of adaptation and creativity from the writing team.
Indeed, Naughty Dog continues to outdo themselves, creating story arcs that have gamers gripped from start to finish. Late in the tetralogy, even the introduction of a new character was well achieved. Sam Drake’s sudden appearance felt compelling, such was the competence of the writing. And while Sam might not be on the same level as Sully and Elaina, superlative writing certainly invested players in this new character with impressive speed. Apparently, video game narrative is an art form that Naughty Dog has all but mastered, and that bodes very well for The Last Of Us Part II.
So, while Uncharted 4’s crown as the PS4’s best experience is rightfully warranted, its success has also given us plenty of reasons to be excited for The Last Of Us Part II. The sequel is a stage for Naughty Dog to expand on everything that made the original such a smash hit. To further to experiment and add depth through clever new gameplay mechanics, and, importantly, to once again redefine the potential of video gaming narrative. With that in mind, who would bet against Naughty Dog producing the definitive title of this console generation with The Last Of Us Part II?