IGN Pitches Uncharted 4

The Last of Us, The Last of Us, The Last of Us. Ever since Naughty Dog was revealed as the developer of the new PlayStation 3 fungus/zombie game, that's all anyone has wanted to talk about in PlayStation land. But with Naughty Dog split into two teams -- one that made Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception and one that's working on The Last of Us -- it stands to reason that Evan Wells and Amy Hennig are gathered around a conference room table debating what Drake's next adventure should be. Rather than let them come up with it themselves, IGN polled its editors for a wishlist of ideas we'd love to see in Uncharted 4.

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The Uncharted series has always delivered amazing experiences with loads of characterization. Nathan Drake defies death time and time again on his search for long lost treasures. It's the perfect blockbuster experience you can experience in the comforts of your own home but I love to see the next installment take a more mature direction.

Drake's motivations can be selfish at times – the man is relentless in his endeavors. Such hardship has to have had weighed heavily on his comrades. Naughty Dog would be smart in showcasing a man that finds himself isolated from his support system by his own doing. I can't see Sully or Elena putting up with much more of his reckless adventures, especially if Uncharted 4 takes place years after Uncharted 3 and an offspring is in the equation. How long can the reckless man survive when he has people that need him? Uncharted 4 could serve as the next step in Drake's evolution as a character, if he is pushed to a breaking point, like none before.

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Kill everyone but Nathan Drake. Drop his lovely ladies into volcanoes and the mouths of sharks and gators. Pistol-whip him into blacked out stupidity as he watches his aging mentor Sully get pecked to pieces by radioactive drug vultures atop a crumbling abandoned monastery surrounded by miles of insurmountable tundra. Give him one bar on his battery depleted cell-phone, the barest resemblance to a blinking pulse and a text message that says "Keep moving. They're coming to kill you." Rock bottom with nothing left to fight for but his life and nowhere to go but get up or die. This is how I want Uncharted 4 to begin because being on the verge of death and eternal solitude is where Nathan Drake's character has always thrived. Oh, and throw in some treasures! He loves his treasures!

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There were moments in U3 (the ship graveyard and the desert settlement immediately come to mind) where you'd suddenly become bottlenecked by an insane zerg rush of every type of enemy. Armored shotgun-wielding heavies, SWAT-shield plodders, red-dotted snipers, grenade-toting suicide grunts, ALL AT FRIGGIN' ONCE. I get it, Naughty Dog, designing action sequences grounded in deep shooting mechanics isn't your strength, but you have to figure this balancing issue out, especially considering how slow, janky and unresponsive the shooting mechanics can feel. These moments stood out in frustrating relief against the otherwise buttery-smooth gameplay.

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They should have Uncharted 4 take place in China. That would be an awesome mix of modern atmosphere (say Drake running around trying to escape the Chinese authorities in Beijing/Shanghai) and ancient artifacts that Drake could look for since China has a 5000+ year-old history. You could even tie in cities in America (see this book: http://www.amazon.com/1421-Year-China-Discovered-America/dp/006054094X)