PlayStation may have dropped an Uncharted reboot teaser, and I’m clowning

Team Asobi’s Astro Bot is easily one of the year’s greatest games. Even without its nostalgia-fuelled cameos, that wouldn’t change. Astro Bot is a wonderfully creative platformer that showcases what a powerhouse of a console the PlayStation 5 is. That being said, those cameos can truly elevate the experience with some of Astro Bot’s strongest levels coming in the form of recreations of several of PlayStation’s most beloved IPs.

Ape Escape, Uncharted, LocoRoco, God of War, and Horizon are the five IPs given this honour. Why? Well, that’s what’s left me pondering. At first, I thought perhaps one launch from each console era had been selected, but that can’t be the case because the PlayStation 2 would be omitted. Ape Escape launched on the OG PlayStation, Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune on the PlayStation 3, LocoRoco on the PSP, with God of War and Horizon Zero Dawn both on the PlayStation 4 - or PS5 if we’re talking Ragnarök and Forbidden West.

With that in mind, I broke it down another way. God of War and Horizon are easily two of PlayStation’s biggest current IPs, alongside the likes of The Last of Us and Marvel’s Spider-Man. It’s hardly a surprise to see them included with developers likely making a somewhat random selection from the company’s current roster. Ape Escape harkens back to PlayStation’s founding era, and that felt like a box that needed to be ticked, while LocoRoco was made by Japan Studio, which is now Astro Bot developer Team Asobi following a merger, so that one’s a personal indulgence.

But Uncharted? Yes, it too is one of PlayStation’s biggest IPs but one that’s lay dormant for quite some time. Nathan Drake isn’t currently the poster boy he was once. Instead, being brushed aside and replaced with the likes of Aloym Jin Sakai or Kratos. That’s to be somewhat expected, with the character’s last adventure landing in 2016 but then why was it this franchise in particular that was handpicked to feature in the game so prominently?

Astro Bot is a truly joyful experience that you really should give a go.

I’d like to preface this by saying that I am purely speculating, and perhaps manifesting at the same time. But given that this was likely a decision made with Sony’s permission, I can only hope that Uncharted’s inclusion is an indication that this beloved franchise is set to rise once more. You see, it’s easily the best of the five levels if you ask me - and that’s coming from someone who stans Horizon. There’s something about the way in which Team Asobi has recreated Nate’s world that just scratches my brain right.

That extensive care and consideration signals to me that Sony is well aware that this is a franchise beloved by its fanbase. It’s so much more than a crumb of acknowledgement. Most bots are purely cameos, fun cameos, but cameos. They don’t particularly offer much beyond sensations of joy and nostalgia. The themed levels seek to do something else. They truly do immerse you in another world and by immersing players in 2024 in the world of Nathan Drake last seen in 2016, well, I can only hope it’s a litmus test to see if we’re left desperate for me.

Of course, the answer is we are. I’ve always been a firm believer that the Uncharted franchise can continue on without Nate, as to not undo his ending. The Lost Legacy is, in my opinion, one of the strongest Uncharted entries and I’d pick up another Chloe and Nadine-led game in a heartbeat. That epilogue of Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End also introduced us to Nate’s daughter Cassie. When the decision was made to do that, surely developers were thinking that the creation of such a character would provide the perfect excuse to one day return to the franchise should devs wish to.

Sony Interactive Entertainment

That’s partly why I’m an ‘Uncharted isn’t over’ truther. I mean, of course, there’s also all of the jokes about PlayStation adoring remasters and remakes. What I’m hoping for here though is a new instalment. We still don’t know what that Uncharted-esque footage was in last year’s ‘Live from PS5’ campaign either that featured a female individual finding a golden treasure in a darkened cave. Many assumed an Uncharted reboot starring Cassie was set to be revealed right about the corner but the mystery remains unanswered to this day.

If Astro Bot’s Uncharted level is a tease that this dormant franchise is set to make a comeback, that would fill my heart with joy. If it’s a test to see how fans responded, then I hope we passed. And if there’s no meaning whatsoever and Team Asobi handpicked Uncharted because they felt like it, let this be the noise that Sony needs to resurrect this beloved IP. Nathan Drake’s story may be over, but Cassie’s isn’t, nor is Nadine’s or Chloe’s. Astro has already delivered me my favourite game of 2024. If he’s the driving force behind a potential Uncharted reboot too, he’ll have my undying gratitude.