The Last of Us Part II

Kreeeee said:
I've just completed it tonight and completely agree.

The story was better than average, but nowhere near the level that the hype suggested.

The game mechanics and pacing were excellent, although the graphics on the PS4 version left a lot to be desired. This isn't surprising as it's a PS3 game, but again the hype promised much more than the game offered.

I'd place it marginally ahead of the new Tomb Raider series of games.
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The story was a simple idea (which MANY people also had, nothing original)

Basically on of the guys at Naughty Dog saw a documentary about ants which are infected -https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ophiocordyceps_unilateralis

I feel they rushed through (not saying they sacrificed quality) in fear of someone using this idea, as they clearly thought it was unique.

I stand by my comment though , regardless of original / rehashed storyline, they did a brilliant job of portaying it in game (immersion). The game clearly sold on hype though

I played the first Tomb Raider and it was a very solid reboot , I didn't finish it as it just got to a point of following one path and re-using the same mechanics over and over, I haven't played the sequel .

This is jut me though, I prefer open world / multiple approach kind of games.

I liked Hitman Absolution, but hated compared to all the others due to it being much more linear. Many really liked it, we all have our own preferences.
 
V F said:
Sometimes thinking about it, I thought the whole winter part was the most intense of the game. Especially the very end. That was downright creepy watching the animations of David running/crawling around.
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Yeah , when that winter section began, I was hoping it was a progression if the game, but it was just a small section fir the story line. The would have killed it in sales if the dlc was simliar to that.

But the hunting and improved a.i. have got to be a certain for number 2, even more so when you look at all the survival games being made.
 
Kreeeee said:
I really enjoyed the new Tomb Raider games, so I'm not saying it's a bad game at all!

The problem for me is that I read reports that the characters and story telling in TLoU was on another level to other video games, and it simply wasn't. It was on par with the other top games in that regard, not a level above them.
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Yeah I think it was just a case of Tomb Raider catching up with the times, they had some good mechanics , like the use of fire which was cool for a little while.
 
eiamhere69 said:
The story was a simple idea (which MANY people also had, nothing original)

Basically on of the guys at Naughty Dog saw a documentary about ants which are infected -https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ophiocordyceps_unilateralis
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The game wasn't really about the Cordyceps outbreak though, it was about Joel and Ellie. Lots of games have used post-apocalyptic settings, sure. Not many have portrayed characters in such a meaningful and fairly nuanced way and allowed the actors of those characters to influence the writing.

There's a reason the game is critically-acclaimed and held in high regard for its characters and writing, and it isn't just down to hype.
 
TheVoice said:
The game wasn't really about the Cordyceps outbreak though, it was about Joel and Ellie. Lots of games have used post-apocalyptic settings, sure. Not many have portrayed characters in such a meaningful and fairly nuanced way and allowed the actors of those characters to influence the writing.

There's a reason the game is critically-acclaimed and held in high regard for its characters and writing, and it isn't just down to hype.
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I agree, they did a very good job with the characters, re-treading clichéd story arcs, which lets be honest, everyone does now. But they made it feel fresh and compelling.

I'm not trying to offend anyone, I just always felt it was overated. Not that it wasn't good , just that the hype was on another planet.
 
eiamhere69 said:
I'm not trying to offend anyone, I just always felt it was overated. Not that it wasn't good , just that the hype was on another planet.
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Exactly. There are lot of defensive people here (I can understand why, people are passionate about what they love) but the story and characters were just good, not an outlier compared to other games.

It's not bad in any aspect, but as you say it was hyped to be so much more than it is.
 
Are we really feeding the troll who claimed the new Tomb Raider games are on par with TLOU for characters/story?

I played TLOU with no hype, preconceptions or even having read a review and found it to be one of the best character/story driven games I have played.

It's perhaps your own lofty, unrealistic expectations that has left you disappointed or underwhelmed. One of the reasons I stopped reading up on every detail about AAA games before I played them.

I understand it might not have struck a chord with you but Tomb Raider, really?
 
Kreeeee said:
I 100% agree with you, it's one of the best. It's simply not better than the rest which is what all the hype leads people to believe.
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'Best' is always going to be subjective but I can confidently state that the Tomb Raider reboot doesn't come close.

As a character driven game I can't think of many games, off the top of my head, that come close to what Naughty Dog have done with TLOU and to a lesser extent with Uncharted. The main story of the games aren't spectacular but the characters and the relationships they build are incredible. Mechanically the games aren't that great, AI can be wonky, shooting mechanics could be better but they can create great characters.

Is Tomb Raider a more mechanically refined game, possibly. Are the characters as well written or as believable, nope.
 
Kreeeee said:
I 100% agree with you, it's one of the best. It's simply not better than the rest which is what all the hype leads people to believe.
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What games are "the rest" though? There are lots of great games in this genre but TLoU's acclaim was largely for its writing and characters. It used the setting as a backdrop for the storyline and the character development, rather than shoe-horning the narrative to fit the gameplay.

It was hyped. For me, it lived up to all the anticipation I had for it, and then surpassed my expectations as it went on. Many, many people seem to agree (even many who have no interest in gaming generally). The fact there's an entirely separate page on Wikipedia titled "List of accolades received by The Last of Us" (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_accolades_received_by_The_Last_of_Us) would seem to support that.

I'm not saying your own opinion on the game is wrong, by the way, just that trying to dismiss its popularity and success as "hype" is.
 
Strange stuff in this thread. First, people who think the game was "ridiculously" overhyped, yet cannot pinpoint why and now people saying it's on par with Tomb Raider or something;p

I also would like to know what "the rest" is. Personally, I can't think of many games with such fantastically realised story and character relationship/dialogues that also top the whole package off with an ending of such calibre.

I played both TRs and in terms of story it's not even a contest. Gameplay-wise, i still prefer TLOU. It feels heavy and human-like. Fights are rough and impactful and the enemies way more interesting/dangerous.

As for the story not being original, I guess some people still think this is abut a virus outbreak.
 
Sometimes the hype is justified and in this instance, it is.

There's a reason it's widely considered to be one of (if not the) best game of the last generation, and one of the best games of all time.

That's not down to being overhyped, it's down to being that good.
 
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When people talk about the strength of the story in the last of us - what I actually think they are referring to is the overall atmosphere of the game. There is just a whole vibe to the thing that draws us into the TLOU world.
Unfortunately though, my ps4 account has been banned for no reason whatsoever, so until I sort that out I may not be buying anything from sony ever again.
 
eiamhere69 said:
Yeah , when that winter section began, I was hoping it was a progression if the game, but it was just a small section fir the story line. The would have killed it in sales if the dlc was simliar to that.

But the hunting and improved a.i. have got to be a certain for number 2, even more so when you look at all the survival games being made.
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The AI trying to grab you through the wood running up the stairs. The heavy snow part was great as well hearing the AI talking in the distance while moving all over the place. Sometimes I passed one or two, nearly bumped into them as they couldn't see me for the blizzard.

After that, petting the giraffes was a nice touch on the way it built up. Oh, the other intense part was the battle with the soldiers for the end. They kept coming all around. Sometimes distractions worked, sometimes some of them didn't hear any bricks or bottles. It got to the stage I started rage killing them one and two at a time until that cluster before the corridor. Think I set them on fire... Some of them wouldn't die when I shot them in the ass with the laser sighted gun.
I really loved the way some of the AI wouldn't come out even if you were aiming. Sometimes you had to wait a little in hard as you could see them peeking around the walls and tables as you were shining the light then hiding again. Some ran away further back and regrouped. Some even came out firing in a group as well as some splitting up.

The second group was fun hiding around the tight spaces in some office to the exit door? Reminded me of Uncharted 4 chapter 13 Marooned. Waiting and timing the AI on crushing so they wouldn't spot you.

Every night in mid November/December I couldn't wait to play each part. It was so addictive. I did jump when the light fell in the water for the elevator. Wish I had my headphones the first time playing this.
 
This is not the first time a story has bee
Amatsubu said:
Strange stuff in this thread. First, people who think the game was "ridiculously" overhyped, yet cannot pinpoint why and now people saying it's on par with Tomb Raider or something;p

I also would like to know what "the rest" is. Personally, I can't think of many games with such fantastically realised story and character relationship/dialogues that also top the whole package off with an ending of such calibre.

I played both TRs and in terms of story it's not even a contest. Gameplay-wise, i still prefer TLOU. It feels heavy and human-like. Fights are rough and impactful and the enemies way more interesting/dangerous.

As for the story not being original, I guess some people still think this is abut a virus outbreak.
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But... it is.

I know what you're trying to say. Yes the story follows Ellie and Joel, their strugles and bonding. But even that in itself is not original, it's like almost every game movie ever made. It's difficult to come up with something that hasn't been done already in the hundreds of years that we've been teling tales, but naughty Dog did a very good job. benskia hit the nail on the head, they got the atmosphere for both the gameplay and the story spot on. Stop taking these critisicms so personally, they are not aimed at you, they aren't even aimed at Naughty Dog.

It has been said many times, this is a good, even very good game, likely among the best of the last generation, it's just all the comments you hear about it are that it is groundbreaking, so far out infront, never done before or other wild claims.
 
I'm not taking anything personally, just commenting. You seem to think this is a quarrell or something. The virus outbreak is just the backdrop and I don't hear anyone saying all of this hasn't been done before. It has. It's simply the fact that no other game managed to do all of it so well that elevates TLOU above the rest.

If you use a statement as strong as "ridiculously overhyped", one expects some sort of explanation. That's why TheVoice asked about"the rest". I'd also like to know. Saying the game isn't original and the following up with the fact that every game/movie does the same kind of nullifies that point as a criticism.
 
I'm not sure there is an argument or quarrel here. All I see are some individuals expressing their opinions as they see them and there's nothing wrong with that. It's always quite interesting to hear other peoples perspective on things even if one doesn't necessarily agree with them.

For me TLoU took dialogue, story telling and character development to a whole new level. For me, nothing comes close. Gameplay mechanics were nothing unique but they were pretty tight. Gunplay was also really satisfying. I find cover based stuff usually too 'loose' but I found that this hit the sweet spot quite nicely. Crafting items was fun and upgrading weapons felt just about right. Environments and enemies were pretty cool (clickers still freak me out) and I loved how many different ways you could complete an area. Again, nothing unique but still very well done. Also a mention to the general sound, voice acting and particularly to the score - just outstanding.

Best game ever? Difficult to say! Best game of its kind? For me, absolutely.
 
^^^ This

Tight mechanics, but nothing overly special. Love the gunplay though and still the best feeling TPS I've played. There's this weight to it that makes every shot feel deliberate. The coolest elements of it's general mechanical design where very subtle. The ingredients for Medkits and Molotovs being exactly the same for instance, forcing the player to make an inherently engaging choice relative to how good they thought they might or might not be.

In terms of storytelling though, TLOU is somewhat at the apex. It did what few games ever do and leant on subtlety to paint a broader spectrum of character and plot development. Felt identical to playing the original Bioshock or The Banner Saga for me.

I this doesn't make sense I apologise, had a bit of an afternoon tipple xD
 
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