A thief’s end and a legacy lost leave us craving a new beginning.
I’ve got a confession to make: I never played Uncharted: The Lost Legacy when it was released on PS4. I’ve always been a bit skeptical about spin-off titles in any medium – be that the Marvel TV shows or the never-ending line of Pokémon games that don’t explicitly involve lobbing Pokéballs at pocketable monsters. Having just wrapped up the fourth, seemingly-final Uncharted game, A Thief’s End, I felt like I’d done my time not only with the grave-robbing treasure hunters, but with the franchise as a whole. And so the PS5 remastering of both titles, together under the banner “Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves”, naturally serves to not only challenge that stance, but bowl it over. Playing Legacy of Thieves taught me two things: that Uncharted: The Lost Legacy is ace, and that the PS5 is ready for a brand-new Uncharted game. But let’s get the pleasantries out of the way first then – you’re probably wondering how these games run on Sony’s latest and greatest hardware. Uncharted 4 was, is, and remains an absolute high-water mark in interactive entertainment. The concluding act in the story of treasure-chasing Nathan Drake’s career deftly wields Hollywood-grade set pieces with a quippy, heartfelt script that would make Marvel’s Russo brothers proud. Developers Naughty Dog had long peddled games that were every bit the equal of their movie inspiration, but the polish and visual fidelity of A Thief’s End made it truly something special. If it’s possible to elevate those plaudits further, Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves does so. Everything about Uncharted 4 is just as good as you remember, but now buoyed by the power of PS5. You’ve got a 4K / 30fps fidelity mode that ups the resolution for pin-sharp detail, but the real significant change comes with the higher frame rate options. I thought these might run counter to Uncharted’s core-appeal – aping the likes of Indiana Jones, a more filmic 30fps may have been the most suitable approach. But the smoothness of the “Performance” and “Performance Plus” visual options of the Legacy of Thieves package are a revelation. With improved responsiveness, the 1440p / 60fps option does little to dull the game’s presentation, and yet is buttery smooth with barely the sign of a dropped frame anywhere. For those with access to a 120Hz HDMI 2.1 TV though, the Performance Plus option’s 120fps play is even more impressive.
