Former Uncharted Developer Explained Why First Game Doesn’t Need a Remake

Quite often, when releasing new games in a franchise, studios revisit older titles and turn them into full-scale remakes. There are plenty of examples: the Resident Evil series, as well as standalone cases like Mafia: Definitive Edition or Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced. Sometimes, though, despite fans' clear enthusiasm, studios decide against it.

Uncharted is one such case, having sat in limbo for quite a while now, specifically since the fourth entry in 2016 and its standalone spin-off, The Lost Legacy, a year later. However, according to former franchise developer Benson Russell, a remake of the first game, Drake's Fortune, simply isn't necessary. In a recent interview with FRVR, he explained it would demand enormous time and resources, and that the Nathan Drake Collection, a re-release of the original trilogy, still holds up well today. You can check out Russell's fuller comments below:

“Uncharted as a thing is still in the zeitgeist. There’s already a version you can play on modern consoles get the experience. What’s the point of remastering it?

I just don’t see the point of remaking. You’d have to rewrite the whole story to make it better which means you’re going to change the spirit and you’re going to change the scenes and what the first one was about, right?

You’re going to have to add all these scenes or take things away and a lot of the key set pieces—are you going to keep those? Are you going to have to redo them because they don’t fit your story?

Take the lessons of Uncharted 4 and make a new game that’s in the past or wherever you need it to be. It doesn’t make any sense. I honestly thought the same thing about The Last of Us Part 1… these are old games for a reason.”

It is also worth noting that reports surfaced this June that Naughty Dog had considered making a full remake of Uncharted: Drake's Fortune, before ultimately deciding to focus on an enhanced version of The Last of Us instead. That said, according to insider Alir, Uncharted 5 is reportedly in secret development at the studio, though it likely won't arrive anytime soon and will probably target PlayStation 6. Shaun Escayg, who previously worked on Uncharted: The Lost Legacy, is claimed to be leading the project as game director. Nathan Drake is expected to appear, though not as the main protagonist this time around.

Naughty Dog’s next project, Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet, is in development exclusively for PlayStation 5 and rumored to release next summer, though the exact release date is unconfirmed for now.