Uncharted and the curse of the video game adaptation

There is a consensus on social media by the gaming community that the much-debated ‘curse of the video-game adaptation’ is finally a thing of the past. The critical and commercial success of Castlevania, Arcane, and even The Witcher, to an extent, appears to have been an indicator that tides are changing as filmmakers and showrunners have finally ‘cracked the code’ in adapting popular games into successful films and TV shows. Arcane, based on the online multiplayer role-playing game (RPG), is currently among the very few Netflix original shows with a 100% score on Rotten Tomatoes. And while The Witcher is originally based on the series of novels by Andrzej Sapkowski, there could be no arguments that it is the popularity of the games, especially The Witcher III: Wild Hunt, by CD Projekt Red, that compelled Netflix to greenlight an expensive TV series starring Henry Cavill. In fact, Cavill himself is a massive fan of the third game, having admitted that he has spent hundreds of hours on it. So, it begs the question as to why a franchise as popular as the Uncharted series, often praised for its story, setting, and clever dialogues have massively underwhelmed as a film adaptation.

One of the most noticeable differences between the aforementioned successful adaptations and Uncharted is the fact that they are all TV shows, while Uncharted is a feature film. The original Uncharted trilogy on the PlayStation 3 had an average campaign length of eight to ten hours for a regular playthrough. Meaning, a player spends eight to ten hours in total fully immersed with the characters and the story. Whereas Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End for the PlayStation 4 clocked at an average of 15 hours. Considering the film has a run time of just under two hours, and the fact that it has taken plot lines from all five major PlayStation releases across both console generations, there are simply far too many things shoehorned into one film. While Tom Holland and Mark Wallberg do have great on-screen chemistry as the charismatic street-smart treasure hunter Nathan Drake, and his friend and mentor Victor ‘Sully’ Sullivan, the lack of any meaningful character development is hard to ignore.

The casting of these beloved characters did raise a few eyebrows when it was announced, and the sceptics appear to have justification for the same. Tom Holland’s ability as an actor cannot be denied, but there are certain roles that do not fit with an actor’s profile; Tom Hanks playing Superman or Mark Wahlberg playing James Bond, for instance, is a mismatch of biblical proportions. For people who are familiar with the Uncharted games, Nolan North’s version of Nathan Drake is contrasting to Tom Holland’s portrayal and the essence of the character, such as the trademark cockiness, arrogance, and witty one-liners lost in the movies. Mark Wahlberg’s Sully has nothing in common with the game’s Sully, not even his booming voice, trademark moustache, or his cigar.

For years, fans lobbied to cast Nathan Fillion as Drake in a live-action adaptation, and in fact, Fillion even starred in an independently produced short film as Drake which was well received by fans. Veteran actor Stephen Lang played the role of Sully, and it is almost perfect. But unlike Ryan Reynolds’ similar efforts in creating Deadpool, Fillion was unable to convince the bosses at Sony.

The most critical aspect of the film is the lack of true exploration and discovery, which are some of the core elements that made Uncharted popular over the last decade. The first game, Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune, was about discovering the mythical lost city of El Dorado. The entire game's plot rests on Nate discovering El Dorado, whereas in the second game, Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, it is about the discovery of the mythical Tibetan city of Shambala, Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception involved the lost city of the Iram of the Pillars, and Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End is about finding legendary pirate Henry Every’s long lost ‘pirate treasure’ and the discovery of the pirate colony of Libertalia. The film has borrowed bits and pieces of all these storylines and has crammed them together creating a ‘dumb action film’ without any meaningful exploration into the lore.

The female characters in the film have left plenty of room for improvement. Laura Bailey’s powerful performance as Chloe Frazer is replaced by an unconvincing portrayal by Sophia Taylor Ali. And for no reason at all, Chloe’s compelling backstory about her father is altered in the film. This aspect about Chloe was explored in the spin-off or expansion to Uncharted 4: A Thief's End, titled Uncharted: Lost Legacy, which is set in India and focuses on Chloe Frazer and Nadine Ross. It is the only game in the franchise where Nate does not feature. It is interesting to note that Tati Gabrielle’s character in the film, Jo Braddock, is modelled after Katherine Marlowe from Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception and Nadine Ross from Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End and Uncharted: Lost Legacy. However, Jo Braddock is a forgettable one-dimensional villain that adds minimal value to the plot. However, the most important female character, the swashbuckling journalist Elena Fisher, who would eventually marry Nate, does not even feature in the film.

The highlight of the entire movie is that the real Nathan ‘Nate’ Drake, the legendary Nolan North, makes a brief cameo in the film. Fortunately, Naughty Dog, the video game developer who created the Uncharted franchise, hasn't made the same mistake with their other major franchise, The Last of Us. The iconic video game series is being developed by HBO as a TV series starring Game of Thrones stars Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey as Joel and Ellie. Naughty Dog lead writer and co-president Neil Druckmann, who worked on both game franchises, is on board as writer for The Last Us TV series, unlike the Uncharted film. The casting announcements for the show were also met with optimism, with the consensus that Pedro Pascal will have no problems stepping into the massive shoes of the legendary Troy Baker who voiced Joel Miller. In fact, Baker voiced Sam Drake, Nate’s brother in the Uncharted franchise, while Nolan North voiced the sadistic David in The Last of Us game. Bella Ramsey, who played the fan-favourite Lyanna Mormont in Game of Thrones, looks like the ideal candidate to replace Ashley Johnson.

Despite a few commercially successful films based on video games that have remained largely faithful to the source material such as Alicia Vikander’s Tomb Raider and the 2021 Mortal Kombat film, video game film adaptations continue to fail to garner critical acclaim. Uncharted appears to be a film riding on the coattails of Tom Holland’s newfound popularity. The film’s release also coincides with the newly remastered versions of Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End and Uncharted: Lost Legacy for the Playstation 5, a not so subtle marketing strategy to boost the sales of the game for the console generation and to also market the film to a wider audience. Those disappointed with the film can at least take solace in the fact that they can play as Nathan Drake in 60 frames per second.