How does one take the most eagerly awaited sequel of the year, Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, and make it even more enticing? Add multiplayer. And not just any multiplayer, but a three-player co-op mode completely separate from the single-player campaign, a five-on-five competitive Deathmatch mode pitting heroes against villains, and Naughty Dog’s own twist on the traditional flag capturing mode, “Plunder,” which will have you using the game’s revamped grenade throwing mechanic to toss a solid gold idol around the map.

“The key fact to take away from this whole gameplay experience is that for the player who just wants to play with their friends…we have that. And for the guy who wants to go out and be really competitive…we have that as well,” said Justin Richmond, Naughty Dog’s multiplayer designer. “We’re trying to cater to all different types of players with the multiplayer portion of the game.”

I love the idea of creating separate side missions geared specifically for two to three players rather than simply tacking a second player onto the single-player campaign, proof that Naughty Dog isn’t treating multiplayer as an afterthought, but a fully-realized and finely-tuned part of the total gaming experience.