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    The Last of Us

    Game » consists of 11 releases. Released Jun 14, 2013

    Joel and Ellie must survive in a post-apocalyptic world where a deadly parasitic fungus infects people's brains in this PS3 exclusive third-person action-adventure game from Naughty Dog.

    deactivated-5ecfb31b61925's The Last of Us (PlayStation 3) review

    Avatar image for deactivated-5ecfb31b61925

    Welcome to the REAL Mushroom Kingdom

    Of all the popular doomsday theories – mass flooding, meteors, alien invasion, or even heavenly judgment – my personal least expected apocalyptic scenario would have to be a fungal infection.

    Naughty Dog, the developers behind Crash Bandicoot, Jak and Daxter, and the highly acclaimed Uncharted franchise, have shown us the true horrors of mushrooms in their latest masterpiece, The Last of Us. Super Mario Bros., take heed!

    First and foremost: This game is not for the squeamish.

    After the fun-filled adventures of Naughty Dog’s past games, The Last of Us brings gritty realism to the forefront and leaves the silly stuff behind. Sure, there are some funny dialogue moments and even a comedic character, but any positivity is quickly countered with the harsh realities of the expertly-crafted world we are shown.

    The Last of Us stars Joel, a gruff Southern man with a tragic past, who must escort a young girl named Ellie across a post-apocalyptic American wasteland chock full of human scavengers and spore-infected zombies, to deliver her to the Fireflies, a group of survivors that have banded together to fight the corrupt remnants of government and attempt to find a cure.

    The plot follows Joel and Ellie’s adventure, showing some incredible character development on par with some of the most tear-jerking movies of recent years. Unfortunately, being a post-apocalyptic tale drags certain tropes into the mix, causing the story to feel somewhat unoriginal at times. Most of my issues manifested in major story beats and examples that would spoil the experience if I revealed them. It was just a bit disappointing that I was able to easily predict a lot of the “twists” based simply on similarly themed media, but on the whole, the story does feel fluid and it works.

    The voice acting is very well done, and in particular, the cutscenes are simply captivating. Joel is voiced by the prolific Troy Baker and with Ashley Johnson starring as Ellie, the banter between the characters is realistic and enjoyable. Nolan North even makes an appearance later on and as usual, does a terrific job.

    The Last of Us immerses the player into its fiction from the incredible beginning sequence right to the intense seconds before the credits roll. Abandoned schools, hospitals, and hotels all act as fantastic set pieces and varied environments add to the game’s strong sense of realism. Rarely, if ever, did I notice the typical copy and pasting of assets seen in some other blockbuster titles. Naughty Dog’s attention to detail reinforces that this world is (or was) lived in, and helps to achieve total immersion.

    Visually, The Last of Us is astounding. The environments are incredibly detailed and aside from a muddy texture here or there, everything feels polished. Little details, like family photographs in homes or quarantine signs all sport high resolutions, and even the collectibles look great.

    Naughty Dog has always excelled at character animations and The Last of Us is no exception. Joel, much like Nathan Drake, will reach his hand out against walls as the player brushes by them, and shields Ellie whilst hiding behind cover. Attacking animations are brutally realistic and even the act of choking an enemy becomes a harsh reminder of the game’s gritty world. Environmental kills are incredibly visceral as well, whether Joel is forcing a soldier’s neck into broken glass in a window pane or stomping an infected’s head, splattering its spore-infested cranium.

    The game tends to reward stealth gameplay against running-and-gunning, reinforcing the idea that supplies and ammunition are valuable commodities in a world gone to Hell. Bricks and bottles scattered throughout the environment offer distracting tools to lure enemies towards or away from the player, setting up for a strategic takedown or a smooth getaway. Enemy AI is generally quite good, aside from not noticing the player’s flashlight or the occasional time Ellie will be standing directly in front of them while Joel crouches behind cover. On the whole, Ellie is not intrusive and the game is certainly not an escort mission.

    Much like the Uncharted franchise, I was somewhat frustrated by the typical signs of enemy encounters. In Nathan Drake’s adventure, a wide area full of cover was a clear indication of a big fight coming up, and in The Last of Us, an area full of bottles and bricks is always telltale of an ambush of some sort. These sorts of “battle arenas” are unfortunate, as they detract from the surprise of an impromptu fight, and as small of a complaint that it is, it’s worth mentioning.

    The two major types of enemies in The Last of Us are humans and the infected. Humans act much like a person would in such a dire situation – moving in groups, calling for backup – while the infected pose a very different threat, causing the player to rethink strategies depending on the encounter.

    There are only a couple types of infected throughout the game, but “Clickers” are my personal favourite and one of the most creepy monsters of recent memory. The fungal infection of a once-human brain has broken through the host’s skull and grown over his or her eyes, causing blindness. Clickers use sonar with “clicking” sounds to locate creatures around them, and so the player must move extra slowly and carefully around these beasts. If Joel is attacked by a Clicker, it’s game over, as they possess a one-hit kill, though through character upgrades, the player can push them off eventually. Areas full of Clickers felt very reminiscent of the earlier Resident Evil games. The Last of Us is a survival horror title, and it is the best of recent years.

    I completed The Last of Us in about seventeen hours, though with the massive quantity of collectibles and character upgrades, one playthrough could easily take an upwards of twenty. Thankfully the game allows players to jump back in for a New Game Plus mode, allowing them to retain their skill points and refine their character.

    Tacked-on multiplayer seems to be the new craze for developers hoping to keep their game discs from ending up in Gamestop’s “recycled” bins, and unfortunately The Last of Us is no exception. In contrast to the great multiplayer seen in Uncharted 3, players are limited to essentially two different team deathmatch modes – one allowing respawns, the other not. The addition of a light story beat weaved throughout the experience is nice – the idea is that you are retrieving supplies for some survivors at your home base – but ultimately falls flat with very little consequence for playing the game well or poorly. Crafting items and medkits allows for some strategy in the MP arenas, but without other, more interesting game modes, I felt the whole thing was a little underwhelming. Hopefully the season pass and promised DLC will address the MP section.

    It is great to see such a high calibre title being released so close to the launch of next-gen systems. Naughty Dog has always been a strong developer and creating a new IP like this is a step even further. The mature – and often gruesome – subject matter of this title proves that as a company, Naughty Dog is interested in making games players want, rather than rehashing the same trite garbage that other developers seem to be publishing. The Last of Us is without a doubt a must-buy for any PS3 owner or fungus enthusiast. That means YOU, Mario!

    Other reviews for The Last of Us (PlayStation 3)

      The Last of Us is an amazing achievement and one that shows that Naughty Dog has the ability to adapt with aplomb. 0

      (Note: I only played through the single-player so the review is solely focused on that.)Not too many games come with higher expectations nowadays. Naughty Dogs’ flagship PS3 series Uncharted has garnered critical and commercial praise across the board. With that series mainly focusing on Indiana Jones-like thrills, one would not be totally wrong in thinking that The Last of Us was just Uncharted with zombies. Luckily for us, it’s far more than that. The Last of Us brings true terror and a weigh...

      5 out of 7 found this review helpful.

      The highlight of The Last Of Us is the gritty narrative and is aided by a focus on improvisation in combat 0

      After being such a big fan of Naughty Dog's latest work it’s surprising that it took me four years to finally visit the post apocalyptic wasteland full of mushroom zombies. Looking back 2013 me was all about nonstop action instead of trying to scavenge my way through many horrible situations. A lot like the first scene of the game where we get introduced to our main protagonist Joel. Who quickly goes from trying to save his daughter Sarah to mourning her death. From here we go 20 years in...

      2 out of 2 found this review helpful.

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