Just finished it. I thought it was brilliant although a couple of things do bug me. I hope more games of this type appear, 7 years to wait from the first one was too long. Immersive stories are something I will look for in the future.
Gaming The Last of Us Part II (PS4)
- Thread starter Neelu
- Start date
Did not see the leaks before the game came out. I'll be vague in my assessment to avoid spoilers.
I'll say that I'm incredibly disappointed because the quality of the story doesn't even compare to its predecessor. ND has abandoned everything that made the first game so great and special, instead opting for a torture porn that emotionally drained me, although not necessarily in a good way.
If that was their intention from the beginning, they have certainly succeeded, but at a hefty cost of superb story, characters, and the worldbuilding they have crafted in the first game. Pacing of the story is also a serious issue, I have many examples but I'll just leave it at that for now.
Gameplay is fairly solid although not revolutionary in any way and gets repetitive after a while.
I will give great credit to the developers for the incredible sound and graphics that utilizes the power of PS4 to its fullest.
All in all a solid 6/10 for me. The game is definitely quality in terms of technical achievements, but the story has taken a complete nosedive to the point where I just could not enjoy it.
I'll say that I'm incredibly disappointed because the quality of the story doesn't even compare to its predecessor. ND has abandoned everything that made the first game so great and special, instead opting for a torture porn that emotionally drained me, although not necessarily in a good way.
If that was their intention from the beginning, they have certainly succeeded, but at a hefty cost of superb story, characters, and the worldbuilding they have crafted in the first game. Pacing of the story is also a serious issue, I have many examples but I'll just leave it at that for now.
Gameplay is fairly solid although not revolutionary in any way and gets repetitive after a while.
I will give great credit to the developers for the incredible sound and graphics that utilizes the power of PS4 to its fullest.
All in all a solid 6/10 for me. The game is definitely quality in terms of technical achievements, but the story has taken a complete nosedive to the point where I just could not enjoy it.
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Finished it.
I kind of get what people have said about the story if it’s why I think it is. It does go in a bit of a weird direction in the end but I’ve never really seen a story like it. A lot to digest and it all does feel like it was a bit pointless in the end but I guess that’s part of it.
I was pretty uncomfortable during the fight at the end in the water because of how pointless and futile it felt. Ellie pretty much became the villain and I was thinking why even kill Abby at this point. And again that’s probably how they wanted me to feel. It’s weird really.
I think it’s a great game. I’m not going to compare it to the original but on its own it’s easily an 8 or 8.5 out of 10 for me. It’s fantastic.
I was pretty uncomfortable during the fight at the end in the water because of how pointless and futile it felt. Ellie pretty much became the villain and I was thinking why even kill Abby at this point. And again that’s probably how they wanted me to feel. It’s weird really.
I think it’s a great game. I’m not going to compare it to the original but on its own it’s easily an 8 or 8.5 out of 10 for me. It’s fantastic.
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Im so conflicted on it. There is so much to marvel at in this game but I felt nothing for Abby despite their very long winded attempt to create empathy - and given that’s half the game I’m left disappointed. I totally get what they went for and I commend the bravery in going for it but it’s not the direction I was personally hoping for. Thematically, it has some great parallels and I can applaud the care and attention that went into it but, again, it’s not what I wanted for a character I’ve been so invested in since the first game. It’s going to be marmite for most - you’ll either love it or hate it.
I personally loved the game and the ending wasn’t what I expected but in a good way. It made sense to me and felt very natural because of what happens. Joel kills her dad, Abby kills Joel, Ellie wants revenge, kills all her friends, Abby kills Jessie and nearly kills Ellie, Tommy, but Lev tells her to stop and Ellie still needs the revenge off her mind. While hunting her down for the last time wether she dies or not. Even Abby didn’t want to fight anymore after everything that’s happened.
I was surprised how I started to like Abby and Lev towards the end, I wanted to kill her ASAP. Was so scared fighting Ellie halfway I didn’t want to kill her. And at the end I really didn’t want to kill Abby because it just wasn’t worth it anymore. Then with Ellie nearly getting her revenge, she sees Joel and realise it’s not what Joel would have wanted her to become this monster. Enough blood has been spilt on both sides. So the cycle of revenge ends with her mercy. Very bold way to do a story. At least that’s why I got from it.
My few gripes with the story is Dina left in the end. Isn’t that basically suicidal with a loud baby in a world where noises attracts these things. Also killing Abbys friends should have been more hands on with me bashing their heads in
. Not some cutscene or a quick death.
I was surprised how I started to like Abby and Lev towards the end, I wanted to kill her ASAP. Was so scared fighting Ellie halfway I didn’t want to kill her. And at the end I really didn’t want to kill Abby because it just wasn’t worth it anymore. Then with Ellie nearly getting her revenge, she sees Joel and realise it’s not what Joel would have wanted her to become this monster. Enough blood has been spilt on both sides. So the cycle of revenge ends with her mercy. Very bold way to do a story. At least that’s why I got from it.
My few gripes with the story is Dina left in the end. Isn’t that basically suicidal with a loud baby in a world where noises attracts these things. Also killing Abbys friends should have been more hands on with me bashing their heads in
. Not some cutscene or a quick death.Should have to prove you brought the game and played it for at least 5 hours before you can write a review on it. Wonder how many people who gave it a 0/10 actually played the game, doubt it be any higher than 3%
I’ve given it a positive review on metacritic. It’s bullshit that the user score is that low. People just bandwagoning.
Yeah they are. Theres no way in hell most of them even played the game. They threw their toys out of the pram because you know who. And thinking theres some sjw crap happening. Maybe one or 2 things but it wasn't so in your face about it.
Finished it. Spoiler-free verdict: what an experience that was. Very different to the first one and like that game, it will take some time to digest it all. Looking back it feels like there were some missteps along the way and it's less focussed than the first game, but ultimately I really like what they've gone for here. It's a unique achievement in video game storytelling for me.
I personally loved the game and the ending wasn’t what I expected but in a good way. It made sense to me and felt very natural because of what happens. Joel kills her dad, Abby kills Joel, Ellie wants revenge, kills all her friends, Abby kills Jessie and nearly kills Ellie, Tommy, but Lev tells her to stop and Ellie still needs the revenge off her mind. While hunting her down for the last time wether she dies or not. Even Abby didn’t want to fight anymore after everything that’s happened.
I was surprised how I started to like Abby and Lev towards the end, I wanted to kill her ASAP. Was so scared fighting Ellie halfway I didn’t want to kill her. And at the end I really didn’t want to kill Abby because it just wasn’t worth it anymore. Then with Ellie nearly getting her revenge, she sees Joel and realise it’s not what Joel would have wanted her to become this monster. Enough blood has been spilt on both sides. So the cycle of revenge ends with her mercy. Very bold way to do a story. At least that’s why I got from it.
My few gripes with the story is Dina left in the end. Isn’t that basically suicidal with a loud baby in a world where noises attracts these things. Also killing Abbys friends should have been more hands on with me bashing their heads in
I assume Dina and JJ still got visits from others from Jackson from time to time. Weren't Jesse's relatives basically begging them to come back in a letter? So they probably got some people together to help move them back and protect them along the way. Her and JJ alone out there in a house on its own doesn't seem very safe either, so it would make sense. I'd like to imagine Ellie will go there as well, now the cycle of violence has ended and she finally closed that chapter in her head. I want her and Dina to have a chance at a happy life together, so that's what I'm going for.
I'm about 15 hours in so far and it's about 7-8/10. Definitely not 10/10 at all for me to be honest. Good game with some good mechanics but so far poorly written story and outdated mechanics, beside lack of novelty for even the new ideas hurt its rating. The new ideas in stealth are nice and all but nothing new in comparison to all other games around and the rest of ideas are just outdated, beside it just lacks the feel of being fresh that was present when I played the first game. Exploration is done pretty well though and very rewarding I'll give them that, and it's definitely not boring, except some environmental puzzles.
If you want to create a new main character in a story driven sequel this is how to do it.
Think I must be around 10 hours or so now, brilliant game, love the story, very emotional, everything is spot on.
Great game.
Great game.
On to Seattle Day 1 (A)...
This is Ellie and Joel's story, a story I've played for about 25-30 hours over the course of 2 games so I'm sorry but 5 minutes of nice doctor helping zebra isn't going to strike a chord with me. I don't give a feck about him and I don't give a shit about Abby.
They took, what was in my view, the best video game of all time, continued the story, improved the gameplay and improved the graphics. What's not to love? 9.5/10. Only complaint is that I'd have loved it to be longer.
These long gameplay sequences that have you do nothing bar walking in a nice looking place, which are copied from a similar sequence done in left behind dlc of the first game, they were fun in the dlc but in this one I'm sorry they are way too many and too long while serve nothing bar dragging and dragging.
I loved the game, there are bits I hated but they are the reason I loved it. They didnt make a lovely sweet disney story, things happen that I didnt want to happen and it didnt run the way I wanted it to but thats the beauty of it
Finally finished the game over the weekend. 9.5/10 for me. Took my time with it (30+ hrs) playing as stealthily as possible and exploring the world.
Naughty Dog took a huge risk with this game and I think it paid off for me. Risks not only in terms of the story, but also in terms of how the narrative flows and the gameplay itself. This game is not made to just service the player's whims. If the players are looking for a hero's journey, a game which satisfies their power fantasies, a game that makes them feel good of what they are doing in the game, a game that is just fun then it's not for them. So in a way, I understand why players who are used to AAA games might not like it or just might give up finishing it.
First of, the graphics is great. Best of this gen esp. the outdoors. Green and damp settings of Seattle is just jaw dropping. I really love the story telling. Having to play the first half with Ellie and absolutely hating Abby and her group, and then playing the second half with Abby in the same timeframe really helps in giving an arc to Abby's character to the point I didn't want Ellie to kill Abby at the end. It also helped cement the idea that revenge mission that Ellie is on or the whole circle of violence is pointless (which was just seeded during Ellie's half). Thankfully ND didn't intertwine those halves together as chapters. Playable flashbacks were also very well done for both the characters. The flashback with Ellie and Joel at the museum is probably my favorite moment in a game in the last few years. The new factions Seraphites and WLF and the war between them is really well done esp with the context given by the many notes and letters lying around and little chats the NPCs are having (you have a lot of time to read and listen when playing stealthily). The violence itself is freakin brutal and uncomfortable. Never knew having to put a knife into a dog would be difficult even in a game. I also really liked the small details that ND put in. For example, when an enemy is hurt but not dead, he/she gets to their knee and then either begs to not kill them or just bad mouths Ellie. You are given a prompt to absolutely destroy them brutally. And one time it was followed by Dina saying "Jesus christ" to really bring home how brutal it was and how brutal Ellie had become.
I think it was intended, but they were a handful of times when I felt exhausted. Two of those times was when I thought the game was ending; around the time when Ellie killed Mel and Owen and around the time Abby is fighting Ellie. Even though I was aware of the spoilers, carrying on after those points was uncomfortable. To be fair though, it paid off. Gameplay is still a bit clunky, a lot better than the first game, but still a bit clunky. The dodge system is not very consistent so one-on-one combats sometimes got frustrating. And the enemy AI isn't the best in hard mode so playing it stealthily wasn't the most satisfying. I've heard it is much better in survivor mode but haven't tried it out yet.
All in all, it was a great game. I want to go through it in survivor mode, maybe when an enhanced version comes out in PS5 and have enough time to spare.
First of, the graphics is great. Best of this gen esp. the outdoors. Green and damp settings of Seattle is just jaw dropping. I really love the story telling. Having to play the first half with Ellie and absolutely hating Abby and her group, and then playing the second half with Abby in the same timeframe really helps in giving an arc to Abby's character to the point I didn't want Ellie to kill Abby at the end. It also helped cement the idea that revenge mission that Ellie is on or the whole circle of violence is pointless (which was just seeded during Ellie's half). Thankfully ND didn't intertwine those halves together as chapters. Playable flashbacks were also very well done for both the characters. The flashback with Ellie and Joel at the museum is probably my favorite moment in a game in the last few years. The new factions Seraphites and WLF and the war between them is really well done esp with the context given by the many notes and letters lying around and little chats the NPCs are having (you have a lot of time to read and listen when playing stealthily). The violence itself is freakin brutal and uncomfortable. Never knew having to put a knife into a dog would be difficult even in a game. I also really liked the small details that ND put in. For example, when an enemy is hurt but not dead, he/she gets to their knee and then either begs to not kill them or just bad mouths Ellie. You are given a prompt to absolutely destroy them brutally. And one time it was followed by Dina saying "Jesus christ" to really bring home how brutal it was and how brutal Ellie had become.
I think it was intended, but they were a handful of times when I felt exhausted. Two of those times was when I thought the game was ending; around the time when Ellie killed Mel and Owen and around the time Abby is fighting Ellie. Even though I was aware of the spoilers, carrying on after those points was uncomfortable. To be fair though, it paid off. Gameplay is still a bit clunky, a lot better than the first game, but still a bit clunky. The dodge system is not very consistent so one-on-one combats sometimes got frustrating. And the enemy AI isn't the best in hard mode so playing it stealthily wasn't the most satisfying. I've heard it is much better in survivor mode but haven't tried it out yet.
All in all, it was a great game. I want to go through it in survivor mode, maybe when an enhanced version comes out in PS5 and have enough time to spare.
See I personally loved those segments. The graphics are so good and I love Ellie's little comments about stuff, plus it always seems like a welcome break from the stress of the fights and sneaking around. If that was the full game then I'd get pretty fed up.
There were also loads of segments like that in the first game, not just Left Behind, so I'm not sure what you're on about.
The first game was 15 hours only when it comes to length, so everything for me felt it was at its perfect length and the story was compact. This one extends well beyond that and is simply dragging at this point. Beside, first game was about Joel and Ellie's journey and it was the center of it, and how their relationship is developing. This one is about a revenge story, and these long arse segments
Happens in the past and many of them serve no purpose at all and you can cut them and replace with some other environmental exploration of Seattle and the story would have went on as normal. Take this long segment in second half of the game, at the beginning of it. Don't complete if you didn't reach second part :
When you explore the ferris wheels and aquarium with Owen. What's the point really I don't get it? Doesn't help the story at all. Abbey could have said they went on there before and just moved on for the game. Don't need to pass through 20-30 minutes doing nothing but walking, instead of continuing the story events. This can't be called anything else bar dragging the story to be much longer than the first one.
When you explore the ferris wheels and aquarium with Owen. What's the point really I don't get it? Doesn't help the story at all. Abbey could have said they went on there before and just moved on for the game. Don't need to pass through 20-30 minutes doing nothing but walking, instead of continuing the story events. This can't be called anything else bar dragging the story to be much longer than the first one.
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I think these are there to humanize them. To show that these aren't just people you randomly kill like any other video game. They have lives and make jokes and share experiences. I really liked the Aquarium scenes personally.
The problem is it affects the pacing of the story for me.
The aquarium scenes came also after a good period of quiet events with Abbey and very few and short action scenes so to have another extended 20 to 30 minutes doing nothing. It hurt the pacing, a lot really. Felt like when the story was starting to reach climax in last chapter with Ellie and Abbey encountering each other, it decided to abruptly stop? Humanizing them is good and all but pacing of the story is much more important.
Finished this today so I can finally read all the spoiler tabs.
9/10 for me. I loved almost everything about it and just can't be arsed to be a pedantic fool and mark it down for any of its minor foibles (and especially the story) when it is still a fantastic game of a quality that we don't see often.
I actually loved the pacing, I like the suspense of the quiet walking bits interspersed with the action parts. And the graphics ... just awesome.
Screw all the naysayers. Awesome.
9/10 for me. I loved almost everything about it and just can't be arsed to be a pedantic fool and mark it down for any of its minor foibles (and especially the story) when it is still a fantastic game of a quality that we don't see often.
I actually loved the pacing, I like the suspense of the quiet walking bits interspersed with the action parts. And the graphics ... just awesome.
Screw all the naysayers. Awesome.
Yeah they could have maybe rejigged the way it was told. It did seem too long a gap for me between her holding Ellie at gunpoint and having to wait about 10 game hours to see the result of that.
The graphics would be even better without the ridiculously heavy film grain.
Yeah, too many games do it now, it's like the purposely force you to walk for a while to pad out the hours of the game !
Best reviewer out there.
Are there any reviews of this reviewer so I can check if this is true.
Just finished part B and starting towards the home stretch.
This story has turned jumped completely off plot except occasionally showing characters being silly.
The sad thing is the game is better gameplay wise this far in, so many options and ways to fight. Sure a little clunky and the camera can be weird when close to a wall but its fun and animations are smooth as hell.
Some of the set pieces in the game are absolutely amazing.
This story has turned jumped completely off plot except occasionally showing characters being silly.
Everyone behaves stupidly to drive the plot on. Its unforgivable and while the GoT S8 thing is harsh, its certainly Walking Dead levels of poor character decisions for plot convenience.
Ellie leaves the map behind... Really? Abbie lets her live again because Lev melted her icy heart in two days!
The fact they try to say she changed from a piece of shit to good guy in 2 days because she saved a kid who saved her first is crazy.
Its daft. They should have been hinting at this throughout instead of having her behave like the Terminator and treat her friends like shit.
Tommy shoots Manny in the head and Abby legit doesn't give a shite because she's more concerned with her new friends... he's an afterthought, she screws Owen and then tells him she doesn't care, fecking up his love for her and his realtionship with Mel. Owen turns idiot.
Don't get me started on the love triangle thing.. Buffy the vampire slayer, levels on that one. "I know you stopped wanting to be with me because of your pursuit of golf, but even though my girlfriend is pregnant lets have angry sex before I go Walking Dead stupid and get my partner and baby killed trying to defend you, when I'm clearly given an out to keep us all alive." I mean he could just have sent Ellie to Seraphite Island, the chances of her finding Abby there or surviving what was going down there were very fecking slim.
The only good side to the writing is Lev and Yara are fecking great characters.
Ellie leaves the map behind... Really? Abbie lets her live again because Lev melted her icy heart in two days!
The fact they try to say she changed from a piece of shit to good guy in 2 days because she saved a kid who saved her first is crazy.
Its daft. They should have been hinting at this throughout instead of having her behave like the Terminator and treat her friends like shit.
Tommy shoots Manny in the head and Abby legit doesn't give a shite because she's more concerned with her new friends... he's an afterthought, she screws Owen and then tells him she doesn't care, fecking up his love for her and his realtionship with Mel. Owen turns idiot.
Don't get me started on the love triangle thing.. Buffy the vampire slayer, levels on that one. "I know you stopped wanting to be with me because of your pursuit of golf, but even though my girlfriend is pregnant lets have angry sex before I go Walking Dead stupid and get my partner and baby killed trying to defend you, when I'm clearly given an out to keep us all alive." I mean he could just have sent Ellie to Seraphite Island, the chances of her finding Abby there or surviving what was going down there were very fecking slim.
The only good side to the writing is Lev and Yara are fecking great characters.
The sad thing is the game is better gameplay wise this far in, so many options and ways to fight. Sure a little clunky and the camera can be weird when close to a wall but its fun and animations are smooth as hell.
Some of the set pieces in the game are absolutely amazing.
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God no, it went on forever as it is.
He does a lot of nitpicking in this one. Mostly because it is from Naughty Dog and expectations are way higher. Also waiting for sale is not really a fair conclusion as still better than most of the mediocre game that he recommends to buy.
I was watching PewDiePie stream and he also didn't like the story but ended it by saying that he would rather play this that most of the mediocre games out there.
Says the video is private ? Did he remove it temporarily? Was working few minutes ago.
Edit: Works now no problem. Don't know why he put it on private.
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Like he says, people just like different things. I had some of the same issues as he had but despite all of that it's still an essential buy for me, it all comes down to how important all different aspects of a game are for you. In any case, no one should be using a review to validate or invalidate their opinion on a video game, which is what I feel too many people out there do (not referring to you, but just reading the YT comments on the video). His review make good points and is very informative, that's all I need to know.
Yes but I feel a lot of reviewers are suddenly forgetting how unpolished games are released these days. I had all the issues that he mentioned, pacing, order of story sequences looked off and the game felt a bit too long. But if I measure the quality of this video game than to what we get from other video games, I just can't ignore the effort that ND put into this. Even for AI they can excused as most of the physics and AI system is running on 7 year old CPU which was even underpowered at that time.
It's just I want Game developers to put as much effort as ND put in their games. Despite having story issues, it was still one of the most unique experience I had with a video game. I think at the end that has to taken into consideration when you recommend someone to buy something.
The verdict is only a part of the review, he spends most of the video praising Naughty Dog for all those things you mention. It certainly felt like he would rate it much higher based on all of those things but ultimately the pacing and dragging was too hard for him to look past. Some people will agree with that and for some people that will sound harsh.
Now that I've finished it, had a night to sleep on it and time to digest it, here are some things from a narrative perspective that did and didn't work for me. All in spoilers of course. I usually don't like to make long winded posts because I figure no one is interested in them. But what the hell, there's a lot to talk about. Narrative only, it'll be long enough without getting into any other aspect of the game.
So yeah, not everything was perfect and there are genuine issues with it. I can see why these issues can ruin it for some and they also make it difficult for me to categorically tell someone "play this because it's incredible and you will be blown awy", because I know there's a real possibility that person might end up really disliking it. I'd still recommend anyone to see for themselves.
On a personal level though, the things that worked made it an absolutely sublime experience for me, unlike any other in video gaming. There were characters I already loved that I love even more and new characters that that will stick with me for a long time. The original and Left Behind are games that I still treasure so many years later and while I can't say how I'll be feeling about it in 10 years time, right now this game definitely gets a place beside those two.
@evil_geko this is it, we can finally have a decent conversation now.
But what the hell, there's a lot to talk about. Narrative only, it'll be long enough without getting into any other aspect of the game.Ellie and Dina's relationship. They had fantastic chemistry from start to finish. The writing between them is excellent, from the platyful banter leading up to their second kiss (just before Joel's death) to their trek through Seattle and finally the shortlived happiness and painful departure at the farm house. Dina's scenes become a lot less frequent fairly early into the game, which was understandable, but I just didn't want them to ever end.
Abby's story. Probably the most controversial part of the entire game but yes it works for me. It's a jarring switch in the middle of the game but I grew to like her when Yara and Lev were introduced in her storyline. Some of her best moments were when she was crossing the sky bridge and descending down that tall building with Lev and later on when she was on the island together with Yara looking for Lev. The friendships she forms with those characters and their dialogue were fantastic and really helped humanize Abby for me. Her fear of heights during those sky bridge segments was a nice touch to that effect as well. It's crucial Naughty Dog got this right as the entire second half and ending sequence of the game hinges on this. For me, they absolutely succeeded.
The ending. Now if you didn't buy in to the previous point, this probably doesn't work for you either but for me it did. I've seen a lot of articles about this saying it feels like the game or writers are trying to tell us gamers something and they don't like it. That's not what happened here for me. I never felt responsible for anything that the characters did in the game. It's telling their story and yes it's trying to make us feel as awful as they do, but only because it makes it more effective, not as some moralistic lesson. By the final fight I was pretty much begging these characters to stop and then, they did. I thought it was a really powerful moment and while the ending could be seen as devastating with Ellie losing everything, I also saw something hopeful in that final flashback with Joel. There was still a way back for him with Ellie in the end. I took that as Ellie considering that perhaps the same is true for her. I will say one thing though: I don't want to see her as protagonist in a violent game anymore. I would really love to see what happens to her as she tries to piece her life back together, but I couldn't stomach it if it meant her picking up her weapons again (against non-infected). Which means you can't really fit that into a video game in The Last of Us' universe, unfortunately.
Abby's story. Probably the most controversial part of the entire game but yes it works for me. It's a jarring switch in the middle of the game but I grew to like her when Yara and Lev were introduced in her storyline. Some of her best moments were when she was crossing the sky bridge and descending down that tall building with Lev and later on when she was on the island together with Yara looking for Lev. The friendships she forms with those characters and their dialogue were fantastic and really helped humanize Abby for me. Her fear of heights during those sky bridge segments was a nice touch to that effect as well. It's crucial Naughty Dog got this right as the entire second half and ending sequence of the game hinges on this. For me, they absolutely succeeded.
The ending. Now if you didn't buy in to the previous point, this probably doesn't work for you either but for me it did. I've seen a lot of articles about this saying it feels like the game or writers are trying to tell us gamers something and they don't like it. That's not what happened here for me. I never felt responsible for anything that the characters did in the game. It's telling their story and yes it's trying to make us feel as awful as they do, but only because it makes it more effective, not as some moralistic lesson. By the final fight I was pretty much begging these characters to stop and then, they did. I thought it was a really powerful moment and while the ending could be seen as devastating with Ellie losing everything, I also saw something hopeful in that final flashback with Joel. There was still a way back for him with Ellie in the end. I took that as Ellie considering that perhaps the same is true for her. I will say one thing though: I don't want to see her as protagonist in a violent game anymore. I would really love to see what happens to her as she tries to piece her life back together, but I couldn't stomach it if it meant her picking up her weapons again (against non-infected). Which means you can't really fit that into a video game in The Last of Us' universe, unfortunately.
The pacing. Like I said in an earlier post, from a gameplay perspective the pacing was spot on, with super intense sequences broken up with calmer moments. From a story perspective the pacing is problematic and yes, it does drag. Redlambs already mentioned it (won't tag him because of spoilers), but the small open-world section of Seattle immediately at the start of the revenge quest was a bit weird. It keeps the pace down at a time when the lust for revenge should be at its fiercest. That doesn't really work. The switch to Abby, which as I said I really ended up liking, killed the momentum at a crucial moment. Until you get truly invested in Abby's story, you just want to go back to those shocking moments where Jesse gets killed and you want to find out what happens to your beloved characters. And then at the end where Ellie decides to go off again, at that point you're getting exhausted and you just want to see it through. I love those story beats but yeah the pacing wasn't right there.
Abby's friends. I didn't really care about them. Manny was cool but didn't get all that much screen time, Nora was meh and the game failed to really sell Owen and Abby's troubled romantic involvement to me. Owen comes across as the sort of guy I'd find a complete, annoying douche bag so I didn't care for him. And since I didn't get invested in those relationships, that sex scene certainly left me cold. And Mel, yeah whatever I guess. Couldn't even feel sorry for her dying while pregnant. I guess another problem was that the WLF didn't feel like a "good" bunch. Sure there's warmth and camaraderie among their ranks, but with how openly hostile they are to trespassers and the hateful war they're waging against the Scars, the act of killing their rank and file grunts never truly feels wrong (let's not forget even Abby ends up killing them). They're not like Jackson, a community that thrives on peace and still seems welcoming to newcomers. The only death on Abby's side that did anything for me was Yara's. So even while I really ended up liking Abby and loving her friendship with Yara and Lev, there were some clear issues with the storytelling in her arc.
Abby's friends. I didn't really care about them. Manny was cool but didn't get all that much screen time, Nora was meh and the game failed to really sell Owen and Abby's troubled romantic involvement to me. Owen comes across as the sort of guy I'd find a complete, annoying douche bag so I didn't care for him. And since I didn't get invested in those relationships, that sex scene certainly left me cold. And Mel, yeah whatever I guess. Couldn't even feel sorry for her dying while pregnant. I guess another problem was that the WLF didn't feel like a "good" bunch. Sure there's warmth and camaraderie among their ranks, but with how openly hostile they are to trespassers and the hateful war they're waging against the Scars, the act of killing their rank and file grunts never truly feels wrong (let's not forget even Abby ends up killing them). They're not like Jackson, a community that thrives on peace and still seems welcoming to newcomers. The only death on Abby's side that did anything for me was Yara's. So even while I really ended up liking Abby and loving her friendship with Yara and Lev, there were some clear issues with the storytelling in her arc.
So yeah, not everything was perfect and there are genuine issues with it. I can see why these issues can ruin it for some and they also make it difficult for me to categorically tell someone "play this because it's incredible and you will be blown awy", because I know there's a real possibility that person might end up really disliking it. I'd still recommend anyone to see for themselves.
On a personal level though, the things that worked made it an absolutely sublime experience for me, unlike any other in video gaming. There were characters I already loved that I love even more and new characters that that will stick with me for a long time. The original and Left Behind are games that I still treasure so many years later and while I can't say how I'll be feeling about it in 10 years time, right now this game definitely gets a place beside those two.
@evil_geko this is it, we can finally have a decent conversation now.
Doing a 2nd playthrough on Ng+. Its stilla quite stressfull experience at times. Not sure whether to sell my disc edition afterwards.
Not sure about the best but he's among the best, for sure. I do think he's extremely technical with his review - graphics, music, voice etc and we need one like that. However, I think sometimes games have something that can't be defined or analysed in such technical ways. For example, Skill Ups review (and yes they may be over dramatic to many) of Nier Automata captured the feel of that game better than ACG could. Again, they all have their own place and purpose.
The 'Horror' segments of this game are absolutely brilliant, nerve wracking, creepy and gut wrenching. I did the bit leading up to, and then the
section, I was fairly shitting my keks. It was very Aliens compared to its prequel.
Me and the Mrs have been watching Frasier in the mornings while I've been playing this and every now and again when I think about the games setting this pops into my head:
"HEY BABY I HEAR THE BLUES ARE CALLIN' TOSSED SALAD AND SCRAMBLED EGGS"
Hospital
Me and the Mrs have been watching Frasier in the mornings while I've been playing this and every now and again when I think about the games setting this pops into my head:
"HEY BABY I HEAR THE BLUES ARE CALLIN' TOSSED SALAD AND SCRAMBLED EGGS"
Finished the game today. I think from a presentation stand point the it is incredible, from the graphics, audio, environments, animation, I think it's one of the most polished games I've ever played.
I think the story and themes were fine, if not a little ham-fisted. It definitely made me feel something and I commend it for that. Where the game falls short for me is the delivery of said story. I think the approach they took was doomed to fail. I think they only way that approach could have worked would have been to...
I didn't like any of the characters and thought they were very bland compared to the original. Only
relationship came close to anything from the original.
I also disliked the end.
Overall I'm glad I played it. I loved the original, but didn't need a sequel like I feel some people needed one. I think people who accept this for what it is and not what they wanted it to be, will enjoy it a lot more
I think the story and themes were fine, if not a little ham-fisted. It definitely made me feel something and I commend it for that. Where the game falls short for me is the delivery of said story. I think the approach they took was doomed to fail. I think they only way that approach could have worked would have been to...
somehow tell the story from Abby's point of view first. To build some rapport with the character. Or even to jump between Ellie and Abby so that the hard reset half way through the game didn't feel so abrupt. But I'm not sure this would have made a difference
I didn't like any of the characters and thought they were very bland compared to the original. Only
Abby and Lev's
I also disliked the end.
I felt the player should have been given a choice at the end to kill Abby and leave Lev to her fate. The game constantly moralises decisions which it takes out of the players hands, I thought it would have been a good way to let the player have the final say. I thought it would have been appropriate if Ellie's revenge cost her her family and her last link to Joel (the guitar) instead it turned out, it was just her indecision.
Overall I'm glad I played it. I loved the original, but didn't need a sequel like I feel some people needed one. I think people who accept this for what it is and not what they wanted it to be, will enjoy it a lot more