Have you ever wondered how Nathan Drake, the quip-happy protagonist of Naughty Dog’s Uncharted series, has managed to dispatch armies of gun-toting, trigger-happy henchmen without being turned into human swiss cheese?
Well, despite being shot at more times than even the best stick-shaker could shake a stick at, it turns out none of those bullets are actually hitting our plucky hero.
According to Naughty Dog animator Jonathan Cooper, the red screen that most players assume means they’re taking hits doesn’t actually mean Drake is being pumped full of lead. In Uncharted, it actually signifies that his luck is about to run out, so you’d better find cover.
“Drake doesn’t ever take bullet damage,” Cooper wrote on Twitter. “The red UI that shows ‘hits’ is to represent his ‘luck’ running out. Eventually, enemies will get a clear shot and kill him if he takes enough near-misses.”
It’s an interesting take, and one that either means Drake is the luckiest person in video game history, or that Uncharted’s goons went to the same training academy as Star Wars’ famously inept stormtroopers.
With the explanation blowing the minds of fans around the world, Naughty Dog alum Amy Hennig chimed in to explain the team initially made that decision to stay true to the movies they were homaging. Who knew?