Even Troy Baker was daunted by joining the Uncharted franchise's fourth installment.
Even Troy Baker was daunted by joining the Uncharted franchise's fourth installment.
If you've played a video game recently, chances are you've met someone voiced by Troy Baker.
His CV reads like a greatest hits spanning Call of Duty, Saints Row, Infamous, Batman, Silent Hill and Resident Evil, as well as the lead in The Last of Us, one of the greatest games of all time.
But even Baker was daunted by joining the Uncharted franchise's fourth installment.
Sam and Nathan Drake in the upcoming Uncharted 4 videogame.
"I came on later on, which really put the pressure on me. I had to drop in and be ready to go from beat one," Baker told TimeOut, on the phone from Rome. "My ego said, 'I don't want to be the one to screw this up'."
All signs say he won't. Uncharted 4 is the climax to the Indiana Jones-style adventures of treasure hunter Nathan Drake. The franchise has already sold a reported 21 million copies.
It sees Drake's older brother Sam - long thought dead - debut as the pair join forces to search for lost pirate treasure.
"Nate's had all these great grand adventures that Sam has missed out on, but Sam is the one who implanted the idea [in Drake's head] of being this treasure hunter, being this adventurer, in him, and he's missed out on those 15 years," explains Baker, who voices Sam.
A scene from the Uncharted 4: Theif's End video game.
Despite his concerns about working on such a major title, as well as rumours of development issues, Baker says he soon realised he was working on something special.
"This is Uncharted. This is a big franchise. I didn't have to make it better, I just had to play my part," Baker says. "I love this story - it might be my favourite."
As a fan of Uncharted before he got the role, Baker is clear about why Drake makes such a compelling character.
A scene from the video game Uncharted 4: A Thief's End.
"When I first played Drake's Fortune, it was the first time I felt they'd captured the essence of someone I could believe. He's not James Bond, he doesn't have all these gadgets and gizmos. He literally has to use the things he has as a person, his wit and his abilities, to surmount unsurmountable odds.
Nathan Drake is the lead character in the Uncharted video game series.
As for how it will end, Baker says Drake's story won't be wrapped up "with a pretty bow. The ending that we have for this game didn't come lightly. It was something people wrestled with, and in turn players will wrestle with it ... but if you're honest with yourself, you'll know that it's an honest ending.
"That's exactly what you want for this franchise, isn't it?"
