Review - The Last of Us

The Last of Us

Naughty Dog

Playstation 3

Survival, Horror, Stealth, Action

June 14, 2013

The Preamble

Well, I want to start this one out by apologizing to the console gaming audience out there. As I was just looking back through the blog archive, it seems as though, outside of Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney, I've reviewed and discussed nothing but PC games on this blog.

Well, today we're venturing into the depths of the PS3 exclusive space, taking a look at The Last of Us. This title comes to us from developer Naughty Dog, famous for their work on the Uncharted series.

Unfortunately, I haven't played any of the Uncharted series, so I won't be able to make any comparisons there. What I can say is that The Last of Us is an extremely well-made game, wrought with emotional struggle, intense stealth-driven gameplay, and a narrative that you will not soon forget.

The Overview

I went into this game knowing virtually nothing about it. I knew that it was going to be survival horror type of game, with strong focus on characters and story and I was excited about this. I had of course seen the critical acclaim for the game, but outside of that, I really didn't know much.

I think that's maybe the best way to play this game, so I'm not going to be very descriptive in the overview of the story here. 

After a brief introduction of how the outbreak occurs, you travel forward in time 20 years after the infection, where society has been decimated and left to various sects of survivors that have declared their independence in some way or another. You play as Joel, a smuggler, devoid of almost all of his emotion as a result of enduring the last 20 years, watching civilization crumble. Through a series of events which I'll leave unsaid, Joel embarks on a journey that will lead him all over the country, forcing him to resolve unforgettable situations and pull him in emotional directions he didn't think he'd ever have to encounter.

The Good

• The story is top notch. From the unforgettable introduction to the thought provoking conclusion, The Last of Us remains good until the last drop. You are constantly excited, yet terrified, to see what happens next. While there are some typical zombie apocalypse tropes, there is a lot of uncertainty throughout the game.

• The character development is immaculate. Well written, well voiced, well animated; you feel like you know them, both the good and bad things about them. The arcs that each character take are compelling and keep you guessing about each decision.

• As far as the survival-horror-action genre goes, I don't think I've come across a game that conveys the true feeling of being a survivor as well as The Last of Us. You have to work your ass off to scavenge supplies, and even if you're good, you are never left feeling comfortable about the quantity of resources that you have. You are constantly tasked with rationing out your supplies and weighing your options every time you encounter an enemy.

• For a console game, the visuals are great. You aren't stuck with the same old grey, bleak, zombie setting. There is a surprising amount of variety in the weather and environment, which makes for a more diverse and interesting experience.

The Bad

• This may be the RPG fanboy in me peaking out, but the low number of skills, and the mundane nature of the ones that are present is pretty bleak. I would have loved a larger variety to play around with, at least some that actually influenced your play style somehow, which seems to be completely absent.

• Maybe it's just me and my lack of interest in stealth games anymore, but there are a lot of segments in this game that are downright infuriating. Retry after retry of tedious stealth gameplay. This wore on me in a big way after a while. Take a look at the 'Extra Note' below for more on this.

• There are some serious issues with checkpoint saving in this game. The game is not very clear about where the checkpoints are and the inclusion of what seems to be 'save anywhere' function always left me very confused when trying to load. There were numerous times I restarted from a checkpoint to find out that half of my ammo was gone and twice as many enemies were present. While this didn't happen every time, it happened enough for me to notice and get very frustrated on occasion. Also, saving is incredibly slow.

The Conclusion

The Last of Us is really quite groundbreaking on a storytelling level. It might be the most cinematic, immersive video game experience I've had the pleasure of consuming. That said, unless you are a huge fan of stealth gameplay, I don't feel like the game offers a lot more than that fantastic storytelling experience.

So I think there are a couple groups of people that would be interested in this game. 

• If you're interested in seeing one of the finest executions of storytelling in gaming, absolutely give this game a go (also, read the Extra Note below). Even if you are sort of zombied out (trust me, I'm right there with you), I still think it's well worth taking a look at.
• If you love tough stealth games, whether you care about story or not, this is worth taking a look at. 

An Extra Note

If you're not a gamer who is a huge stealth fan, and are more interested in the narrative part of the game, I would highly recommend playing on Normal or Easy difficulty settings. I made it through on Hard, but boy was it frustrating at times. If I had to do it over, I would have probably gone with Normal. Anyway, just my two cents on that subject.