That new one, i think number 3... is getting rave reviews... never heard of the game or series... anyone got some personal opinions and info on it... is it like a tomb raider game... bunch of puzzles, atealth game, or action shooter... do you need to play and understand the earlier versions, or jumping into the new one OK?

thx

You can jump into the new one without too many problems, and when you understand that Drake can jump an inordinately long distance and has the hands of a gecko, it's fine. You probably don't miss much when it comes to starting half-way through the series - only character backgrounds and previous associations, which isn't that important.

Gameplay is a bit like Tomb-raider, but with more action. I've not played the third one all the way through, (played the second one through in two sittings on a friend's PS3) but in general there is a mixture of action, stealth and puzzle parts; there is quite a bit of time given to gunning, but you can reduce enemy numbers by stealth-KOing them, so in a way it's quite well integrated.

The game itself is very cinematic, so in a way I guess the FPS analogue would be CoD; it's mostly linear in a similar way - same start and end, but you can get to them by different means, depending on where you are. It's not very long, probably between 5-10 hours for the first playthrough, but it's very well done.

If you're not sure, it might be worth looking up a longplay of the previous ones on youtube, as the gameplay and mechanics through the series is pretty much the same.

Personally, I thought #2 was a bit on the short side (which is par for the course these days), but otherwise very well done. The bits of #3 that I played were also pretty good.

They are very enjoyable games. I have played the first and still in the process of playing two. Plan on getting three when I finish Among Thieves.

There are puzzles but its not overboard hard. Very cinematic like Gopher said. Great voice acting and graphics. It sort of feels like Tomb Raider, Indiana Jones Adventuring. They have one and two bundled together for fourty bucks. Might find them cheaper on Amazon though.

Good fun games with good story lines and good adventure games for finding that escape we need from time to time.

I like them a lot, and I don't really play a lot of console games. I just bought three and I'm enjoying it so far. It doesn't seem to me that there is any significant dependencies as the plots go. Things carried through are more just big picture stuff like characters and so forth.

If you can find a secondhand copy of the first and second games for relatively cheap, you might start there. They all seem to be about the same, quality and production-value wise, and there aren't many differences so far as the game play mechanics go, so if you're interested in the series, the smart money probably buys a used copy of the first one to begin with. Jumping right to three is fine too though.

I've played and finished the first and second and loved them. Haven't played the third yet just because there are so many games I'm playing right now, available game time is scarce. But it is very much on my wish list!

I won't go through the details because the guys before me have already described the series pretty well but I would suggest playing the first 2 prior to the third simply because of the character backgrounds. Fantastic voice acting and cinematic qualities help to really connect with the characters, which is a series strong point IMO. I would compare it to the Indy movies. None of the stories really relate but the main characters are so interesting and fun to watch it just doesn't seem right to see them out of sequence. Not to mention you can get the first 2 games pretty cheap. I'm sure you won't miss anything story wise on the third if you don't play 1 or 2 but they are all so well done, there really isn't any reason not to start from the beginning.

And don't forget, when in doubt....GAMEFLY!!

BTW, these were strictly an SP experience for me even though the second and third have MP component. I tried the MP in the second game and wasn't crazy about it.

Play the first 2 just because they are really, really excellent games. I haven't tried the 3rd yet so I can't comment on it.

The 3rd one came with our new ps3 and I just finished it last night. To be honest there is a bit of back history that leaves you hanging if you didnt play the other games (which I didnt) but the story was easy to follow and the gameplay was easy to pick up. It plays out as a movie which was a cool feature but I dont think I would want games to move in this direction. If you ever played Heavy Rain it kind of felt like that at times.

My wife is playing the 3rd one right now, she is on the caravan chapter. She has enjoyed all the games in the series. She likes exploring/action games. Before Christmas she finished Castlevania which she also highly rated.

Enjoyed the first one, skipped the 2nd and now playing the 3rd. On chapter 12 at the moment. Good story. Can't get over the great graphics. Really looks good.

I actually thought the third one was the 'worst' one. All very 'meh'. Second was was excellent, almost the best game I've ever played on the PS3(the Batmans take that spot). First one also very good.

Don't skip 2. I'm still working on it and it improves on the combat and enemy AI of the first. And as far as graphics go, the missions in the mountains of Tibet or whereever it is is gorgeous.

Yeah, I'll double back to play it eventually.