Game Review: The Last of Us

 


"We're ****** people Joel, it's always been that way."
"NO! WE ARE SURVIORS!"

This heated exchange sets the tone for what is the most memorable experience in gaming since "Bioshock". This console generation has lasted for an incredible amount of time, but its time is almost up, with the dawn of the Xbox One and Playstation 4 on the horizon. This has arguably been the most important generation, as we have watched games mature and expand into new realms. Naughty Dog's "The Last Us" feels like the culmination of all the efforts this generation. The two titles, "Bioshock" and "The Last of Us" are like bookends. "Bioshock" showed people what this generation was capable of in terms of interactive storytelling and maturity. "The Last of Us" brings it all to the forefront. It achieves something not just for entertainment, but for the spirit. Its more than a videogame, its an experience to behold and become absorbed into. Its a lesson in life, in love, and in the cost of sacrifice.

The game takes place in a world ravaged by a fungal outbreak, that turns humans into infected zombie-like creatures, that are highly reminiscent of the Rage Virus infected of "28 Days Later". Players, for the most part, take control of Joel. Joel is a man in his late 40's, who survived the initial outbreak, but at the cost of his daughter, and his very soul. Joel is not a man to trust others easily, and for good reason. He knows the pain of loss when you become attached. In this world he lives in, he knows that life is short, hard, and ugly. Joel is a fascinating character, because we see how violent and dark he can be, but we know that he is still a good man. The real center of the game though is Ellie. Joel is tasked early on to smuggle Ellie to an elusive group known as the Fireflies, because she is immune. Ellie was bitten, but never turned. This fact could mean that Ellie is the hope for humanities future. Ellie feels like a real person, because she so accurately encapsulates what a 14 year old girl is like. She is sassy, independent, and thinks she is invincible. She also shows a maturity that this apocalyptic world has bestowed upon her. She finds the struggles of girls her age pre-apocalypse to be silly and a waste of time. One wonderful scene has her reading an old diary located in a house that is long abandoned and as she reads, she turns to Joel asking "Is this really all they had to worry about back then? Boys, movies, friends...? What a weird time...". Ellie is inquisitive of the world before it was destroyed, and Joel is her link to it. Their relationship becomes one that is not just a cliché father-daughter bond, but something more. Joel struggles to not let her into his heart, because he knows that she is so much like the daughter he lost. Ellie has lost everybody she has ever cared about, and won't let Joel go. This struggle of the heart and mind creates a relationship that feels incredibly real and deep, eschewing the standard tropes and pitfalls of this bonding.

When it comes to playing the game itself, it is immensely fun. Combat in a game has never felt so alive and visceral; nor quite as brutal. While not featuring gallons of blood and limbs flying everywhere in every engagement, the game succeeds in making violence seem so real. Players aren't tasked with taking out the "bad guys". Only other survivors or Infected. Combat feels so different for each group. When facing humans, you understand that these people are just trying to survive. While they are dark and violent, they are in a way the same as Joel and Ellie. Taking a life in a game has never felt so draining or real. The first time I went for a stealth kill, I came up behind a man, and watched as Joel and him struggled and grunted as Joel slowly choked him. The man fruitlessly swatted at his face, desperately trying to draw a last breath. The game makes human life have weight, and taking it have a cost. The fact that it is 20 years since the outbreak, and that supplies are scarce, explains why guns are so rare. Bullets are precious, and firing a gun has never meant so much in a game. Bullets rip into enemies with visceral force, and guns bang with earsplitting effect. Enemies are not there for slaughter like so many other games, they are smart, dangerous, and just as powerful as you are. 2 or 3 bullets easily can put Joel down for good, and likewise with enemies. More often than not, I would take enemies out with things I found like bricks, bottles, bats, pipes, or just my fists. The deep crafting system allows Joel to make things on the fly from what he finds. Combining nails and an explosive propellant create a barbaric grenade, a scissor and some tape make a small shiv, and some alcohol and rags can make either devastating Molotov cocktails, or those precious health kits. Deciding how to use your crafting materials results in strategic planning required before every engagement; but it also depends on what type of engagement, When facing Infected, the game takes on a frantic and relentless aspect. These infected are fast, and come at you screaming and are truly terrifying. The things that will remain with me however are Clickers. These are individuals so infected by the fungus that they are blind. They use a form of echolocation, and every time they manifest, you are on edge. Trying to move silently in a dark room, with clickers all around, proves to be an exercise in not peeing yourself.

Gustavo Santaolalla, Academy Award winning composer for Brokeback Mountain and Babel, crafts a haunting and stirring score for this game. The use of string instruments is particularly effective, with some tracks consisting of a single violin being methodically sawed at, crafting a raw and brutally beautiful sound. The graphics also impress, with the lushest green colors I have ever seen, mixed with some truly spectacular water physics and character design.

The worldview in this game is not an easy one to describe. It plays similar to "The Road" in that life is hard and brutal, and that we have to find what it is truly about, and that is love. Caring for others is an important aspect of this game. As Joel and Ellie learn to love one another, they soon realize that they can overcome whatever is in their path. God wants us to love other's as He loves us, without judging and unconditional. Joel has no desire to kill, but in this world he lives, he has no option. We have to consider how God factors in then. What do we do when we really have no option? Murder is a sin, but in times of desperation, people don't have a choice to survive. The violence that surrounds Joel and Ellie is not an excuse to kill, but rather a force that indicates that they have no option. Joel and Elle's love for each other never truly is God's love though. Joel tells a lie to Ellie in the end, that I will not spoil here, that is incredibly important to her. If we follow God's truth, we know that lying is not an aspect of love. Joel, in my mind, did what was right in their messed up world, but not through the word of God.

In the end, "The Last of Us" is simply one of the most engaging, fun, and brilliant games ever made. Without a doubt, people should play it, and experience a story for the ages.

*On an off note, I feel like it is worth mentioning that this is most likely the most violent and visceral game ever created. It's M rating is appropriate, but do not expect it to be like Gears of War and Call of Duty*
Rated M for Intense Violence, Strong Language, Blood and Gore, and Sexual Themes