You know, one would think after waiting four years to play this game that it would lose some of its “wow factor”. But you’d be wrong. Uncharted 4 is a triumph of video game storytelling and summer blockbuster-style action all wrapped up in a ridiculously pretty package.

There’s a very specific feeling this game captures, at least in certain moments, that I like to call the “Saturday afternoon” vibe. This is the sensation of sneaking around just outside of where the action is happening. I call it “Saturday afternoon” because it reminds me of being outside the gothic Catholic church of my youth while Saturday evening mass was going on inside. It’s the mischievous sense of two hundred or so people dutifully performing their weekly worship while you quietly ditch out to galavant around the back of the building, maybe even venture down the wooded embankment there to see what random junk you can find.

I think there’s also a more intense “Saturday night” vibe too; one in which you are even closer to the action, but still stealthily slinking through unnoticed. That sensation is akin to sneaking around the backstage and/or in the rafters of a theater while a live show is being performed, the enthralled audience completely missing the interloper in the shadows. While that one is more visceral, the chill “afternoon” vibe is much rarer—a sweet spot that few video games ever hit. (Shadows of the Empire on N64 always elicited this feeling for me. Hitman 2 on PS2 was another.)

Ok, so this is another Uncharted. After developer Naughty Dog’s PS3 trilogy proved to be such an incredible smash hit, Tomb Raider had to be rebooted just so Crystal Dynamics could rip it off. Of course, the “Indiana Jones but as a video game” atmosphere had already drawn considerable inspiration from Lara Croft’s earlier adventures, so I guess everything’s just come full circle.

Just as Uncharted 2 was a huge improvement on the original, the series’ move to PS4 has come with some impressive leaps in quality all around. Better/more intuitive gameplay, incredibly expressive and well-performed cutscenes, and some absolutely stunning visuals.

Oh yeah, and the audacious set pieces you’ve come to expect are definitely there! Though, to be honest, I was more drawn into this game’s small, quiet moments than the pulse-pounding fury of an armored tank-truck tearing through a crumbling city. There are multiple scenes where you simily search through the contents of a house, like literally going through your junk in the attic. Picking up random objects to examine them closer still managed to ‘wow’ me with their meticulous attention to minute detail. (See, and you thought Shenmue was stupid!) Plus, you get to play some PS1 Crash Bandicoot!

Much like Naughty Dog’s other magnum opus, The Last of Us, Uncharted 4 features truly best-in-class interactive storytelling. For what could be merely a fun popcorn romp, this game delivers some real poignant moments, driven by genuinely endearing characters. You can’t help but like Nathan Drake, appreciate Sully, sympathize with Elena, and worry about Sam. Plus Nadine Ross, while primarily an antagonist, is such a total badass, she’s my new favorite character. The story tackles themes like ambition, greed, jealousy, but also loyalty, trust, devotion/indebtedness, and concern for family.

In the midst of art heists, gun fights, fisticuffs, and motorcycle chases, we see Nathan work through extremely relatable topics: maintaining trust and communication in marriage through middle age, letting go of childish obsessions in order to grow/move on, putting family (whether chosen or blood-related) before oneself. It’s a little crazy to say this about an Uncharted game, but with such legitimately adult subject matter, Naught Dog again shows us what an actually mature video game looks like.

The introduction of Nathan’s older brother, Sam, is a brilliant touch; I absolutely loved how he made a deeper exploration of Nathan Drake possible. (This might be obvious coming from someone who named his blog “Kelleher Bros”, but I’m a total sucker for brother stories, which is why the 1989 Teenage Mutants Ninja Turtles movie always make me cry.) The way Nate looks up to Sam, and the way he feels immense guilt for leaving him for behind, is so powerfully relatable, it makes every ill-advised action Nathan takes feel plausible and true to life.

On the gameplay side, the pacing of Uncharted 4 is ingenious and addictive. And hot damn, 3D platforming is top-notch! True that there is only one path to take, so free-range exploring is curtailed. The environments are so intricately detailed, however, so huge, so jaw-droppingly gorgeous throughout that you can hardly notice. The gameplay loop of “climb a little, fight a little, climb a little, fight a little more” is fantastic, and combined with the exotic/pseudo-historic locales manages to hit the sweet spot reminiscent of 2002’s Prince of Persia: Sands of Time. (This is high praise!)

Regarding the climbing, the heights here are legitimately dizzying! Hard to say whether it’s the masterly directed camera work, the towering verticality of climbing levels, the extreme level of detail on display, or some magical combination of all three, but this game basically gave me vertigo. In a good way! The grappling hook is an especially great addition, so much so that I’m surprised it didn’t appear sooner in the series. It opens up a lot of great platforming possibilities while also injecting much needed variety into combat scenarios.

Speaking of combat, my main criticism of this game is that there’s still too much gunplay for my tastes. And I freaking hate the armored-up gatling gun enemies; they’re walking tanks and basically ruin the fun altogether. (Please stop inserting Vulcan Raven into action games, I’ve already played MGS.) Luckily a good chunk of the firefights you encounter can be tackled with stealth tactics instead; turning the cover of this “cover-based shooter” into ninja hiding places. I absolutely love this approach! If you give me a choice between shooting and sneaking, I’m taking sneaking every time, guaranteed. And thanks to the new grappling hook, Uncharted 4 is almost transformed into Tenchu: Stealth Assassins - Nathan Drake Edition. I can dig that.

It must be said that this game is incredibly heavy on the cinematics: both in terms of semi-playable moments and standard cutscenes. While it’s not exactly bloated to Kojima levels of “now sit back watch for 20 minutes”, it’s pretty clear that someone at Naughty Dog would rather be making movies. Again, the story is strong enough and the performances are freaking top-notch (even the transitions are completely seamless) that I found watching everything to be a real treat the first time around. Perhaps on a second or third playthough this many cinematics could become quite grating. Also, I felt like the story had far too many not-quite-the-final chapters, including an epilogue that—while enjoyable—was absolutely unnecessary.

But hey, if like me, you managed to sleep on this one, I highly recommend picking up Uncharted 4 immediately and giving it a go. The overall package is just so well put together, even if you only play through one time, the purchase will be well worth it. Now if you’ll excuse me, I desperately need to play Uncharted: Lost Legacy this minute.