Naughty Dog's swan song for the PlayStation 3, remastered for the PlayStation 4 and the most awarded game in history so far, is a stunning third person shooter with familiar mechanics, however it's rare when all factors combined work so well together.
It really felt like a special The Walking Dead episode because of similar environments and situations, plus scarcity and survival dominate. Adding in on top of that infected humans and the effective clicker variants, alongside stealth sequences, and you got enough kinds of gameplay and enemies to participate into.
What really made The Last of Us memorable is indeed the writing and the relationship of the two protagonists Ellie and Joel, which only developed further as the game and story progressed. It's not a linear journey, and there are optional conversations and secret areas to behold.
Left Behind's side story provides interesting character development for Ellie, as she used to be best friends with Riley, while the DLC simultaneously goes back and forward between this and the quest for finding medicine for Joel. Ellie and Riley's relationship is wonderful portrayed with all of the playful activities such as waterguns, the arcade imagination fighting match and the horror masks, and it reached notorious status for featuring lesbian feelings.
A crafting feature is present, ammunition and other resources really felt scarce which is good, making me more conscious of consumption. The scenery and locations can also be stunning at times, and I liked seeing all of the little details and little side stories happening not only of Joel and Ellie, but NPC's too, or rather, what they left behind in their homes.
To be fair, I prefer Uncharted 2 and 3 as far as intensity, locations and action goes, but remember, TLoU is just a single entry so far. There's plenty of room to expand upon, such as enemy design, plot, weapons, traps, mechanics and so on.
By no means would I label The Last of Us as a masterpiece though. All the elements work, but there's not an overwhelming deciding factor, nor is it a generation defining game for me personally, unlike titles such as Resident Evil 4 or Metal Gear Solid.
I'm glad to have finally beaten it and the DLC after hearing unlimited amounts of praise in 1.5 years. I'm sure that the multiplayer is just as interesting as far as resource management and teamwork goes, so I will be delving into that soon.
Now I sure as hell can't wait for Naughty Dog's return towards Uncharted 4.
Rating: 8.4
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