The Last of Us Part I (2022, PS5/PC)

Remake of: The Last of Us (2013, PS3)
Original Developer: Naughty Dog
Original Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment
Remake Developer: Naughty Dog
Remake Publisher: Sony Interactive Entertainment
Clear Version: PS5
Clear Platform: PS5
Clear Date: 3/2/25

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Why should I care?
The megahit game earned countless accolades and has now been adapted to a highly-praised streaming series. That’s gotta be worth something.

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It can’t be for nothing

Folks, I really tried. I really wanted to like this game as much as its reputation suggests I should, but I just didn’t. I am not predisposed to liking these sorts of high-fidelity, narrative-driven games that Sony is so obsessed with publishing, which is why it took me so long to finally play this, but I really did my best to go into it with an open mind. And, for what it’s worth, I did like the game! I just don’t think it’s the generation-defining standard bearer its critical consensus holds it to be. Perhaps the biggest surprise to me was that I enjoyed its gameplay a good bit more than its highly-praised story.

If you somehow need an introduction to The Last of Us, I’ll provide one in brief. Some 20 years before the events of the game, a fungal parasite struck humanity and caused anyone infected by it to become highly violent. Incidentally, the parasite is transmissible by biting. That’s right; it’s a zombie story. In 2033, Joel, a gruff, middle-aged smuggler, is tasked with smuggling something he’s never had to before: a human girl. That girl is Ellie, who is believed to be immune to the fungus. An organization called the Fireflies believes this makes her the key to creating a vaccine and saving humanity. What starts as a cross-city escort mission balloons into a cross-country trek as the Fireflies want her taken from Boston to a hospital in Utah, where they are better-equipped to develop such a cure.

Once you set off on this journey, the gameplay loop proceeds fairly predictably the whole way through. Narrative- and cutscene-heavy sequences are split up by sequences of navigating the game’s world and dealing with its infected scourge and its less-savory human survivors. You control Joel and have to decide how to tackle each encounter with the limited resources available to you: stealth and selectivity or guns blazing? Bullets are naturally at a premium, as are healing items and other accessories that make your life easier. Pretty standard survival-horror stuff. This is where I have the most praise. I played the game on its standard difficulty, and I found most of these encounters to be tightly-tuned and designed. Their difficulty almost always seemed just right. I enjoyed the feel of the gunplay, but I also love stealth in games, so I opted for that whenever possible.

I have a lot of praise for those systems as well. When sneaking around, I generally felt that being detected (or not) by enemies was quite fair. Furthermore, being able to shake enemies by taking cover in the environment generally played quite realistically. Unlike some stealth games I’ve played, the enemies actually respond normally to losing sight of you. Unlike some games I’ve played, they don’t keep a direct bead on you after you go around a corner. They still know your approximate location, but they behave with more trepidation as they track you around the obstacle you’ve taken cover behind. They also order their comrades to flank you when you take cover, so you generally can’t get away with camping. Pretty neat! I understand these systems were enhanced for the PS5 release, but I’m sure some of that was around in the 2013 release as well. I was quite impressed with it.

Unfortunately, the story that motivates the gameplay could never live up to its lofty reputation. Its focus is on the relationship between Joel and Ellie, which begins quite fraught but (spoiler, I guess) becomes a rather tight bond. It’s reasonably well-written, but it’s nothing that really tugs at my heartstrings to the extent I might’ve expected. The game also naturally examines the various types of guy you might encounter in a post-infection world: the suspicious-of-everyone loner, the cult leader, the let’s-build-back optimist. I found most of these characters pretty tropey. Nothing I hadn’t seen in other zombie media.

And look, I’ll concede that the writing in The Last of Us is above-average for games, but I think that’s about as much as I can give it. It just sorta seems like gamers have low standards? Like if I saw a movie with more or less the same beats, I’d think “well that was all right, I guess.” It’s not bad, it’s just not incredible, which is what it’s often touted as.

But whatever. My take that it’s overrated is certainly not groundbreaking stuff either. It’s also a predictable take coming from me. Still, to be clear, I liked the game enough to go ahead and grab Part II! It got its hooks in me enough to want to know what happens next. That’s certainly something!

GAME CLEAR No. 214a

The Last of Us Part I: Left Behind (2022, PS5/PC)

Remake of: The Last of Us: Left Behind (2014, PS3)
Original Developer: Naughty Dog
Original Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment
Remake Developer: Naughty Dog
Remake Publisher: Sony Interactive Entertainment
Clear Version: PS5
Clear Platform: PS5
Clear Date: 3/2/25

I also beat this little DLC chapter. I was actually quite charmed by this one and enjoyed the portrayal and writing of Ellie’s relationship with Riley. A nice little bit of work and well worth the additional hour and change it took to get through.