Summary
I’m a sucker forNaughty Doggames. Though there are plenty of series I dip in and out of or ignore entirely, I’ve played all theUnchartedgames at (or at least within a year of) launch. And though I wasn’t playing games when the firstThe Last of Uscame out, that series quickly achieved must-play status once I got back into the hobby. It’s a can’t-miss studio for me, and with the increased length of game development, that has mostly meant playing a series of remasters in recent years.
Given that I will basically show up for any Naughty Dog game, a full-on remake is a significantly more exciting prospect than another lightly updated remaster. And a remake of Uncharted is exactly what isrumored to be in the works, thanks to data discovered by YouTuber Speclizer_ in the files forThe Last of Us Part 2. With mentions of “elena” and “u1-drake” in the files, and a reference to the game’s plane crash, it seems that an Uncharted remake was at least being considered at one point, and a task file referring to “vasg-ucpt” suggests that Sony’s Visual Arts Service Group (VASG) might be helming the remake of Uncharted (UC), or supporting a Naughty Dog team. It’s unclear what “pt” stands for, though. Maybe part? As in the first part of the Uncharted story?
A modernized version of the first Uncharted sounds like a great time. I replayed Uncharted 4, Lost Legacy, 1, and some of 2 back in 2022, and the first game feels like a rough version of what the series would eventually become. The shooting isn’t great, stealth isn’t viable, and there are odds and ends that don’t end up being iterated on as the series progresses, like the jetski chase sequence. There are also things that later games add, like Nate’s rope which he can use to swing around levels, and the bushes that make sneaking around a workable option for combat.
WhenHitman 2came out in 2018, it did something similar for the levels from Hitman (2016), adding tall grass for Agent 47 to hide in where none had been before.
Those all seem like things that a straightforward remake like The Last of Us Part 1 could add or refine. Part 1 was completely rebuilt graphically but had very few diversions from the original game outside of its visuals. Uncharted is showing its age far more than The Last of Us was, though, so it would likely need a more robust reimagining. If that’s the kind of remake Naughty Dog has in mind, there are other additions from later in the series that I would love to see.
For example, the first Uncharted is entirely linear. Later games in the series, like 4 and Lost Legacy, added larger, more open-ended sections, and a Jeep that you could use to navigate them. I would love to see one of the game’s weaker sections rebuilt as miniature open-worlds. I don’t love the jetski section as it is in the original, but I could have a great time if it were reimagined in the vein of Resident Evil 4 Remake’s lake, with Nate motoring around the jungle, stopping at little coves or islands and discovering side stories along the way. The Last of Us Part 2 already did something similar when Ellie explored the flooded area of Seattle, so it seems plausible that an Uncharted remake could do the same.
LikeUntil Dawn— another Sony game with a remake on the horizon — Uncharted was always aiming for realism, so seeing Drake’s Fortune with PS5 graphics would feel like a logical upgrade, rather than a betrayal of the original’s aesthetic. Though it’s bad that the games industry has gotten increasingly reliant on remakes and remasters, if that’s the world we live in, this is one I’d happily play.
