The following only covers Chapter One and is based on my observations of a Walkthrough Video. I didn’t actually play the game so I will be making some assumptions about control and agency.
Then why am I doing this? Well, it's one part college assignment and one part a test for myself! Be sure to let me know how you think I did!
I will be discussing the Core Gamplay Mechanics, Gameplay Arcs and Loops, Level Design, as well as how all this fits together and if the game succeeds at it's goals as a cohesive experience.
Core Gameplay Mechanics
Before we get into listing off the core mechanics it's important to distinguish what a mechanic is and is not so we’re on the same page.A Mechanic is what the player activates in order to do something. (e.g Shooting a gun)
A Rule is something that happens regardless of the player’s input.
A Rule is a Mechanic’s outcome (e.g Losing Health Points when you get shot). They can also prevent a Mechanic from being used (e.g You cannot shoot if you are out of bullets).
The Core Mechanics of Uncharted 4’s Chapter One are…
Cover Shooting
- Manipulating The Camera
- Taking Cover
- Shooting
- Manipulating The Camera
- Climbing
- Shimmying
- Balancing
- Jumping
- Walk/Run
- Sprinting
- Crouching
- Stealth
- Manipulating The Camera
- Driving
The driving scenes do include ramming boats and dodging rocks but, going by the definition above, I would say that those are Rules created around using the “Driving” Mechanic.
To clarify “Stealth”, it the player slowing their movements to reduce ‘noise’.
Arcs & Loops
There are 6 Gameplay Arcs which contain several gameplay Loops. Each Arc is bookended by a Cutscene.
Cutscene
Cutscene
Cutscene
Cutscene
Cutscene
Cutscene
Cutscene
The Arcs above show how the game paces itself.
It starts off quite hectic with its bombastic opening, avoiding dull moments like it's a plague of light blue teddy bears handing out cups of warm milk.
It then begins to slow down as it starts to focus on the story more. The game spreads out how it teaches the player the traversal mechanics, which allows the player to also focus on the story’s setup.
The game ramps up what it expects from the, now experienced, player for a satisfying climax to the episode. Then it slows down once more to settle the player back into following the story and to close out the chapter.
The Core Gameplay Loops do work in my opinion. They are plentiful and mixed up well because there is no pattern to the sequence of loops bar the context of the setting. As in, each arc doesn’t follow the same pattern of loops. E.g Climb, Shimmy, Balance, Climb, Shimmy, Balance, Climb, Shimmy, Balance.
Skill Chains are prevalent and are taught very well.
Slide > Jump > Slide + Jump
Single Action Climb > Continuous Climbing
Stationary Cover > Moving Between Cover
See Rope Being Used To Attach To Rope Textured Surface > Use Rope
Run > Jump > Run + Jump
Shimmy > Jump > Shimmy + Jump
Balance > Jump > Swing > Balance + Jump + Swing + Jump
Climb Rope > Swing > Swing on Rope
Level Design
The Level Design of Chapter One is very linear with a tiny amount of deviation allowed in order to give the player a sense of agency. This linearity is used to craft a story with precision pacing that flows through the gameplay and cutscenes without much hiccups, avoiding any ludonarrative dissonance.
An issue the game faces in its goal of crafting a well paced story is ...well, the player. The game needs to prevent the player from deviating too much while also keeping them engaged by giving them control and agency over their avatar and the world.
This is an obvious conflict, which is why most of the player’s agency is an illusion and the game tries very hard to guide the player down the designer’s intended path. Tricking the player into believing that the designer’s choices are their own.
There are controlled instances where the player is allowed to stray from the straight path and they might be rewarded with a collectable. These moments are an important breaks from the linearity in order to prevent the illusion from diminishing.
So let’s go through some specifics!
To help with the chaos of the opening moments, they have an NPC on the boat with you who not only shouts out potentially useful info but shoots at the enemies. This helps gives the player greater situational awareness and easy that mental load for newcomers.
In order to allow the player to centre themselves on a vast open ocean, there is a giant mountain on an island. The player perceives this as the centre because, once in control, the player is headed straight for it. This island also acts as a goal for the player.
The player character gets tossed from the boat and once afloat the player will have to swim back to it (which is perfectly placed in front of you so there is no danger of slowing the scene down unintentionally) and climb onto board, teaching the player how to climb objects. Having the boat stationary allows for the following shootout to make sense.
NPC leaves a conversation and then leaves a door open. The other NPC went out a different door but closed it behind him. If the player isn’t sure about going into the same room as the NPC they will come across a collectable.
This sequence is slow, so a little deviation won’t break the pacing.
This stealth section also teaches the player how to move from cover to cover which will be vital in later combat sections.
End Goal (Sam’s location) is signalled to the player using the movement of Sam climbing. The path to take uses a light to draw the player’s eye.
By this stage the game has taught navigation. So in order to allow the player to focus on mastering the learned traversal mechanics and some new ones, it pushes the burden of navigation onto an NPC. The player just has to follow and mimic.
In Conclusion
It is a well crafted game and the level design coupled with the mechanics deliver on the game’s goals without sacrifice. The gameplay and story are harmonious with each other, one does not distract from the other.We shall 'shlaters',
Richard.