By Omri Shahar
Intro
Action, adventure, stunts—what more could you want from a modern video game. The Uncharted series is a hidden treasure among many from the PS2 to the PS3 era. The series started as and has continued to be exclusive to Playstation, due to Naughty Dog, the company that develops these games, being owned by Sony. Nevertheless, the constricted audience did not hinder Uncharted’s success and likeability. As a kid, my dad introduced me to the Uncharted series through his PS3. To this day, I have managed to play and finish all 4 games in the original series, and understand the story through and through. With that knowledge, I do not hesitate to say that these are not only my favorite games of all time, and feature not only great gameplay but also one of the best stories in a video game series. The charming characters and adventure-like feeling you get while playing these games are key reasons why the gameplay is so entertaining.
Movie
Walking into the theater, I was unsure of what I was about to witness. I did not know whether the movie was going to be a recap of my favorite video games, or a poor adaptation. Turns out, it was a good mix of both! I fully expected to relive some of the old stories of the Uncharted games, especially after seeing some infamous scenes featured in the trailer. While the Uncharted movie was not a full movie adaptation of the series with the same storyline, instead of combining the first three games’ most defining moments into an action-packed film. One of the most characterizing marks of the Uncharted games was the constant puzzles. The game forced players to really use their brains to push past levels, with some levels so difficult the developers had to incorporate timed hints. This was adapted well in the movie, in which the puzzle scenes were not boring and kept the audience engaged. The actors, while not perfect representations of their video game counterparts, did a good job in bringing the light-hearted and adventurous feeling of Uncharted into the film. Nathan Drake, the main character of the series, is known for his constant quips and jokes. In my opinion, this type of role suits Tom Holland perfectly, and his performance did not feel out of place as I would have assumed. Mark Whalberg did a great job too, although evidently way too young for his role of Sully, Nathan’s mentor, and father-like figure. The two had great chemistry, and both of their acts felt natural. Overall, I think this movie deserves a watch, Uncharted fan or not! Obviously, fans of the game series may feel more of a connection to this movie, but it can be enjoyed regardless, even with no prior knowledge of the story. I personally can’t wait to see how they implement the fourth game into a possible sequel movie.