Uncharted 4: A Thief's End

The Good
I have to start this review with a confession: I don't like the three predecessors. Uncharted 2 begins well, but it still becomes a boring shooter during the last third. Uncharted 4 on the other hand completely nails what those games should have been. It has found the absolutely perfect balance between its game elements: cutscenes, spectacular script sequences, shooting, climbing and exploration. The game is relatively long, but it never feels like it because the level design (both graphically and mechanically) is very varied and almost every sequence ends before it gets tedious.

The story works perfectly because it sets a good reason why Drake travels around the world in order to find treasure. Yes, it is completely unbelievable, but in my opinion this hardly matters in an Indiana Jones inspired adventure. The game even manages to pull of an satisfying ending, believe it or not. Likewise, the characters serve their purpose very well. I think this is mostly thanks to the overall polish of Uncharted 4: the writers always know when to insert an ironic quip or a serious discussion, but they also know when to shut up.

The Bad
The only real complaint I can think of is the hamfisted introduction of Nate's brother Sam. They try to justify it, but it just doesn't make sense he was never mentioned during the previous games. But to be honest, I stopped caring about this after the first hour and only mention it because I don't want to leave this space empty.

The Bottom Line
What sets Uncharted 4 apart from its mediocre predecessors is the perfect polish. I wholeheartedly recommend it to everyone looking for a single-player adventure game (using the Indiana Jones adventure definition) which never becomes boring.