Uncharted 4 Is A “Technical Powerhouse”, Digital Foundry Says

Digital Foundry has posted its technical analysis of the long-awaited PlayStation 4 exclusive Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End.

Calling it the “technical powerhouse we’ve been waiting for”, the analysis says it raises the bar for current generation console games.

“This is a must-play experience that delivers the rare mix of pitch perfect gameplay and high-end visuals,” Digital Foundry commented.

“The set-pieces are more impressive, the maps larger, the characters and environments more detailed and the gameplay mechanics are richer than ever before. This is the real deal.”

The latest version of Naughty Dog’s proprietary engine, on which the game runs, offers an “almost obscene wealth of new rendering features,” Digital Foundry said. The game’s campaign runs at 1080p/30fps while its multiplayer runs at 900p/60fps. With regard to the game’s campaign visuals, Digital Foundry stated, “Uncharted 4 delivers the best image quality we’ve seen in a console game to date.”

“Thin edges are remarkably clean, shader aliasing is almost non-existent, and shimmering is all but eliminated,” the site explained. “Large, complex fields of detailed foliage remain razor sharp even at a distance while finer details on Nate’s weapons remain clearly visible.”

Uncharted 4, Digital Foundry said, offers better character rendering than titles such as Quantum Break, Rise of the Tomb Raider, and Halo 5: Guardians. “Uncharted 4 pushes things even further,” it added.

Skin, Drake’s shirt, and even his body hair bends and moves realistically. AI is also smarter this time and Digital Foundry offers a deep look at the game’s use of real-time cutscenes.

That being said, not everything is perfect. Load times are lengthy and the game’s photo mode isn’t as robust as it might have been. Shadow quality, Digital Foundry said, could also be improved.

Nevertheless, “There is a clear dedication to excellence here and it has paid off and Uncharted 4 is the best-looking console game we’ve ever tested,” the site concluded said.

Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End launches exclusively for PlayStation 4 tomorrow, May 10th. For more on the game, check out our dedicated tag.