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The Last of Us Part II OT - Best Served Cold, update: the story behind the game's realistic facial animations (PlayStation Blog)


SaysWho?

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I just finished the game, and my criticism is minimal.  The only true fault that I see with the narrative is due to the limitations of current game design, but certainly not with the characterization and honestly brilliant structure of the story.

 

Spoiler

As others have pointed out already, there is an inherent dissonance with the themes of the story relative to the amount of killing that the player has to take part in to survive.  However, I felt that the pace of the game spaced out the encounters far more than the first game did, which made each encounter more bearable in the scheme of what the story was attempting to do.  There is still too much of a disconnect between the amount of violence the player inflicts and the trauma that the characters suffer, but in my mind this a key limitation of video games in general, particularly when they are designed to be engaging, tactile, and fun.

 

As far as the story goes, I'm absolutely blown away by what was accomplished here, and it's clear that this will be an enduring work of interactive art.  Playing through the game makes all of the repulsive hate mongering absolutely laughable, because this has some of the most polished, detailed, and dynamic gameplay in any video game along with a story that is perhaps among the most ambitious I've experienced in any medium.  Naughty Dog has essentially developed a storytelling language that extends beyond what games and film are separately capable of and delivered something that I don't think I'll see replicated any time soon.  As far as the beats of the story and the characters, there is no binary good or bad, nobody is outright redeemed or villainized; this isn't the fucking Marvel universe, these characters have nuanced and complex interior lives.  There are no easy answers, and the game refreshingly doesn't give a fuck about what "fans" want - the game sticks out like a sore thumb because it's exploring complex adult content within a media landscape dominated by comic book storytelling.  I honestly never could have guessed the shape of this game's story, or how boldly it reckons with the themes and the ending of the first game.

 

Not sure if any of this is really a spoiler, but I tagged it just in case.  There is so much to say about this game, much of which has already been explored in this thread.  Just, wow.

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On ‎7‎/‎4‎/‎2020 at 1:24 PM, BloodyHell said:

Im replaying the original, and this game is still so, so good.

I am too, and I agree. It's one of my favorite games. I'm going to play through Part II again after I finish it.

 

22 hours ago, CastlevaniaNut18 said:

Damn, I thought I was thorough in my slightly over 34 hours with the game. Looking at my stats, I missed a decent few collectibles. More than I thought I had. Rats. 

Same here. I thought that I looked just about everywhere that there was to look in the environments for all the extra stuff, but discovered that I missed quite a bit after I finished the game.

 

6 hours ago, SaysWho? said:
  Reveal hidden contents

 

That would NOT have worked as well in a non-interactive medium. That plays best as a video game.

I agree, and it's a good example as to why I don't watch movies/shows that much these days because I prefer playing video games instead.

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So, I just completed Tha Last of Us and Left Behind. I never played It on PS4 before now, I beat it twice on PS3 but never picked it up again. 
 

First of all, for an early remaster, the game still looks really good for PS4 today.
 

Second, while tLoU2 is a better game all around, especially in combat, the pacing of the original is much, much better. The game never dragged Anywhere, and there was always the right mixture of excitement  and calm, letting you level off and explore between frantic fights. 

 

The sequel is still superior. I love how they took away any player agency, making you come along for the ride, more than an interactive participant in the story. But I also think the pairing of Ellie and Joel in the first game were fare far more fun and interesting than this game’s protagonists. The original is certainly a sweeter story, a gruff old man and scared but bright child finding family in each other. I don’t think anyone would argue Joel is a good guy, but the way he warms up to and comes to love Ellie was extremely well done, and Ellies bravery and willingness to do anything to save Joel, physically and spiritually just makes for an incredible adventure. 
 


 

The second  game has almost none of that, but it still nails everything it attempts so perfectly. Aside from being a little drawn out in a couple of places, it feels pretty perfect. Ellie is a far different person this time around, and not near as likeable, by design. At the end of this game she’s in about the same place mentally that joel was at the beginning of the first, and it works so damn well. 

 

They definitely sent the PS4 out with one of best first party games in Sony history. And probably the third best direct sequel ive ever played.

 

I just hops Neil Druckmann doesn’t decide we need a third and ruin this series. Make a new IP and move on. These two games serve as a perfect time capsule of the last decade of gaming, they don’t need more. They can’t improve on this. Im fine with another game in the same world, in another place or in the future, but it can’t be connected to these characters. I think they’d ruin it. They said what they have to say with these people.

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6 minutes ago, johnny said:

If he wants to make a third I have no problem with it. 2 masterpieces imo. who am I to say he shouldn’t do a part 3 if he thinks of a story worth telling 

I think a third with the same characters is overkill. We can’t only have these characters do the same thing over and over. Any new story with them would end up being reductive and detract from the series. Most things get worse as sequels drag on. Move on, do something new. I have no interest in a 3rd adventure with any of these characters. Thats just my opinion, though. 

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So it's been about 14 hours since I finished the game. As for time spent playing through on Moderate, I really cannot attest to (is there a way to track it?) I was just so engrossed in all of it. On top of that, I was (what I believed to be), very thorough in my exploration of the levels yet was astonished to discover that I found roughly 60% of all safes/benches/cards/coins/letters. This alone makes me want to play again on New Game+ but with as heavy as this whole thing is, I'm hesitant to revisit it at least for a while (already burdened by nightmares of this game legitimately.) As for my thoughts, reactions, etc. my $.02 is as follows...

 

Spoiler
  • Joel not only took away Ellie’s “reason for existing” but he, by way of killing her father, did the very same thing to Abby.
  • Because of this, Joel's time was up one way or another. Abby had been searching for years for him with one singular purpose and literally all that surrounded her were merely a means to the visceral end she was compelled to deal out to this ONE personification of the ruining of what her existence SHOULD have been. 
  • The years of training, internalization, bottled up emotions...it is awful in the HOW of Joel's death (being so brutal) but it was pure catharsis for Abby.
  • As someone who also has a deep seeded fear of heights, that element which was introduced quite quickly when you began to play as her, was the first bit of "Ohhh! Well at least in that sense she's relatable." Which in turn was essentially that first domino falling to give way to even beginning to see things appropriately from her POV.
  • Had Ellie not been present and/or had Joel's death not been so vile & garish, I'm not even sure she would have gone to such extreme lengths for vengeance. I say this because of the ground they were on, the harboring of resentment still so close, all of it. 
  • The quieter moments of conversation, world building, backstory, times to just breathe and process - all were phenomenally well done & well timed.
  • Having to BE Abby in that first boss fight against Ellie I was absolutely NOT OK with. I hated it, I cried (I had JUST SCREAMED when I believed she had shot & killed Tommy moments earlier all without a moment to process.) I actually relished every failed attempt to progress the battle and ended up dead by Ellie's end so that she could have that for herself even though the game isn't meant to be written in such a way.
  • The visualization of PTSD was done tastefully and you understand just exactly WHY Ellie has to walk away from her established "new normal" just to finally get that which she believes she desires most and will rectify all of her perceived troubles. 
  • Genuinely believed Lev was a boy until the revelation of the Lily statement. 
  • As everything progresses as Abby, the duality of it all just continued to echo in my mind. I enjoyed being able to fully explore with great & sincere empathy both sides to the coin throughout. 
  • The end fight, again just hearkens back to what I said about Ellie NEEDING THIS FIGHT! That said, even in those last few moments before it began, I cried and shuddered and sobbed not wanting this to continue and end potentially with one or both being dead (or even possibly Lev for that matter!)
  • Ellie arriving back to the empty house, the inability to play her guitar further emphasizing physically what she has lost. That by going through such a fruitless endeavor only served to further distance herself from the person she was doing it all for in the first place. I feel that it wasn't even the fact she couldn't play anymore but that the memory of Joel was so sour & bitter at that point that it was the final step needed to just walk away from it all. Because of that, I feel she also quite possibly walked away from Jackson either that day or not too long thereafter. 

 

One thing I cannot get out of my mind is, regardless of how harrowing, vile, ghastly, disturbing, and grimy the story was and how I as the player felt at the end of it, I just want to engage in a TLoU3 immediately. What that story is or could be I do not know however. What if Abby did reconnect with the Fireflies on the island? They find out about all that transpired, wouldn't they want to go after Ellie as well? Where does that leave Jackson and the few left there that mean something to Ellie? 

 

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On 6/27/2020 at 10:41 PM, Greatoneshere said:

Beat the game yesterday. It was amazing, I loved every minute of what it had to say is, for a game, reaching for some interesting things. It reminded me a lot of the film I Saw the Devil, which I also love. Down to discuss - really was something unique.

 

And the game is between 28-32 hours if you try to do everything like I did.

I was hoping someone else who had seen that film could sense the similarities of it. Totally not wrong with that @Greatoneshereand a hell of an observation! 

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I want to leave a couple things to share, one is an interview between GameOverGreggy with the voice of Abby, Laura Bailey. Quite a compelling interview for sure!

 

 

Finally, a video I came across that is ... well if you feel nothing from it, I believe you to be dead inside. 

 

 

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37 minutes ago, SoberChef said:

So it's been about 14 hours since I finished the game. As for time spent playing through on Moderate, I really cannot attest to (is there a way to track it?) I was just so engrossed in all of it. On top of that, I was (what I believed to be), very thorough in my exploration of the levels yet was astonished to discover that I found roughly 60% of all safes/benches/cards/coins/letters. This alone makes me want to play again on New Game+ but with as heavy as this whole thing is, I'm hesitant to revisit it at least for a while (already burdened by nightmares of this game legitimately.) As for my thoughts, reactions, etc. my $.02 is as follows...

 

  Reveal hidden contents

 

Just check your load/save option and it’ll show you your time. 

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7 hours ago, SoberChef said:

So it's been about 14 hours since I finished the game. As for time spent playing through on Moderate, I really cannot attest to (is there a way to track it?) I was just so engrossed in all of it. On top of that, I was (what I believed to be), very thorough in my exploration of the levels yet was astonished to discover that I found roughly 60% of all safes/benches/cards/coins/letters. This alone makes me want to play again on New Game+ but with as heavy as this whole thing is, I'm hesitant to revisit it at least for a while (already burdened by nightmares of this game legitimately.) As for my thoughts, reactions, etc. my $.02 is as follows...

 

  Hide contents
  • Joel not only took away Ellie’s “reason for existing” but he, by way of killing her father, did the very same thing to Abby.
  • Because of this, Joel's time was up one way or another. Abby had been searching for years for him with one singular purpose and literally all that surrounded her were merely a means to the visceral end she was compelled to deal out to this ONE personification of the ruining of what her existence SHOULD have been. 
  • The years of training, internalization, bottled up emotions...it is awful in the HOW of Joel's death (being so brutal) but it was pure catharsis for Abby.
  • As someone who also has a deep seeded fear of heights, that element which was introduced quite quickly when you began to play as her, was the first bit of "Ohhh! Well at least in that sense she's relatable." Which in turn was essentially that first domino falling to give way to even beginning to see things appropriately from her POV.
  • Had Ellie not been present and/or had Joel's death not been so vile & garish, I'm not even sure she would have gone to such extreme lengths for vengeance. I say this because of the ground they were on, the harboring of resentment still so close, all of it. 
  • The quieter moments of conversation, world building, backstory, times to just breathe and process - all were phenomenally well done & well timed.
  • Having to BE Abby in that first boss fight against Ellie I was absolutely NOT OK with. I hated it, I cried (I had JUST SCREAMED when I believed she had shot & killed Tommy moments earlier all without a moment to process.) I actually relished every failed attempt to progress the battle and ended up dead by Ellie's end so that she could have that for herself even though the game isn't meant to be written in such a way.
  • The visualization of PTSD was done tastefully and you understand just exactly WHY Ellie has to walk away from her established "new normal" just to finally get that which she believes she desires most and will rectify all of her perceived troubles. 
  • Genuinely believed Lev was a boy until the revelation of the Lily statement. 
  • As everything progresses as Abby, the duality of it all just continued to echo in my mind. I enjoyed being able to fully explore with great & sincere empathy both sides to the coin throughout. 
  • The end fight, again just hearkens back to what I said about Ellie NEEDING THIS FIGHT! That said, even in those last few moments before it began, I cried and shuddered and sobbed not wanting this to continue and end potentially with one or both being dead (or even possibly Lev for that matter!)
  • Ellie arriving back to the empty house, the inability to play her guitar further emphasizing physically what she has lost. That by going through such a fruitless endeavor only served to further distance herself from the person she was doing it all for in the first place. I feel that it wasn't even the fact she couldn't play anymore but that the memory of Joel was so sour & bitter at that point that it was the final step needed to just walk away from it all. Because of that, I feel she also quite possibly walked away from Jackson either that day or not too long thereafter. 

 

One thing I cannot get out of my mind is, regardless of how harrowing, vile, ghastly, disturbing, and grimy the story was and how I as the player felt at the end of it, I just want to engage in a TLoU3 immediately. What that story is or could be I do not know however. What if Abby did reconnect with the Fireflies on the island? They find out about all that transpired, wouldn't they want to go after Ellie as well? Where does that leave Jackson and the few left there that mean something to Ellie? 

 

I always wonder if there is something wrong with me, because ive never cried during a movie or a game. I just can’t get attached enough to pixels I guess. 
 

thst said 

Spoiler

I really didn’t want to fight Ellie either, but when I realized I had to, I went straight for her. 
 

The further away I get from the game, the more I like Abby. Probably more than grown up Ellie (child Ellie is my favourite of all of them).


 


Glad you enjoyed the game!

 

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20 minutes ago, Greatoneshere said:

 

Yeah - I Saw The Devil is an even more difficult experience (and better as a narrative) but this was a lot like that, in all the best ways.

 

You just like bringing up that movie every chance you can no matter how similar it is to the subject matter you're comparing it to. :p

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21 minutes ago, BloodyHell said:

I always wonder if there is something wrong with me, because ive never cried during a movie or a game. I just can’t get attached enough to pixels I guess. 
 

thst said 

  Hide contents

I really didn’t want to fight Ellie either, but when I realized I had to, I went straight for her. 
 

The further away I get from the game, the more I like Abby. Probably more than grown up Ellie (child Ellie is my favourite of all of them).


 


Glad you enjoyed the game!

 

Hell, I’m a woman and I pretty much never cry at books, movies, shows, games, etc. 

 

A few things have caused my eyes to get a bit watery, but that’s usually real life stuff. Like a few parts in Ken Burns’ Vietnam War series. 
 

I’m just not much of a crier. 

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26 minutes ago, Keyser_Soze said:

 

You just like bringing up that movie every chance you can no matter how similar it is to the subject matter you're comparing it to. :p

He's doing it to finally get me to watch that damn movie which he recommended to me months ago. 

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1 hour ago, SaysWho? said:

Yo! HUGE HUGE HUGE HUGE HUGE spoiler in the picture in this tweet. Don't click unless you've straight up finished the game. It's a theory about the ending.

  Reveal hidden contents

Interesting.

 

Spoiler

I really like that, and I love that people are making connections like that in the narrative, but I highly doubt that anything about the bracelet and when it's worn are that deliberate or complicated.  Unless they make a third game, there will be no canonical answer of exactly what happens next/what happened within the seams of the story, and that's what makes it so powerful.  One of the strongest aspects of these games is their ability to suggest an epic narrative scope while keeping the primary events (mostly) small and grounded.  Leaving the details open to imagination and interpretation is key to what makes TLoU work so well in my opinion.

 

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On ‎7‎/‎6‎/‎2020 at 6:39 PM, BloodyHell said:

So, I just completed Tha Last of Us and Left Behind. I never played It on PS4 before now, I beat it twice on PS3 but never picked it up again. 
 

First of all, for an early remaster, the game still looks really good for PS4 today.
 

Second, while tLoU2 is a better game all around, especially in combat, the pacing of the original is much, much better. The game never dragged Anywhere, and there was always the right mixture of excitement  and calm, letting you level off and explore between frantic fights.

I just finished it again as well, and part of the reason why the PS4 remastered version looks really good is because it runs at a smooth 60fps. And while I agree that Part II is a better game from a gameplay perspective, the first game is a better game from a story, characterization and pacing perspective IMO. I find it to be a more emotional, human and touching tale overall.

 

On ‎7‎/‎7‎/‎2020 at 8:05 AM, BloodyHell said:

I always wonder if there is something wrong with me, because ive never cried during a movie or a game. I just can’t get attached enough to pixels I guess.

On ‎7‎/‎7‎/‎2020 at 8:28 AM, CastlevaniaNut18 said:

Hell, I’m a woman and I pretty much never cry at books, movies, shows, games, etc. 

 

A few things have caused my eyes to get a bit watery, but that’s usually real life stuff. Like a few parts in Ken Burns’ Vietnam War series. 
 

I’m just not much of a crier. 

I didn't really get too emotional from things when I was younger, but as I've gotten older and have endured more hardships and losses in life I'm more emotional now and will cry if something hits me hard enough in a story. The moments that affected me the most in The Last of Us Part II were...

 

Spoiler

when Ellie plays a-ha's "Take on Me" on guitar in the record store, it's a charming cover of one of my favorite songs from my youth that made me emotional. Also, when Abby tells Lev that he's her people - I found that moment to be touching and it made me teary-eyed. And when Ellie had her emotional/mental breakdown in the barn on the farm, I could really feel her pain and torment during that scene and it made me cry.

 

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4 hours ago, Bloodporne said:

One thing I'm dying to find out after the first one is whether the vast majority of broken down cars in the USA still consist of 1987 Honda Civic Hatchbacks. 

 

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spacer.png

 

 

 

 

Nah now it's all broken down single cab long bed trucks

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I started using explosive arrows too late in my game. I could have gotten a lot of play with them had I realized how great they were earlier. Oh well! I'll return to the game and take advantage of them.

 

11 hours ago, ManUtdRedDevils said:

Finished Seattle Day 3. 
 

Ashley Graham Lol GIF by Lifetime

 

Oh yes. :daydream:

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9 minutes ago, SaysWho? said:

I started using explosive arrows too late in my game. I could have gotten a lot of play with them had I realized how great they were earlier. Oh well! I'll return to the game and take advantage of them.

 

Had that experience with the nail bombs in the first game. I didn't realize you could ricochet them off walls and therefore around corners and all kinds of fun, useful stuff like that.

 

And also I have to stop coming in this thread until I played the damn game.

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This game never ends.   Playing it on Survivor, it's been relatively easy, but with it dragging on a bit, I've grown a bit bored of playing stealthy, and have started dying more going a bit more Rambo style.

 

I  must be getting pretty close to the end, and I've been really enjoying it.  Game play is definitely improved from the first just about all around.

 

I do feel like I am firmly in the camp that the 1st game was overall the better game though, and not sure anything will change that in the last few hours.

 

As a few others have said, the pacing is just better, characters and interactions between characters better.  Even the world as you travel cross country, was more interesting.  Even if the actual level design is more open and dynamic in this game. By design, I just feel like I'm in the same general area, the entire game, with little variety.  

 

Another thing, which isn't really a spoiler, but the key difference thus far in my preference for the original 

 

Spoiler

In the first game, unless I am not remember correctly as it's been a few years, I felt like that entire game you were basically playing as a duo.  Joel and Ellie, other than a few short sections they get split up. 

 

In this game, I feel I am almost always running solo, with the sections with companions are generally short lived.  I also think this is a bit by design, as the game plays more like a horror game than the first, and the feeling of being alone is a lot more dreadful.

 

I do feel that all the moments of being alone take away what Naughty Dog generally does best, is the little nuanced story telling and interactions between the characters.  The banter back and forth, interacting with things they see in the world and commenting on it.  All of that was what made the first such a great experience to me, and its generally lost in this game.  I got a little of that feeling with Lev and Abby, but it doesn't come close to the original.

 

All the other companions come and go so quick, you can't even really generally bond with them.  It also gets amplified a bit by the looting, where you are running around in circles in areas running up to every nook and cranny in dead silence for like 5 minutes at a time, with no chatter or dialogue to possibly break any of that up.

 

Can't wait to finish it, hopefully today.

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6 hours ago, JPDunks4 said:

This game never ends.   Playing it on Survivor, it's been relatively easy, but with it dragging on a bit, I've grown a bit bored of playing stealthy, and have started dying more going a bit more Rambo style.

 

I  must be getting pretty close to the end, and I've been really enjoying it.  Game play is definitely improved from the first just about all around.

 

I do feel like I am firmly in the camp that the 1st game was overall the better game though, and not sure anything will change that in the last few hours.

 

As a few others have said, the pacing is just better, characters and interactions between characters better.  Even the world as you travel cross country, was more interesting.  Even if the actual level design is more open and dynamic in this game. By design, I just feel like I'm in the same general area, the entire game, with little variety.  

 

Another thing, which isn't really a spoiler, but the key difference thus far in my preference for the original 

 

  Hide contents

In the first game, unless I am not remember correctly as it's been a few years, I felt like that entire game you were basically playing as a duo.  Joel and Ellie, other than a few short sections they get split up. 

 

In this game, I feel I am almost always running solo, with the sections with companions are generally short lived.  I also think this is a bit by design, as the game plays more like a horror game than the first, and the feeling of being alone is a lot more dreadful.

 

I do feel that all the moments of being alone take away what Naughty Dog generally does best, is the little nuanced story telling and interactions between the characters.  The banter back and forth, interacting with things they see in the world and commenting on it.  All of that was what made the first such a great experience to me, and its generally lost in this game.  I got a little of that feeling with Lev and Abby, but it doesn't come close to the original.

 

All the other companions come and go so quick, you can't even really generally bond with them.  It also gets amplified a bit by the looting, where you are running around in circles in areas running up to every nook and cranny in dead silence for like 5 minutes at a time, with no chatter or dialogue to possibly break any of that up.

 

Can't wait to finish it, hopefully today.

 

There shouldn't be any spoilers here beyond where you are. I'm keeping spoilers at:

 

Spoiler

The very beginning of meeting Lev and spending time with him.

 

Spoiler

I don't think they're any more short-lived than the first game. In the first, you have short-lived parts with Tommy, Bill, Tess, Henry & Sam, and David. The only difference is that the story involved Joel having to escort Ellie, whereas in this, it's about what drives Ellie and Abby on their quests for revenge, both of whom lost either a father or father figure. None of the side characters are really replicating Ellie.

tbh, I think your time with Lev, Owen, and Mel is as good as any for different reasons. Getting to know Mel and Owen during Abby's stories had me rewatching the end of Day 3 with Ellie differently. At first, I was just killing people I really detested. I don't know where you are in Abby's story, but being vague, I felt like I got to know those WLF members a lot more by the end of it, having me think of them differently, for better or worse. And it puts all the eavesdropped conversations as Ellie in a clearer perspective.

 

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1 minute ago, SaysWho? said:

 

There shouldn't be any spoilers here beyond where you are. I'm keeping spoilers at:

 

  Hide contents

The very beginning of meeting Lev and spending time with her.

 

  Hide contents

I don't think they're any more short-lived than the first game. In the first, you have short-lived parts with Tommy, Bill, Tess, Henry & Sam, and David. The only difference is that the story involved Joel having to escort Ellie, whereas in this, it's about what drives Ellie and Abby on their quests for revenge, both of whom lost either a father or father figure. None of the side characters are really replicating Ellie.

tbh, I think your time with Lev, Owen, and Mel is as good as any for different reasons. Getting to know Mel and Owen during Abby's stories had me rewatching the end of Day 3 with Ellie differently. At first, I was just killing people I really detested. I don't know where you are in Abby's story, but being vague, I felt like I got to know those WLF members a lot more by the end of it, having me think of them differently, for better or worse. And it puts all the eavesdropped conversations as Ellie in a clearer perspective.

 

Spoiler

Did you seriously just misgender Lev again?!

 

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9 hours ago, SaysWho? said:

 

There shouldn't be any spoilers here beyond where you are. I'm keeping spoilers at:

 

  Reveal hidden contents

 

  Hide contents
Spoiler

I don't think they're any more short-lived than the first game. In the first, you have short-lived parts with Tommy, Bill, Tess, Henry & Sam, and David. The only difference is that the story involved Joel having to escort Ellie, whereas in this, it's about what drives Ellie and Abby on their quests for revenge, both of whom lost either a father or father figure. None of the side characters are really replicating Ellie.

tbh, I think your time with Lev, Owen, and Mel is as good as any for different reasons. Getting to know Mel and Owen during Abby's stories had me rewatching the end of Day 3 with Ellie differently. At first, I was just killing people I really detested. I don't know where you are in Abby's story, but being vague, I felt like I got to know those WLF members a lot more by the end of it, having me think of them differently, for better or worse. And it puts all the eavesdropped conversations as Ellie in a clearer perspective.

 

 

 

I finally finished earlier today.  Really thoroughly enjoyed it. I also grew to like it more the 2nd half of the game.

 

Spoiler

I understand the "3rd Wheel" Characters in the original are also short lived, but they were typically the 3rd/4th character in the group.   Joel and Ellie were always there, and always interacting, witty banter, stories, interacting and commenting on their surroundings.  It's like a staple of Naughty Dog games, even with Uncharted.  This game I felt largely went in a drastically different direction keeping things mostly solo.

 

I also understand that I think they go the route of a mostly solo adventure, at least for Ellie, as a way to portray that revenge is largely a very selfish thing, that largely is expressed by the person directly affected.  Ellie wanted to go to Seattle, Dina went along because she cares for Ellie.  Dina didn't have the same relationship for Joel as Ellie, so she didn't have the same drive or desire to see that revenge through.  We see that again at the end where she resents Ellie having to leave and giving up their life together.

 

Abby had already expressed her revenge, and a lot of time spent with her, was with companions, so I actually liked her playthough more than Eliies.  Lev and Abby's sections were probably my favorite in the game.  The game ended strongly largely because of that for me.

 

After finishing, I can't really say if I prefer the 1st or 2nd game.  I do like a lot of the first game better, but the gameplay is definitely generally far superior in this game, and the intricacies of this story and how it all tied together and ended made them both really memorable experiences.

 

 

 

 

 

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One last thing, I was discussing this with a few friends earlier.

 

This is a game, that I think hugely benefits from playing on harder difficulties.  While I really enjoyed the story and gameplay, what really set this game apart, and really left a lasting impression, was the tension and horror that lingered with me throughout the game.  The fact I knew I had to be resourceful and make smart choices in regards to item use, combat, healing, everything.  Even on Survivor, I feel I had a pretty ample amount of supplies and ammo at all times, so I'd imagine it must have been pretty overboard on the easier difficulties.  

 

I feel the same about many games, like Halo for instance.  If you play Halo on normal, its a joke of a game that really doesn't allow a lot of its gameplay elements to matter much.  You can run straight through meleeing just about all the enemies. 

 

I feel this game might have s a similar impact.  If I lost the fear and tension, and felt I could freely engage in combat and use items knowing there is an abundance of supplies and ammo, I think the game would lose a lot of what made it great from a gameplay perspective. 

 

I actually really appreciate what Naughty Dog did in this game for difficulty sliders, and being able to fine tune different elements.  I think that's an amazing idea I hope more games incorporate, so people can get that perfectly fit for what suits their gaming style while also hopefully honoring the some of the gameplay mechanics the developers implemented.

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1 hour ago, JPDunks4 said:

One last thing, I was discussing this with a few friends earlier.

 

This is a game, that I think hugely benefits from playing on harder difficulties.  While I really enjoyed the story and gameplay, what really set this game apart, and really left a lasting impression, was the tension and horror that lingered with me throughout the game.  The fact I knew I had to be resourceful and make smart choices in regards to item use, combat, healing, everything.  Even on Survivor, I feel I had a pretty ample amount of supplies and ammo at all times, so I'd imagine it must have been pretty overboard on the easier difficulties.  

 

I feel the same about many games, like Halo for instance.  If you play Halo on normal, its a joke of a game that really doesn't allow a lot of its gameplay elements to matter much.  You can run straight through meleeing just about all the enemies. 

 

I feel this game might have s a similar impact.  If I lost the fear and tension, and felt I could freely engage in combat and use items knowing there is an abundance of supplies and ammo, I think the game would lose a lot of what made it great from a gameplay perspective. 

 

I actually really appreciate what Naughty Dog did in this game for difficulty sliders, and being able to fine tune different elements.  I think that's an amazing idea I hope more games incorporate, so people can get that perfectly fit for what suits their gaming style while also hopefully honoring the some of the gameplay mechanics the developers implemented.

 

Once I only started playing on hard or higher difficulty 8 years ago, I never have looked at games the same way again. Even The Order: 1886, a game I played for the first time (on hard), last month, is at times genuinely difficult. I think it changes games completely.

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