Naughty Dog approves of Uncharted film

Uncharted developer Naughty Dog has given the Uncharted movie its blessing, and said the appointment of Neil Burger as director is a "very good sign" that it will please fans of the blockbuster PlayStation 3 exclusive series.

Earlier this year Limitless and The Illusionist director Neil Burger was announced as director of the Uncharted movie after previous director David O. Russell's acrimonious exit from the project.

Burger said the new team was "starting from scratch" on the script and "going back to the video game".

Burger's comments enthused Uncharted fans who were concerned by the direction Russell was taking the film before he walked out.

Russell's vision would have seen Mark Wahlberg's Nathan Drake as a member of a family of antique traders that also included father Robert De Niro and uncle Joe Pesci.

Burger's vision, however, appears closer to video game developer Naughty Dog's virtual world.

And now the famed PS3 developer has given Burger the thumbs up.

"The producers of the movie project have a lot of integrity, and they are keen to make the kind of film fans of Uncharted want to see made," co-lead designer Richard Lemarchand told Eurogamer in a new Uncharted 3 interview conducted at Eurogamer Expo 2011.

"We've been impressed at Naughty Dog with the level of interest they've shown in talking to us and to Amy [Hennig, creative director] in particular in order to get it right. The attachment of Neil Burger to the project is a very good sign in that regard."

While the movie is being developed separately, Naughty Dog has been involved, with Hennig in regular contact with the film's producers.

"I've always been very excited about it," Lemarchand continued.

"I'm interested in this concept of transmedia, perhaps because of the kind of media environment I grew up in, that we all grew up in. I'm a big Doctor Who and Star Wars fan. You have the primary thing, which is the TV show or the movies, but then you extend your enjoyment by re-experiencing those story worlds through these other channels.

"We've set out to make the most cinematic character action games that have ever existed. Cinematic as well in the right sense, we hope, because it's all about ongoing, real-time interactive gameplay as much as we can possibly make it. We're happy with what we've been able to achieve in that regard.

"We're all big fans of film. We had to study on the techniques of cinema very diligently to be able to make these games. So yeah, I remain excited about the future of the Uncharted feature film."