An interview with The Verge revealed the beginning prototypes for Uncharted’s main character, Nathan Drake.
In 2005, Naughty Dog started development on a “blockbuster” title with a human lead, as compared to their characters in the Crash Bandicoot and Jak and Daxter series. The idea would eventually lead to the Uncharted series, which was originally codenamed “Project Big.”
“I absolutely loved Raiders of the Lost Ark as a kid,” Josh Scherr, 15-year Naughty Dog employee, says. “I saw it in the theater when I was 10 years old. I’ve always loved that [style of] romantic adventure.”
The game’s original pitch to Sony included a slightly less-smoldering Nathan Drake, but retained the strong action-adventure, theatrical quality that we know from how Uncharted came to be.
“The thing that we wanted to focus on from the get-go were characters and story,” Scherr said. “That was something we felt that — particularly back in 2005, 2006 when this first started getting developed — was something that was sort of an afterthought in the majority of video games out there. So we really wanted not only to tell this pulpy, action adventure-style thing, but also really try to develop some relatable, entertaining characters and have the story be what pulled you through the game.”
Enjoy the whole Uncharted series again – or for the first time – when Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection launches for PS4 next week on October 9.