If you’ve ever had the thrilling experience of playing Naughty Dog’s magnificent – and in my opinion, still the greatest game – Uncharted 2, the train level is sure to be etched in your memory.
In Chapter 13 – Locomotion, the witty and daring star of Uncharted, Nathan Drake, embarks on an adrenaline-pumping journey up a speeding train. He battles hordes of enemy mercenaries and even a missile-firing helicopter.
This level stands out for numerous reasons, with the foremost being the remarkable sense of realism that the train journey imparts. It feels as if the train, with you aboard, is hurtling through a genuine environment, traversing a jungle, passing through tunnels, emerging onto cliffs, and continuing steadily – in a relatively straight trajectory – towards its and the level’s ultimate destination.
How did Naughty Dog manage to achieve this? A fresh video from YouTuber Freako, who is associated with the Boundary Break video series, uncovers the mysteries of Uncharted 2’s train level.
It turns out that the train level is constructed around a couple of substantial loops. Freako utilizes the game’s debug menu to manipulate Uncharted 2 in ways that the developers never envisioned. He is able to maneuver the camera to expose areas that are beyond the player’s usual line of sight. By doing so, we can discern the massive loop that the train traverses, generating the illusion of forward movement. We can also observe just how lengthy the train actually is, as well as the colossal size of the environments.
Naughty Dog also employs ingenious tactics to load new areas without the player’s awareness. For instance, they erect high sides on the train cars that prevent you from seeing beyond, or trigger cutscenes to camouflage area transitions.
The most effective illusions are the ones you don’t even realize are illusions, and that’s precisely the impression Uncharted 2’s train level gives when you play it. It’s an action-packed cinematic thrill ride in the form of a video game that moves at such a breakneck pace that you can’t perceive the tricks that drive it forward.
