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As they say: imitation is the best form of flattery. But borrowing another studio’s assets is perhaps taking it a little too far.
That’s the case that befell Uncharted developer Naughty Dog, which released its latest story trailer for the upcoming finale to its adventuring quadrilogy, A Thief’s End, only to be told that a prominent image in the video had been pinched from another title.
Not just any game, either, but fellow blockbuster Assassin’s Creed. A painting of a shoreline focused upon during a flashback portion of Nathan Drake’s monologue is almost identical to concept art for 2013’s swashbuckling entry Assassin’s Creed, minus the removal of a pirate silhouette.
The borrowed print was spotted by Ubisoft’s head of content for Assassin’s Creed Azaïzia Aymar, who quipped on Twitter: “I get the thief title now!”
Naughty Dog quickly moved to replace the asset, releasing a tweaked teaser and issuing an apology.
“In our eagerness to get the story trailer out we made a regrettable mistake and didn’t thoroughly vet the art work used for an in game painting,” the studio admitted.
“We’ve already updated the trailer. We hold all artistry in high regard and take full responsibility for having allowed this to happen.
“We want to sincerely apologise to everyone at Ubisoft, the Assassin’s Creed team, the original artist and our fans."
Aymar responded: “Honest mistake, fixed like a boss. Kudos guys.”
He also joked about a crossover between the two protagonists of the respective series: “It still looks fantastic! At some point you will have to tell the truth about Drake Miles!”
Woooow Uncharted 4 using one of ACIV artwork in their trailer… I get the "thief" title now! https://t.co/rholpuvw9I lol at 1:36
— Aymar Azaïzia (@AymarMtl) February 24, 2016
@EscoBlades Original… Can you spot the differences? :p pic.twitter.com/Sj7fuNukLp
— Aymar Azaïzia (@AymarMtl) February 24, 2016
