Board 8 > So it's been a bit now: What do you think of The Last of Us 2?

(+) Yeah! (+)

Tempted to pick it up, but I know the spoilers and the spoilers depress me.

First time Ive avoided a game because Im not sure if I can emotionally handle it.

---

None of the poll options quite capture my feelings. I actually wrote up a big ol' review that's still sitting around - didn't post it anywhere, kinda just wrote it as a brain dump. Basically I have very mixed feelings but I really like it as a game.

The story doesn't feel very well thought-out and IMO completely fails at delivering the messages it's trying very ham-fistedly to deliver. The visuals and animations are fucking gorgeous but like, the game's development was powered by crunch, tears and shattered dreams so I guess they damn well better be, lol. Gameplay is an absolute blast, which IMO partially contributes to the game failing to deliver its messages, but failings as a work of art aside it's still a very fun game.

(To clarify, I don't hate the story, either - it's a good enough ride. It's just that they were very obviously trying to be profound with the themes here and fuck up due to apparently not really considering how gameplay and their story are intersecting and even contradicting one another. Basically it's just a disappointment that this game's biggest weakness is somehow the one element that was its predecessor's claim to fame.)

---

The gameplay is a very polished but average shooter game.

The story and characters are irredeemable garbage.

I refuse to acknowledge the game.
Not for the same reason as most other people though, I just feel that the ending of the first game is the best little snippet of storytelling that video games have ever produced and a key component to that was that the end was ambiguous and open ended. A direct sequel being made makes things distinctly less ambiguous and open ended and that's why I never wanted a sequel in the first place. And considering that the feelings about the sequel's story is so all over the place I rather not play it and thereby keep my own experience of the original untarnished.

It is one of the best games I've ever played. Set a new standard on what to expect from gaming

---

I loved it overall, but I feel like the story's pacing and writing could've been done better. I actually would've loved it we had alternated between Abby and Ellie instead of going through all 3 days individually, it would've kept momentum up insanely well instead of having the wind taken out of our sails instantly. It also would've shown the consequences of our action in a more ready and apparent way. As it stands though, it's still incredible and I like the ambiguity and sense of raw emotion the game provides you by having the two perspectives, not every game needs to have choice and the fact I felt so unwilling to stab Abby at the end is such a testament to gaming's ability to provide powerful storytelling.

Taking out story, the game is tense as hell, the battle against the Rat King is one of the scariest gaming moments of the decade. The game has an incredible survival horror template it works off of and its balance of items and resource management are both satisfying and rewarding to grasp and makes each encounter memorable and different each time. Its stealth felt very MGS3-like as well (probably due to all the crawling!)

---

It's just not a piece of media I'm interested in going for at this point. Not in the mood for that story.

If it's on PS+ some day I'll redeem it, we'll see if I feel like playing it then.

---

didn't play it don't want to play it

---

The game intentionally made me hate everything about it.

It was a fantastic experience.

Gonna wait until the PS5 version is on sale for $10 in like 2025

---

Wasn't a fan of the first one, so I haven't checked out the second

then again I am 100% burnt out on the zombie genre after how much media of it was pushed out in the '00s

---

Hated it, but I also only mildly liked the first.

---

I'm in the middle of playing it now, having avoided the spoilers. Absolutely in love with it...but I'm talking to a friend now about having reached what I believe is the halfway point and...yeah...

Like, just on a technical and stylistic level this is still an outstanding experience. But the narrative feels so completely misguided.

---

Really liked it but it was way too long. Second have should have been like 5-10 hours shorter.

Finale was incredible.

---

LeonhartFour posted...

didn't play it don't want to play it

---

Outstanding game that is probably a hair below the first, but both are amazing

It feels so good to play and I was totally invested in the story. I think it tried to do something more difficult than the first, and while I wouldn't call it an unqualified success in that endeavour (eg, yes, some of it was a little ham-fisted. And I think they generally did a good job making Abby complicated but ultimately sympathetic and mostly likeable, but I still definitely prefer Ellie; that said, I still felt a great conflict during the two fights between them, a push-pull of both wanting and not wanting to progress that I've rarely felt in a game before - so like I said, generally a great job, just not a totally unqualified success), it worked way more often than it didn't.

Also loved what they did with the ending. The way the sequence on the farm deliberately evoked the ending of Uncharted 4 (as well as just generally having an "ending" vibe - I thought it would end when they were on the tractor) right up until Ellie's PTSD flashback in the barn told you that it wasn't over was really excellent.
---