There have been some poor, middling, and great video game adaptations over the years. It’s inarguable that HBO’s The Last of Us ranks amongst the better ones, in fact, it might even take the top spot. Many fans of the games are quick to point out that the reason the series is so great is that it is extremely faithful to the video game, which was developed by Naughty Dog.
But most fans of the show might not know that Naughty Dog has been around for a long time. They released their first game under the name Naughty Dog (they were known as JAM Software prior to this) in 1989. The studio was then acquired by Sony Interactive Entertainment in 2001 and continued to make hit PlayStation games ever since. Their history is something they’re proud of, too, putting Easter eggs from their older games into newer ones.
If you are wondering about where the studio started, and what games they developed aside from The Last of Us, we have got you covered. Here are 13 of the best games from Naughty Dog, not counting The Last of Us series.
Crash Bandicoot
The game that put Naughty Dog on the map was Crash Bandicoot and it was released on the original PlayStation in 1996. You play as the titular orange marsupial who has to spin through crates, navigate traps, and defeat the forces of Dr. Neo Cortex to rescue Tawna. The original Crash Bandicoot is a hard platformer and collectathon. At least it is not a one-hit kill, as your faithful mask, Aku Aku, takes hits for you.
The save system was archaic, with no way to save yourself after levels. At least you could rely on a password system that reset the game to certain levels, but you could lose progress if you didn’t remember them or write them down. At least the story and boss fights are fun, and it’s very satisfying to go through all the levels, collecting everything along the way.
Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back
The sequel to Crash Bandicoot was Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back, which was released on PlayStation in 1997. It follows the events of the first game, only now Cortex has kidnapped your sister Coco Bandicoot and he will have his revenge! Like the first game, it is a platformer and a collectathon. Only this time, there’s a save system!
They also give you a better reason to collect everything in the game, with Cortex forcing you to collect the Crystals and Dr. N. Brio convincing you to collect all the Gems, which you get for smashing all the boxes in a level as well as by finding a handful of secret ones. Because of the new structured hub world, you get a better sense of progression in Crash Bandicoot 2, in terms of both story and collectibles.
Crash Bandicoot 3: Warped
The third and last game in Naughty Dog’s Crash Bandicoot trilogy (before the series continued under different developers), was Crash Bandicoot 3: Warped which was released on the PlayStation in 1998. Warped brings back Cortex once again, only this time he is working with Uka Uka, Aku Aku’s twin, and a time-traveling villain named Dr. Nefarious Tropy. The game added in a new collectible, time relics, which were awarded when you ran through the level to beat a time trial, destroying certain crates along the way to decrease your time.
All three of the original Crash Bandicoot games were remade for modern platforms and collected in a bundle called Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy. Even though the remake was not developed by Naughty Dog, Vicarious Visions delivered a faithful remake and a fantastic way to play those games.
Crash Team Racing
A spinoff of the main platform-based Crash Bandicoot franchise, Naughty Dog released Crash Team Racing in 1999 on PlayStation. It is a kart-racing game, featuring all of your favorite Crash Bandicoot characters. In what might be the most bizarre plot of Naughty Dog’s games, the characters go up against an alien named Nitros Oxide, who forces them to compete in a series of races leading up to the final boss fight of Oxide himself. If they lose, he will enslave them and turn Earth into a parking lot.
Crash Team Racing is highly underrated and overshadowed by the Mario Kart series, but it remains one of the best kart racers of all time. A remake of the game, Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled, was released in 2019, although Naughty Dog was not involved and it was developed by Beenox instead. But it’s still pretty great, and you can play it on modern consoles.
Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy
Stepping away from the Crash Bandicoot franchise, Naughty Dog released Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy on PlayStation 2 in 2001. This series instead focused on Jak and his friend Daxter. At the beginning of the game, Daxter accidentally falls into a vat of Dark Eco, a toxic sludge that turns him into an Ottsel, an otter-weasel hybrid.
Two siblings called Gol and Maia use the Dark Eco for their own evil scheme and you have to go around the lands to unite the four different Sages to defeat them. Like Crash Bandicoot, Jak and Daxter is a 3D platformer, and you have to collect Power Cells and Precursor Orbs around each level to progress to the end of the game. They kept their humor and personality from the Crash Bandicoot series and injected it into Daxter, your fun, crass sidekick. He plays well against the mute Jak.
Jak II
The second game in the Jak franchise, Jak II, was released in 2003 for the PlayStation 2, and it pivoted the series in a new direction. Unlike the first game, Jak II is an action-shooter, even though you are still heavily incentivized to collect things. The story picks up right after Jak and Daxter, as you and your friends are transported 500 years into the future.
It features a completely new setting, the large sprawling world of Haven City, and it shares something in common with the original Crash Bandicoot in that it can be quite hard. In addition to the new gunplay, you can also harness Dark Eco and turn into Dark Jak to maul your enemies. Jak II introduces a whole new set of characters as well and is darker in tone compared to the original.
Jak 3
The third Jak game, simply titled Jak 3, was released in 2004 on PlayStation 2. It followed the same formula as Jak II and the two games feel extremely similar, almost in the same way that the last two Crash Bandicoot games feel similar. But this time, you spend much of the game outside Haven City as you have been banished. You also spend much more time in a vehicle, racing around the Wastelands. The game sees Jak imbued with the power of Light Eco, as you follow the path of the Precursors, the ancient beings whose orbs you find throughout all three games.
Jak X: Combat Racing
Naughty Dog took the model of Crash Team Racing and applied it to the Jak franchise with Jak X: Combat Racing, which was released on PlayStation 2 in 2005. They already had stellar vehicles from the previous entry, and they developed a game with some great tracks, unique game modes, and awesome combat mechanics.
The story is the most mature story yet, as a villain named Krew poisons you from beyond the grave to incentivize you to race in a dangerous sport called “Combat Racing.” Even though they were originally released on PlayStation 2, they have ported all four Jak games onto PlayStation 4, so they are still easily accessible to play today.
Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune
Before The Last of Us and after their platformer games, Naughty Dog created the Uncharted franchise. The first game in the series was Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune which was released on PlayStation 3 in 2007. You probably recognize the name from the film, which starred Tom Holland, as it was loosely based on the game series. The first game follows a treasure hunter named Nathan Drake as he attempts to discover the lost city of El Dorado.
Not only was it originally stunning on the PlayStation 3, but the characters were also standouts, filled with the personality that Naughty Dog was known for. The game feels like a pulp Indiana Jones-like story, with relatable characters, even though Drake’s kill count is insane. The gameplay is a mix of climbing, puzzles, and hit-or-miss combat. Naughty Dog also continued with their love of collectibles, with treasures scattered throughout each level, and they are usually in hard-to-reach places, forcing you to explore the environments.
Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
The sequel to Drake’s Fortune, Uncharted 2: Among Thieves was released in 2009 on PlayStation 3. This game is essentially just the first Uncharted, but with significant improvements in many ways. This includes a cold open-train sequence that is one of the best set pieces in any video game, establishing the series as the king of set pieces.
The game sidelines Drake’s mentor Sully from the first game, with a fellow treasure hunter Chloe Frazer, and your love interest from Drake’s Fortune, Elena Fisher, serving as the main companions. The story is weird, as you attempt to stop a terrorist from drinking Nepalese tree sap from the Tree of Life. It also had multiplayer, the first in the series to do so.
Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception
Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception was released in 2011, and again, it is similar to the first two games. Released on the PlayStation 3, Drake’s Deception improved upon the set piece from Uncharted 2, if not in quality, then in quantity. You go from a Guy Ritchie-esque bar fight in London to a sinking ship to a crashing plane, to walking alone in the desert. The third game delves into the origins of Nathan Drake more than the first two do, showing us how exactly a younger Drake met Sully.
It also has a more plausible ending than the first two games, albeit one that left fans with some questions. Drake’s Deception reveals that Elena and Drake married and separated, although they do grow closer together. The villain of Uncharted 3 is one of the better villains too, an older woman named Katherine Marlowe who has some history with Sully. The original three games are available on PlayStation 4 through the remastered Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection, developed by Bluepoint Games.
Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End
The last Naughty Dog game to feature Nathan Drake as the main playable character was Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End, which was released on PlayStation 4 in 2016. It was the first game released by Naughty Dog, after the release of The Last of Us, and the gameplay is drastically different from the original three games, sharing the style of The Last of Us: Part II.
If you liked the younger Drake scenes from Drake’s Deception, you’ll love A Thief’s End, as you go through flashbacks with Drake’s brother Sam. But, most of the story has you as a retired treasure hunter, living the married life with Elena before your brother Sam drags you into his mess for one last ride. While there are some betrayals along the way, A Thief’s End is heartwarming and contains the best story of all the games, as you hunt down the pirate colony of Libertalia.
Uncharted: The Lost Legacy
Unlike the first four Uncharted games, Nathan Drake is not the main playable character of the 2017 entry in the franchise, Uncharted: The Lost Legacy. The game, which was released on the PlayStation 4, is a spinoff and shorter than the main four games, but that is not a remark on the game’s quality. Instead of playing as Drake, you play as Chloe Frazer, one of the characters from the previous entries.
This entry features large maps, like Madagascar in A Thief’s End. The puzzles in The Lost Legacy also happen to be some of the greatest puzzles in the franchise too. Even though the game follows other characters, it didn’t lose the Naughty Dog charm. Both The Lost Legacy and Uncharted 4 are available as remasters on PlayStation 5 and PC as well, as a part of the Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection.
So it’s not just The Last of Us that makes Naughty Dog one of the best game studios ever. Get your hands on a PlayStation console and try out some of these absolute gems for yourself. HBO’s The Last of Us is available on HBO Max.
Published: Feb 17, 2023 11:19 am