The Last of Us (2013)

Let me start off by saying that TLOU is my favorite game of all time, so there might be a bit of bias toward the game.

Characters in the game are not forgettable, at first it feels like Joel and Ellie hate each other but towards the games progression it feels like they develop a father and daughter relationship by being so much with each other. The games story is really interesting, it really has a lot going for it in my opinion, I wont spoil much about it so people reading this can play it spoiler free. What I love about the game is how we actually lack resources like ammo, grenades and other kinds of useful stuff, it makes you have to think about stuff a bit differently not just go into rooms and shoot everyone, you really have to conserve your ammo and keep track how many shots you shot.

The combat in the game is great, you have lots of guns to collect throughout the game and you will most likely need them all to survive. TLOU also has lots of really beautiful landscapes you see throughout the game, the map design is really awesome.

Overall the game is a 5/5, not much of replayability in my opinion but if it's the first time playing (or you haven't played for such a long time) it is a really good game.

-- Played on Playstation NOW app on pc via streaming

...said no one ever.

But it is. The entire story is based on scientific speculation. What if the cordyceps fungus mutated and started infecting people? What if there was one immune girl and what if the only way to produce a vaccine was to kill her? This kind of questions are not common in your typical zombie apocalypse fiction. Even the sequel abandons any scientific concept, for that matter. I Am Legend, the book that started the modern zombie apocalypse subgenre, had a protagonist who was trying to find the cause for the outbreak. Most of these stories, though, simply say it's "some virus" that caused it, if they mention anything at all. Therefore, TLoU is a great sci-fi story.

With the PS5 coming out, I got gifted a second hand PS4 from my family, along with a bunch of games (as well the PlayStation Plus collection that I managed to download just by logging into a PS5) which means I finally got around to playing this - well the remastered version (with left behind).

It's good shit.

It doesn't totally break any conventions, at least not from playing it in 2020, but it is a solid TPS with good level design and fantastic writing and pacing.

I nearly beat this in 2015 but it literally melted my PS3 on the second to last level. I finally had the chance to finish it out this year. I played it AFTER beating Last of us 2 (but I was well aware of how the game ended before starting part 2). Personally I prefer the second game overall, but there are some moments in this game that stand out as stronger individual moments than anything from part 2.

I would like to do another playthrough someday on hard - normal was actually fairly easy.

Bought the game based on the hype in 2014, it is really overrated. The story is fine and characters are good, but other than that it is full of cliche zombie moments and lacks a lot of engaging gameplay, i also didnt like the music or the themes.

its not a bad game but i mostly didnt like it and i regret buying it in full price :(

(It contains spoilers) What a wonderful game!

Characters: Joel and Ellie find themselves travelling together in search of the Fireflies, association they think can develope a cure for the infected. Through all the difficult situations they have on their way we can appreciate the development of both. Joel remembering a lot of the past, thinking very often about her daughter but fighting for a future... Ellie does not have anything to lose, she is very clear when she wants to achieve something and can become brutal (even sadistic) if someone/something blocks her way. (Thinking specially about David...) Very beautiful how she takes care of Joel when he was injured <3 (although it was sad having to kill the deer. I know it is survival but killing certain animals always makes me sad, cannot help it)

Plot: Great story and very well developed. Good pace and rythm. Keeps the tension till the end being able to surprise you in many aspects. The story makes you think a lot (for example: would you have done the same and make Joel's decision? Would you have lied to Ellie in the end? I think I wouldn't.)

Controls: Great control of characters when running, walking, fighting and shooting. A little worse when you are jumping, swimming or diving... Sometimes you can get stuck if you fall to the water in certain points (did not like this at all ) Really enjoyed riding the horse.

-Graphics: superb. I have played the ps3 game and not the remastered one but even then the graphic aspect looks amazing. The face's expression is super well done. The aging in Joel's face can be appreciated very well.

Good points: The most complete game ever. Simply great. It goes directly to my favourites shelf, of course. Bad points (if any) : I would have liked to have the opportunity to make decisions during the story. I did not really like the end :( And now to wait for Last of Us 2 (wise decision finishing the first only now, hehe, less time to wait)

So everyone already knows this game's amazing. And there are ton of reviews saying so, but I've only just barely played through it a day ago so I'm just sharing my personal experience with it, and not what everyone else has already said and for me this was a literal game changing experience.

Lets start with the basics. The game is really fun to play, exploring the country, scrounging for items, hiding from enemies and taking them out silently one by one, throwing a hand-crafted bomb at a group of clickers, and picking enemies out with the array of weapons. (My favorite is probably the bow.)

Next, the graphics look freakin awesome on my ps4 with every landscape shot, ruined building and cutscene drawing me ever deeper into this world and story. Everything and everyone looks freakin gorgeous.

Now for the real meat of it. The story and characters. The story goes through ups and downs with lighthearted moments sprinkled throughout and the more dark parts taking center stage. I think that made the humorous parts even more so when they do happen. But although the story is incredible, what really pushed me over the edge into adoring it was the characters.

These are literally the most real people I've ever experienced in a video game. Joel and Ellie have amazing chemistry and at every word said by either of them, I couldn't not listen. I simply had to know what was said, whether it was a key plot point, a big character interaction, or just the little banter in between the two of them while looking at a sign. They just feel so complex and real. I love that. And I haven't even mentioned how many times I was worried for the two of them to get out of a situation or when I'd chuckle at a remark or how many times I was on the verge of crying. The love that they show for each other by the end of their journey is so genuine and heartwarming with just a slight bittersweet taste. Just dang. It's so hard to decribe. I can't even explain it right. When a video game is able to do all that to a person, that is one powerful video game.

I'm really tempted to just replay the whole thing immediately after finishing it, and I usually don't even consider that until it's been about a month afterwords. I think I probably will.

What a game man, what a game.

And I haven't been this excited about a sequel in years.

---Just finished my second playthrough today. Still amazing and heart wrenching.

Except for brief stints with the GameCube and a Nintendo DS I basically gave up on console gaming after Sega messed up with the Dreamcast. But when I saw my friends play The Last of Us: Remastered on the PS4, I knew I wanted to own a console again. Yes, that's how much I was drawn to the game before I even played it myself.

It's easy to be disappointed when expectations are that high, but overall I'd say The Last of Us lived up to them: I really enjoyed the story, and while some people like to point out that parts of it are predictable, I think that just comes with the genre. The graphics are stunning, sometimes I wished that the world would be a bit more open for exploration. But there's also something to be said for tight straight-forward story lines, at least for the more casual style of gamer I have become in my mid-thirties. Speaking of casual gamers, I did find some of the encounters a bit hard, but they weren't frustrating enough to consider giving up. That said I think I'd have preferred slightly more puzzles and a bit less fighting, but maybe that's just me.

Overall I found this game to be very enjoyable, especially for its cinematic qualities. Maybe not quite as satisfying if you are a hardcore gamer, though even then Survivor or Grounded mode should provide enough of a challenge.

Update: The "Left Behind" DLC is somewhat strange. While it ties in nicely with the main story and the three issue comic book, it's rather forgettable in terms of gameplay. You might as well just watch a playthrough video on YouTube.