Uncharted 4: A Thief's End marks a high point for the series in terms of emotionally resonant storytelling, capping off a rollicking, action-packed adventure with a surprisingly poignant epilogue showing Nathan Drake's comparatively mundane life as a father 15 years after the events of the main story. I've played that game so many times I've lost count, and the ending never fails to wet my eyes just a little. That's why I was shocked to hear creative director Neil Druckmann put together the rough outline within weeks, according to a developer who was working with him at the time.
Ryan Trowbridge, who was character technical director on Uncharted 2 through 4, tells Kiwi Talkz that Druckmann ran an "efficient" ship at Naughty Dog when he took over as creative director from Amy Hennig, who left the studio abruptly in early 2014 during Uncharted 4's development.
"He was put forth with probably what felt like a very arduous task of 'how do you take this IP and make number four of Uncharted, and breathe more life into it, and keep going, and also take over a project that's already been in production for a while'," says Trowbridge. "And he so quickly took what was there. In my recollection, it seemed like it took him only a couple weeks to regather himself."
Trowbridge says it's possible Druckmann knew about his new role for longer than was apparent, which would've given him more time to prepare a new story for Uncharted 4, "but he went and he had written a new" plot for the game.
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