It’s no small secret that with high definition being the big thing with televisions right now, developers sometimes forget about the people who might own an Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3, but don’t have the optimal viewing situation available for it. Games such as Burnout Paradise, Dead Rising, and Banjo Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts have presented problems to the crowd who hasn’t upgraded for whatever reason (and in this economy, there are plenty), and it seems that Sony’s biggest title of 2009, Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, may have the same issue.
According to Negative Gamer, where there were no such problems with the original Uncharted, the sequel makes it difficult to spot key points for grabbing ledges, which way enemies are facing during stealth segments, invisible red wires to be traced, and difficult-to-find targeting reticules.
For the record, they clarify in the comments, “the game looks stunning with its epic vistas and such. I just found it near impossible to see the small details, which is what the rant is about. The lack of detail caused the gameplay to suffer for me.”
I am fortunate enough to own an HD television now myself, but only through the virtue of a generous early Christmas gift, and I can still sympathize with the plight. “HD TV’s,” says Negative Gamer, “regardless of what people say, are expensive and are not that common. Making your game HD only is just a bad move. Would adding the extra options (like changing the reticule to be usable) really take that much time?”
Given the difficulty one finds in returning an opened game these days (save for scratches, leading to a same-game exchange), I understand why they would say “humbug” to it all. How are people supposed to have faith in the product as a whole when there are games that fail to work on all televisions as needed? $60 is a lot for a crapshoot.
If a developer isn’t going to make their games SD-friendly, perhaps a warning label of some kind would be an idea, so people aren’t throwing away their hard-earned money on unplayable games. I’m sure that would benefit the half of the gamers who aren’t in a position to go HD yet.
Have any of you had any better luck playing Uncharted 2 on a standard-definition television?
