The Last of Us Discussion Thread

1404143454653

Comments

  • Brie Larson would be the perfect actress for Abby in a The Last of Us 2 Live Action.

  • Congratulations Laura Bailey.

  • So I didn’t finish the game. I ended up watching the cutscenes of it online and getting the gist of the story. Will I finish it? Maybe just to get my money’s worth, but I’m not in a rush to. From someone who beat TLOU on grounded, played factions as my go to multiplayer for a while, and considers TLOU as one of my all time favorite games, I’m just uninterested.

    Is the story good? It’s definitely both bold and has slightly more depth than most modern Naughty Dog titles, two things that I can appreciate. You can tell Druckmann is trying to pull off a more challenging narrative. The problem is I just wasn’t hooked in. I don’t care enough about Abby to want revenge, much less to know her side. The story isn’t bad because it doesn’t cater to fans expectations, like I said I appreciate that ND did take risks. It’s bad because in my eyes it doesn’t evoke the emotions it intended to during critical parts of the story. Even worse, instead it just pissed off a sizeable portion of the fan base, to the point players are wishing game over screens to be canon. Regardless of whether you loved or hated the writing direction, there’s an alternate dimension where the story was just as universally beloved as the first and we’re not in it. In fact I’m pretty certain if Naughty Dog for the most part just took the shots that were lined up we probably would’ve gotten it.

    Despite all of that, the gameplay’s really the killer for me. I could’ve easily forgiven the faults in the narrative if it felt fun to play. It’s still solid mechanically, and the improvements and additions that are there are welcome (rat king is great), but at it’s core I’ve played this game before with a more likable story. It does the exact opposite of the writing and plays it way too safe. The guitar mini game is cool though.

    Overall in contrast to what clemycloo said I just found the game to be unsatisfying and forgettable. That said I can understand why people would like it and I think we should all respect each other’s opinions.

  • The Last of Us 2 has officially won Game of the Year!

    Very well deserved in my opinion.

    Of course congratulations to Neil Druckmann and Laura Bailey for their awards!

  • Laura Bailey as Abby was definitely the best part of the character. Though she’s already more than proven herself as an excellent actress I’m glad she got the award.

    Congratulations to both of them for the wins

    lupinb0y posted: »

    The Last of Us 2 has officially won Game of the Year! Very well deserved in my opinion. Of course congratulations to Neil Druckmann and Laura Bailey for their awards!

  • No Factions 2 announcement yet. I'm disappointed.

  • not too upset with tlou2 winning goty or laura bailey winning best performance (she did a fantastic job!!). but neil druckmann winning best director after all the horror stories that have come out about naughty dog's work environment and their treatment of their workers is shameful. a good director wouldn't have let even a quarter of that shit happen. we really need to undervaluing human rights in the video game industry.

  • Yeah, Neil Druckmann did not deserve that award after what he did to his own employees and false advertising the game. Life itself is just disappointing.

    not too upset with tlou2 winning goty or laura bailey winning best performance (she did a fantastic job!!). but neil druckmann winning best

  • Oh? I would've thought you'd have had it for a while now, but Merry Christmas.

    My boyfriend gifted me the game today!!! 🥰 Cant wait to finally experience it for myself! Early XMas gifts !

  • A game full of justified controversies never deserved those awards. Only Laura Bailey and the accessibilities did.

  • Because Laura did a great job, there was nothing wrong with her acting, although I would say she deserved a much better character to perform.

  • Can we talk about how Abby was evidently gonna lay out a honey pot with Joel?

  • You mean was going to trap him? Cause that's exactly what she did
    (unsure of what you mean by honeypot)

    DabigRG posted: »

    Can we talk about how Abby was evidently gonna lay out a honey pot with Joel?

  • They were originally supposed to meet at the dance and she would've lured him away somewhere private.

    AChicken posted: »

    You mean was going to trap him? Cause that's exactly what she did (unsure of what you mean by honeypot)

  • Um. This is beautiful and disgusting at the same time

  • I am getting oddly censed looking at this, yes.
    Makes me realize how long it's been since I saw this Ellie.

    Um. This is beautiful and disgusting at the same time

  • Yep, I regret nothing

    Um. This is beautiful and disgusting at the same time

  • why

    Um. This is beautiful and disgusting at the same time

  • edited December 2020

    Boy, is fanfiction weird.

    @DabigRG
    They were originally supposed to meet at the dance and she would've lured him away somewhere private

    Honestly, I much prefer some of the earlier concepts than what we got in the final game.
    I feel like Jackson was sorely underused. I wish we got more time to see the daily lives of the survivors, or what's been going on there in the 4 years since.

    At least if Abby infiltrated Jackson to find Joel, we could have seen more of the town, had her hunt Joel and stumble upon him in a more logical coincidence (i.e.: running into him in a packed town, rather than him being the very first person she runs into while looking for a patrol), and it might have also provided some better connective tissue between Abby and Ellie's stories. (In the beginning as Ellie, you suddenly find Joel after he is dead/on the verge of death... Later you play as Abby, tracking Joel, ambushing him and having a signature 'stealth-fight' -- Like David's in Part 1 or the Abby vs. Ellie fight in Part 2).

    Um. This is beautiful and disgusting at the same time

  • edited December 2020

    Yeah, seriously. That first section set up a "how the heck are we gonna get in there and find him, let alone find him" plot that could've been interesting to see unfold, but instead Abby just runs off for whatever reason, finds backstory for Seth, and gets lost until Joel and Tommy just happen to bring a bunch of walkers around.

    Edit: Dat typo

    AChicken posted: »

    Boy, is fanfiction weird. @DabigRG They were originally supposed to meet at the dance and she would've lured him away somewhere pr

  • Thanks for the Lovely image.

    Um. This is beautiful and disgusting at the same time

  • sorry for the late response but tbh i dont care about the false advertising. if the advertising is "false" specifically so it doesn't spoil key moments in the story, then i don't mind at all. infinity war's marketing was like that and that's not a problem at all for me. human beings are FAR more important than some silly trailers on youtube. the frustration of misleading marketing however justified said misdirection is, is always temporary. the physical and emotional effects of how naughty dog treated their employees and how poorly neil druckmann managed their work time is going to stick with the crew for the rest of their lives. it was their time being stolen from them. that's inexcusable for me.

    AronDracula posted: »

    Yeah, Neil Druckmann did not deserve that award after what he did to his own employees and false advertising the game. Life itself is just disappointing.

  • edited December 2020

    Ok but there is a difference between keeping a secret and lying to your own fans. Imagine if EA advertised Jedi Fallen Order as a Star Wars game where you play as a Jedi but when you finally buy the game, you realize that you're playing as a rebel who uses blasters instead of lightsabers against their enemies. That totally subverts people's expectations but does that mean I'm gonna applaud them for that? Of course not because they advertised a shooter game as a hack n slash game. This was not for people who wanted to play as Jedi.

    If ND didn't want to spoil the game, then just say "My lips are sealed". TLOU2 wasn't about Joel and Ellie, it was about Ellie and Abby and they advertised it as more story with Joel and Ellie.

    In Infinity War's case, it was still the same story, just different shots. Bruce Banner was still in the battlefield area, just in a different form. If Hulk actually died by the hands of Thanos at the beginning, then it would have been a different story.

    sorry for the late response but tbh i dont care about the false advertising. if the advertising is "false" specifically so it doesn't spoil

  • Two things:
    1. They obviously wanted to keep Abby's role in the story a secret, as even the obvious connotation of the story's theme doesn't quite cover her.
    2. Considering what Cloo was primarily focused on, it might be better to stop.

    AronDracula posted: »

    Ok but there is a difference between keeping a secret and lying to your own fans. Imagine if EA advertised Jedi Fallen Order as a Star Wars

  • I'm actually kinda with Aron on this.

    I don't like how they swapped character models around and dubbed over existing dialogue for one of their trailers.
    One of them really gave the impression that there would be more Ellie and Joel interaction, but it turns out that was actually a scene between Jesse and Ellie.

    AronDracula posted: »

    Ok but there is a difference between keeping a secret and lying to your own fans. Imagine if EA advertised Jedi Fallen Order as a Star Wars

  • it's totally fine if that bothers you ofc. i wasn't saying "nobody's allowed to be upset about this because i'm not!!", i was more just stating that false advertising at the end of the day is a very temporary issue. an issue i'd assume nobody in this thread would have a big problem with if everyone unanimously agreed TLOU2 was flawless. the real problem, like i said, lies in how the employees were treated for their hard work.

    i look at the visuals, mocap, gameplay and mechanics of TLOU2 and i see devs who deserve the entire world. i see devs who put more effort in making this game look like a complete visual feast than most developers in history. and those devs were sexually harassed, had those accusations ignored, were worked to the bone, not paid properly, and even bullied by the higher ups in some cases.

    these are devs that deserve to be paid and treated right that werent, and maybe this is the dirty commie in me talking, but human lives and a safe work environment are so much more valuable than my time. if i got lied to on a trailer, big whoop. i spent some money on a game that didn't have what i want in it, i'll either return it or give the media i am getting a chance.

    those people will never get the energy that was stolen from them back. that's the real problem here. no matter what you think of the game, or how much benefit of the doubt you give druckmann, he poorly managed and borderline abused his employees to get a game out the door. and this is a very VERY common practice in the games industry that honestly needs to stop being ignored.

    AChicken posted: »

    I'm actually kinda with Aron on this. I don't like how they swapped character models around and dubbed over existing dialogue for one of

  • Well, what do you know? The developer of Duke Nukem Forever decided to step in and defend TLOU2. Am I supposed to be scared of him or something?

  • he actually was primarily defending crunch culture and saying journalists know nothing about game development, which is even funnier than him defending tlou2 because the guy who made one of the biggest disasters in video game history thinks he has any solid ground to stand on when it comes to talking about "proper game development." literally the funniest thing i've read on twitter this week.

    AronDracula posted: »

    Well, what do you know? The developer of Duke Nukem Forever decided to step in and defend TLOU2. Am I supposed to be scared of him or something?

  • My thoughts exactly. This guy has no right to speak after causing one of the biggest disappointments in gaming history.

    he actually was primarily defending crunch culture and saying journalists know nothing about game development, which is even funnier than hi

  • ah, sunny january 8th. it's beautiful outside, nice cool temperature, got a good night of sleep. seems like a perfect day to have an opinion on the last of us 2.

    i like the last of us 2 more than the first one, and i enjoyed it so much i retroactively went back to the first one and changed my 8 to a 10. i think they are both 10s and 2 very important halves of one story that seamlessly connect in terms of themes and ideas. i think it's gorgeous, the gameplay is fantastic and abby and lev are two of my favorite characters in any video game.

    i also think the treatment of the employees behind the scenes of the game is unacceptable and horrendous. while i genuinely enjoy the story, it doesn't excuse neil druckmann's treatment of employees behind closed doors and while i can separate art from the artist, i dont think i can ever recommend these two games again without a HUGE asterisk attached that says "hey fuck neil druckmann".

    so yeah that's my opinion on the game after 2 full playthroughs. i know it's quite the spicy take, but the important thing here is to remember that i like dark souls 2 more than dark souls 3 so i've always had shit taste and i'm very used to be people telling me i'm wrong so NOBODY can take this away from me. tlou2 is a good game babyyy!!!!

    tony hawk is still my goty tho

  • tony hawk is still my goty tho

    King shit.

    ah, sunny january 8th. it's beautiful outside, nice cool temperature, got a good night of sleep. seems like a perfect day to have an opinion

  • we only on king shit for game of the year boys. does the game have ska in it? no? then get it the FUCK outta here. superman by goldfinger >any track in the last of us 2

    lupinb0y posted: »

    tony hawk is still my goty tho King shit.

  • edited January 2021

    Damn, I didn't expect such a spicy take from you!

    i enjoyed it so much i retroactively went back to the first one and changed my 8 to a 10.

    Huh. Good on you for going back and appreciating the first game more. What made your opinion change about it? Especially after playing the second game?
    (Also when did you do your second playthrough of TLOU2? I had to wait like 2 months before going through with a New Game Plus, since I really needed time to emotionally recover).

    ah, sunny january 8th. it's beautiful outside, nice cool temperature, got a good night of sleep. seems like a perfect day to have an opinion

  • Damn, I didn't expect such a spicy take from you!

    you should see my twitter then lmaoooo

    Good on you for going back and appreciating the first game more. What made your opinion change about it? Especially after playing the first game?

    for me while i've always adored the open ended nature of the first game's conclusion, it always felt like there was something missing. who were the people on the other sides of the guns that shot at me? what are the consequences for joel's actions? how does ellie cope with things? i think individually both the first and second game are about an 8, but as two halves of one story they're both a 10, because their themes and ideas (at least, my interpretation of them) compliment each other pretty well and leave a satisfying conclusion to one story.

    honestly i'd kind of love it if naughty dog went back and upgraded tlou1 and left behind and stitched it up with the second game (left behind starting right as joel takes the rebar wound) just to see how it flows together.

    Also when did you do your second playthrough of TLOU2? I had to wait like 2 months before going through with a New Game Plus, since I really needed time to emotionally recover

    well i started my first playthrough about a month ago, and then i very recently ran through it again over the course of like 2 days using a bunch of the in game cheats just to test my skills in the gunfights. that was super fun. honestly you're talking to a guy who speedran silent hill 3 competitively in his youth, i'm used to being emotionally broken by a video game over and over. and the gameplay in tlou2 was so god damn good i honestly had to go back in.

    AChicken posted: »

    Damn, I didn't expect such a spicy take from you! i enjoyed it so much i retroactively went back to the first one and changed my 8 to

  • i'll be honest aron, i'm a bit disappointed. i expected us to have a hearty debate over the sequel's quality but since i spilled my guts about the game you've been awful quiet in the thread. hit me up in the DMs and lets chat about it bro i'm totally down to discuss it.

    AronDracula posted: »

    ...

  • That doesn't work if you're just coming back

    AronDracula posted: »

    ...

  • It's a teaser

    DabigRG posted: »

    That doesn't work if you're just coming back

  • So which do you think made for the weaker story: this or Beyond Two Souls?

Sign in to comment in this discussion.