One of the biggest exclusives to hit the Playstation 3 this year is Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune, thankfully then this game has now hit these shores and entered our Playstation 3 for review, but is this a game worth spending your cash on? Read on.

The developers of this game are the mighty Naughty Dog, who are usually responsible for series such as the excellent Jak and Daxter, which is a far cry from Uncharted, although that’s no bad thing.

So to the game itself, which sees you play as Nathan Drake, a treasure hunter who has stumbled onto something big, although finding it isn’t without complications. Uncharted takes the guise of a third person action adventure, with the emphasis very much on the action, throughout the levels you will find yourself scaling walls, solving puzzles and taking on all manner of bad guys as you try to track down what you are looking for. On your travels you are accompanied by your friend Sullie (for a while anyway) and a newslady called Elena, whose main interest for being there is to get a story.

Although Elena and Sullie are both unplayable characters they are very relevant to the story, throughout the game you will watch in awe as they help you out of tight spots, by taking on enemies and doing what you need them to without hesitation, the AI of these characters really is spot on and I believe more games could learn from it. It’s not just the AI which is impressive when it comes to the non playable characters though, but also the way their relationships grow throughout the game, Sullie for example will constantly tell stories to his companion, while the reporter who isn’t so keen on Nathan to begin with, slowly warms to him, it is rare to see such companionship in a game and it just shows you how much effort the developers have put in to make even the smallest details work.

If it’s action you want then you won’t be disappointed by Uncharted. Pirates and mercenaries are on your back throughout the game and they will go all out to stop you, thankfully though the games cover system will go a long way to helping you out should you be surrounded by a pack of bad guys, this is due to the crates, pillars and trees which are spread throughout the environments, just placing your back against these will give you adequate cover, enabling you to take aim and fire at the enemies during the appropriate moments.

The combat offers great variety and therefore never gets boring, enemies will try different tactics to take you down, such as throwing grenades or even just storming at you, meaning that hiding behind crates will not always be the best tactic. Combat also rewards you for being more precise, so for example, if you hit an enemy straight in the head, he will fall straight away, whereas shooting him elsewhere will result in him taking a few shots to go down, which both makes life more difficult for you and wastes your most precious commodity, ammo.

The only problem some people may find with the game is that the flood of pirates feels almost constant, just as you have defeated two groups of them another almost inevitably follows, which also has the effect of giving you the near death experience of your screen turning grey due to yet another of their bullets hitting you, although in this case just make sure you find cover until the screen returns to full colour again.

Uncharted isn’t just about fighting, as our hero has plenty of difficult landscapes to master on his way to what he is searching for, this involves ledge climbing, shimmying and not forgetting balancing your way across makeshift bridges with the aid of the Sixaxis controller, yeah it may all sound a bit Tomb Raider-esc and it probably is, but I tell you what, it’s great fun.

Graphically, Uncharted is probably one of the best looking games on the PS3 yet, you will watch in amazement as Nathan enters into the water before coming out again with his clothes soaking wet and then drying again in real time, just try and stop yourself looking for places to swim the first time you see this. The same typoe of detail is evident throughout the game, the effects of the sun as it shines through the leaves is breathtaking, as are the effects of bullets hitting the trees. Character animation is also pretty impressive. Another impressive part of the games presentation is the cut scenes, which help tell the story without ever feeling intrusive, throughout the game the voice acting is also very strong, as is the dramatic background music.

Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune is a game that should grace every PS3, it offers action and adventure a plenty and looks fantastic, there is not a moment throughout the game that will disappoint you, from the moment you turn this game on you will be hooked, and that is what gaming is all about.