The Last of Us Review
Platform: PS3, PS4
Developer: Naughty Dog
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment
Author: K.D.
Oh my, where to even begin with a game of this magnitude? Probably one of the best exclusive titles to grace the Sony consoles, Last of Us has won all sorts of Game of the Year (GOTY) awards—and rightly so. This game has everything a hardcore gamer would want: moral dilemmas, intrigue, an epic quest for humanity in a vast wasteland of cordyceps (mutated spore people), and Naughty Dog’s infallible character development through adversity. That sounds like a lot of fluff, but let’s break down the game.
The players: Joel (voiced by Troy Baker) and Ellie (voiced by Ashley Johnson). The player will mainly control Joel’s actions from start to end, though at certain points will control Ellie. In a third-person over-the-shoulder shooter style, Joel and Ellie must scavenge and find a way to live safely amongst the outbreak of the fungal mutation called Cordycep. Collecting weapons and using his incredibly impressive “listen” mode, which operates like Batman’s “detective mode” from the Arkham series, he navigates through diverse environments searching for safety.
The story (without spoiling the end… hopefully) is pretty simple with little twists and turns here and there. BUT if the beginning 10 minutes do not break your heart—you simply mustn’t have a soul. Playing as Joel’s daughter, Sarah, before the outbreak occurs, she demonstrates everything that is good and normal in our society. Upon breakout, Joel comes to her rescue along with her uncle Tommy and they try their best to escape. Soldiers are ordered to keep citizens contained and Sarah gets shot and killed in Joel’s arms. Oh, the feels! Tommy incapacitates the soldier and both he and Joel escape. Twenty years later, the world is mostly gone to hell and survivors try to continue to survive and scavenge. Joel and his partner Tess are still among the living. After “taking care” of someone who’s double-crossed them, they find employment with the rebel group Fireflies. They are to escort a young woman, Ellie, out of the city to other Fireflies. So… she’s actually infected and it causes a whole bunch of trouble. The rest of the game is essentially trying to get her to a medical facility where they will try to synthesize a cure for Cordyceps.
Ellie: Pretty!! Joel: …I wonder what it tastes like…?
Truly, this is a very well-rounded game: the music has been composed by Gustavo Santaolalla, whose entire composition album for the game was offered as a preorder bonus (well worth it); cinematics were flawless and the gameplay was interspersed with extravagant natural environment scenery and decrepit cities; gameplay was simple though highly variable due to the weapons-hot tactic, or a stealth approach; and the plot and dialogue was brilliantly written. Other elements of note were the implementation of a permanent, useful AI assistant (I’m still pissed at Ashley’s uselessness in Resident Evil 4), and a new lighting engine that incorporated soft light particles in dark places and reflective surfaces. Also, the difficulties are terrifying unless you’re on easy. Even on normal difficulty, enemies are strong. On hard, supplies are not frequent and enemies use cover better, and special “sharp” weapons hardly show up. Survivor has extremely few supplies, hints and listening mode are disabled, AND enemies hit twice as hard. Lastly, grounded (originally a dlc difficulty) has next to no supplies, no listening mode, enemies hit 3x as hard, no HUD, enemy AI is extremely alert, and combat/stealth checkpoints are removed. Good luck.
There’s something on your face… IT WAS PAIN!
At the core of the game is the relationship between Joel and Ellie: a daughterless father vying to protect those around him to make amends for those he couldn’t save, and a strong, independent, vulnerable young woman who grew up too quickly. And despite a fairly linear storyline, the game makes use of dialogue, environment, and task-oriented thinking to cover it up effectively.
If you haven’t invested in it, you’re certainly missing out! This game is near, if not at, the top of my recommended games to play of all time. Follow us on Twitter to keep up with the latest posts, or to recommend a game for the team to review: @TheSaveSpot1
