A former Naughty Dog senior designer has questioned the need for an Uncharted remake, arguing that revisiting the original game would feel more like a “cash grab” than something the franchise actually needs.

The Uncharted series has remained dormant since Uncharted: The Lost Legacy launched in 2017, but speculation surrounding its eventual return has never really disappeared. While remaking Nathan Drake’s original adventure might seem like an obvious way to revive the franchise, former Naughty Dog developer Benson Russell would rather see the studio create something completely new.

Former Naughty Dog Developer Wants a New Uncharted Instead

Speaking with FRVR, Benson Russell, who worked as a senior game designer at Naughty Dog between 2007 and 2015, explained why he doesn’t believe the original Uncharted needs to be remade.

Russell worked at Naughty Dog throughout some of the studio’s most important years, covering the rise of the Uncharted franchise and much of the development period leading toward Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End.

According to Russell, one of the biggest problems with remaking Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune is that the original game remains easily accessible on modern hardware.

“Uncharted as a thing is still in the zeitgeist. There’s already a version you can play on modern consoles [to] get the experience. What’s the point of remastering [or remaking] it?”

However, accessibility isn’t his only concern.

Russell believes properly modernizing the first Uncharted could require significant changes to its story, structure, and set pieces, potentially changing much of what made the original game what it was.

“I just don’t see the point of remaking [it]. You’d have to rewrite the whole story to make it better which means you’re going to change the spirit and you’re going to change the scenes and what the first one was about.”

Instead of rebuilding an existing adventure, Russell thinks Naughty Dog should take everything it learned from later entries and use those lessons to create an entirely new Uncharted game.

‘Take the Lessons of Uncharted 4 and Make a New Game’

Russell specifically pointed toward Uncharted 4 as the foundation Naughty Dog could use for another entry.

“Take the lessons of Uncharted 4 and make a new game that’s in the past or wherever you need it to be. It doesn’t make any sense [to remake it].”

He also compared the situation to The Last of Us Part I, another Naughty Dog remake whose necessity was debated when it was released.

Russell said he had similar thoughts about that project, arguing that older games don’t necessarily need to be rebuilt simply because modern technology makes it possible.

When discussing a potential Uncharted remake more directly, he went even further, saying it would feel “more like a cash grab than it would feel like anything necessary at this point.”

His message to his former studio is pretty straightforward: don’t recreate the first game—make something new instead.

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Could a New Uncharted Still Happen?

Naughty Dog currently has its attention on Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet, its first major new IP in years.

However, that doesn’t necessarily mean Uncharted is finished.

Recent claims have suggested that Naughty Dog could also be working on a new Uncharted project, although nothing has been officially announced.

If the franchise does eventually return, there are plenty of directions Naughty Dog could take it. Uncharted 4 largely concluded Nathan Drake’s story, while The Lost Legacy demonstrated that the series can work without him being the central protagonist.

That leaves the door open for another character, another era, or even an entirely new adventure built around the gameplay foundations established by Uncharted 4.

And according to one of the developers who helped shape the original games, that would be considerably more interesting than simply rebuilding Drake’s first adventure.

Would you rather see Naughty Dog remake the original Uncharted or create an entirely new game in the series? Let us know in the comments below.