Fortune hunter Nathan Drake returns in Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, a blistering third person action adventure shooter created by developer Naughty Dog and exclusive to PS3.

Down on his luck, Drake is lured back into the treacherous world of thieves and mercenary treasure seekers he had sought to leave behind. When a mysterious artefact propels Drake on an expedition to find the legendary Himalayan valley of Shambhala, he finds himself embroiled in a dangerous game of cat and mouse against a fugitive war criminal who is after more than just the fabled riches of the lost city.

Caught in a web of deception and plunged into an increasingly deadly pursuit that tests the limits of his endurance, Drake will be forced to risk everything – but has his luck finally run out?

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, the highly-anticipated follow up to Uncharted: Drake's Fortune(TM), will feature up to 10 players in 5-versus-5 competitive gameplay. Cooperative multiplayer modes allow up-to-3 players to progress through a variety of environments by working together to accomplish set objectives. Utilizing a robust party system, groups of players will remain together in ranked and custom matches while earning currency, which used in combination with currency earned in single player missions, will unlock additional content and upgrades.

Presented with multiple modes of competitive gameplay, players battle in ranked matches that include Death Match and Plunder, a unique style of multiplayer competition that encourages team work to transport a treasure over dynamic terrain such as ledges and obstacles. Plunder brings truly vertical game play to traditional multiplayer modes. With maps based on environments from the single player campaign, players are taken from the nighttime streets of a war torn city to a Nepalese village and have the ability to create custom games allowing them to play any type of game on any map.

When you boot up the beta you’ll find 2 playlists for you to try out: co-op and competitive. If you’ve got friends, just hit the triangle button to see your PSN friends list and you can send them an invite, join their party, or just check out their profile. Keep in mind that for the beta, the party size is limited to 5 for competitive and 3 for co-op!

The competitive playlists contains 2 maps, with 2 game types available on each: Deathmatch and Plunder. Deathmatch is pretty similar to what you’ve come to expect out of “team deathmatch” in other games. Plunder is Naughty Dog’s take on “capture the flag.” At the start of a round, a treasure has been placed in a neutral location on the map and the first team to bring it back to their capture chest scores a point – three points to win. What takes this mode into the UNCHARTED universe? Easy; you can now throw the treasure quite a ways in any direction – in some cases, you’ll HAVE to if you want to score a point.

The biggest thing to keep in mind while playing in competitive matches is to keep thinking three dimensionally. There are many, many different places to climb, hide, and shoot from above ground level. The best advice: remember to look up. And keep moving – if you stay in one place too long, you are likely to have your neck snapped from behind or even be pulled off the ledge you are perched on!

Features:

• Free-flowing gunplay adds a unique vertical element to standard third person shooting mechanics
• Immersive action adventure epic featuring gun fights, melee combat, stealth, platform play and puzzle solving
• A blockbuster gaming experience – over-the-top set pieces, compelling cinematics and high production values plunge you into the story

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves is currently scheduled for fall 2009 in Norht America, and Sept. 2009 in Europe.