My case study

1. 1. Case study: Uncharted: The Lost Legacy.
By Rhys Sadler-Scott
Uncharted: The Lost legacy is a 2017 third person action-adventure game.
The game stars series regular Claudia Black as Chloe Frazer and relative
newcomer Laura Bailey as Nadine Ross, the former returns from
Uncharted 3 as the main playable character. The latter returns from
Uncharted 4, in which she starred as the secondary antagonist. Chloe is
the first character to be fully playable in an Uncharted game after Nathan
Drake.
The game is set in modern-day India, mostly in the rural Western Ghats,
though the prologue is set in an Indian city, devastated by civil war.
Chloe Frazer, a half Indian, half Australian treasure hunter with a quick
wit and a sharp mind, is the main protagonist and playable character. The
game focuses on her relationship with hired mercenary Nadine Ross as
they learn to work as a team while searching for the mythical Tusk of
Ganesh. Along the way, they come across a psychotic rebel insurgent, a
rival from Nadine’s past and some revelations about why Chloe wants to
find the Tusk.

2. Terrain:
The game is set mostly in the Western Ghats of India, which is a lush, green,
rainforest. With ancient, crumbling ruins dotted throughout. Most of the area
will react to Chloe’s presence; plants will rustle, ruins can be climbed, water will
splash. The world is very detailed and immersive. The creators of the game
clearly took full advantage of the natural, sprawling landscapes of rural India.
Architecture:
Most of the world around the protagonists can be climbed, if not, than it can
usually be affected in some way: an explosion will buckle certain walls, ruins will
crumble and send the women toppling to the ground, mechanisms, used to active
intricate puzzles powered by a waterwheel, are fully interactive as well.

3. Objects:
The game features a large array of weapons for the main characters to use; long
guns, pistols, explosives, RPG’s etc. But there is also a side-quest, that features
Chloe collecting 11 tokens of the lost Hoysala empire, which will grant her access
to the mythical ‘Queens Ruby’ a very valuable jewel with supernatural
properties. The game also features a treasure system, which allows Chloe to pick
up treasures and trinkets to keep for herself along her adventure.
Characters:
The main protagonist and only playable character is the Indian-Australian
treasure hunter; Chloe Frazer. Chloe is a fun-loving, seductive character, who
often uses humor as a defense mechanism. The game explores her budding
friendship with the no-nonsense mercenary Nadine Ross, who Chloe hires to join
her on an Indian adventure. The game also shows Chloe’s inner turmoil over her
strained relationship with her deceased father, who once searched for the same

4. treasure that she seeks throughout the game. Chloe always carries a small statue
of Ganesh with her, which was the last thing her father ever gave her.
The NPC Deuteragonist of the game is the South African mercenary Nadine Ross.
Nadine is a very serious and professional individual, which brings her to blows
over Chloe’s unprofessional, improvisational methodology. Nadine agreed to
help Chloe find the Tusk of Ganesh in order to fund her failed private army:
Shoreline, which Nadine inherited from her Father. The game mainly focuses on
the two women learning to work together. With Chloe bringing out Nadine’s
more fun-loving, relaxed side and Nadine teaching Chloe to think about the
consequences of her actions.
The NPC Tritagonist of the game is Samuel Drake, treasure hunter and good
friend of Chloe. Sam and Nadine have fought in the past over a mutual desire for
the lost treasure of Libertalia. Sam was able to make off with some of the
treasure and dismantled Nadine’s private army in the process. During the last
third of the Lost Legacy, Sam is revealed to be working undercover with the
enemy, Asav, for Chloe. Which drives a wedge between Chloe and Nadine, as
Chloe wants them all to get along, while Nadine wants revenge on Sam. Sam is,
like Chloe, quite unprofessional in the way he works, as well as having the
occasional selfish streak.
The NPC Primary Antagonist of the game is Asav, the leader of a rebellion against
the Indian regime, who seeks to start a civil war, funded by the Tusk of Ganesh,
which he seeks like the main protagonists. Asav is a deadly fighter and an
unhinged psychopath. Who despises Chloe for rejecting her Indian heritage and
seeks to elevate all ‘Pure blooded Indians’ to the height of society. Chloe and
Nadine are the only things standing in his way.
The rest of the NPC’s, with the exception of a friendly Indian girl named Meenu
who briefly helps the protagonist evade soldiers, are enemies who patrol the

5. important areas in the Ghats. Chloe and Nadine often have to fight these soldiers,
usually with stealth, guns, or hand to hand combat.
Feedback interface:
The controller reacts to several moments in Lost Legacy in order to increase
player immersion, during a chase scene for example, the controller vibrates
every time an explosion goes off. It also vibrates subtlety to indicate whether
Chloe is close to finding the tumblers when picking a lock. Which is a clever way
to integrate the vibration mechanic in the controller. The controller will also
vibrate when the main character is detected by her enemies.

6. Perspectives:
The game is a third-person action adventure game, the graphics are 3D and
photorealistic. The visuals are considered some of the most detailed and realistic
of the current generation.
Game Types:
The game’s main campaign is single-player, with a story driven narrative. The
gameplay is action based, with a heavy emphasis on climbing and exploration.
There is also a multiplayer mode, where characters from this game and all the
previous entries duke it out in last man standing matches or band together in
survival mode. There are several tournaments held as well, to determine some of
the greatest players around the world.

7. The game proper:
The game itself has a very realistic art style, with motion capture used for all of
the actors to increase the realism in their faces and body movements. The aim of
the game is to acquire the mythical Tusk of Ganesh, though Chloe can also collect
treasures along the way. Finding all of them will grant the player a trophy. The
overall reward of the game is the possession of the Tusk. The narrative is a story
of friendship between two damaged women; Chloe Frazer and Nadine Ross.
Chloe deals with the unsolved trauma of her Father’s death and what continuing
his mission of finding the Tusk of Ganesh means to her. Nadine deals with issues
surrounding her self-confidence and how far she is willing to take her family’s
legacy. The game has received praise for the choice of its leads: Two mixed race
women of colour, both of whom are very popular characters. The character of
Chloe Frazer has been around for eight years; since Uncharted 2, where she was
introduced as a love interest for the main character Nathan Drake. She proved to
be popular enough to bring back as a supporting protagonist in Uncharted 3.
Though she was absent in Uncharted 4, fan demand for the character to be
brought back was very strong, which resulted in her starring in her own solo
adventure with Nadine Ross, who was a supporting antagonist in Uncharted 4.
The game is developed by the company ‘Naughty Dog’ which also developed such
critical hits as ‘Crash Bandicoot’ and ‘The Last of Us.’
Gameplay wise, Uncharted: The lost Legacy is almost identical to Uncharted 4,
with minor additions like silenced weapons, a revamped combat system and lock
picking. To me, this is the main issue with the game; it does little to distinguish
itself from Uncharted 4 and plays like an extension, instead of a direct sequel.
This, I think, holds it back from being its own separate entity from Uncharted 4.
“This standalone adventure, set after the events of Uncharted 4, is packed
with the beautiful vistas, exciting action, and memorable characters we
expect from an Uncharted game, but the familiarity of it all made Lost Legacy
feel more like a by-the-numbers summer blockbuster than the milestone
events that came before it.”
-Marty Sliva, IGN

8. By far the best aspect of the game is the relationship between Chloe and Nadine.
These are two characters who never meet before the events of the game and who
are polar opposites in nearly every way. They learn to appreciate each other and
overcome their coldness towards each other relatively quickly and this leads to
quite a heartwarming friendship with a natural back and forth between the
characters. What impresses me is how the game shows the changes and
development of the two women in each other’s company, while still remaining
true to the center of each character. The sparkling chemistry between Claudia
Black and Laura Bailey helps a lot too.
“The main element that continued to propel me forward through the
adventure is the fantastic dynamic between Chloe and Nadine. I really loved
the fact that Naughty Dog took these two side characters from past games
and put them front and center in this pressure cooker. Exploring their
backgrounds, discovering their motivations, and watching them grow was
simply fantastic. It’s remarkable how well the pair handle shifts between
somber moments of gravity and light comedic interludes. Probably the
biggest compliment I can pay the story and characters is that at no point did
I think to myself, “Man, I wish Nathan Drake were here.”
-Marty Sliva, IGN

9. Box art annotations.
Game compatibility.
The Lost Legacy uses the same in-game engine and mechanics as Uncharted 4,
with slightly updated gameplay to better suit the change in main characters. The
game is only available for PS4 and PS4 Pro.
“It looks superb, if derivative of Uncharted 4 – especially the jungle and other
external textures. We’re pleased to say though that the PS4 Pro version is presented
in glorious dynamic 4K and the HDR (high dynamic range) presentation is amongst
the best we’ve seen in gaming yet.”
-Rik Henderson
Graphics comparison.
The graphics engine is a very slightly updated version of what was used in Uncharted
4. This is not a bad thing, as the graphics of Uncharted 4 were some of the smoothest
and best looking of the current generation, this would be difficult to top in the mere
year the development team had to make The Lost Legacy. Though this game is
considerably more ambitious, larger in size and more diligent in its details. With a
wider, more vibrant landscape. The facial capture is generally excellent, though
actress Claudia Black has a habit of overacting her facial expressions, which can push
the graphics into the uncanny valley somewhat. This can lead to some serious scenes

10. being unintentionally funny. this isn’t so much a problem with the graphics as it is the
actress, though it should still be noted.
Though there might be technical issues, like lag or frame rate. The games
graphics engine is consistently excellent throughout with a vibrant colour
scheme and realistic faces and environments.
Video Game addiction.
Despite the fact that video game addiction is not yet recognized as a legitimate
medical disorder, 6-15 percent of all gamers show symptoms that could be
perceived as addiction, with the numbers rising every year. There are many
different types of video game addiction, but most of them stem from the player
wanting to earn a high score or a reward on one particular game. This desire can
cause the gamer to become irritable when unable to play and lie to friends
and/or family members about how much time they spend on video games.
Sufferers of gaming addiction are often the victims of fatigue and migraines, as
well as poor personal hygiene. Those addicted to video games are often
misdiagnosed as suffering from depression, which means that many video game
addictions go untreated.
The single player campaign of Uncharted: The lost Legacy doesn’t pose too much
of a problem in terms of addiction, as even with every collectable, it only takes
around eight hours to complete. The multiplayer is fun and can be fairly
addictive, but not overly, as it contains redundant micro transactions, all
currency can be earned in game and only provides things like weapon skins, and
new weapons, meaning that real money cannot be used to give some players an
unfair advantage over others.
BIBLIOGRAPHY:

11. 1. Marty Sliva. (2017). Uncharted: The Lost Legacy Review. Available:
http://uk.ign.com/articles/2017/08/17/uncharted-the-lost-legacy-
review. Last accessed 21st Nov 2017.
2. Rik Henderson. (2017). Uncharted: The Lost Legacy review: Short but oh so
sweet. Available: http://www.pocket-lint.com/review/141925-
uncharted-the-lost-legacy-review-short-but-oh-so-sweet. Last accessed
23rd November 2017.
3. Naughty Dog. (2017). Uncharted: The Lost Legacy. Available:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uncharted:_The_Lost_Legacy. Last accessed
24th November 2017.
4. N/A. (2017). Video game addiction symptoms, causes and effects.
.Available: https://www.psychguides.com/guides/video-game-addiction-
symptoms-causes-and-effects/. Last accessed 21st December 2017.