“Are you getting The Last of Us on Friday?”
“Isn’t that the new zombie game?”
“Yeah, sort-of”
“Nah, not really into that”
The above is the transcript of a conversation between me and one of my similarly socially decrepit gamer-friends. In a generation defined by first-person shooters the truth is that the gaming medium has been oversaturated with grimy post-apocalyptic cityscapes and undead wildernesses. It is no wonder that word of a new survival-horror involving flesh-eaters may not have peaked the interest of many, well, that was until the reviews started to hit the net and boy did they hit hard. It is not despite but because of the aforementioned issues that The Last of Us stands out, not just as the greatest game of its type nor as the greatest game of its platform, no, The Last of Us is the greatest game of its generation.
The player takes control of Joel a jaded and violent Boston-based smuggler who supplies insurgents with weapons. As circumstances unfold Joel is tasked with sneaking 14-year old Ellie out of the city and across a dilapidated and dangerous United States. This dystopian world is populated by masses of “infected” human beings who have contracted a disease which turns them into cannibalistic madmen with fungus growing out their face. It is these encounters which provide the scares and most terrifying moments of the game and demonstrate The Last of Us’s greatest quality, its pacing. The “infected” are used to such sparing effect that when they do show up they remain a panic-inducing and genuinely frightening experience and so the player never feels like this merely another zombie shooter. A screech in the distance or a “clicking” in the dark are enough to remind you that they are viable and constant threat, however, as the narrative progresses we learn what George A Romero taught us…The real threat is man. The bulk of combat in The Last of Us is with other survivors, men who are just as brutal and unforgiving as the player can be, men who wield nail-studded planks and sawn-off shotguns.
Although the combat largely feels similar to Uncharted, its predecessor, there are subtle changes that fit more in the survival theme. The weapons feel weighty and sway when you aim, melee combat feels improvised and amateur and Joel is no platform-jumping acrobat. To further the more “gritty” approach there is no chasm-jumping in order to overcome obstacles but rather you are reliant on common sense and cooperation. In order to reach higher levels and difficult places Joel and Ellie will have to work together via lifts, plank-scavenging and/or crawling through tight spaces. The game does a fantastic job of ensuring that your comrade is an aid and essential part of the experience as opposed to a burden. Naughty Dog took the wise move of making sure Ellie was undetectable by enemy A.I whilst sneaking in order to make the all-to familiar sensation of wishing a NPC dead a non-issue. The most notable difference from the Uncharted series is that there is a distinct lack of ammunition and supplies. Over the course of the game you really do build quite the arsenal from flamethrowers to bows and nail-bombs and due to resources being sparse and unlike many games you find yourself employing all of this arsenal instead of sticking to one weapon or the other. This is made all the more trilling by the inclusion of a live inventory menu, one that requires the player to physically bandage their wounds or upgrade their weapon while chaos is ensuring around you. It is these gameplay mechanics that further add to the feeling of being a scavenger and not a simple grunt, choosing a time to rest up and count your rations is a crucial strategy before wading into the unknown. Much like the latter Uncharted titles the player would be wise to employ sneaking and diversionary tactics in order to overcome ones foes. The “clickers” being the most deadly of the infected are totally blind and hunt by sound but can kill you instantly so approaching a situation in the right manner is vital. The game levels are quite large and though linear in nature the player is generally provided with a multitude of directions or strategies in order to progress. By the end of the game you will thank the lord that the inhabitants of Naughty Dogs epic are seemingly all alcoholic as using empty wine bottles as a diversion is a constant necessity.
I now come to the real crux of what makes this game so special. It is not just that The Last of Us has a great story but the emotional impact that the story has. The seamless integration of the characters and relationship between Ellie and Joel into the gameplay means an affection for these characters is built that I would argue surpasses any film. Watching Ellie wonder at a world she never knew and seeing Joels growing fondness for her over the course of the game is truly heart-warming andhow often can you honestly say that about a game? What amazes me the most is that all-through the game subverts the conventions of the genre and story-type to delude you into believing you know how it will end. It is here that Naught Dog buck the trend by supplying us with a resolution that does not resemble that of a Hollywood blockbuster (as the triple A quality of the title would imply) but rather of clever art-house movie that respects and loves its audience. The Last of Us is not popcorn-fare but has more in common with the likes of movies such as Children of Men, 28 Days Later and the original Dead series as opposed to the next “Brad Pitt” atrocity.
Naughty Dog, the developers behind this masterpiece, has been a cornerstone in Sony exclusives for a considerable amount of time. They gave us Crash Bandicoot for the PlayStation; they gave us Jak & Daxter for the PS2 and, of course, Uncharted for the PS3. It would seem that Uncharted was going to end Naughty Dogs contribution to the current gaming platform and what a way to sign off that would have been, Nathan Drake having cemented his place at the mascot for Sony fanboys across the globe. With both the next generation and a certain Rockstar colossus looming in the horizon it would have been too easy for Naughty Dog to give in, spruce up the lighting effects a little and turn The Last of Us into a launch title for Playstation4. By sticking to its roots The Last of Us has signed off the Playstation3 in style and elegance.
As I,myself, sign off it occurs that I have not even mentioned the competitive (if standard) multi-player or how great the graphics are and I believe in a lot of ways this illustrates just how special this game really is. The Last of Us is a experience that will blow your mind and challenge your expectations it is the greatest game of its generation and, more importantly, takes you into a truly immersive and emotional journey that you will never forget.
And That's Why I Drink... 