The Last of Us: Part II (2020)
"Five years after the events of The Last of Us, Ellie embarks on another journey through a post-apocalyptic America on a mission of vengeance against a mysterious militia."
- IMDB
Sequel?
My thoughts before starting the sequel the first time? I was very interested in the story. I might've been the only one, but I still thought Abby was Ellie's mom going into the game, so her story seemed promising at first. I thought Dina was going to die & that's what would set Ellie on this revenge quest. Plus, it may have been my excitement, the misleading trailers, or ignorance to details, but it definitely seemed like Joel was set up to play a bigger part so I was fully expecting him to join Ellie on her quest. I totally expected him to die at some point, at least in the final act or in a scene that leads to the final act. I wouldn't have cared as long as they had all those years together as a family.
No matter what my expectations were, I went into the sequel fully aware that the game might suck. I was fully prepared to be disappointed. The Last of Us is my favorite game of all time, so I still had hope that the game and story would blow me away.
Spoiler alert. I did not like it. A lot of this will be a huge rant, but I would like to give credit for what is actually good. I'll do my best to be as objective as possible, but I literally hate this game. I haven't looked at it in a year. I've played it once, so I don't know as much about gameplay like I do with the first. But I have to follow up my first review and I want to explore the game with fresh eyes to really deep dive into what about the game that makes me hate it so much as well as to re-discover what can make me forgive it. So gear up for this hectic & heated review.
A New Beginning
We find Joel describe the ending of the first game to Tommy. He realizes that he took the meaning of her immunity away from her, and he understands how heartbreaking that was for her. He sees his actions of saving her life. Not trying to start the ethical dilemma conversation, but to Joel, Ellie's life meant more than everyone else's. Joel & Tommy ride back to the town together. Of course the character models are much more detailed in this game, but seeing these next gen graphics in this beautiful scenery and world design is a peaceful sight to behold.
The next scene sees Joel giving Ellie the guitar. It's definitely an awkward interaction. This guitar opened the door for a way for them to bond over something other than surviving. I always felt Ellie knew Joel was lying, and I felt that in this scene Ellie seemed so closed off from him. It's hard to tell exactly what she thinks in this moment, but her reaction to "I promised I'd teach you guitar" is subtly bittersweet. Their dynamic could be different now & that would've been an interesting plot to explore.
4 YEARS LATER -- First of all, I love Ellie's room. She has a bunch of space & Sci Fi knick knacks littered all over the place. She has Astronaut & Savage Starlight posters. On the shelf is Sam's robot toy. And a PS3 with Jak & Daxter waiting to be played. So many little details and easter eggs, I could spend 10 minutes peeking at every detail.
Also, Jesse. Automatically favorite character. He's so charismatic and loyal and is just a chill dude. RIP.
I am in love with Jackson. You walk through and see all these NPCs at work living normal lives. "Remember how we thought people couldn't live like this anymore? Well we're doing it." You pass by a bunch of green houses before approaching what may be the town square, which is set up with places for clothes & food, a movie theater, a daycare, & a bar. It's a fully functioning civilization with living NPCs. I love love love it, so obsessed. (Don't forget to pet the dog)
Dang, I really went a few years romanticizing Ellie & Riley's kiss for the wrong reasons. I used to think "oh, I love that, it's the apocalypse, everyone is dying, love is love, there aren't any labels, there's too much death to put a label on such a thing, I love this concept." Well darn you Seth for ruining that for me. To anyone who felt this game pushed an "agenda" well it starts here in the first 10 minutes of the game. Though I love how, as you're in the bar, NPCs kinda glance over at you. Like Jesse was right, Ellie is the talk of the town & nobody is hiding it lol.
Meet Dina - A character with great personality & lots of potential to for a good story arc. I'm very neutral about the character. I like her, but I have a few gripes with her story arc and it also becomes hard to care about her in some parts of the game. But I'll get into that as we go.
Snowball fight was lit though. The most creative tutorial segment they could've thought of.
Winter Is Here
Here she is. The Witch of the West. Once I gathered the context clues and deciphered that Abby was indeed not Ellie's mom like I foolishly thought, I immediately stopped caring about her. I did not want to play as her. I wanted to get back to Joel & Ellie because that's who I had more interest in. But if we had to play with her this one sequence so be it....
It's also important to note that Owen was the voice of reason from the get-go. He was a good man. RIP.
This is the first time I noticed how cool the snow physics was. You hit the leaves, all the snow falls off. I love the game mechanic of going prone. You already know that this is a huge gamechanger for stealth, which I like, as well as world navigation. Though it's discomforting knowing that enemies can do this too. I'm obsessed. It's also our first real encounter with Infected. The way they can just pop out of the snow like daises is terrifying.
When we get back to Abby after an intermission, there's a group of Infected that is literally impossible to take down. It's a whole chase sequence and it's terrifying. That little fence bit before Abby's life is saved by Joel is so scary. It only gets more intense as you fight to escape the hoard with Joel & Tommy. This is so reminiscent to the Winter segment in the first game when Ellie has to team up with a cannibal to fight a hoard.
The Super market is such an intense segment and a great combat scenario. It's terrifying and it forces you to learn the gameplay faster than you may have anticipated. This is also the part of the game where I noticed that audio and the sounds of the clickers were so different and much creepier than the last game & that creates a more horrifying immersive experience.
I liked the library area. Shoutout to the Uncharted 2 game found by another PS3 - a symbol of the glory days when Naughty Dog was able to make a perfect sequel that everyone enjoyed. It's also funny how the infamous Eugene had a weed farm chilling in the basement. That's iconic.
These scenes with Dina & Ellie here are cute. They had good chemistry and made for a fun power couple... At least for a little while.
Joel's Death
We knew Abby was here for a reason, and we know why. This scene is hard to watch...
First. I totally expected Joel to die. I figured it would be brutal. I half expected Ellie to witness it. I was half sure that it could've been consequences for his actions; that was a cool idea. Did I expect it to be in the first 30 minutes? No. But did I rage quit? No.
Many others rage quit after this, Honestly, that's valid. This was a sequel to the Last of Us. The Last of Us was a story about Joel and Ellie. Ellie being the main playable character was exciting, but the Last of Us is Joel and Ellie's story. Flashbacks mean nothing. He died and they took that away. The trailers were misleading. There was too much Joel and made us believe he had an actual part. They introduced all these others characters but they were nobodies because we already had this established relationship and this was supposed to be their sequel. Our favorite iconic duo.
How is eveyone expected to enjoy the rest of the game when their favorite character is dead? Asking Naughty Dog specifically - what if you made an Uncharted 5 and killed Nathan, Sully, or Elena in the first act of the game?
I cannot deliver my whole thoughts on Joel's death yet. My first playthrough, I didn't even know how to feel except shock. With the events of the rest of the game and the final scenes, I did come to a conclusion - Joel's death was done wrong. I'll elaborate on that later because his actual death scene isn't even why I hated his death. The rest of the story did that well enough.
I will say Ellie's reaction, her dealing with grief, and her exploration of his house was heartbreaking. Smelling his jacket. Taking Sarah's watch. Looking at his photo. What a raw interpretation to grief, and from what I understand, derived form Ashley Johnson's own experience of losing her father. Brilliant and sad.
Welcome to Seattle
Ellie exploring Seattle is one of the best most fun parts of the game. And it's so long! Honestly, it makes me forget I'm mad at Mr. Neil. You can delve into the polished gameplay, gorgeous graphics and game design, and have simple fun playing a video game. The story is the only chance to breath, even as Ellie starts getting into the thick of it. I would say it's not until Nora when the game starts to get really heavy again. Abby is out of sight, out of mind (for me, anyway) for hours, just the way I like her,
I love playing as Ellie. She just feels so agile in a stealthy assassin kind of way. I'm glad she can use her trusty dagger over and over rather than a collection of crappy shivs that are down in one use.
Dina talks a lot about herself in this part. I guess it's her only chance given she sits out the rest of the game. Hearing pieces of her exposition built her up to be so interesting. It seems her mom and sister are both dead, so she may be living in Jackson on her own with the rest of her family gone - a norm for most. But she has come to terms with it and has already gone through the character development that comes with that. As she brings up memories of her family, she talks about them as a fully fledged character with a full life behind her, which makes her a bit different from Ellie who is going through such a transition in her own character arc. I did love their dialogue in the synagogue. It's really the first time that religion is discussed in the Last of Us. Other than Sam's conversation in the last game, religion has such a huge absence in typical religious practices and beliefs. So it was cool to hear Dina's experience with her family trying to carry Judaism into the apocalypse.
As we make our way to the TV Station, we're introduced to the concept of explosive traps. Now it's nothing new if you played the first game, however we're roaming a city that has an overabundance of overgrown grass and foliage. Part II has made it harder to spot these traps and that makes exploration a little scarier.
Then we actually get to the Station. We see a trail of bodies as we get closer and closer, assuming it was all Tommy. Then we see the hanging bodies and we know there is definitely another party killing WLFs too. What's interesting is that up to this point, in NPC dialogue and several notes found have been the only glimpse into these "Scars." But this is the first time Ellie sees firsthand what they're capable of. I don't know about Ellie, but I'm absolutely terrified and creeped out by the Scars already.
To make it worse, your escape involves going thorugh the sewer like undergraound palces where you first see bloaters. Between little things like visual and audio design, this was a prime horror survival game at it's peak.
Now we get to the moment when Ellie & Dina are real with each other. There was a nice moment when Ellie breaks her mask. Good VA there. But Ellie ends up reminding Dina of the immunity secret and Dina reveals that she may be pregnant. Now that's not a problem, however the game makes it to be one. To me, it seems that Dina's pregnancy is used as a plot device to isolate Ellie on day 2 so she's alone when she meets up with Jessie that day? I don't know, it just feels like there was a missed opportunity to have this trio go ham on these Seattle denizens. The trio of getting things done already have an awesome dynamic, and it would've been so much greater seeing them tackle this mission as a team. Instead, we get little time with either character, and it's very easy to loose interest and not care about them after a certain point. Getting ahead of myself here, but this issue I have starts now.
Happy Birthday
This is it. This is the content I was craving. This is the kind of relationship Joel & Ellie developed all through he first game. I never expected the happiness to last forever, but this whole flashback was exactly what I wanted for the majority of the time gap between 1 and 2. But alas...
This was dank dad content. This was classic Ellie at her best. And lo and behold, she can swim! The banter between the two really made this game feel like a true sequel to the original. Dinosaurs & Space? Literally Ellie's entire personality. This was the literally the best birthday he could give her. The way Joel looks at Ellie when she listens to the launch audio is priceless. That was a special moment that wouldn't have happened if Joel didn't take her away from the fireflies.
Day 2
With Dina sitting on the sidelines, Ellie goes off to continue her trek across the city. It's a lovely trek through a neighborhood as the mountains ranges of Washington rests in the background with morning fog (of course enemies are around to make it not peaceful). Ellie reunites with Jesse as he finds her in the same neighborhood that he had spent all morning running amuck, causing mischief for the WLFs. He ended up following the girls to Washington. Shoulda stayed in Jackson, my dude.
I would also like ot point out that there was a trailer with Joel speaking Jesse's line from this segment. It was animated and everything and was disgustingly misleading, making us believe Joel would show up on this quest of Ellie's. This is literally in my top 3 reasons why I disagree with Joel's death.
The reunion is followed by a very Uncharted-esque chase shoot-out sequence, which was really fun to play. This mini Naughty Dog special was met with some Infected, making it a little extra intense.
Afterward, we jump into another Joel flashback. We fight our way through this hotel with Joel as our super awesome party member. There is this crazy battle with a bloater, and I'm pretty sure you can't beat it unless you let Ellie get caught so Joel can have his moment because Joel is literally the best. There's also an intense conversation as Ellie questions the events at the hospital. Joel sticks to his lie, but Ellie is reasonably unsatisfied. This comes to play in a flashback further in the game.
If you read my Part One review, you know where I stand on Joel's actions. But do you agree with what Joel did?
Nora
We head off on our own again and to our next target - Nora. This is when the story starts to really move forward. And I'm not just talking about the story, which I'll hit in a minute.
We have our first encounter with Stalkers, the scariest enemies we ever face. They're essentially stealthy Clickers. The moments spent in Stalker territory is eerie and creepy, making it the best place for effective jump scares. You also can't use listening skills to know where they are most times, so you must rely on Ellie's basic sense of sight. Between the predator nature of these enemies and the audio, the Stalkers bring out the "horror" in this horror survival game.
Then we immediately meet the Scars, and suddenly feel sympathy for the WLFs given what they are up against. Honestly, hearing the whistle for the first time freaked me out. We also witness an execution that gave real Outlast 2 vibes and I was uncomfortable We also encounter them in what is basically a jungle, so the much needed stealth doesn't help with the tension at all. I'll definitely get more into the the Scars later, as they're way more integrated to Abby's story, but I absolutely love how scared I am of them, especially after that half-giant maniac with a pick axe!
The Hospital sequence was quite fun, and it essentially lead to one of the most satisfying parts of Ellie's revenge quest. She caught up to Nora, who was a jerk that got got what she deserved. I supported Joel's infamous decision & I hate Abby, so I had no sympathy towards her. However, this also brings up a moment that showed that Ellie is better than Abby in every sense. Ellie was unable to leave this torture & murder session unscathed as her own actions traumatized her greatly. She kills to survive, but she's not a killer & never was. And even then, she did not take any pleasure in torturing the way Abby did; thanks to the graphics we saw it was a struggle between every strike before the cut away. So while I'm satisfied with this revenge progress, it's also heartbreaking to me to see Ellie so distraught.
Truth
So... Another flashback to transition us between days.
Ellie finally finds out the truth of what happened. She knows that the cure would've meant a sacrifice on her part. I think she knew that already. It goes back to the idea that she "needed her immunity to mean something." She later says she should've died that day, and I think she wanted to, or was at least willing to sacrifice herself. This was the exact reaction that I expected from Ellie. Aside from my disbelief that she managed to get all the way to the hospital unscathed without Joel being able to catch up at all....... this is the exact kind of confrontation we expected for 7 years. Though it's at this point in in chronological time of the story that I begin to disagree with everything....
RIP Jensen Ackles
Day 3 begins as Ellie sets off with Jesse, navigating through the floods of Seattle, to find Abby and/or get Tommy. Ellie seems to be over the whole revenge quest already after what she had to do to learn Abby's possible location.
Calling out Supernatural fans! There are easter eggs to be found! There are a series of notes found by both Ellie & Abby that indicate that the main cast - Jensen Ackles, Misha Collins, and possibly Jared Padelecki - were attending a Con in Seattle on D-Day. We find the body of who is presumed to be Jensen. The note says he couldn't make it to the Monorail checkpoint where Misha was. We eventually make our way to said monorail where we find another body, that may or may not be Misha himself. I believe on the Scars Island, there is a list of names, one of which being Sam, and there was at least one person on the internet saying this was Jared using a false name. It's kind of sad, actually. It seems Jensen & Misha died as WLFs, while Jared may or may not be chilling with the Seraphites. But a cool easter egg nonetheless.
After a while, Jesse takes the moral high ground and continues on the mission to find Tommy and evacuate the city. However, Ellie still has tunnel vision on her revenge quest, and they separate, leading to Ellie navigating flooded Seattle on a boat. This is actually a fun part of the game. While boat controls are just a little janky, it's a pleasant sequence... that is until that dang whistling and we are attacked by Scars. Then you hit the Arcade where a Bloater boss fight awaits you. But hey, it's all good fun.
I Almost Forgot I Hated This Game
Ellie makes finally makes it to the Aquarium, and you really hope that this time Ellie can finally finish the job and go home... If only it were that easy.
After a very intense scuffle with Owen & Mel, which ended with the deaths of them and their unborn child, Ellie is just devasted by what she has done. I keep saying this, but she's not a killer, and every death she commits is just another level of trauma that she has to deal with. (It doesn't help either that you're forced to kill the dog)
The quest seems to be over as Ellie, Tommy, and Jesse return to the theater. I feel just as dissatisfied as Ellie seems to be in that moment, especially given that Abby finds the base and kills Jesse without even blinking. Abby is like "waaaaaaa you killed my friends so I guess I gotta kill you too." Next scene, you play as younger Abby and I prayed to all the gods of all religions that I didn't have to play as her for too long...
How do you feel playing as Abby?
This is when the fanbase divides in opinions. You're attachment to the first game, attachment to Joel and/or Ellie, and your reaction to Joel's death dictates how you react and feel as you spend the next hours playing as Abby.
Some people loved this half of the game, some people don't. It's like Harry Potter's Severus Snape - you either love him or you hate him, there is not in between. In this case - you're open about learning more about Abby's perspective OR you refuse to give her an inch of sympathy and wish death upon her the entire time, there is no in between. As biased as I am, I've calmed down about the whole story and I will no longer attack anybody who says Abby is their favorite character. I was toxic, I admit, when I replied with the utmost disgust to anyone who defended the character. However, I still hate Abby. While my opinion has changed on different things, I hate Abby and I always will.
The Source
It's revealed that Abby's father is the doctor that you were forced to kill to save Ellie. It's also revealed that neither him nor Marlene even considered to let Ellie give consent for her sacrifice. And good ol' Doc had no response to if it were Abby instead of Ellie, though both would've willingly sacrificed. They got what they deserved. If they waited like an hour for Ellie to agree and to tell Joel herself, things would've ended differently. So that's -10 points toward Abby sympathy.
We also get a close up of Abby after she dealt the final blow. Is it just me, or did Abby just look a little dissatisfied after Joel was dead? If that's the case then good. Your dad's still dead. That feeling will still be inside you. This is also something Ellie also realizes later in her own Revenge story when we get back to it.
WLF
Joel & Ellie came across a few civilizations on their journey but Jackson was the first of it's kind that we saw. No soldiers, no hunters, no cannibals - it was a thriving city. So it's nice to jump into Abby's journey and walk through the WLF headquarters, which sits in a Sports Stadium. This was pretty cool to explore.
There is a Civil War in the city as the WLF are continuously attacked by the Seraphites and vice versa, with causalities and brutal war crimes enacted by and enacted toward both sides. Like Last of Us in Apocalypse Survival fashion, nether side reads black or white. I still don't completely understand the roots of this war; I'm sure there's exposition through some more notes. Given notes we've already found as Ellie at his point, we've been able to gather how brutal the Seattle War is. And Ellie dove head first into it on her quest to find Abby, leading to some deadly encounters from both sides. Now we're getting a point of view from the inside.
The WLF vs Scars plot is the strongest story point of the game for me and I always found it interesting since my first playthrough. There's so much to unpack here!
Aquarium
That's it. That's the segment. I just want it to be clear that the Aquarium is my favorite location in the entire game. Every segment that takes place here, I'm literally crying about the world design. The Aquarium is perfection.
After the initial Aquarium flashback, Abby starts her quest in hopes to find Owen. I loved going through this "China Town" area. It ended with a prayer wall full of requests by the Scars to their cult leader. It's interesting to think of how this religious cult was founded and how it must've been right after Outbreak Day compared to how it evolved in present time.
Abby is kidnapped by the Seraphites and we are met with another flashback sequence. This time it's about Abby telling Owen about the new lead about Tommy's whereabouts. At this point, it had already been 4 years. It's clear that Owen has been able to move on while Abby clearly has not. It's also apparent that Abby's 4 year obsession put a strain on their relationship. Owen found a new life as a WLF here in Seattle and was very relunctant to cling to what happened.
The Real Prophet
Everyone please stand and salute the real hero and best character of the game - Lev.
First of all, that whole forest execution scene is so intense. Not only are you in the woods with these creepy Seraphites that are just insane and too ready to kill, but it's pitch black in this area. When Lev saves Abby & Yara, you gotta escape the woods, which also happens to be infested with Infected hiding in the shadows with practically no weapons at your arsenal. It ends with a mini boss of that beastly woman that knocked you out and stole your stuff, and Abby's adventure really begins.
When the kids are seemingly safely hidden, Abby finally finds Owen at the Aquarium hiding in the boat that he'd like to run away in. I don't wan't to talk about this scene; it makes me uncomfortable..... But the conversation they have is pretty important when comparing the two characters feelings. When Owen brings up the idea about Fireflies in Santa Barbara again, he essentially throws a middle finger at Abby by quoting her "It's a lead, I have to see it through" line. We've also seen hints at this before, but Owen once again seems to disagree with Abby's urge to seek revenge. The revenge quest affected their relationship for 4 years, and even so after it's all over. I also roll my eyes at Abby telling Owen to "grow up." His response to this comment was great. I really hate her...
Amputation👍
Finally, we get to the good stuff. I see what the game is trying to do - pairing a brute force of an adult with a small child good with a bow. But I freaking love Lev. The idea of two people from two sides of the war teaming up like this is a such a fun theme to explore in any reality. Even more so as they do it with Lev, who immediately is very likeable, and Abby, who is not-so-easily likeable. The duality of these polar opposites was great to experience as they spend the day together on a nice grocery shopping quest to the hospital.
Shout out to the D&D table you have to pass by en route to the Scars' sky bridges. I'm a huge Crit Role fan; Laura and Ashley may be enemies here... Nothing a trip to Tal Dorei can't fix lolololol.
Lev still has religious loyalty despite it all while the Scars are twisting the gospel to fit their needs as all religions can do. Lev takes his religious teachings to heart and uses it as his base of Philosophy. The Scars are not using it as philosophy, rather using it as guidelines to extinguish any that are "unholy." The sky bridges are still a cool part of the game to traverse and it sure is great to witness a scaredy cat Abby. Finally making it to the Hospital means experiencing what Nora called "Ground Zero." There's something more haunting about this area as you find notes from pre D-Day, bodies are stuck to wall, fungus is all over the place. And then there is the Rat King..... I have no words... What a ferociously terrifying boss encounter...
After Yara's amputation, Mel tells it like it is. I have nothing more to add; she was completely right. She says she could help the kids most by leaving them and not messing up their lives. I believe Abby's goal helping the kids anyways has to do with redeeming herself or something? Hmm. I don't know. Could be the whole in heart left behind after her vengeance was found??? Hmmmm.
The Island
This is undeniably the coolest sequence in Abby's story. And it starts before you even get to the Island! I'll say, the sniper sequence is so much cooler when you know it's Tommy. This is Tommy in beast mode in a way we've never seen before and it's awesome.
Arriving and exploring the Island of the Serpahites is the best thing I could've asked for for this game. I absolutely loved exploring the Seraphite land - looting their villages, seeing the architecture, getting a sense of how they lived. Of course taking out enemies along way was inevitable. It's actually sad because technically, at this point, Abby is a neutral party. She's killing people from a side that she's actually sympathizing for. We're essentially navigating through a war zone leaving bodies from what is about to become a dwindling society and it's honestly sort of sad.
We find Lev who accidentally kills his mom in self defense. OMG I really love this character. I sympathize with him so much and if anyone hurts him I want Abby to kill everyone in the room and then herself (just kidding just kidding just kidding). As the trio tries to escape the Island, the trio becomes a duo when Yara dies. Please please please send Laura Bailey love. I really loved her voice acting in this scene. When she says "I'm not f***ing moving" ahhhhhh so good. Then Abby drops the "you're my people" line and that really hits the moral of her and Lev's story hard. Still hate Abby, but this moment of the story was top tier.
After this moment, Abby & Lev traverse their way to a firey Haven and...... this sequence is insanely incredible, especially the horseback part. It's total chaos, a bloody war zone, a total massacre of people on both sides. This is humanity, guys. It's intense to play and honestly my favorite part of the game.
Ellie vs Abby
The showdown that was built up to nothing!
Now I guess it's not the worst possible outcome in the moment.... Actually it kind of is. Ellie came all the way to Seattle to kill Abby and nothing came of it. Granted, Ellie & Tommy killed all of Abby's friends, so an eye for an eye I guess. This is just my bias because I wish Abby died. However, we can't really be allowed to make an opinion on how the Seattle trip ended. Ellie did end up killing, torturing, and shaking her own morality to seek revenge. It really was time to go home. Between the war and Ellie, Abby has nothing left but Lev. She did loose everything in these few days. So the end of this chapter does have a little conclusiveness... Though the final chapter is where everything truly "resolves" so so we can't judge the end of this part based on it's resolution.
I will say, the idea of fighting Ellie as Abby is really cool... if you're an Abby fan. I, of course, did not enjoy it as I was essentially playing the enemy. Villains are cool, but this was not it, fam.
Santa Barbara
It's been at least a couple years. Dina and Ellie have a quaint farm in the middle of nowhere. It's nice and peaceful and beautiful. But Ellie has PTSD from her experience. She can't let go of Joel's death or Abby's survival. And honestly, Abby haters can't either. After an anxious visit from broken Tommy, Ellie has the urgent need to follow the lead. She needs closure and so does this story.
I also want to point out how revenge has ruined the characters of this story. It strained Abby's relationship with Owen. And now Tommy and Ellie have strained relationships with Maria & Dina. While I do support Ellie getting closure for herself & Tommy, it is sad to see how everything has fallen apart since Joel's death.
[I'll refer to the party scene later. I know we've all seen it. It was the highlight of E3 that one time. I don't have to talk about it. And I don't really care about the homophobia, it doesn't really fit in with this story, it just feels forced unlike Lev who came from an actual freaky religious cult. But whatever.]
So Ellie goes on the hunt again. I'm sorry, but Ellie finding Abby's note to a dead Owen makes me laugh. He's dead because of her; I'm glad it still tortures her. This final sequence is intense. Yet again, a Last of Us game ends with the real enemy - humans.
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The Boat
Lev saved Dina and, by proxy, JJ. Then Ellie saves Lev by by allowing Abby to live to be his guardian. Fine. Even Stevens. Lev is the only reason I could accept this, but it still bothers me. The final fight itself was emotional. Abby & Lev are barely hanging on for dear life & Ellie just wants it to be over. Ashley Johnson in all these scenes... You don't need me to tell her how awesome she is.
And just because I hate Abby, I feel unsatisfied that after everything, she still walks free. "After everything we've been through, after everything I've done, it can't be for nothing." I guess it always is. Rip Ellie.
Joel's Death: Part II
I really felt betrayed.
Betrayal is the emotion I feel when I think about this game. I tried have an open mind. The gameplay was so fun, I really tried giving it a chance. But there were literally so many other ways to kill Joel with a similar effect. There were so many other ways to push Ellie on this quest. There were so many ways they could've made Abby more empathetic other than using a pure character like Lev as a pawn to make us do so.
Joel died and so did all the accomplices of his murder did. I can now accept this as a form of justice. There is still this thorn in my side as I continue to rewrite the story in my head. When it comes down to it, all my grievances with his death doesn't lie in the fact that he died - it's all about the sequence of events that leads to his death.
A lot of people say Tommy & Joel were uncharacteristic in the moment when they introduced themselves to the WLFs. Some argued that they became soft over their years at Jackson. I'm on the fence with this argument. On one hand, how were they supposed to know this was an execution squad? Tommy was just trying to be hospitable to a group of travelers. On the other hand, Jackson has had problems with ruffians before. And for to men who have survived the apocalypse as long as they have, after everything they've experienced, the twist people they've had to deal with, a little touch of caution was to be expected from Tommy's end. Joel wasn't to keen on conversation; it was all Tommy. And it is valid to some extent to say it was uncharacteristic.
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The state of Joel & Ellie's relationship was the final straw. It took Joel to get pissed off a homophobic jerk for Ellie to be like "hmm maybe I should try to forgive him." There was a year, maybe 2, between that moment and the trip to the hospital. Don't get me wrong, it's great Joel accepts her as a lesbian. But this scene is "the agenda" that people complain about. For me, I just can't believe that there was not a single incident between these moments when Ellie would find herself forgiving Joel. We have twice seen patrols go wrong. Literally any moment, you could've thrown the two in a situation - one save the other, or they help each other to have someone else, literally anything. Going back to the roots of what Joel and Ellie are. It's not just a father-daughter bond, it's a survivors bond. A shared trauma sort of thing. Even as soon as the trip from the Hospital back to Jackson. After all the crap they went through in the 1st game, they really returned to Jackson unscathed?
Even if the story was unchanged and they had that emotional conversation on the porch, all I would've wanted was time for them. A week, a couple days, a single morning, I don't care. The fact that he died the day after is the root of my betrayal because I spent the whole game accepting his death because I thought they had these 4 years together when in fact they did not.
Also, you wanna talk about uncharacteristic? "Everyone I have cared for has either died or left me" That one single scene from the first game is why I disagree with this last minute forgiveness..... I just..... I'm done. I'm getting frustrated all over again....
Overall Thoughts
GAMEPLAY
The gameplay is where it's at. I would only play this game if I skipped the cutscenes as playing the actual game is a perfect experience. I don't even know where to begin. Skill menu & upgrade system got a little make over. Collectables for both Abby & Ellie. Some areas are so explorable that it feels like an open world at times though it's still a pretty linear experience. Maps and notes are discussed and even relevant in game, not just used for world building exposition. Lots of in game dialogue. Cool idle animations. Party members look around and seem to pass more useful items. NPCs as a whole just seem more useful. Death animations are somehow more brutal, if not more cinematic. The audio design in this game has added a new level to horror aspects of the environment more than the first. This is most apparent when it comes to the new types of infected we encounter.
I love how Ellie uses her knife; a welcoming sight compared to the limited use of Shivs with Joel and Abby. Though Abby's crossbow is pretty nifty. Animations make the characters seem so alive, like when they weapon swap. There's a big use to the environment, such as the various puzzles involving ropes and climbing as well as breakable windows that can be used for exploration or distractions. And the new prone feature!!!!!!! adds a new depth to stealth. As someone who is a big scaredy cat and thrives on stealth - this is a highlight for me. Not only is it useful for stealth, but you can still shoot while prone, which is pretty awesome.
STORY
Well... You don't me to say it but I will anyway - I still hate Abby. I think what frustrates me the most is that there was way to make her more likeable and/or empathetic. But it felt like the story went out of it's way to make us hate her then went out of it's way to make us like her, and in the process, painted Ellie in a poor picture.
Revenge was obviously the core message of the story. We've seen it time and time again. Revenge is an endless loop until someone breaks it. That someone was Ellie in this instance. Abby spent years driven by hate to find him and kill him. People like Abby because she's a bodybuilder and hate people body shaming her - I just don't find her build impressive when she built herself up to be a killing machine just to kill one guy. In the end, Abby wasn't satisfied. There was still a whole in her heart that was only able to be filled by Lev, I guess. Ellie, in the moment when Abby & Lev's fate rested in her hand literally and figuratively and completely - she realized that with Abby dead, Joel is still gone. I'll be dwelling on what Ellie thought in that moment for years. I could write an explanation now, but my perspective could change in a few years. What do you think was the ultimate thought that pushed Ellie to serve mercy?
On the other hand, Tommy is more like Abby than Ellie is. We get the sense that his life was totally ruined by the trip to Seattle and not just because of the brain injury. He'll probably dwell on Abby until he dies. Actually... who's to say she doesn't go back to Tommy and lie and say Abby is dead. I'd like to think Ellie does this so the whole situation can be put to rest. I will hate it if a third game comes out and we find an insane Tommy permanently ruined by Abby's actions.
Now Abby is not the only one who suffered as a character that was hard to empathized with. They surround Abby with a few likeable characters but that still didn't make me like her. She's still garbage. And aside from Lev, Owen was the only one I even liked. He was the one that wanted to stop everything - Abby's revenge quest, the Seattle War. I feel bad that Abby indirectly cuased his death. On the other hand - Dina & Jessie were all that great either. Don't get me wrong, I liked them. butI never had a moment where I felt for them or had any connection to them at all. In the first game it was so easy to like Bill, Tess, Henry, and Sam. But Jesse died I was like "that's rough buddy." And Dina almost died and I was like rip. I just didn't care.
One thing the Last of Us has mastered through both games is the concept of gray characters. Joel does anything he can to keep Ellie alive, but that means hurting people, even the one closest to him. Abby's dad wanted to cancel the apocalypse with the cure, even if that meant killing a kid without blinking. Ellie is on this path to justice but is leaving a trail of bodies in her wake. Abby sucks but Lev needs her and they need each other to survive. This is what the Last of Us is all about.
"I would do it all over again." Five minutes in Jackson, I can't help but agree with Joel's actions even more. Tommy did it. He didn't need a cure to create this society. A cure wasn't need to start over. And speaking of the 1st game, I'm just too attached to the the original story that I just can't bring myself to like the story anymore than I did in 2020. The object of the game is for us to throw away everything form the first game, and I just can't do it.
How I Would've Done It
I don't think I'm the only one that thinks this - but Part 2 should have been Part 3, and Part 2 should have been the in between.
Imagine - we go through Abby's arrival to Seattle, see her experience the war, watch her build up, and give no back story until she gets the intel on Jackson, we play through the hospital scene at the end, see the dead doctor, realize who Abby is, and then we realize this bad@$$ woman we've grown to love is after our very own Joel. Meanwhile, Joel & Ellie live a life in Jackson, Ellie finds out the truth, gets mad, but their story ends with Ellie's forgiveness. So the game would end with this sweet moment between them but we know Joel is marked for death, and that's the cliffhanger that leads to a 3rd installment. We would've liked Abby & have more time with Joel - actually more time with all the side characters we didn't give a crap about. The 3rd game would be almost the same beside the flashbacks. And just maybe, I'd cry for Jesse & Owen the way I cried for Tess or for the brothers.
Unfortunately, we got what we got. For me, every good part of the game comes with 2 complaints I can rant about. The Last of Us Part II won Game of the Year, which is absurd because Final Fantasy VII Remake & Ghost of Tsushima came out that year and were perfect from start to finished. They got no recognition and all the hype around Part 2 was all propaganda. This game will always leave a sour taste in my mouth, but I know a lot of people liked it way more than I did. And after a few years of resentment.... I guess this is something I can now accept.
My Rating: ★★★★★★☆☆☆☆
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