Review! Uncharted: Golden Abyss

System:  Playstation Vita
How far did you get:  Completed the game once

So let's tackle a Playstation Vita launch title.  Generally during a console or handheld system's cycle, the developers tend to learn the ins and outs of the system and by the end of said cycle, they are making very good looking games.  If that ends up being the case for the Playstation Vita, Uncharted: Golden Abyss is evidence that the Vita is going to produce some very high quality visuals in the future.

This game is gorgeous.  I couldn't believe I was playing it on a handheld system.  It looks easily as good as Uncharted: Drake's Fortune on Playstation 3.  Even the mouth animations during dialog scenes were done well.  The only falter I could find regarding the way this game looks was that the explosions didn't always look that great, and the scenes requiring you to use your touch screen occasionally messed up some of the animations.  Still, if you want to see how far handheld gaming has come, this is the game play.

Speaking of touch screen functions, they were really cool in some parts, and a bit of a pain in others.  Generally, if you had to use it during action sequences, it was pretty obnoxious.  The Playstation Vita isn't exactly a small system, so having to move your fingers across the screen often forced me to hold the system with one hand, and in the middle of an action sequence, that is not optimal.  However, there were also sections of the game where you would find symbols that needed a rubbing, and a piece of paper would show up on your screen.  You would then use your finger to create the rubbing.  There were also parts where you solve puzzles with the touch screen, or clean off dirty artifacts.  These sections were all neat additions that couldn't have been done on any other system, and I appreciated the effort.

Other than the touch screen action sequences, the gameplay is as good as any Uncharted game has been.  If Tomb Raider with better gunplay sounds like a good thing to you, you'll enjoy this game.  The acrobatics are as fun and nice to look at as ever too.  If you've played other Uncharted games, the weaponry will all seem familiar, as well.  Most of the time, you'll be running around with a standard assault rifle and a pistol, and when you're in a position where an RPG or a sniper rifle would be useful, there's usually one sitting around nearby.

The story is great, too.  It's not Uncharted 2 or 3 great, but it's still an impressive outing for a handheld.  The voice acting is all top notch, which is to be expected for this series.  A couple old friends appear in this outing, as well, though this game is billed as a prequel.  You'll come to like the new characters, but Chase, the female lead, isn't quite as good as Elena from the other games.

If you own a Vita, Uncharted: Golden Abyss is a must have.  If you have a Playstation Plus membership, the game is free and you really have no excuse not to own the game.  It's well worth the hour or two to download it.

Rating:  88/100