Socializing Gamers - Wordplay and the Discourse of Video Games - page 23

great liberty to integrate what could seem to be ridiculous narrative ele-
ments into the game. 6 The game then reveals Nathan Drake bleeding pro-
fusely on a damaged train, with little context for why he is there or what he
is doing. The train suddenly slides down the edge of a clif , sending Drake
hurtling out of the back toward his doom, except for the piece of railing to
which he manages to cling. The player then takes over the controls, aiding
Drake in his ef ort to scale the train and make it safely onto solid ground.
As Drake makes it up and safely of the train, a second notable piece of
Uncharted 2 quickly becomes evident. Throughout the game, focus shifts
from play where the player is in control of meeting some sort of objective,
like scaling the train, to cinematics that are used to provide back story
and advance the overarching narrative in the game. Once the player safely
ascends they are treated to a fl ashback introducing Harry Flynn and Chloe
Frazer, two former accomplices who are planning a new caper. These seg-
ments enable character development, as we learn that Drake can read and
translate the thirteenth-century Latin found in Marco Polo's journal in
addition his proclivity to narrowly escape death. The segment closes with
Drake quipping “What could possibly go wrong?” before being teleported
to the snowy clif where the player resumes control of the game. It is the
whole of the game,
all of these dif erent elements, along with the lighthearted story, [that] are
mixed together perfectly, providing an intoxicating pace that continually
builds upon the previous section. The incredible rate at which Uncharted
moves is staggering, seamlessly urging players from one incredible expe-
rience to the next, without ever staying on one mechanic too long. 7
By blending game playing content with narrative detail and of ering a vari-
ety of dif erent experiences, Uncharted 2 socializes players into a blended
game where the pre-rendered cinematics add to the play in a manner that
provides a sophisticated, complex gaming experience. These moments,
where buildings collapse and a player needs to jump through a window
to narrowly escape death are what “make Uncharted 2 so exciting and
more importantly, make it feel just like a movie.” 8 During the whole of this
experience a variety of dif erent, familiar narrative tropes are employed.
Complementary game design elements socialize those witnessing the game
into viewing it in a dif erent way, likening the experience to participating in
a fi lm, rather than just playing a game.
A second component of being socialized into Uncharted 2 is the paratexts
surrounding the game. Inextricably linked to its predecessor, Uncharted 2
is a AAA game 9 with substantial development resources and the huge mar-
keting push that typically surround a high-end release. Game publications
were laden with previews to build anticipation for the game, which were
followed by game reviews upon Uncharted 2 's release. All of these elements
combine to create hype surrounding the game where gamers are able to