By the end of this month, Naughty Dog intends to release patch 1.11 for Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception. This patch will resurrect the Lab, the popular feature introduced for Uncharted 2's multiplayer.
As the name suggests, the Lab is a bit experimental. Naughty Dog's designers have concocted a number of slightly unusual game modes for online play. The first Lab mode, which will go live with the patch, will be a T-bolt and Pistole only match. Over time Naughty Dog will rotate in other game types.
Patch 1.11 also introduces a permanent addition to multiplayer: Elimination mode. Elimination is like Team Deathmatch except that there are no respawns. When a player is killed, they must wait until the end of the match to respawn. Their teammates will not be able to hear them over voice chat during that wait. Elimination Mode, like the Lab, was featured in Uncharted 2.
This patch opens up several new variables for custom games as well. For example, you can alter the health multiplier or respawn timer. You can change these values through an "Advanced Settings" menu.
The nice thing about this update is that it's making the multiplayer more replayable for no charge. Naughty Dog has released a huge amount of premium DLC for UC3 so far so this bit of charity is appreciated. It helps Naughty Dog too in the end; the freebies encourage more players to be active, and if they're active they're more likely to fork over money for the DLC.
UC3 lead multiplayer designer Robert Cogburn and game director Justin Richmond cover the other details for Patch 1.11 in the video below.
