Best in the series. Simple, but fun encounter design that does away with most of the terrible spawning from Drake's Fortune. Climbing/exploring is still almost completely
"hold forward, mash jump" junk, but the presentation does a good job of engaging you with the scene. As a whole it's very smartly designed as a set piece driven scenario-to-scenario shooter, and has some of if not Naughty Dog's best examples of heavily scripted, cinematic sequences seamlessly integrated into the act of play. The illusion is convincing, the Nepal sequence where you make your way through buildings, run from a helicopter, building collapse, helicopter fight a fantastic example. Great location diversity too, backed by art and technology teams who really know their shit. It's super pulpy and basic, but in the best ways possible.
On the downside the story is only okay, mostly at its worst towards the end, with some seriously fucking hammy dialogue. The monster shit still plays worse than the rest of the game. The lack of enemy variety wears thin during the tail end. Some encounters and their spawning outstay their welcome. And most of the boss fights aren't very fun or cleverly designed.
Also the train level is massively, hugely overrated and leaning towards the bottom tier if the chapter quality was ranked.
