Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End
The ‘Uncharted’ series of games (developed by Naughty Dog) is the story of a treasure hunter, Nathan Drake, whose adventures take him on some pretty crazy trips around the world. It is a series that has always been known for its stunning visuals which are backed by an engaging story, incredible character design & great direction & acting.
Being an avid gamer (I already owned the PS2 & Nintendo Wii), I had my eye on the Playstation 4 for a long time. However, thanks to my hectic travel schedule over the last 2 years, I could never purchase it. This March, I finally did. My wife Ekta & I got back from shooting a wedding in Turkey in the second week of March - this was when the threat of Covid19 was getting really serious. When we got back, to ensure the safety of everyone around us, we isolated ourselves immediately. That is when I ordered the PS4. Along with, came Uncharted 4.
When I started the game, I was tweaking with the settings when I discovered ‘Photo Mode’. Let me explain how this works. Uncharted 4 is primarily played from an over-the-shoulder point of view. In Photo Mode, you can freeze the moment, and then use controls to move the camera around 360 degrees in the existing scene, and also vary the focal length (zoom) and apply photo filters. I spent so much time composing these shots, would have finished the game in 1/5th of the time if I hadn’t focused on the in-game photography.
During the non-wedding-season, I always go back to the streets, walking around and practicing my street photography. This was not possible during quarantine. I came across an article which outlined how Sean Tucker & some other photographers are using the visually rich environment of Red Dead Redemption 2 & making some fantastic images. Since I had already begun Uncharted 4, I decided to experiment with the photo mode & practice street photography within the game. And I was blown away. The amount of thought and detail that has gone into this game is unreal, and to top that, the photo mode is incredible. The way the light hits the scene, the ability to move the camera around, is very similar to ‘working the scene’ in street photography.
I can’t wait to experiment with approach in more games - maybe RDR2 is next!
