It’s not that Uncharted 4 left me exasperated or unsatisfied. Quite the opposite, actually: A Thief’s End presents a pitch-perfect conclusion to the Uncharted series, and should serve as a benchmark for other franchises approaching their twilight years. There are no threads left unresolved, no relationships left unexplored and no shirts left partially untucked. It’s as cathartic an ending as you could hope for, and then some.
But that catharsis is built around a game that’s so much more intimate and — shockingly — quiet than the other Uncharted adventures. The memorable, exploding setpieces the series is known for are sparsely used in Uncharted 4. Past games tossed Nathan Drake into a capsized boat or a crashing cargo plane, but in this final chapter, he’s subjected to a far more dangerous ordeal: a thorough exploration of the fact that he can, at times, be kind of an asshole.