Leaks are definitely a major source of info in the video game industry (most recently unveiling the complete Modern Warfare 3 achievement/trophy list). Naughty Dog, like Activision before it, is now the victim of a high-profile information leak - as unofficial gameplay footage of Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception has hit the Internet.

Given that the video is from Naughty Dog's panel at Eurogamer Expo 2011 this past weekend, the footage probably would have come out through some other means in the not too distant future but the developer was probably expecting it'd take a bit longer than a single day.

The bootlegged video camera recording documents, as mentioned, a portion of Naughty Dog's panel - specifically footage of an Uncharted 3 desert level, titled 'Chapter 19: The Settlement' (which we can only speculate takes place close to the infamous cargo plane sequence shown at Gamescom 2011). The video is revealing and provides a much better look at the amazing 'sand tech' that Naughty Dog has been talking up for the latest installment of the Uncharted franchise as well as shows some cool updates to the series' combat.

Go ahead and take a look at the Uncharted 3 'Chapter 19: The Settlement' footage below, which is narrated by Richard Lemarchand, lead game designer at Naughty Dog, and also features Nolan North cracking wise in the background (skip to the 4:00 minute mark for the gameplay footage):

In case you're hesitant to actually see the video in action (so that you can experience it yourself when the game releases), the video starts off with Drake wandering through the desert in search of water. Judging by the way that he's walking it seems logical to conclude that he's been wandering for a while. The opening is very reminiscent of Uncharted 2: Among Thieves accept the blistering cold of the Himalayas is replaced with the absolute desolation of the desert of the Arabian Peninsula. There is no music as Drake trudges up the dune in front of him only to see a city off in the distance. When he reaches the city Drake finds, to his dismay, that it's a ghost town, but lurches forth in search of water. Unfortunately for Drake, as is the hallmark of the series, he finds far more than he bargained for within the walled ghost town.

The melee combat in the video is absolutely awesome and using the Steel Fist ability leads to some cool moments - like being able to catch an enemy's gun in midair (which is extremely helpful to the unarmed Drake). Also pulling the pin on an opponent's grenade through a melee kill is hilarious and will surely be very useful with groups of enemies. Here's hoping that that also makes it into multiplayer somehow.

Lemarchand also comments that given the improvements to the AI, battles will not always play out the same way - which should add further replayability to the chapters.

Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception will be released November 1st for the PS3.

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