The Uncharted series is one of the most popular and famous game series ever created. The adventures of Nathan Drake are examples of how to do cinematic gaming, filled with stunning locations, exhilarating plot beats, and characters that feel real. It also helps that they’re cracking third person shooters too, with the action ramping up dramatically over the course of the games.
For the first time Uncharted will be coming to PC in the shape of Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection. This bundles together Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End and Uncharted: The Lost Legacy, showing off Uncharted at its absolute best.
But what if you haven’t played the previous games? Fear not, we shall get you up to speed on the Uncharted storyline so you’re ready to jump into Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves armed with knowledge.
Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune
The first game in the series introduced us to treasure-hunter Nathan Drake, reporter Elena Fisher, and Nate’s mentor Victor “Sully” Sullivan as they hunt for a treasure related to Sir Francis Drake. They discover the coffin of Sir Francis Drake which contains his diary, including the location of the mythical city of gold: El Dorado.
On a mysterious island they find that they were wrong, El Dorado was never a city; it was a golden idol. This island is covered in Spanish ruins and the remnants of a Nazi expedition. As they race to find the idol before a criminal gang does, they discover a dark truth. The idol is cursed, causing mutated undead Spaniards and Nazis to attack both Nate and his enemies.
As they attempt to flee, the criminal gang attempt to take the idol from the island in order to sell it as a bioweapon. Nate is eventually able to defeat the gang, dropping the idol into the sea to never be seen again. Able to finally escape, Nate, Sully, and Elena all bond as they depart the island with a few chests filled with treasure.
Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
Now this is where Uncharted steps up a gear. The game’s roster is packed out with former associates of Nate, Harry Flynn and Chloe Frazer. They team up to steal a Mongolian oil lamp connected to legendary explorer Marco Polo, however, when in the midst of the heist, Flynn betrays Nate leading to his arrest.
Some months later Chloe and Sully help Nate escape and reveal that Flynn has been working for a war criminal named Zoran Lazarević. The lamp contained a map to the lost city of Shambhala, a place Lazarević is heading to in order to locate the legendary Cintamani Stone.
Chasing through Nepal, picking up Nate’s now ex-girlfriend Elena Fisher on the way, and fighting off the monstrous guardians of Shambhala, they manage to corner Lazarević in the city. There they find that the Cintamani Stone is actually the sap from the tree of life which has the ability to grant power to whomever drinks it. Despite Lazarević imbibing the sap and becoming more than human, Nate is able to defeat him. With Shambhala crumbling around them, Nate, Chloe, and Elena all make their escape. The game ends with a hint at a reunion for the estranged Nate and Elena.
Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception
Set two years after Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, this installment in the series splits some of the narrative between the current day and 20 years hence, showing how Nate met Sully in the first place and how he got Sir Frances Drake’s ring.
In the present, Nate and Sully team up with new character Charlie Cutter to hunt down a mysterious figure named Katherine Marlowe who had been interested in buying the ring from Nate. With the help of Chloe Frazer, they trace Marlowe to an underground library where they receive a map that helps them locate two halves of an amulet, though Marlowe and her associate Talbot manage to steal one half of it.
Their journey takes them to Yemen where Elena Fisher pops up, now Nate’s wife, though they have recently gone their separate ways. Nate is captured first by Marlow and Talbot and then after escaping captured once again by a pirate working with them by the name of Rameses. Aboard Rameses ship, Nate manages to escape yet again, but sinks the ship, killing Rameses.
Back in Yemen Nate sneaks aboard a cargo plane, but destroys it before falling out and having to parachute down to the desert. Nate does not have a great deal of luck in this game, truth be told.
Rescued by a Bedouin troup led by a man named Salim, Nate is reunited with Sully and together they follow Marlowe into the city of Ubar, where legend has it King Solomon imprisoned a Djinn. When there, Nate drinks from a fountain and begins to suffer terrible hallucinations, with the entire city’s water supply being tainted. Nate manages to stop Marlowe’s plans to steal the hallucinogenic vessel at the heart of the city, causing the city to collapse. Marlowe falls into a sinkhole, taking Drake’s ring with her, with Salim coming to the rescue of Nate and Sully.
The game ends with a reunited Nate, Sully, and Elena, with yet another hint at a reconciliation between Nate and his spouse.
Uncharted: Golden Abyss
Though released fourth, this PS Vita game serves as a prequel to the entire series with Nathan Drake and old friend Jason Dante investigating a poisonous secret behind the city of Quivira, one of the mysterious Seven Cities of Gold.
Their adventure takes them across Panama as they look for the Golden Abyss, a gold-lined cavern that holds treasure beyond imagination. Once there they find that the gold has become irradiated due to nearby uranium deposits, a poison which killed the inhabitants of Quivira. Dante at the end betrays Nate but ends up sealed in the Golden Abyss, trapped forever. Nathan Drake makes his escape along with Sully and new friend Marisa Chase, deciding to keep the Golden Abyss secret for all time.
Shop Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection Here
Now you should know all the details you need to jump into the fourth Uncharted game and join Chloe Frazer and Nadine Ross in Uncharted: The Lost Legacy. If you are bold enough to set off on your Uncharted journey, head over to our store to grab Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves with a deal so good Nathan Drake would think it’s a steal.
