When we announced Uncharted 3 we set out to make the multiplayer component as robust and compelling as any multiplayer game out there. We took lessons learned from our summer beta and used them for our launch. Since launch, new design ideas and community feedback have been applied to every patch we’ve released. We’re now on patch lucky number 13 and we’ve planted some fresh ideas deep into the game. Patch 1.13 for Uncharted 3 multiplayer has been months in the making and it’s our biggest patch ever.

Patch 1.13 will be available today, 7th August. If you’re not a fan of reading, check out the patch notes video below for a full rundown of what’s included. We wanted to give you some quick highlights on some of the new exciting content you can expect when you download the patch.

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Do you know what Nathan Drake is most afraid of? How about why, when, and where he first met Elena Fisher? Uncover these truths and much more via Drake’s first two critically acclaimed PS3 adventures when they arrive as digital downloads on the PS Store. Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune and Uncharted 2: Among Thieves Game of the Year Edition will land on the PS Store in the downloadable PS3 game section on 27th June.

In Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune, a 400-year-old clue in the coffin of explorer Sir Francis Drake leads Nathan Drake on a wild adventure to a forgotten island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Here Drake hunts for the fabled treasure of El Dorado. Learn the backstory of the colourful cast of Uncharted characters and the ancient secrets El Dorado hides.

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves Game of the Year Edition is the winner of over 200 Game of the Year awards, and one of the most highly acclaimed video games of all time. In this sequel, Drake is drawn back into the treacherous world of thieves and treasure-seekers. A mystery artefact propels him to undertake an expedition to the legendary Himalayan valley of Shambhala where he finds himself embroiled in a dangerous game of cat-and-mouse against a fugitive war criminal. Pushed to his limits, Drake is forced to risk everything.

Soon you can have two of Drake’s most epic adventures waiting on your PS3′s XMB, available at the tap of a button! Look for them on PlayStation Store 27th June.

Uncharted fans in the US might have noticed that all playable DLC for Uncharted 2: Among Thieves is available for free. While they popped the cork a bit early in the States, this is indeed a celebration of the pending arrival of both of Drake’s adventures as downloadable digital titles. When the PS Store updates today, everyone worldwide will be able to download the following DLC content for Uncharted 2 absolutely free of charge:

• Uncharted 2: Among Thieves – Drake’s Fortune MP Pack
• Uncharted 2: Among Thieves – Golden Guns
• Uncharted 2: Among Thieves – PlayStation Heroes Skin Pack
• Uncharted 2: Among Thieves – Sidekick Skin Pack
• Uncharted 2: Among Thieves – Siege Expansion Pack

This free Uncharted 2 DLC program will run until the digital launch of the two titles on 27th June. Once the PS Store updates on 27th June, all this DLC will only be available via purchase on the PS Store or when you buy the digital version of Uncharted 2: Among Thieves Game of the Year Edition. Mark your calendar for 27th June and be sure to practice your witty comebacks, daring leaps, and fortune hunting tactics as Nathan Drake’s first two blockbuster hits will be just a download and a button press away!

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You camped out on your favorite ledges to earn the kickoff medal on the Highrise and Yemen maps. You’re a pro at sniping fools running carelessly through the Desert Village and Airstrip. You’ve perfected your master ninja stealth kills in the secluded nooks and crannies of the London Underground and City of Brass. Ok, maybe you truly haven’t perfected any of that yet, but perhaps you’re just looking for something different and new. Whether you’re a rugged Uncharted 3 multiplayer fortune hunter or a causal explorer this trailer should get you amped:

Four brand new Uncharted 3 multiplayer maps will be available for download on Wednesday, April 11 2012, on the PS Store. The Graveyard map sets you in motion as you fight among ships and shipping crates on rolling waves. Old Quarter seems like a lovely scene on a cool Yemen night, but it’s full of dangerous alleys and delicately lit rooms. The bar, the back alleys and the broadways of the London Streets map offer some prime spots for a knockdown, drag-out turf war, so be sure to stop by the Pelican Inn for some more brawling. The Oasis map used to provide respite for a Bedouin camp, but now serves as a sun-drenched battlefield for your multiplayer matches.

We put a lot of love and polish into each map and each map has a new dynamic event that occurs as the match progresses. A patrol boat will circle the border of Graveyard launching grenades over the map as it cruises along its path. In Oasis, a plane drops a shipping crate that can flatten you or your enemy if you don’t move out of its way in time. The crate contains a power weapon if you’re smart enough to stay out of the crate’s shadow. London Street and Old Quarter contain dynamic events as well but we want to leave you a couple big surprises now don’t we?

Standalone, this new map pack will cost €9.99/£7.99. If you’re already a member of the Fortune Hunters’ Club this collection of maps cost you only the initial price of joining the club – just log into your PSN account and you can download the Drake’s Deception Map Pack for free.

If you still haven’t become a member of the Fortune Hunters’ Club, you’ll have until the PS Store updates on April 17, 2012, to join in the action. In just 12 days, the Fortune Hunters’ Club will shut its doors.

While the Fortune Hunters’ Club is shutting its doors, this doesn’t mean the DLC for Uncharted 3 will stop. For starters, for those of you itching for new play types and experimental modes, The Lab will make its return to Uncharted multiplayer. We’ll be talking with and polling you in our forums about various potential ideas we have for the future of Uncharted 3 multiplayer so be sure to join in our community and voice your opinion. Stay hungry as we will have additional news about future DLC and other plans for Uncharted 3 multiplayer in an upcoming blog post. For now let’s hit the new maps and see if your multiplayer chops sink or swim. See you online!

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By now you’ve become a badass at being a dependable teammate while taking out enemies trying to kill you in Uncharted 3 multiplayer, right? Not really? Ok, well, practice up because a new game type is coming in fiery hot to Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception multiplayer! Co-Op Shade Survival Mode will be available Wednesday March 14 on the PS Store. You’ll be able to tackle some of the toughest enemies in the UNCHARTED franchise with the help of your friends.

The Djinn haunt this mode as you and your friends will be assaulted by wave after wave of progressively more demanding opponents. There are eight rounds in total. The Djinn’s ability to catch fire and teleport poses a formidable challenge to team strategy and coordination. Later rounds include highly skilled Djinn sporting extra armor and firepower so get ready for a hearty battle.

Players will earn a very sizable amount of cash by playing this mode through to completion and therefore can level up more quickly when surviving the onslaught. There are new medals to earn and different round objectives may come into effect during a match. The Marked Man round objective makes its first appearance in an Arena setting as a certain Djinn will be marked and then heavily protected by other Djinn bodyguards during the match.

Standalone, this mode will cost you €5.99/£3.99. If you’re already a member of the Fortune Hunters’ Club this new mode has cost you only the initial price of admission – you can download the Co-Op Shade Survival Mode for Free on Tuesday. If you’re still not a member of the Fortune Hunters’ Club but want to get in on all the DLC that’s available for Uncharted 3, the FHC is the most cost effective way to do so. For €24.99/£19.99 you can become a member today and all 14 packs of DLC content will be marked free for you to download. Just click on the FHC icon to buy it via the PS Store, or grab it via the in-game Uncharted 3 store today.

As a FHC member you save over 60% on the 14 packs of Uncharted 3 DLC. Current members and any new membership purchased will receive all currently available and any upcoming DLC packs for Uncharted 3, as well as the exclusive Fortune Hunters’ Club theme for your PS3. When new Uncharted 3 DLC hits, you’ll be notified right from the XMB of your PS3 with a message that will take you right to it.

Incidentally the fiery, devilish Djinn bring our Fortune Hunters’ Club DLC total to lucky number 13. The next, and final, DLC in the Fortune Hunters’ Club will be coming at you next month so be sure to look for our next blog post for full details about what we have in store. For now, see you in the Co-Op Shade Survival mode online!

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As we get closer and closer to the European launch of the PS VITA and Uncharted: Golden Abyss, myself and all the guys at Bend Studio are getting pretty amped. For us it’s been a long time in the making, from early brainstorming sessions on the PS VITA itself beginning in 2008, through production, which wrapped up at the end of 2011. When given the opportunity to create a launch title for Sony’s new next-gen handheld, we jumped at the chance. When asked what game we’d like to make, we said Uncharted! Here’s why.

From the beginning, our goal was to create a great Uncharted game, to give players, including ourselves, more of what they love, but with the PS VITA’s unique spin. The cinematic experience, the gunplay and weapons, the compelling story and characters, the mystery and treasure hunting based on real history, the puzzles, the platforming, and of course, the colourful and detailed imagery… it’s all there. But it’s on a gorgeous five inch screen that you can take with you.

If you’ve been following all the pre-release news, then you know that Uncharted: Golden Abyss also has a ton of collectibles, over 300 in fact. We wanted to not only give the game some replayability with some additional exploration, but also to tell more back story, which we do through the items you collect, locations you photograph, and other puzzles you solve. All of these are tied to Trophies that can be earned. We didn’t forget the gamer who prefers gunplay to exploration: one of the collectible types in Uncharted: Golden Abyss are the Bounties. These drop randomly from fallen enemies throughout the game and represent things that might have been found in the area you’re fighting in: old Spanish playing cards, gold and silver coins, etc. To make it more challenging, we made some the items scarce and made some them really rare. You’re not going to collect all these on a single play through.

But we’re not cruel. To make it a little easier to collect all the Bounties, we created The Black Market. This is a NEAR application that allows you select a Bounty type from your collection and send a request out to the Black Market. If any other VITA players out there (in the area where you made the request) have a Bounty that you’re missing, the Black Market will send you a copy of their Bounty, even the rarest collectibles. We even created a sixth Bounty type that you can obtain only through NEAR: if you send a request to the Black Market and no one has what you need, the Black Market will send you a carved Fetish for you troubles. Again, all of these are tied to Trophies. If you want that platinum, it’s going to take you awhile, and you have to take your PS VITA with you!

We can’t wait!

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