Well here we go, a review after finishing the whole game earlier and collecting some thoughts. There is no TLDR portion and yes, the game does deserve a 10/10 easily so if you’re going to bash me for the upcoming praise, please, do yourself a favour and just skip to next post.
Background: I knew some of the spoilers and I knew of the certain story and apparent SJW-agenda criticisms before starting the game. I came into it, however with a totally open mind. I will no further discuss things like: lesbian romance, transgender characters or muscular women – all of this is in game but is not the focal point of the narrative and therefore it just is and I accept it as such. Also since the focal point of narrative is none of these things I would also not claim that this game is in any way a SJW-propaganda outside of normalising existing personalities and complexions.
I will also very briefly touch on gameplay: I liked the gameplay in part 1, I replayed that game twice and didn’t get bored. TLOU2 is an iterative improvement and therefore if you didn’t like the original – then you wouldn’t like part 2 anyway, but a lot of people did and I appreciate the grounded-ness of the action as well as additional traversal options like grass, larger and more vertical environments, really opening up options on approaching every encounter. Dogs profoundly changed the idea of how to play an encounter and are a great addition (despite the fact that I hated them with passion, and I killed them all without remorse).
I will also say that I fully see why this game is divisive outside of the two points above and that is because it takes large creative risks and aims higher and bolder than the fans expect or willing to go. I am a huge fan of TLJ because it took bold risks with the core assumptions of the Star Wars to make it grow and be more than just more space adventure but it didn’t fit with what the fans wanted. This game does the same to TLOU2 which is bigger and bolder than it had any right to be. I value big ideas, questions they ask, challenges in my perception they force me to overcome and unease a lot more than comfort food entertainment and this is subjectively my stance.
Let us touch on TLOU quickly. The first game is a classic but at the same time it is a simpler story than part 2 with a lot less depth. Ellie and Joel go through a year meeting people of various degree of awful who all die by the end of a chapter usually. The main story is a father-daughter relationship between Ellie and Joel which we see grow over 12-15 hours and is masterfully executed with supporting cast mainly existing to enhance that growth, give more weight to the world and play off the main duo. The ending of TLOU is considered divisive but I would argue that for most people it was a slightly uplifting ending: Joel’s arc is complete, Ellie chooses to believe him for a time and they go back to a fortified city with food and electricity where they can live pretty much “happily” if that is your headcanon.
Obviously, based on that a lot of people expected part 2 to be more of Joel and Ellie having adventures, just like TLJ was supposed to keep the Abrams drive and action drive the story. Only Naughty Dog did the hard thing and the right thing: they went deeper, the made justice to the world and characters instead of fanbase. They knew it would piss a lot of people off because it’s not a safe sequel, but it is a sequel TLOU deserves.
Joel dies in the first 3 hours of the game. People did not like that. Streamers did not like that. All I have to say is – it’s not an easy scene, it is hard and if you hated it, then you should be totally aligned with how Ellie feels in her need for revenge. In that sense Naughty Dog made everything right. I will also add that despite people wanting to see more Joel the reality is: his arc was complete in the first game. He got a surrogate daughter to raise for a couple of years, he got to retire and be happy. There is no other arc more powerful to him at his age and everything about his character was resolved – however in his death a set up for a major arc for Ellie is strong and Ellie is a protagonist who needed her own arc to be kicked off.
I will not discuss all the plot points, but the themes of this story were awesome and I do genuinely feel bad that leaks and some preconceptions ruined it for a lot of the audience. The tragic story of different factions all trying to achieve piece and prosperity only to end up fighting each other over petty differences is so poignant and actual to current world, to our separation as countries, races, ideologies or dare I say even gaming forums. Our little fiefs each convinced of their desire to practice goodness, each having means to achieve that state, each filled with genuinely diverse people good and bad and conflicted but ending up in pointless hatred toward the other instead of seeing individuals within. All of this is done masterfully with slow build-up at the beginning really paying off as everything falls in place by the end.
We see it of course through WLF and the Seraphites, societies that were founded on their notion of peace only to end up in bloodshed and disaster.
We see it also in parallel through Ellie and Abby. Nobody comes out of this as a hero, but through the crucible of irrational personal hatred everyone is humanised. When I saw Joel die, I told to myself, just as Ellie did, that I would kill every single one of them with utter conviction. And so, I did. When I had to play as Abby, I was forced to see how flawed and scarred she was by what Joel did but I was also forced to witness her being more than a person who brutally murdered a man: capable of goodness, just as her friends were, being conflicted about her purpose, dealing with personal issues of affection and beliefs. I knew that people I met were going to die as I perpetrated that death with conviction and their humanity resonated with me as they did not all deserve what they got. The sniper who led zombies to me and killed Manny was a monstrous dick, but he was also Tommy. The bitch that killed Owen, the upifiting conflicted loyal person in the story, first to see the inhumanity of the conflict between WLF and Seraphites, and his pregnant wife was Ellie.
Does it make the characters bad or unlikeable? For some it may be so but to me it felt more real than anything because everything they did from their perspective was right. They wanted closure, they wanted peace but just as the tribes, they found war and suffering and pain instead. Characters are written cohesively, strongly, they don't betray their identity and I doubt a lot of people would be unmoved by the end of it all as the final confrontation unfolds.
TLOU2 is a second part of what I assume will be at least a trilogy. The second part is supposed to be the most challenging for protagonists, it’s supposed to be darker and the be the lowest point of the story. Neil sacrifices all the sacred cows for this one, creates a hell of a ride and coupled with maybe best setpieces ND has created so far and refined gameplay, this one is easily GOTY material and I don’t think anything can match it up barring Cyberpunk later this year. For PS4 action games it is to me GOTG, above God of War once again in terms of narrative challenge the gameplay being stellar in both.
Lastly, no - this game is not perfect. No game or work of art is and 10/10 doesn't mean perfection in every detail nor should it, it means a stellar whole an acceptance of greatness with all its cracks and imperfections. I will just say that it is known that if people are predisposed to like something, they will often overlook the little things, the nitpicks, the coincidences that fuel almost every plot. But when they are predisposed to hatred, or being challenged especially emotionally – they will find the smallest thing jarring and off-putting. So yes, I know some plot relies on coincidences and minor contrivances, the pacing is not perfect either and Abby is swole AF. It is ironic that the game encapsulates the feeling of an audience bitching about these things to the point of going to Metacritic for 0/0 reviews on launch minute perfectly as they are all Ellie (or Abby) on the same revenge quest for the murder of part 1 (and let’s be honest a lot of headcanon) with that hatred blinding to the fascinating ideas behind part 2 and to all the people making us go through these emotions in this challenging work with general goodness in their heart.
The experience of playing through TLOU2, with no preconceptions and letting the ideas, story and emotions gel into a cohesive whole is a transformative experience and I wish all of you to feel that. It is not a fun game but is an important game with a clear vision and thank Sony for allowing such auteur games to exist with such budget and trust.
10/10 – will replay on PS5.
Parting thoughts: Hospital fight, sky ladders and burning city are worth the price of admission alone. Museum and Aquarium are gorgeous locations. Fuck wall-incrusted shriekers and fuck dogs – shotgun em all.
