Based on the series’ track record of breathtaking mo-cap and jaw-dropping settings, there’s little doubt that Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End will push the limits of console gaming fidelity. We’ve already seen small snippets of the game in action, as well as a few cutscenes, and already Uncharted 4 has proven it will likely be the title to beat on PS4, if not current-gen consoles.

With that, though, comes an arduous task for developer Naughty Dog who, despite a longstanding tradition of excellence, still continues to push themselves to this day. But even though ND may know the Uncharted franchise in and out, they still see Uncharted 4 as a major challenge. In their words, making the game is “really f***ing hard.”

Obviously, Naughty Dog is not going to get into specifics, but they do highlight real-time cutscenes and consistent frame rate as major challenges. Not challenges in the sense that they don’t know what they want to do, but in the sense that they want to push boundaries with Uncharted 4. It’s a byproduct of being one of the premiere developers in the industry: there’s a constant need to blow gamers away, but that’s easier said than done.

“Really f***ing hard. That’s true for any game, it was really hard on The Last of Us: Remastered, and that’s a game we had finished and we knew exactly what the end result needs to look like. And here we’re trying to push the boundaries of what this game can look [like], and do realistic, real-time cutscenes – and trying to do 60FPS is really hard.”

How Important is Frame Rate?

The frame rate in particular was a point of focus for Naughty Dog; mainly that it’s not a guarantee Uncharted 4 will run at 60FPS. The team would obviously like to get there, but if that detracts from other elements of the game, like the gameplay or the story, then they are unlikely to push for it.

“The objective for us is just to make the best experience and right now we’re trying to push the look. Then we’ll see where we’re at and re-assess. We’re constantly making choices throughout production of what’s going to make the game feel best and look its best.”

This, of course, runs counter to what Community Strategist Arne Meyer had to say about Uncharted 4’s frame rate, specifically that the mandate was to hit 1080p and 60FPS. Granted, Meyer never said the visuals were set in stone, but he seemed pretty confident that Naughty Dog would be able to deliver.

Trust in Naughty Dog

At the end of the day, the PS4 is still a relatively new machine and therefore Naughty Dog may need some time to figure out how best to leverage the console. That may mean Uncharted 4 is locked at 30FPS but runs at 1080p, or it may mean Naughty Dog hit their goal and all of these conversations about frame rate are moot. Either way, one thing seems consistent, and that’s gamers’ confidence that Naughty Dog will deliver a memorable end to Drake's adventures.

Do you think Naughty Dog will achieve all of their goals? How would you feel if Uncharted 4 didn’t run at 60FPS?

Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End releases later this year for PS4.

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Source: Game Informer