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[Yoda]

(I'm only referencing the original)

To the subject question no. It's a great game for its genre, but not I'd argue it's genre is what limits it from being considered for any kind of "greatest of all time" award or anything similar.

The "movie/story heavy" style game by its very nature removes agency from the player. What makes games different (an imo better) than movies is your ability to impact the game world. If I were to break down the games high level components:
* gunplay/third person shooter - It's certainly above average, but not the best
* exploration/world building - Great, but when I turned the game off, I never pondered about the game world's secrets, lore, etc... The type of mystery games like for example the original pokemon managed to illicit was absent for me.
* systems/immersion - it had a crafting system that played into the limited resources survival mechanic. This also encouraged you to limit your use of resources for taking down enemies. It was not overdone which was welcome... I suspect being limited was to not distract from other aspects of the game.
* story - It was pretty solid, the father <-> daughter dynamic was executed amazingly and played well in the game. This was it's strongest aspect by far. I wouldn't say it's comparable to the best movies (I haven't watched the HBO show), but a proper adaptation could easily get a 8/10 from me and I'm a very harsh critic for movies.

If they dialed down the story, they could increase the amount of effort put into the other aspects. This would probably make it a worse experience for me, so I'm happy they didn't. But it goes back to my original point, the genre limits how much of a "game" it is.

 

[Scotty W]

I have never played it, it doesn’t interest me at all. I have no negative feelings towards the first, but what I have heard of the second’s story sounds cringe worthy.

I played Uncharted 1 and it was pretty good.

 

[SeraphJan]

I liked everything but Nadine. Full disclosure: It's not because the character is a woman and black, like some idiots might suggest. If Nadine was a white man named Ned, I will still hate the character.

That's okay, everyone have their preference.

 

[FullMetalx117]

I don’t think anything in the Last of Us outdid the train sequence in Uncharted 2. I’m kind of surprised whatever ND did there wasn’t repeated more often

 

[EddieVanHelgen]

No. It tells a pretty interesting and well acted story, but as a game I didn't find it as engaging as the Uncharted series for example. Good technology but ultimately you're often just funneled down a nice looking corridor listening to exposition.

 

[Banjo64]

Top 10 for sure, and the best that Sony has ever made.

 

[SeraphJan]

Top 10 for sure, and the best that Sony has ever made.

I would prefer Spider-Man being the best from Sony, that game strike a perfect balance between Gameplay mechanic and Storytelling technique.

 

[Kataploom]

Haven't played it but why when someone claims so it's always about "story, characters, graphics"? Those are the least important factors to define a game quality... I want to know about have design and gameplay, progression systems, combat, etc... Not the your favorite drama moment in a GAME... Does that game actually stands out for it's gameplay? If not, it can't be the best of all times literally ever.

 

[yamaci17]

tlou2 is in my top5
tlou1 is in my top15

dunno tlou2 feels more special over tlou1. brave, endaring and something unique. tlou1 is more towards cliche but still a strong game. also gameplay of tlou2 is peak of lastgen that alone would be enough for me to put tlou2 over tlou1

 

[Holdfing]

Simple gameplay and story, well polished. One of the best ever? No.
Edit: TLOU2? Better gameplay, story is whatever. Like a well polished turd. Pretty and smooth, but there's a smell.

 

[SpiceRacz]

I think people are confusing best & favorite.

 

[Majukun]

no...hell no

 

[DenchDeckard]

The first one...
100% one of the best games ever made.

 

[ahtlas7]

Personally it didn’t click with me. I didn’t care about the characters nor their plight. Combat? meh. Graphics? nah. Did not finish.

 

[SSfox]

It's on my top 5 best games of ps360 era

 

[GymWolf]

Lol no.

I like the atmosphere, combat, graphic and animations but it ends there.

 

[Black_Stride]

One of sure.
Thee best...absolutely not.

 

[Ogbert]

No. I wouldn’t even have it in the Top 100.

 

[Markio128]

Yep. I can’t think of many games that have immersed me in the world as well as TLOU. ND are masters at creating unforgettable characters for a kick off. I’d go as far as to say that Uncharted and TLOU have the most memorable main characters of any game of their type.

The Clickers are one of my favourite gaming enemies of all time as well.

TLOU has everything really. Great visuals, characters, combat, enemies, story, set pieces, lore. Amazing game.

 

[emmerrei]

Years ago, yes, i would have put it in the top 3 maybe. With years passing, under another eye, with the 100th release of the same game, it just become bland. It lost everything, seems a ultra banal story driven game. Tlou 2 it's an ok game gameplay wise( with a lot of problems also here), with a story that we already know. The pandemic isn't mentioned even once, if not at the end, the game rely on a stupid plot who is basically useless to the universe itself. Everything filled with the recurrent theme going on in America, that for me in Italy i can't care enough, about inclusion and stuff. A wasted opportunity. And yet, no online. The gunplay is what save this franchise, and there isn't another way to use it, if not in the story mode where the best you can get is 4 enemies in one big area. There are like 2-3 areas with more than 4/5 enemies, in the whole game, and nothing more. It's a good game, but not the best

 

[mrmustard]

I respect the effort they put into graphics, animations, cutscenes and father/'daughter'/zombie plot, but i had no fun to playing it and that's all that matters to me. So no, not even top 100.

 

[emivita]

Maybe if you're born in the 2000s and haven't played earlier games. I'm 35 this year and TLOU isn't even in my top 10. My personal top 3 is Monkey Island 2 - Gabriel Knight: The Beast Within - Final Fantasy IX and it hasn't changed since like 20 years ago.

It's a great game graphic and gameplay-wise, but story-wise I prefer the first season of Telltale's The Walking Dead which came earlier, had similar vibes and was more impactful to me.

 

[RagnarokIV]

No

 

[H4ze]

Far from, sorry mate.

 

[PropellerEar]

Masterpiece!

 

[Ywap]

After comleting The Evil Within on Akumo difficulty i compared all games in the same genre to it. So to me it felt kind of average gamplay wise.

 

[FingerBang]

At the time of its release, it was leagues ahead of most other games in acting, storytelling, and character development.

I can understand why people judge a game by putting gameplay first, and TLOU didn't break any ground there. But I will never forget how this game made me feel. From the heartbreaking intro to the ending, a real punch in the guts.

Yes, it's one of the best games ever made. And I would add, one of the most important games ever made that have inspired countless others and moved the medium forward.

 

[Klik]

Probably in TOP 5 best games ever

 

[KungFucius]

According to google there are over 5 million games in existence and in 2008 there were over 1200 physical games released. Regardless of what number you use to create an estimate for the total number of games to compare TLOU against, the number is going to be high and if you think the game is really good, then it would likely fall in the top 95% of all games. So that would make it one of the best. Those saying it is not a top 10 so no, really need to look at the volume of actual games and decide for themselves what one of the best actually means. Top 5% absolutely means one of the best for me, but I am not constrained by having to count the best with my fingers and toes.

 

[Nico_D]

Absolutely not. I enjoyed my time with it and the story was good but that's about it.

 

[Chiggs]

It's in my personal Top 10 of all time. I think it's a masterpiece that blends a perfect video game-style narrative--complete with interesting, likeable characters--with simple, but rewarding, gameplay.

I've purchased it for:

• PS3
• PS4
• PS5
• PC

--which should tell you just how much I like it, and the more I play it, the more I find things to like about it.

A damn shame about what happened with Part II. It took me 3 tries and 2 years just to make it through that slog, and it was one of the most off-putting experiences in gaming I've ever had, made worse by the fact that everything I hated about it was an intentional decision by Naughty Dog.

 

[geary]

I you think that is the best game of all time, OP dont try strategy/crpg games, you might hurt your brain.

 

[kyussman]

I certainly don't have an issue with it being praised,lol.....I played it when it released on PS3 and it certainly felt like a big step forward in gaming,for the narrative delivery though....not the gameplay,or game design.I picked up the remaster and played it again on PS4.....I don't own a PS5 yet but I won't be buying it a third time with the remake.If you are a gameplay person you probably aren't gonna rate TLoU very highly and I think that's fine.....don't get me wrong the gameplay is good,I enjoyed it.....but it doesn't put it up there in best game ever territory.It's there for other reasons,and that's where we are with modern gaming.

 

[NeonDelta]

It's the best

 

[engstra]

It's a 10/10 game but I wouldn't rank it up with my favorites

 

[The Cockatrice]

Theres a million games out there that have better gameplay, its sequel included so nah, but the story was awesome. Joel was one of the main faces of PS but they fucked it up by getting rid of him in the sequel.

 

[CashPrizes]

Yep, definitely one of the best, top 30 at the very least. Probably makes my top 20.

Easily the best dramatic character driven story in gaming, I mean a few other games compete but the acting and twists and intermissions and everything. Pacing in the first 1/3 is it's weakest point but once you are in Pittsburgh the game does not let up.

A top notch soundtrack, great sound design and enemy barks, awesome zombie aesthetic, beautiful really thought out post-apocalypse grime and then nature retaking urban areas. Great 2nd hand notes and collectibles, visual storytelling in the margins of the enviorments.

People complain about the "gameplay" and/or how the shooting controls. I love it, every revolver bullet feels important, making head shots and well timed aoe explosives feel super gratifying to use. Love shiv killing blind enemies by moving glacially slow, using a brick for a satisfying free melee kill. The multiplayer is top notch as well, put well over 150 hours into it.

 

[Neff]

No, but it's really good.

2 is possibly one of the best games ever made though.

It has a good story, but the gameplay is nothing to write home about

This seems to be a common view and I don't agree. I still don't think there's anything out there which combines elements and mechanics in the same way TLoU does. It's true that playing TLoU on default difficulty isn't particularly exciting- listen mode is one of most severe agency-breaking training wheel concepts in a game I can think of, to the point where it almost plays the game for you. TLoU was very much designed around its higher difficulty settings and you really need to try them to get the best out of the experience. TLoU2's mechanics and level design are significantly improved over the first game and shine spectacularly on Survivor or Grounded.

 

[RAIDEN1]

The way the gaming media makes this game out to be the best thing since sliced bread I don't understand...the game is ok at best but it isn't as good as say the pinnacle of the Metal Gear games, or Dead-Space or even Mass Effect 2...TLOU would probably make a best of Top 20 but that's about it..

 

[RoboFu]

Not even close. Uncharted 1-3 are much better even.

 

[NightmareFarm]

It definitely is one of the games ever made. Absolutely.

 

[rofif]

Yes it is one of the best games.
Not as good as uncharted 4 or tlou2 though!

 

[bbeach123]

Sure , but my "one-of-the-best-game-ever-made" list pretty fucking long thou .

 

[SmokedMeat]

Depends on what you want from a game.

If you’re all about pure gameplay - or even prefer a focus on gameplay or creative freedom during gameplay - this ain’t it.

If you’re all about story, voice acting, and animation, then you’ll rank it very high.

For me Last of Us is more an interactive movie than anything else. Gameplay is extremely simple being comprised entirely of shooting and very crude melee. I’ve already done the ol get the floating skid so Ellie can cross over water three times and I’m not even done yet. Press Y to boost me up.

As a game it’s extremely weak. As an interactive movie adventure it’s excellent.

One of the best games ever made? Nah. Gameplay is king for me. That’s not to say there isn’t fun to be had, because there certainly is. It just hits differently.

 

[RoboFu]

I tried to play it on PS3, the remastered version on PS4 and PS5. Can't even reached the halfway point before getting bored and delete the game.

So, No

This is exactly my experience as well. I just can’t push myself to ever finish it.

 

[Thick Thighs Save Lives]

Sorry, I respect ND and what they achieved with TLOU, but it's not even the best game they've released so far (UC2 and UC4 are better in my eyes).

 

[Radical Dreamer]

Lmao no. Good but overrated as fuck.

 

[ungalo]

It's probably not in my personal top 150

 

[kvltus lvlzvs]

That's not a "movie" game, thats an anime game. And yes.

You're right! That explains everything lol, I hadn't put much thought into it but you hit the nail on the head

 

[Handel]

TLOU is a good game, an 8 or 8.5 to me. Definitely not among the best games of all time, though. It does have high production values, I'll give it that, but beyond that it doesn't really innovate on anything. The two main games cited as inspiration for TLOU in RE4 and Ico are actual masterpieces, ND dropped the ball in their attempt to capture what made them special, primarily due to weak encounter design and shoddy attempts at making the Ellie bond work in gameplay through stuff like the raft sections.