No this isn't because of a technical problem. I bought the game digitally and installed it the first day. I went into the menus and put the game on hard and it's good to go. I'm just hesitant to start it because all I've heard is how dark the game is. I don't like dark games or books and movies for that matter. I own the Walking Dead and haven't played a single chapter. I Own two seasons of GoT on Blu-ray and the books and I haven't read or watched them yet. You get the idea. I will support great works with my money but actually going to that dark, depressing place kind of a mental block for me.

So to ask how dark does this game get? I know I have to play it. It looks to be the frontrunner for GOTY and I've usually played all those games. No Spoilers please.

play the first 20 mins then post back...trust me

yeah, it has more than its share of dark moments.. but it's more of an emotional roller coaster with its ups and downs than a constant spiral into darkness. dive in. you won't regret it.

The game gets pretty dark. Also you should only play it at night with all lights turned off. lol

But it's awesome, just do it.

Are you a real person?

Man up.

Come on just play it! You're missing out on some great games/tv shows with this attitude. Just remember its not real.

Don't worry the game doesn't get too dark (well until one particular chapter which contains some messed up stuff, but that is pretty late in the game) also you shouldn't let it hold you back!

Don't deny yourself amazing experiences just because there's a chance it might make you feel down for a short period of time. It's not even that dark, it's just raw and honest. No sugar coating on anything.

@village_guy: that was the best bit for me !!

My advice?

There are equally as many 'nice' parts in the game that made me smile. The dark parts do go quite dark but it is always carefully balanced with a more relaxed segment.

It gets pretty fucking dark.

There are 2 things you can do

1. Continue to miss out on a lot of great things that are dark

2. Shed that mindset and experience dark entertainment (some of the greatest pieces of art are the darkest ones)

A good tactic is to watch/play/listen to something feel good after experiencing something dark. I offset my playthrough of TLOU by watching the silver linings playbook, evening things out

Side note: isnt the silver linings playbook just a fantastic movie? I never thought Id say this, but bradley cooper is a good actor.

You need to get down in the grime and dirt every once in awhile. Play the game.

@themanwithnoplan said:

My advice?

Life is much darker than any videogame. Play the game.

I'd say either get on with playing, watching, and reading this stuff you've spent money on or stop buying that stuff. But in all seriousness, play the game. You might not like it or you may find you love it, but you'll never know until you try.

Watch something happy/cheerful/funny before playing, might help.

@mikey87144:

I'll give you broad examples of some of the things that happen. A lot of death from murder, putting down, and suicide of characters of all ages, torture, no mercy is ever giving, very little hope is to be had, nearly all of the characters are complicated and very grey, and it ends on a gut punch. There are darker stories out there in other mediums. The Road, which this game takes cues from, is darker. But, there are rarely happy moments and if you see a happy moment expect to have that moment destroyed.

Dude, please, for your own sake, man up. Real shit is to be embraced, it's what hits you the hardest and stays with you longest. The game is amazing, don't miss out because you're afraid of the emotional impact.

Like @jimmyfenix suggested, play the first part and get back to us. I'd love to get your reaction.

Have someone else play the first 15 minutes for you, while you leave the room.

Stuff goes fairly bad for you throughout the game, and the combat is extremely stressful.

Man Up.

Watch a playthrough on Youtube in double speed while blasting Yakety Sax

The chastising is proving effective. I'll repost my first 20 minutes when I get home from work.

Really have to ask why you bought it in the first place - they were pretty open about how grim it is before release. I love ND, but will be avoiding this because survival-horror isn't my thing, no matter how good the story is. And I truly believe I'm missing out on something special, but I know I'd never make it through, and I'm ok with that. Each to their own.

@yodasdarkside:

It's not really survival horror though. I mean, it's an action game with exploration and item management. It's as survival horror as RE 4 and 5. If there's a demo you should try it.

@yodasdarkside: Sometimes you have to expand your boundaries. I failed in my attempts to do so earlier but this might do the trick for me.

@yodasdarkside: There is no horror in this game. There's tension, but unless you are scared of humanoids with weird looking heads, there's no horror.

Yea I recommend that people try it whatever they're in or not into. It's not really a horror game. I guess you would call it a survival action game.

I make it a point to buy at least a couple of games each year that I would normally avoid like the plague, and that's what in previous years has led me to buying things like Skyrim and RE5 (just two that pop into my head), but even though I can see what an awesome experience TLOU would be, I just can't do it. I play games for fun, not for tension. It's much the same reason that I don't watch horror movies - I don't like to be scared, so I don't go in for it.

And also, I'll admit, the design of the Infected I find really disturbing which is also putting me off. Maybe if I had access to the demo (thanks ND), I would change my mind, but while I am very sceptical of my ability to enjoy this game, I can't justify $60 on a chance that I 90% certain I would hate.

@yodasdarkside: But being scared can be fun! To be honest, I always balance out games I'm currently playing. When I wasn't playing The Last of Us, I was playing animal crossing. (Especially during the initial loading time, sheesh) So you get a little bit of calm and tension in your system, letting you balance it out. The last of us isn't really "scary" either, not counting the basement part that only lasted 10 minutes or so...

The Game of Thrones books killed whatever part of me that felt emotionally distraught when partaking in dark toned media. Not to say I'm dead inside, I still feel emotionally attached to the characters and feel sad when they die. I just don't have that need to stop every few chapters because I just can't take the bleakness. Like how Patrick described his time with The Last of Us.

It gets pretty dark. You even have to use a flashlight at some points. :P

or is it?

@mikey87144 So did you play it yet?