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If you caught my inaugural post here on COG you’ll know that my favour runs towards games with a strong narrative element. Naughty Dog’s Uncharted series fit that bill adroitly.  Those games were an excellent mix of Indiana Jones toned adventure stories and gaming set pieces married to a set of strong characters. Fun stuff for sure. In 2013 Naughty Dog – already recognized as a gaming industry leader – released a new game that not only carried on the torch from the Uncharted series but took it to a new level by crafting a much more mature journey. That game was The Last Of Us.
TLOU was not only a gaming storytelling masterpiece but it also pushed the technical edge of what the PS3 could deliver. As stunning as the game looked, it was restricted to the aging PS3’s technical limitations. Nevertheless with Naughty Dog’s expertise the game looked amazing running at 1280 by 720P resolution and 30 frames per second. Of special note the character models were top notch.
The game came out near the end of the PS3 life cycle and just before the launch of the PS4. Naughty Dog saw an opportunity to familiarize themselves with the PS4 architecture and take advantage of its greater power. And no doubt use those lessons learned to improve their development of the next Uncharted game – the first in that series to be released on the PS4. (And as speculated by NXGamer – see his video below – a possible HD remaster of the Uncharted series. How cool would that be!?)
Technically the list of improvements is as follows from the Naughty Dog site:
New Features
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Native 1080p Resolution.
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Frame rate targets 60 frames per second.
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Higher Resolution Character Models (4x texture maps).
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Improved Shadows and Lighting (4x texture maps).
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No Texture Streaming off of disc.
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Longer Draw Distances.
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Improved Level of Detail system.
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PS4 System specific features:
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Control scheme – L2 and R2 triggers for aim and fire (option to revert to PS3 scheme if desired).
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Touch Pad – press to open and close Joel’s backpack for crafting, player upgrades, collectibles.
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Light Bar – color changes to reflect player health during combat after taking damage.
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Controller Speaker – Plays Flashlight sound effects and tape recorder audio.
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Photo Mode – take unique in-game photos of the single player campaign that can be shared or saved.
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Audio Menu and Settings Enhancements:
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All audio assets updated to the highest bit rate ATRAC9 codec.
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Enhanced environmental audio including updated reverb algorithms.
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Added new Audio Output options for specific device types including more customization for dynamic range and speaker angles.
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Native support for Sony surround headphones with specific preset for Elite and Gold models.
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An impressive list no doubt but what does all that translate to for a gamer’s experience? Let’s check out this excellent video analysis by NXGamer on Youtube:
The big takeaways on the upgrades to the game are that it is a more immersive experience because:
– the game runs at butter smooth 60 FPS with rarely any drops
– it looks cleaner and smoother because of the higher textures
– minimal loading of in-game FMV sequences – down to a second versus the 3 or 4 in the PS3 version
– single unpacking of game assets*
* This one is a biggie because there is minimal waiting for the game to load up. You’ll only see the 0 – 100% progress bar once! For me this is the biggest annoyance with the PS3 version.
In plain nonVulcan English, the immersion factor on the PS4 version is higher because the game runs smoother, runs faster, loads quicker, and is not hindered by PS3 limitations that require game pauses via black screens that take you out of the game. But be aware this is strictly a remaster so any of those things that annoyed you – like the wonky AI of having Ellie hovering around you breaking the illusion during stealth sequences – still exist. This remastered version is much more akin to upgrading your favorite movie from DVD to BluRay as opposed to the quality bump you got when going from videotape to DVD.
If you are a big fan of the original PS3 version and are pining for a revisit then the PS4 edition is a worthy upgrade. Â It contains the following extras too:
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Abandoned Territories Map Pack included on disc, no additional download required.
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Reclaimed Territories Map Pack included on disc, no additional download required.
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The Last of Us: Left Behind included on disc, no additional download required.
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Grounded difficulty mode included on disc, no additional download required.
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Grounded: The Making of The Last of Us documentary available to watch in Bonuses > Gallery > Cinematics viewer.
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Director’s commentary for in-game cinematics from the main narrative featuring Creative Director/Writer – Neil Druckmann, Voice Actor – Troy Baker (Joel), and BAFTA Award winning Voice Actress – Ashley Johnson (Ellie).
So you get all the previous DLC plus a new difficulty level to try out as well.
Another cool extra is the addition of a Photo Mode a la Infamous Second Son that allows you to create some awesome photos that highlight the increased visual quality of the PS4 version:
The biggest visual difference I noticed when playing the PS4 version is that the environments look more solid and hence more real. The amount of jaggies on objects such as door and window frames, ledges, and cables etc for example are nearly totally eliminated. Add all of these little improvements and enhancements up and throw in some little things like the sound of clicking on your flashlight and turning it off coming from your PS4 controller speaker and you come away with a superior TLOU gaming experience. The only thing missing I really wanted to see was an option to play the game in 3D but I’ll save that for another article.
For me this HD Remaster is a worthy re-purchase of the game. Man, I can’t wait to see what Naughty Dog does with a game built from the ground up for the PS4! In fact let’s lead out with a sneak peek… this Uncharted 4 teaser has me salivating!