The Last of Us, truly a phenomenal game, properly showcasing a world gone to shit after a zombie pandemic breaks out. It works hard to show how life goes on, focusing on the theme of survival while also mixing in the hope of what can be and dread of what is expertly in a sadly relatable way.
(Spoilers for Prologue)
The game begins in a great way, focusing on Joel on the night the zombie infection began. A tired Joel comes home, talking about losing his job. His daughter, Sarah, surprises him with a gift because, surprise it’s his birthday. The two have some nice banter showing the bond they share.
It’s a sweet moment that is quickly ruined as the outbreak begins, turning the world upside down, craziness ruling over everything. Joel, his brother Tommy and Sarah try to escape but are overwhelmed by the terror in town, leading to Joel carrying his daughter in his arms before they are shot down by a soldier. Joel cradles his dying daughter in his arms and the game truly begins.
The prologue sets up the entire game spectacularly. It shows just how twisted the world will be, how devastating it will be, the overwhelming presence of loss in the story and the relationships between characters and how that affects each of the characters, which will be present in every portion of this game.
(End of Prologue Spoilers)
The gameplay is good. It is nothing mind blowing but the engagement for this game is from the story and not the gameplay itself so it doesn’t have to be. Gunplay is decent, there’s a few special items you can throw such as Molotov cocktails and bombs for crowd control, melee weapons can be picked up with limited durability that keep zombies at length and you can craft shanks to stealth kill enemies. Although they aren’t doing much different, the way the games implement the elements are great. You can only equip a limited amount of guns at a time, and when you need a different one, you have to grab it from your bag, an action that does not stop the game. So if you need to swap to a non-equipped weapon you risk being attacked. Shanks are used to stealth kill, but they can also be used to access areas which hold resources to craft items, which are fairly scarce throughout the game. It makes it feel like every minor choice matters, changing the dynamic of combat during the game.
The game allows you to stealth levels, but I found it difficult to manage a whole level on stealth alone. Stealth became more about making it easier for when I was inevitably caught, which was so much fun. It made the gameplay feel varied and never got tedious as I find games can get when I’m always attempting stealth or direct combat.
The world felt so real. It is our world as we know it and it has been left to rot. Everything looked broken down from disuse, in great detail. The buildings eroded away by time, slowly overtaken by nature. This stunning environmental design backs up the characters who have been long suffering in this world for 20 years. As the world gets pushed by the outbreak, so do the people in it further helping the realism.
The main characters of the game, Joel and Ellie, show two contrasting views of the world as it is. Joel is a cynic devastated by the loss he has suffered and seems to lack much enthusiasm for anything when we meet him. He is merely enduring the world, surviving instead of living. In contrast Ellie is so full of life, radiating energy. She’s loud where Joel is soft spoken, giving constant commentary on the world as they move through it and their relationship is what makes this game so great.
Their relationship builds slowly through the game as they interact and the way they develop their relationship is brilliant. The game makes Ellie a crucial part of gameplay. It makes you work with her to get through the environment. It makes her a helpful part of combat. It makes Ellie your way to learn more about the environment. The game puts you firmly in Joel’s shoes, the game is constantly pushing you to not get attached to characters because of the hopelessness, loss is so prevalent in this world and story after all. Then it keeps making you rely on Ellie, letting her warm to both Joel and the player until they both just accept Ellie as a part of their lives. Its truly a brilliant display of heightening storytelling through the game itself and is why this game worked so well for me.
Its environments were detailed and great to look at with amazing (though dated) visuals. Its gameplay was fun. Its story was great with each section sticking clearly to the themes of loss and focus on character that it established in the very beginning and keeps developing to a beautiful ending to the game. The story gets heightened through design specific to gaming, capitalising on the form in a way most games don’t to make it an even more engaging story. This is a phenomenal game.
That Generic Nerd 