I herd somewhere once that writers who can't write for the big screen, write for video games.
After games like the Uncharted Series and now The Last Of Us, development team Naughty Dog clearly is a team that has always put story at the forefront of their games.
The last of us tells the story of Joel a survivor who is doing what he can to take the young woman Ellie to the fireflies.
The story is one of understanding after you find out why Joel wants to help Ellie, even though his hard exterior makes you think that he wants nothing to do with her.
Even though Ellie is not his daughter, the two have a great father daughter relationship by the end of the game, and by the end, you're really rooting for the two.
You also get a real sense that these two people are from different worlds, Joel comes from a time like ours where he knows about the past and Ellie has no understanding of what the world used to be like. Even though for the most part she's very upbeat, this sense of empathy you gain for her really makes you feel for the character.
Speaking of empathy this is one of those few games where you get really emotionally attached to the characters. Even the secondary characters all have their little quirks.
This is also one of the first games I think I've ever played that has a homosexual character who doesn't come off in any sort of stereotypical way. A badass, likable, character who simply has a taste for men. It sounds dumb but I really like that they didn't treat him in a negative fashion.
In this world you're not alone. There are also two types of enemies, humans, and the infected. There are basically three factions of people who you have to look out for in this game, the military, the hunters, and the fireflies later on.
Even though most all of the human characters are not on your side, there's a real understanding for why these people behave in the fashion they are, everyone is just trying to survive.
The world is plagued by the infected, zombielike creatures who try to eat you and make you become one of them.
There are infected who have there eyesight and will simply attack you, there are clickers who don't have their eyesight but follow sound to find you and are much harder to kill, then there are the overgrown who have strong shell bodies and throw projectiles in order to damage you.
The environments in this game are also large and beautiful, in a end of the world kind of way.
If you were trying to you could nitpick little things that you see around the environment and say that they're not aesthetically pleasing but there's so much going on that the larger picture really shines.
I was watching an interview on IGN with the creators of this game, and they came to a consensus that the way this game ends, had to happen that way. I was thinking about this statement as I beat the game and I realized that if I were in Joel's situation I wouldn't have done what he did, but I understand it.
This game is absurdly violent, it's definitely not for children, and even may not be for some adults, but it's a roller coaster ride that I believe most people should try, which is why I'm giving The Last Of Us a 10 out of 10.
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