Ben-DutkaWhile we know Ninja Theory felt inspired by Naughty Dog and their stellar Uncharted series, the Enslaved: Odyssey to the West developers don't like it when you say their game is a "knock-off" of Nathan Drake's adventures.
Granted, one can easily make the comparison, as Enslaved is a colorful action/adventure title with an emphasis on the story and characters, but Ninja Theory co-founder Tameem Antoniades told VideoGamer that even those comparisons can chafe every now and then. Comparisons can set "an expectation." Said Antoniades:
"I think there are similarities, like, just because they're making a cinematic game and we're making a cinematic game. Ico, the comparison is valid because that's one of my favourite games. And Another World on the Amiga was one of my favorite games, and Ico was actually based on Another World. So, there are definite comparisons, but they're comparisons that I'm uneasy with, because it sets an expectation. But those are some of my favorite games and I do want our game to be up there."
He added that Uncharted 2 was sort the first "eureka moment of actually achieving that cinematic quality in an adventure," and they're merely aiming for that same level of quality. But in comparison, he does say his game has plenty of differences; it has its "own twist," it's melee-based while Uncharted is more about third-person shooting, and the "story's unique." In short, he said it's "not a knock-off."
In some cases, like when Tecmo tries to say Quantum Theory isn't a knock-off of Gears of War , we have a tough time believing it. But in this case, after seeing all the footage and reading all the info, we'd have to agree; we don't see Enslaved as being a replica of anything. It falls into a certain category, certainly, but that's about it. And we can't wait to give it a try this fall.
Related Game(s): Enslaved: Odyssey to the West