Topic: The Last Of Us Part II - OT (No Spoilers)

@SincereMan I see this point about Joel willingly giving his name to strangers all of the time but its Tommy who tells Abby their names just after escaping the ski lift and before they even know about the larger group, so at that point it wouldn't make any sense not to say his name as she already knows it. As for plot armour and surviving injuries the first game does something similar with Joel as he's impaled and loses a lot of blood but survives for some time laid on a freezing floor. Then miraculously the antibiotics kick in (provided by an enemy) and instantly make him combat ready just at the right moment, whilst David fails time and time again to take a simple opportunity to kill Ellie like he's a Bond villain. I didn't feel it lessened the experience though, just that I don't really see anything part 2 does that part 1 didn't in terms of how it went about storytelling. Thats fine though we're not all going to agreeI will say its a bit odd not talking about Marlene now that you mention it, maybe its just taken as an assumption as Ellie is through with Joel at that point.

Hoo boy, I finally got started on the game today and after a few hours of playing I have a lot of feelings going on right now.

The game looks incredible, even on my base PS4. The amount of options available for the game is pretty staggering but great for setting up exactly what you want. I haven't tinkered with too much other than for making the dynamic range of the volume a bit wider (which didn't half make me jump in the first gun fight).

The opening sequences were great to tie into the old game and the new characters have blended in seamlessly.

I don't know if it's just me but the fighting seems way more intense so far, especially the early fight as Abby which is pretty much all melee action.

I've decided to have a little break after just hitting Joel's death!! I had seen this mentioned on twitter a while ago (annoyingly) but has assumed this was end game stuff rather than so near the beginning. Damn, Naughty Dog, what the hell are you doing to me??

Photo mode has been heavily used so far as well!

(PS It took me a while to find the thread given the typo in the title which will now annoy the hell out me).

@Thrillho Glad you're enjoying it mate. I think it's an extraordinary piece of work and left me feeling very conflicted at points.

My issue whilst playing it was I still have a variety of things spoilt for me (damn you YouTube algorithms!) but still absolutely loved it.

It's the sort of game I wish someone could hypnotise me and make me forget everything before playing it again. Or is that playing it for the first time?

Anyway it's a very good game, first and foremost, driven by compelling characters and a challenging narrative.

@Thrillho I think its a classic mate, enjoy! Try and avoid any spoilers, I did and I really think it was important for a game that relies so heavily on its narrative. I'm waiting for a ps5 version for another playthrough, though I'm not sure I could face melee combat with haptic feedback 😬

@Col_McCafferty @R1spam Literally the only thing I knew about the game going into it is the bit I already mentioned and hopefully I’m over the hump of accidentally running into spoilers now!

One thing I’ve really liked is how natural and effortless dialogue feels between characters so that you can’t help but feel so involved with the characters.

I got as far as Seattle and have been exploring the area, including clearing out the bank. I’m surprised that, so far, there’s not been any big gun fights and stealth combat has been fairly straightforward so far.

@Thrillho Oh those will come!

Glad you are enjoying it though. Definitely one of the best narrative experiences I've had in gaming. And the gameplay is solid too! Thankfully I managed to avoid all of the spoilers, although the event you already experienced i had kinda worked it out already. You are in for a treat!

It's just cleaned up at The Golden Joysticks Awards as well.

The adults have spoken!

😉

Was gonna start this as soon as I polish off days gone since it just went on sale (yay more zombies!), but now I’m tempted to wait for the inevitable ps5 patch.

@JohnnyShoulder I think I ended my session just as I fell into an area that might be the first big gunfight so far!

@Mega-Gazz I did think about waiting to get it on PS5 but I’m in no rush to get the console and couldn’t turn down the game at half price. It also nicely coincides with my second week of annual leave!

Phew, time for a breather after today's session (so far).

@Thrillho That subway section was fantastic. The lighting and music made it all very tense.

@JohnnyShoulder Yeah, everything about it was spot on.

I feel I've played loads but have only just got going with day 2

The end of day 1 is another highlight though..

Only a couple hours play so far today early on in The Seraphites.

@Thrillho Fun stuff, you can actually place a bomb in front of the door, and it'll blow up when they approach you, preventing them from pulling you away from the bench. Pretty cool this is possible.

So I've got through a fair bit since my last post but in smaller bursts than I did before.

I must be nearing the end now..

And that's the credits!

I'm a bit torn as to whether to jump straight back in for the final trophies though. There are plenty of collectibles I missed and obviously need another run for the weapon and player upgrades.

I have completely avoided this thread and other discussion of this game, for obvious reasons since I haven’t yet played it. I’ve actually been very confused at what to think of the game. It’s been a firestorm of controversy, it seems, and the opinions on it are as varied as I’ve ever seen in a game.

I was tempted to finally buy it when it discounted down to half price last week, but I bought The Outer Worlds instead. Every time I think about playing TLoU2, I just get put off by all the toxicity surrounding it. And I think that’s probably not fair to the game.

I still don’t know why it’s so controversial, although even as much as I have tried to avoid spoilers, I’ve deduced some of the polarizing aspects just through seeing some of the general comments and screenshots over the last several months.

I’m not sure why I’m even posting this, but I’m just having a conversation in my head after seeing that it won GOTY at the Game Awards. And to see the reaction of people stirring up hate for the game again makes me honestly want to buy it. Such a severely toxic response from the gaming community tells me that it’s likely getting unfair treatment and people with an axe to grind are trying to ruin it for some reason. If anyone has any level headed thoughts then I’m all ears. I’m pretty sure I owe it to myself to play it, but just not sure how high up to move it in the queue. Right now I’ve planned to wait until a GOTY Ed with PS5 upgrade, or the MP pack is included, but I have no idea how long that will take.

@Th3solution Having just completed it, I wouldn’t worry about any of the controversy.

The main issue that trolls seem to have is an utter non-point. Some others say the writing isn’t that good and it really is.

From a mechanics point, there are loads of improvement from the first game, especially in combat. The story is dark but in a way that is exciting and well handled; it’s meant to feel uncomfortable with what’s going on in a post-apocalyptic world!

I had a great time with the game and it deserves all the plaudits it has received.

@Th3solution
It's an incrediby well made game, but it is worth noting to quote, Druckmann, it's not a comfort food game. There are few games that come close to being as brutal as TLOU2 but it is well worth experiencing if you are mentally prepared for it.

The game does hold up a mirror to people who are full of obsessive hate and resentment, and to no one's surprise, that didn't go down well with so many of that sort.