Remember 2013? It was that awkward time when the 7th Generation was dying yet a handful of games were trying to make this last gasp count. There was BioShock Infinite, The Stanley Parable, Grand Theft Auto V, Papers Please, Saints Row 4, Assassins Creed 4, Tomb Raider - I don't even like all of these games; but at least they were interesting!
From all this came The Last Of Us, by Naughty Dog of all people. Aside from Monolith (the guys who went from Blood to No-One Lives Forever to F.E.A.R to Shadow of Mordor) then Naughty Dog has perhaps the strangest back-catalogue out there. They went from Crash Bandicoot to Uncharted to this. From colourful, funny platformers to overly-cinematic blockbuster shooter, to overly-cinematic gaming equivalent of Oscar-bait.
And people freaked out. For a while this was all anyone would talk about in terms of gaming...unless you were a PC gamer of course. People were calling this the future of gaming narrative, describing it as the middle-ground between Triple A and independent gaming. It left such an impression that the 8th Generation quickly swiped it up and in 2014 released a 'remastered' edition that beefed-up the graphics whilst including all the DLC. Congratulations for buying a few more years of shelf-life Sony, but unless you release this game to PC then it's still going to fade from memory eventually.
But, since I don't own a PS3, I haven't played this game until now. I bought a PS4 two months ago only to find there's nothing to play it with. Occasionally I would fire it up to play a film as it's replaced my Blu-Ray player, but since my Battlefront (urgh) review it's been mostly lying dormant like HAL-9000 pretending not to be spying on Dave. I can feel it's eyes piercing me as I instead play my trusty PC. Seething. Conspiring.
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| I...honestly don't see much difference... |
So I bought the remastered version of The Last Of Us to fill a gaping hole in my critical spectrum, in addition to filling time so my PS4 doesn't die from dust-clogging. And...it's OK.
You play as Joel, an aged scavenger and part-time murderer who looks exactly like the protagonist from The Road (this'll be the first of many similarities to that novel/film). The game starts with a zombie virus breaking out that starts to affect the whole town. On the way something tragic happens that turns Joel from blunt father to blunt gun for hire. Cut to twenty miserable years later and the world has regressed into a post-apocalyptic martial law state where it's either heavy control by what remains of the military, a giant free-for all, or derelict zombie-towns.
Zombies are the obvious choice for the unimaginative. It's the ultimate irony that stories about the brain-dead are made and enjoyed by the brain-dead. The Last Of Us tries to hide this by never calling them zombies and never uttering the words: "aim for the head." But they're zombies. They're infected humans who attempt to eat anyone they come into contact with and shamble around without a trace of emotion. Stop being so coy! I Am Legend fully acknowledged that vampires are common in literature. You mean to tell me that no-one ever saw Dawn Of The Dead on TV one night?
This also means the game is conflicted. It tries to take after The Walking Dead where the zombies are merely a plot-device that results in searing character-conflict. Yet this is a game, so you can't have zombies without letting players interact with them - either by running away or shooting them.
It's amazing how similar this game is to BioShock Infinite. It's a game about a middle-aged gun for hire who's tasked to escort a girl with a strange power. Along the way, he comes to see the girl as a daughter-surrogate whilst fighting against forces who want to either kill or exploit her. During this fight you end up murdering half the population of the world regardless of if they deserved it or not, which is sort of addressed by the characters but not really. Both these games were even released in the same year!
Like BioShock Infinite, the characters are what makes the game. It's interesting seeing Joel's hard exterior being chipped away at whilst still experiencing a welcome disconnect from him. Ellie is of course great, as she provides welcome relief to all the intensity whilst growing to be a valuable aid in combat. Side characters such as Bill are all well-rounded and interesting to interact with - all displaying the same exhaustion and paranoia that comes with the situation they're thrust into.
It's amazing how similar this game is to BioShock Infinite. It's a game about a middle-aged gun for hire who's tasked to escort a girl with a strange power. Along the way, he comes to see the girl as a daughter-surrogate whilst fighting against forces who want to either kill or exploit her. During this fight you end up murdering half the population of the world regardless of if they deserved it or not, which is sort of addressed by the characters but not really. Both these games were even released in the same year!
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Like BioShock Infinite, the characters are what makes the game. It's interesting seeing Joel's hard exterior being chipped away at whilst still experiencing a welcome disconnect from him. Ellie is of course great, as she provides welcome relief to all the intensity whilst growing to be a valuable aid in combat. Side characters such as Bill are all well-rounded and interesting to interact with - all displaying the same exhaustion and paranoia that comes with the situation they're thrust into.
Yet Infinite remains the superior story as both characters acknowledge what they've become and suffer consequences. Elizabeth is forced to grow up very quickly. Booker draws her into the world of violence and she must stand aside and watch these atrocities happen. She then tries to do the right thing, but this only ends up making matters worse. By the end she's a weary soul forced to carry this power even though it can erase life. Whilst this is somewhat true of Ellie too, she's already grown up. She swears like a sailor, immediately becomes an expert at firing a gun, doesn't really react to all the violence, and never questions her actions. I like how she gradually becomes a mini-Joel (to the point where you play as her and utilise all the same mechanics), but the game doesn't truly explore what this means. She's still depicted as the last source of purity despite the sections where you play as her revealing that she too is perfectly happy to shiv anyone she meets in the neck.
It's fortunate that their relationship is believable. There's a great moment of panic when suddenly the game shifts perspective, which makes you fear that the two have been separated. Despite Ellie also being guilty of terrible things, the game spends the last act trying their damnest to make us care. And it works.
But, just like Naughty Dog's other famous intellectual property, Uncharted, The Last Of Us shows nothing but contempt for anyone other than the main cast. Whilst Infinite had it's fair share of irredeemable racists, it attempted to characterise the Vox before they became just as bad as the Colombians. This game. meanwhile. depicts everyone other than the lead characters as scum. The police, the rebels, the looters, the zombies, the settlers - everyone is a heartless murderer who deserves nothing but the wrong end of a gun. And so it's up to Joel and Ellie to reduce the population of murderers to just two: them.
Again, this is interesting. It reminds me of The Road in that the plot questions whether it's worth submitting to the whole "kill or be killed" mindset. Except the plot doesn't really question it - at least, not as much as it should do. Infinite suffers from this too, but at least Booker and Elizabeth are punished. I wouldn't even mind if Joel and Ellie at least had a revelation of how far they've come, but no. Spec Ops: The Line has one ending where you can get away with what you've done - but you don't really. You're still forced to confront what you've become; it's just a case of whether you chose to live with it, die for it, or embrace it. Spec Ops actually gave you the choice. This doesn't.
It's fortunate that their relationship is believable. There's a great moment of panic when suddenly the game shifts perspective, which makes you fear that the two have been separated. Despite Ellie also being guilty of terrible things, the game spends the last act trying their damnest to make us care. And it works.
But, just like Naughty Dog's other famous intellectual property, Uncharted, The Last Of Us shows nothing but contempt for anyone other than the main cast. Whilst Infinite had it's fair share of irredeemable racists, it attempted to characterise the Vox before they became just as bad as the Colombians. This game. meanwhile. depicts everyone other than the lead characters as scum. The police, the rebels, the looters, the zombies, the settlers - everyone is a heartless murderer who deserves nothing but the wrong end of a gun. And so it's up to Joel and Ellie to reduce the population of murderers to just two: them.
Again, this is interesting. It reminds me of The Road in that the plot questions whether it's worth submitting to the whole "kill or be killed" mindset. Except the plot doesn't really question it - at least, not as much as it should do. Infinite suffers from this too, but at least Booker and Elizabeth are punished. I wouldn't even mind if Joel and Ellie at least had a revelation of how far they've come, but no. Spec Ops: The Line has one ending where you can get away with what you've done - but you don't really. You're still forced to confront what you've become; it's just a case of whether you chose to live with it, die for it, or embrace it. Spec Ops actually gave you the choice. This doesn't.
I have a feeling this game's development had to be rushed. There's one part where you meet with a group of people and it feels like you're going to be spending some time together. But nope. Shortly afterwards, you're back on the road and then there's an alarmingly large jump ahead in your journey. The final act is over before it even begins. A huge ethical dillema pops up, but we're never given any time to consider it. We're just supposed to go ahead with the character's decision. I know that the idea is you're supposed to debate whether this was the correct choice...but we're not given time to weigh the pros and cons. I wanted to drop the controller and stop playing because I didn't agree at all with what I was making Joel do in the end.
Meanwhile, there's a part early on in the game where you're battling through a city crawling with looters and my god; it goes on forever. The game does all it can to keep it's setpieces varied whilst also juggling the characters and their development nicely - but I was just so sick of looking in the distance to find that the bridge wasn't anywhere in sight. I've been using the terms 'Act One' and such, but really there are about seven acts. Some of them go on forever, some of them only last a few encounters, some of them are just right. (The sections with Bill and with David are the two that feel the most 'whole.')
Finally: would it have been a great twist if David and his gang were the Fireflies? For a moment, I actually thought that was what the game was going for. David would capture Ellie, Joel would tear the place up trying to find her, Ellie would freak out and kill everyone. As they both corner David, he would reveal they are the last of the Fireflies - driven to the point of cannibalism and near-mutiny. It would've been a great twist, and would've really nailed the message that everyone is really just as bad as each-other. But nope. David ends up being another one-dimensionally evil character here to get stabbed by our 'protagonists.'
But what's story without gameplay? Why didn't Naughty Dog just make a movie? Why does this deserve to be a game? Well, again similar to Spec Ops: The Line, The Last Of Us at least takes advantage of it's heavily scripted nature. Some of the best moments are ones where you have limited control and are forced into doing one specific task. In fact, all of my favourite bits were when you're running from zombies. You can hear them behind you, but if you stop to look around then you're dead. The section where Joel is critically injured and must fight his way out of an area whilst being almost dragged by Ellie is also a highlight.
Meanwhile, there's a part early on in the game where you're battling through a city crawling with looters and my god; it goes on forever. The game does all it can to keep it's setpieces varied whilst also juggling the characters and their development nicely - but I was just so sick of looking in the distance to find that the bridge wasn't anywhere in sight. I've been using the terms 'Act One' and such, but really there are about seven acts. Some of them go on forever, some of them only last a few encounters, some of them are just right. (The sections with Bill and with David are the two that feel the most 'whole.')
Finally: would it have been a great twist if David and his gang were the Fireflies? For a moment, I actually thought that was what the game was going for. David would capture Ellie, Joel would tear the place up trying to find her, Ellie would freak out and kill everyone. As they both corner David, he would reveal they are the last of the Fireflies - driven to the point of cannibalism and near-mutiny. It would've been a great twist, and would've really nailed the message that everyone is really just as bad as each-other. But nope. David ends up being another one-dimensionally evil character here to get stabbed by our 'protagonists.'
But what's story without gameplay? Why didn't Naughty Dog just make a movie? Why does this deserve to be a game? Well, again similar to Spec Ops: The Line, The Last Of Us at least takes advantage of it's heavily scripted nature. Some of the best moments are ones where you have limited control and are forced into doing one specific task. In fact, all of my favourite bits were when you're running from zombies. You can hear them behind you, but if you stop to look around then you're dead. The section where Joel is critically injured and must fight his way out of an area whilst being almost dragged by Ellie is also a highlight.
Though: really? How is Joel so badly injured? A few moments ago he was in a firefight where he got shot thrice in the head - and I patched him up with a single medkit. This is like in the Final Fantasy games where no-one thinks to cast a Pheonix Down during a cutscene where someone dies.
Whilst I like how you never see a loading screen, the level design can get frustrating. Sometimes environments are too cluttered to tell where to go next and scavenging is just a case of mashing 'triangle' wherever you walk. You can also see an ambush coming by how there's cover all over the place. Twice you spend ages walking through a large facility crammed with chest-high walls and it's just so obvious you're going to have to fight your way back out of the facility later.
Plus there are many times when the game falls to the typical convoluted logic of survival horror games. There's a locked door. I have a lead pipe that can smash it open, a bomb that can blow it open, or a shotgun that can blast it open. What's the solution? Go round the other way - the way that's infested with zombies. Occasionally you come across a door that has a chair on the handle, or one with a sofa pushed over it. Why can't I just move that? Or blow it out of the way?
Speaking of adventure games, the narrative tries to break things up with puzzle-sections for the sake of providing a few breathers. Whilst occasionally I had to stop and think, the majority of these puzzles are laughably simple. "We need to reach a ledge - oh hey! A ladder!"
The combat itself is really messy. Such weapons as the rifle and bow are infuriatingly underpowered early on. It can take three headshots to down an opponent with these weapons; which completely defeats their purpose as sniping tools. At first I just ran up to enemies and blasted them with the shogun; which is the only weapon that actually seems to have a proper kick behind it.
Speaking of useless, the game has a habit of chucking weapons at you that you'll only ever use if your favourites are out of ammo. I whipped out the flamethrower a grand total of once, and only utilised the one-handed versions of the rifle and shotgun (because who doesn't like their weapons smaller and less powerful?) when their superior predecessors had no bullets. Not that these guns couldn't have a use, it's just that you're given them way too late. Right at the very last fight of the game, you get thrown an assault rifle. Um, thanks but there's only about two fights left. I think I'm alright.
Unarmed combat does the Arkham-series thing where you just mash one single button until everyone is dead. Sometimes you can break a fight by luring everyone into a tight room then just mashing square until eveyone's down. Amazingly this works with zombies too; though the 'Clicker' types are infuriating. You get the option to block their instant kill attack later in the game - but nine times out of ten it refuses to work. Seeing Joel get brutally ripped apart soon stops being: "OH GOD!" and starts being: "BUT I PRESSED THE BLOCK BUTTON!!" And don't even get me started on having to see Ellie get repeatedly massacred...
Speaking of useless, the game has a habit of chucking weapons at you that you'll only ever use if your favourites are out of ammo. I whipped out the flamethrower a grand total of once, and only utilised the one-handed versions of the rifle and shotgun (because who doesn't like their weapons smaller and less powerful?) when their superior predecessors had no bullets. Not that these guns couldn't have a use, it's just that you're given them way too late. Right at the very last fight of the game, you get thrown an assault rifle. Um, thanks but there's only about two fights left. I think I'm alright.
Unarmed combat does the Arkham-series thing where you just mash one single button until everyone is dead. Sometimes you can break a fight by luring everyone into a tight room then just mashing square until eveyone's down. Amazingly this works with zombies too; though the 'Clicker' types are infuriating. You get the option to block their instant kill attack later in the game - but nine times out of ten it refuses to work. Seeing Joel get brutally ripped apart soon stops being: "OH GOD!" and starts being: "BUT I PRESSED THE BLOCK BUTTON!!" And don't even get me started on having to see Ellie get repeatedly massacred...
Also, I played the game on the 'normal' setting and was shocked to find out how hard it was. I soon realised that this was because enemies take a ridiculous amount of damage before they die. I can shoot humans in the head at point-blank range with a revolver, and it doesn't kill them. Oh, but it makes them stagger dramatically like they're trying to get another footballer sent off. This tricks you into thinking your target's dead as they fall back behind cover - only for them to pop up just when you think they're all down and take pot-shots at you. By the end, I realised that there were so many 'points of no return' in the level design that it's easiest to just run straight past a fight and slam the door in everyone's face.
Like so many other games with crafting and upgrading elements, it's pointless. Crafting supplies are everywhere - meaning my backpack was constantly full of molotov cocktails - and the upgrades don't add much. I don't need a larger clip or faster reload time; I just need more damage. Despite being fully pimped out, I was still dying because none of my weapons had any real impact on anything.
On the other hand, ammo is super-rare. As a fan of System Shock 2, I actually like this since it encourages a more evasive, conservative tactic where every bullet is an expense. But the game doesn't seem to be on the right page. There are often times when you're forced into combat and there are enemy types immune to unarmed combat. There are also times when you're encouraged to be evasive but the odds are so stacked against you that there's no choice but to fight your way out - draining all your precious resources and leaving you ill-equipped for the next mandatory action sequence. This game even throws boss monsters at you, which is insulting considering that just a few moments ago the game forced me to use up all my shotgun ammo. Even System Shock 2 gave you fair warning before it's two boss fights that they were about to occur and thus you should probably load up - not to mention those fights were more a test of agility than firepower. And Deus Ex let you avoid these fights completely if you were smart.
The stealth is OK. It's by no means the worst I've encountered *COUGH*Unturned*COUGH* but it's not quite there. Your A.I companions will often run straight into enemies you're trying to avoid and will trigger the alarm. But the way cover is used and Joel's 'listen' ability means you're able to determine where enemies are and how to avoid them. There isn't much indication of how visible you are, but I enjoyed how the 'Clickers' shifted the stealth sections around a bit. However, the window between detection and the alarm being raised is far too small, meaning if you're spotted then there's not enough time to dive back into cover. Sometimes you can run away and enemies will give up, but often everyone in the area will magically know your location and will relentlessly pursue you. The ground is littered with bottles and bricks that can be thrown as distractions, but this mechanic is buggy. Often I've thrown a bottle halfway across the area and suddenly everyone's opened fire on me.
Like so many Triple-A games these days, this tries to be everything. It wants to be a harrowing character drama, yet it also wants to be an intense shooter, a survival-horror, an RPG, a resource-gatherer, and a cinematic experience. And in the process it excels in none of these areas. None of these aspects are bad; they're just not great. I liked the plot, but it's jumbled and I've seen it done better. In fact: that sums up the whole game. Liked it, but it's messy and nothing new. Would play again, but only with a friend so we could debate where the game works and where it doesn't.
Once the credits rolled, I just sat there drained. The game is an assault of emotional turmoil, violence, and misery. I've played plenty of games where that's the intention, but here there's no real message to cement this feeling. Both BioShock Infinite and Spec Ops: The Line were emotionally draining, but they were all setting up to a final, crushing twist. This does have a twist, but it's given zero buildup and comes a mere ten mins before the game's over. I don't think The Importance Of Being Earnest finished that quickly.
I haven't played Left Behind yet, but I really want to since it looks like it's a tighter experience that focuses more on character and stealth whilst toning down on all the other jumbled mechanics. (Plus I still really like Ellie.) It's a shame this game didn't try that first...
On the other hand, ammo is super-rare. As a fan of System Shock 2, I actually like this since it encourages a more evasive, conservative tactic where every bullet is an expense. But the game doesn't seem to be on the right page. There are often times when you're forced into combat and there are enemy types immune to unarmed combat. There are also times when you're encouraged to be evasive but the odds are so stacked against you that there's no choice but to fight your way out - draining all your precious resources and leaving you ill-equipped for the next mandatory action sequence. This game even throws boss monsters at you, which is insulting considering that just a few moments ago the game forced me to use up all my shotgun ammo. Even System Shock 2 gave you fair warning before it's two boss fights that they were about to occur and thus you should probably load up - not to mention those fights were more a test of agility than firepower. And Deus Ex let you avoid these fights completely if you were smart.
The stealth is OK. It's by no means the worst I've encountered *COUGH*Unturned*COUGH* but it's not quite there. Your A.I companions will often run straight into enemies you're trying to avoid and will trigger the alarm. But the way cover is used and Joel's 'listen' ability means you're able to determine where enemies are and how to avoid them. There isn't much indication of how visible you are, but I enjoyed how the 'Clickers' shifted the stealth sections around a bit. However, the window between detection and the alarm being raised is far too small, meaning if you're spotted then there's not enough time to dive back into cover. Sometimes you can run away and enemies will give up, but often everyone in the area will magically know your location and will relentlessly pursue you. The ground is littered with bottles and bricks that can be thrown as distractions, but this mechanic is buggy. Often I've thrown a bottle halfway across the area and suddenly everyone's opened fire on me.
Like so many Triple-A games these days, this tries to be everything. It wants to be a harrowing character drama, yet it also wants to be an intense shooter, a survival-horror, an RPG, a resource-gatherer, and a cinematic experience. And in the process it excels in none of these areas. None of these aspects are bad; they're just not great. I liked the plot, but it's jumbled and I've seen it done better. In fact: that sums up the whole game. Liked it, but it's messy and nothing new. Would play again, but only with a friend so we could debate where the game works and where it doesn't.
Once the credits rolled, I just sat there drained. The game is an assault of emotional turmoil, violence, and misery. I've played plenty of games where that's the intention, but here there's no real message to cement this feeling. Both BioShock Infinite and Spec Ops: The Line were emotionally draining, but they were all setting up to a final, crushing twist. This does have a twist, but it's given zero buildup and comes a mere ten mins before the game's over. I don't think The Importance Of Being Earnest finished that quickly.
I haven't played Left Behind yet, but I really want to since it looks like it's a tighter experience that focuses more on character and stealth whilst toning down on all the other jumbled mechanics. (Plus I still really like Ellie.) It's a shame this game didn't try that first...
