My favourite love story in a videogame is Nate and Elena from the Uncharted series. Is it a perfect love story? No, it's quite flawed in fact... but it's a very realistic love story and its flaws are what make it all the more powerful. It highlights the complexities in any relationship, how two people's mindsets can affect those around them but ultimately their love for the other person is what makes it work in the first place.
Nate and Elena's story has a continuity that progresses throughout the series and matures as the characters do, it becomes more complex as the games go on and the roller coaster of emotions that they, as characters, and we, as players, go through makes it feel all the more impactful. Naughty Dog has a way of making their characters feel so relatably human in their games from the in-depth writing, to the emotive mocap and voiceacting and the movie-like cinematography and set pieces; all of these aspects create very compelling character dynamics and engaging stories with visuals and soundtracks that compliment the tone masterfully.
So, Nate and Elena's story begins in the first Uncharted game where Elena is simply reporting on Nate's finding of Sir Francis Drake's coffin. Being the budding adventurer that he is, Nate goes on a quest for treasure with his mentor Sully, angering the local pirate mob in the process and, of course, Elena wanting to get the scoop, follows them. She proves herself to be quite resourceful and it both frustrates yet impresses Nate on several occasions, which results in some pretty stellar team-up moments like rescuing Nate from the pirate gang or Elena on the back of a speedboat with a hand cannon to clear the path for Nate to steer it. However, later in the story she ends up in a spot of trouble after they are split up, Nate then saves her and thwarts the evil plans of the game's villain (I'm keeping this as generic and spoiler-free as possible!) and at the end of the game in a very stereotypical action movie fashion, they share a romantic moment at sunset on a boat that steers away from the island. The two characters had grown to like each other throughout the game with a couple of hints and expressions of generic interest being sprinkled in to the dialogue but it was nothing too overt and it never felt forced so the game's conclusion being as romantic as it is feels rather natural- a typical "happy ever after" for an action adventure narrative. It's a very open-ended conclusion to their dynamic which can allude to more down the line, while also wrapping up the main adventure nicely. The narrative of Uncharted Drake's Fortune both sets up perfectly for a sequel while simultaneously concluding the adventure in a satisfying way to make it a standalone story.
Uncharted 2 then comes along and we see Nate wrapped up in another treasure hunting, globe trotting adventure with some new friends this time- Harry Flynn and Chloe Frazer, with the latter being his more prominent companion throughout the beginning of the game. But, much to Nate's surprise, Elena once again finds herself in the middle of the action trying to get coverage of this game's main villain- who has much more significant notoriety to the point that it borderlines infamy. The villain even comments on Elena being "his shadow" suggesting that he is aware of the media's interest in him. So now with Nate, Chloe and Elena all teaming up to stop yet another world-threatening psychopath, we see that there were some off-screen complexities within Nate and Elena's relationship suggesting that there was indeed more... but the two went in vastly different directions. Elena even remarks to Chloe that she is "last year's model" finding a dry humour in the situation. Nate had expressed interests in Chloe's advances at the start of the game but as soon as Elena entered the picture, it is made very clear that he still has feelings for her too. There are some tensions both about Nate's relationship with Chloe and about him once again going after some treasure that a psychotic criminal also wants, however Elena does offer her help where possible. Chloe sees how much Nate and Elena care for one another deep down and by the end of the game, she gently nudges the two of them to mend their relationship. It's a very touching yet entertaining exchange of dialogue between all of the characters involved after they had escaped a collapsing ruined city, all battered and bruised. It was life or death but the two still somehow find humour in it.
Uncharted 3, probably the most movie-like game to release at the time in 2011 (and my personal favourite in the series) takes a much different stance on storytelling and has a complete tonal shift to more psychological and personal narrative beats than the typical action romps of the previous two titles. It shows the growth of both the characters and the franchise as a whole, relying less on intense gunplay and moreso on striking setpieces and dramatic story beats. This game focuses a lot more on the dynamics between the characters and the stakes of Uncharted 3 are much more personal with even the villain (who is also my personal favourite in the franchise) having a deep history with Nate and Sully. It's more of a reflective look at Nate's life and whether doing what he does is all "worth it" in the end with characters like Chloe, Sully and Elena all telling him that he's getting too caught up in the treasure hunting. Much like with Uncharted 2, Elena doesn't appear until about 1/3 into the story where she helps Nate and Sully follow a lead on the villain's next move. She realises what's going on and she shows deep concern for Nate... it is even revealed that at some point between games that they got married, but it seemed to not be the happiest of marriages. Despite this, we still get some incredible team-up moments between the two as they reunite to rescue Sully- the almost father-like figure to Nate and it feels very remniscient of the old days. Elena may not join them in the finale this time around but she meets the boys in the conclusion of the game and Sully then says one of the best quotes I've ever heard in a videogame when referring to fixing Nate and Elena's relationship "We don't get to choose how we start in this life. Real Greatness is what you do with the hand you're dealt."
Fast forward a few years into Uncharted 4 now and all of the characters have a fresh coat of aged paint on them, showing off the stunning visual capabilities of the PS4 as well as showing some significant time has passed since the events of Uncharted 3. After some flashback sequences to set the tone of the game, we see Nate and Elena just living a normal domesticated life together, which is oddly wholesome and a very nice change of pace to see these characters just doing everyday things instead of the usual chaos that they get up to... if only it stayed that way. Uncharted 4 introduces a new core character to the series as well as a new villain who also has a past with Nate. Uncharted 4 builds upon more of the personal aspects of Uncharted 3 such as "who is Nate" and exploring more about why he does what he does. The new character, Sam, ropes Nate and Sully into one last big adventure which leads to a lot of personal moments between Nate and Sam, why they grew distant and how they've changed in that time apart. Nate neglected to inform Elena of any of this which led to lies upon lies and, once again, created tension in their relationship when she eventually does the digging around to find out the truth. She regrettably helps Nate and co in their quest and these moments with Nate and Elena alone together really highlight just how much the two have grown as characters but how they still work so well together even after the amount of difficulties their relationship has gone through over the years. There's one moment in particular that stands out to me where Nate and Elena are driving to this game's mythical lost city (a recurring theme for the climax of each game) and the scenery change alongside the accompanying whimsical music... it felt very much like a date instead of tracking down the villain in the upcoming ruins. It was very wholesome and a nice moment of reflection before the final act. In the last section of the game, you get some really sentimental moments between Nate, Elena, Sully and Sam which truly compliment their dynamic as a team and emphasises everything that they have been through up until this point, with a very fitting epilogue after the villain has been defeated. No spoilers for it here but it wraps up Nate and Elena's story in the best possible way and if that truly is our final farewell to the duo (which, given the 8 years since the game's release, seems likely) then it and how their relationship has developed perfectly depicts the motto of Sir Francis Drake himself "Sic parvis magna- Greatness from small beginnings."
