Sony Computer Entertainment The Last Of Us Part II

The Last of Us Part II is a 2020 action-adventure game developed by Naughty Dog and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment for the PlayStation 4. Set five years after The Last of Us, players control 19-year-old Ellie, who comes into conflict with a mysterious cult in a post-apocalyptic United States.A review is only one person’s opinion on a game, and I think it’s pointless to go into one of these knowing nothing about the reviewer or the context.

The Last of Us, the original, is one of my favorite games of all time. Joel and Ellie are two of my favorite characters.

No, I did not get an early review copy of this game, which frees me up to talk about things like the entire second half of the game which was not allowed before embargo, and I think it’s an absolutely essential core part of the story to discuss.

Yes, I have spent the last few days arguing with the entire internet about The Last of Us Part 2, so much so that I am already as exhausted as I was after two years of Last Jedi fighting.

But I’m pushing past that now. I’m not going to keep diving into why exactly people are review bombing the game or the mob mentality behind it, all I can do here is explain why I played this game, even having it spoiled in many ways beforehand, and came out the other side loving it. Loving how it handles its old characters, growing and evolving them, loving how it introduces new ones, and loving how the dual perspective narrative makes for a revenge tale that is infinitely more interesting than the “check the  and big off the list” series of levels that it could have been if it had stuck with Ellie the entire way.