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 two characters in a post-apocalyptic United States: Ellie, who sets out for revenge after suffering a great tragedy, and Abby Anderson, a soldier who becomes involved in a conflict between her militia and a cult. The game is played from the third-person perspective. Players can use firearms, improvised weapons, and stealth to fight against human foes and cannibalistic creatures infected by a mutated strain of the Cordyceps fungus.
Development of The Last of Us Part II began in 2014, soon after the release of The Last of Us Remastered. Neil Druckmann returned as creative director, co-writing the story with Halley Gross. The game's themes of revenge and retribution were inspired by Druckmann's experiences growing up in Israel. Ashley Johnson reprises her role as Ellie, while Laura Bailey was cast as Abby. Their performances included the simultaneous recording of motion and voice. The developers pushed the technical capabilities of the PlayStation 4 during development. Gustavo Santaolalla returned to compose and perform the score. Development reportedly included a crunch schedule of 12-hour workdays.
Following some delays, partly due to the COVID-19 pandemic, The Last of Us Part II was released on June 19, 2020 to critical acclaim. It was praised for its performances, characters, visual fidelity, and gameplay mechanics; the narrative and representation of a transgender character polarized critics and the community. The game was the subject of review bombing on Metacritic. Part II is one of the best-selling PlayStation 4 games and the fastest-selling platform exclusive, selling over four million units in its release weekend.
Gameplay
The Last of Us Part II is an action-adventure game played from a third-person perspective. The player traverses post-apocalyptic environments such as buildings and forests to advance the story. The player can use firearms, improvised weapons, and stealth to defend against hostile humans and cannibalistic creatures infected by a mutated strain of the Cordyceps fungus. Control intermittently switches between Ellie and Abby; the player also briefly controls Joel in the opening sequence. The nimble nature of the player character introduces platforming elements to the game, allowing the player to jump and climb to traverse environments and gain advantages during combat. Some areas in the game are navigated by horse or boat.In combat, the player can use long-range weapons such as rifles and bows, and short-range weapons such as pistols and revolvers. The player is able to scavenge limited-use melee weapons such as machetes and hammers, and throw bricks and bottles to distract or attack enemies. Collected items can be used to upgrade weapons at workbenches or craft equipment such as health kits, Molotov cocktails, and makeshift silencers. The player can collect supplements to upgrade skills in a skill tree; training manuals found throughout the environment unlock additional skill tree branches, allowing upgrades to attributes such as the health meter, crafting speed, and ammunition types.
Though the player can attack enemies directly, they can also use stealth to attack undetected or sneak past them. "Listen Mode" allows the player to locate enemies through a heightened sense of hearing and spatial awareness, indicated as outlines visible through walls and objects. In the cover system, the player can crouch behind obstacles to gain advantages in combat, and can also crawl in a prone position to evade enemies. Hostile enemies use artificial intelligence; they may take cover or call for assistance, and can take advantage when the player is distracted, out of ammunition, or in a fight. Player companions, such as Dina, assist in combat by killing enemies or announcing their location. The game also introduces guard dogs that track the player's scent, which can be visualized in Listen Mode.
Plot
After the events of the first game, Joel Miller is still feeling guilty about sacrificing humanity's chance at finding a cure for the Cordyceps fungus in order to save Ellie, and hiding the truth from her. He confesses his guilt to his brother Tommy. Four years later, Joel and Ellie have built a life in Jackson, though their relationship has become strained. While on patrol, Joel and Tommy rescue a stranger, Abby Anderson, from an Infected horde. They return to an outpost run by Abby's group. Joel and Tommy are attacked by Abby's group, former Fireflies who are now part of the Washington Liberation Front, a militia group based in Seattle; Abby seeks revenge against Joel for murdering her father, a Firefly surgeon. Meanwhile, Ellie and her girlfriend Dina leave Jackson in search of the brothers. Ellie enters the WLF camp to witness Abby beat Joel to death, and swears revenge.Tommy sets out for Seattle to hunt Abby, and Ellie and Dina follow him. After escaping a WLF ambush, Ellie reveals her immunity to Dina, who in turn reveals she is pregnant. The next day, Ellie pursues Tommy alone and encounters Jesse, Dina's ex-boyfriend, who followed them to Seattle. While searching for Abby's friend, Nora Harris, Ellie encounters the Seraphites, a religious cult locked in a years-long turf battle with the WLF over control of Seattle. Ellie tracks down Nora and tortures her for information on Abby's location, which traumatizes Ellie. The following day, she kills two more members of Abby's group, the pregnant Mel and her boyfriend Owen Moore. Ellie then recounts how, years earlier, she travelled to the Firefly hospital in Salt Lake City and learned the truth. Devastated, she told Joel they were "done". In the present, Ellie's group is ambushed by Abby, who kills Jesse and holds Tommy hostage.
Three days earlier, Abby learns that Owen, her ex-boyfriend, has gone missing while investigating Seraphite activity. Abby searches for Owen and is captured by the Seraphites. She is rescued by Yara and Lev, Seraphite siblings who have been branded apostates. Though Yara is gravely injured, Abby leaves them to find Owen who, disillusioned with the war, plans to sail to Santa Barbara, California, where the Fireflies may be regrouping. Abby rescues Yara and Lev, and travels across Seattle with Lev to retrieve medical supplies from the WLF hospital so Mel can amputate Yara's arm.
After the surgery, Lev runs away to convince his mother to leave the Seraphite cult, forcing Abby and Yara to pursue him. They find him in the Seraphite settlement, where Lev has accidentally killed his mother in self-defense. The trio flee as the WLF begins an assault on the Seraphites. Abby betrays the WLF to save Lev, and Yara sacrifices herself to allow Abby and Lev to escape. The pair return to find Owen and Mel dead and a map left by Ellie leading to her hideout. Abby shoots Tommy, impairing him, and brawls with Ellie and Dina, overpowering them. At Lev's insistence, Abby spares them both and tells them to leave Seattle.
A year later, Ellie and Dina are living on a farm, raising Dina and Jesse's son, though Ellie suffers from post-traumatic stress. When Tommy arrives with information on Abby's whereabouts, Ellie leaves to find her, despite Dina's pleas to stay. Abby and Lev arrive in Santa Barbara searching for the Fireflies, who they find are regrouping at Catalina Island, California, but are captured by the slave-keeping Rattlers. Ellie arrives at Santa Barbara and rescues the pair, who have been tortured and left to die. Threatening to kill Lev, Ellie forces Abby to fight her, during which Abby bites off two of Ellie's fingers. Ellie overpowers her but has a change of heart at the last second and lets her live. Abby and Lev sail to the Fireflies. Ellie returns to the farmhouse and finds it empty. She tries to play Joel's guitar with her damaged hand, recalls her promise to Joel to try and forgive him for stopping the Fireflies, and leaves.
Development
Early story concepts for The Last of Us Part II were conceived during the development of The Last of Us in 2013. Naughty Dog began development in 2014, soon after the release of The Last of Us Remastered. By August 2017, with the release of ', the entire 350-person team at Naughty Dog had shifted to develop Part II. Neil Druckmann led development as creative director and writer, reprising his role from The Last of Us and '. Anthony Newman and Kurt Margenau were selected to be co-game directors for Part II, overseeing gameplay elements such as level design and mechanics. For the final months of development, the team was forced to work from home due to the COVID-19 pandemic.Druckmann wrote the story with Halley Gross. The team experimented with different plot structures and considered scrapping the game entirely until they settled on an idea that mirrored the first game; Druckmann said that The Last of Us is about the extreme measures one would take for love, whereas Part II is more about how far one would go to bring justice for those they love. The themes of revenge and retribution were inspired by Druckmann's experiences growing up in Israel, where violence was a frequent topic. He recalled watching footage of the 2000 Ramallah lynching, and how, after hearing the cheering crowds, his mind turned to violent thoughts about bringing the perpetrators to justice. He wanted the player to feel a "thirst for revenge" before making them realize the reality of their actions. Druckmann said other themes include tribalism, trauma, and the pursuit of justice. Artists at Naughty Dog traveled to Seattle to analyze the architecture, vegetation, materials, topography, lighting, and capture photorealistic textures.
studio in Playa Vista, Los Angeles.|alt=A bright white stage with actors in black suits and camera operators.
Ashley Johnson and Troy Baker reprise their roles as Ellie and Joel, respectively, while Laura Bailey was cast as Abby. The actors' performance were recorded at a studio in Playa Vista, Los Angeles using performance capture, recording motion and voice simultaneously. Gross noted that a goal of the writers was to "create the most multifaceted characters you've seen in games". She particularly wanted to explore the multifaceted behavior of Ellie, showing her power as well as her insecurities. The change of player character from Ellie to Abby was inspired by the change from Joel to Ellie in the first game, though emphasized in Part II due to its focus on empathy. Druckmann wanted players to hate Abby early in the game, but later empathize with her.
The developers pushed the technical capabilities of the PlayStation 4 when creating Part II, adding more enemies and larger environments than in previous games. Druckmann noted that any drops in detail would ruin the sense of authenticity, which required consistent optimization of the technology. Improved artificial intelligence allowed for deeper connections with characters and the creation of bonds through gameplay. The Last of Us Part II was originally planned as an open world game with hub worlds, but later game transferred to a more linear style as it better served the narrative. Naughty Dog wanted to increase the accessibility options introduced in Uncharted 4 to ensure that all players could complete the story, and the developers attended conferences and worked with advocates.
Gustavo Santaolalla returned to compose and perform the score, as he had done with the first game, while Mac Quayle contributed to combat music. The developers received permission to use the songs "Future Days" by Pearl Jam and "Take On Me" by A-ha. To achieve the sound of the Shamblers, the team hired voice actors Raul Ceballos and Steve Blum, and used items such as grapefruits to create the explosion sounds. The dialogue team referenced whistled languages such as Sfryria and Silbo Gomero for the Seraphites' whistling, and hired actors Steveie Mack and Lisa Marie to provide the whistles in three styles.
The development, according to a report by Kotakus Jason Schreier, included a crunch schedule of 12-hour work days owing to the studio culture; after the game's delay, developers continued under this schedule for the additional months. Schreier suggested that development was affected and slowed due to the enormous turnover of employees following of Uncharted 4, with few veterans left on the team. Some of the developers working on the game allegedly hoped that the game would fail to prove that the working conditions they are under are not viable. Publisher Sony Interactive Entertainment granted the developer an additional two weeks of development for bug fixes.
Release and promotion
The Last of Us Part II was announced at the PlayStation Experience event on December 3, 2016. At E3 2018, Druckmann said that Naughty Dog was refusing to announce a release date until the game was "very close to release", to avoid disappointing fans. During Sony's State of Play presentation on September 24, 2019, Naughty Dog revealed that the game would be released on February 21, 2020. A month later, on October 25, Druckmann announced that the game was delayed to May 29, 2020, to "bring the entire game up to a level of polish we would call Naughty Dog quality". On April 2, 2020, Sony announced that the game was almost complete but had been indefinitely delayed to due to logistical problems caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. In late April, several videos leaked online, showing cutscenes, gameplay, and significant plot details. Druckmann tweeted that he was "heartbroken" for fans and for the team, who had devoted years to development. On April 27, Sony announced a new release date of June 19, 2020.The game was extensively marketed through video trailers. The first trailer was released alongside the announcement, showcasing the return of Ellie and Joel. The second trailer, released in October 2017 as a part of Paris Games Week, revealed Abby, Yara, and Lev. Dina and Jesse were first shown in a presentation at E3 2018. A trailer was featured in Sony's State of Play presentation in September 2019, followed by some additional marketing to celebrate Outbreak Week—the week in which the fictional outbreak occurred in the original game. In the same week, Naughty Dog also announced the special edition versions of the game. A story trailer was released on May 6, and the game was featured in its own standalone State of Play presentation on May 27. From May 13 to June 3, Naughty Dog released a series of videos about the development. An animated commercial was released on June 3, and the final pre-launch trailer was released on June 10. The game was banned in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, attributed to the countries' conservative traditions regarding homosexuality.
Reception
Critical response
The Last of Us Part II was praised for its improved gameplay, graphical fidelity, characterization, cast performances, audio design, and music, though critics were polarized on the narrative and themes. Jonathon Dornbush of IGN called it "a masterpiece worthy of its predecessor" and wrote that "it delivers a layered, emotionally shattering story on top of stealth and action gameplay that improves the first game's mechanics still makes time for a stunning, nuanced exploration of the strength and fragility of the human spirit". Game Informers Andy McNamara concurred, calling it "the best narrative game I have played" and "a sequel unlike any other, taking video game storytelling to new heights." Kaity Kline of NPR wrote that the game "made me very aware of the little things in my life that I take for granted, the kinds of things you don't appreciate until they're ripped away forever". GameSpots Kallie Plagge called it "beautiful and devastating", and wrote that "the more I reflect on it, the more I appreciate the story and characters at its core".The narrative and writing polarized critics. Game Informers McNamara felt that the writers conveyed the themes "with careful nuance and unflinching emotion". Destructoids Chris Carter and VG247s Kirk McKeand applauded the use of minor dialogue to echo the game's themes. Sammy Barker of Push Square particularly praised the use of flashback and overlapping stories; The Guardians Keza MacDonald concurred, describing the narrative as "emotionally effective". Conversely, GameRevolutions Michael Leri thought that the flashbacks were evidence of pacing problems. Alex Avard of GamesRadar+ felt that the narrative lost its momentum during its need to finalize every story thread. USgamers Kat Bailey found the latter half to be noticeably slow, noting that the game was five hours "too long". Bailey also criticized the dissonance between the game's statement against violence while also necessitating it during gameplay. Polygons Maddy Myers and Kotakus Riley MacLeod opined that the game repeatedly delivered its themes without allowing the player any agency in their decisions. Rob Zacny of Vice wrote that, despite the amount of narrative moments in the game, "it doesn't have much to say". Also writing for Vice, Emanuel Maiberg opined that the attempts to parallel the Israeli–Palestinian conflict through the WLF and Seraphites were poor, particularly in its allegorical representation of two equal sides.
McKeand of VG247 described every character as "complex and human". Destructoids Carter felt empathetic to the main characters, a sentiment echoed by IGNs Dornbush, who found Ellie's development particularly "riveting". Kotakus MacLeod appreciated the diversity of characters. McNamara of Game Informer found the occasional absence of supporting characters alarming, having grown close to them. Andrew Webster of The Verge praised the relationship between Ellie and Dina, though noted some dissonance in the former's behavior between gameplay and cutscene. Similarly, GameSpots Plagge found Abby's character development incongruous with her "onslaught of combat against human enemies". Polygons Myers and Vices Zacny criticized the characters' inability to learn from their mistakes. Yannick Le Fur of Jeuxvideo.com wrote that supporting characters such as Jesse and Manny lacked development and were simply used to advance the narrative.
Critics praised the cast's performances, particularly that of Ashley Johnson, Troy Baker, and Laura Bailey. Oli Welsh of Eurogamer found Johnson's performance as Ellie to be "standout" due to her depiction of "rawness, vulnerability, and rage". GamesRadar+s Avard considered Johnson's portrayal of suffering "nothing short of awards worthy", and found that Baker "steals some of Part 2s best scenes as Joel" by adding complexities that enrich the character and relationships. Dornbush of IGN wrote that Johnson added nuance to every element of Ellie, and commended Woodward's performance as Dina, especially during quieter moments. VG247s McKeand found that the performances made the narrative more powerful.
Avard of GamesRadar+ felt that the new gameplay mechanics were added with a level of care to ensure an authenticity that Naughty Dog is known for. GameRevolutions Leri lauded the cohesiveness between gameplay and narrative, and the former's ability to create empathy. Plagge of GameSpot appreciated the intensity of combat and wrote that "Ellie's movements are smooth enough that they almost look scripted". VentureBeats Dean Takahashi found the combat more diverse than its predecessor's. IGNs Dornbush similarly felt that the combat gameplay and puzzle elements had been improved, praising the intelligence and variation of enemies. McKeand of VG247 considered the level design better than other Naughty Dog games, and McNamara of Game Informer felt that it improved combat scenarios. The Verges Webster admired the game's action but noted some "awkward moments when attempts to cover its video game-ness". Polygons Myers found the combat an unsubtle messenger for its statement on violence; Kotakus MacLeod wrote that the "pace of the combat sometimes felt like punishment".
Many critics felt the graphics were among the best of any PlayStation 4 game. Kotakus MacLeod wrote that the nature in Seattle is "gorgeous and awe-inspiring", and Push Squares Barker declared the art department "among the best in the industry". The Guardians MacDonald described the graphics as "meticulous and astounding". Dornbush of IGN appreciated the world's ability to tell additional stories. GameRevolutions Leri considered the environments more realistic than the first game's, and praised the technical elements, such as frame rate, lack of load times, and realistic lighting. Carter of Destructoid felt that the seamless animation of minor facial expressions humanized the characters to a new level. McNamara of Game Informer similarly lauded the realistic-looking characters. Avard of GamesRadar described the enemy AI as "the most advanced" of any game. VentureBeats Takahashi commended the improvements to Naughty Dog's already impressive engine. Zacny of Vice found Seattle too similar to Boston and Pittsburgh from the first game, and Christopher Byrd of The Washington Post wondered if the detail was worth the "human cost" of Naughty Dog's crunch culture.
Barker of Push Square described the sound design as "stunning", identifying the 3D audio as a technical feat he would not have expected until PlayStation 5. Vices Zacny found that the audio design made settings feel more lifelike in a way that the visuals occasionally failed to do. IGNs Dornbush similarly felt that the sounds added realism, and praised Santaolalla's "moving" score. McNamara of Game Informer found that the music added tension. Kevin Dunsmore of Hardcore Gamer wrote that the "haunting and subtle melodies blend into the world seamlessly". Eurogamers Welsh praised the score for its combination of banjo and electronics.
Members of the transgender community objected to the representation of Lev, a transgender boy. Criticism focused on the use of Lev's dead name by villains, that he was created by cisgender writers, and the use of trans stories as tragedies. Stacey Henley of VG247 commented that the deadnaming is sparing and that a transgender actor provides the voice and motion capture for Lev. Writing for Paste, Waverly praised the choice to have Lev played by a transgender actor, but felt there was too much emphasis on his gender identity and the suffering he experienced for it. Waverly felt that "Lev's story isn't made for trans people, but to give cisgender players a space to connect with their guilt and pity for trans people". In contrast, Henley wrote that, while Lev's story is imperfect, "it's a major step for trans characters in gaming, focuses on a highly charismatic and central character who is far more than this transness". Kotakus MacLeod saw Lev's character as simply a way of the game acknowledging trans people exist and wrote that it was up to players to create their own meaning from the character.
Audience response
The game was the subject of review bombing on Metacritic, resulting in a user review score of 3.4/10 at its nadir. Reporters noticed the review bombing occurred shortly after the game launched, too early for users to feasibly have finished it; some suggested that the reviews were based on the incomplete plot leaks. Many of the negative reviews criticized the characterization and plot; some complained of "social justice warrior" politics, with vitriolic responses to LGBT characters. CNETs Daniel Van Boom wrote that the review bombers did not represent the majority of players. Kotakus MacLeod wrote that Metacritic's opaque system, which emphasizes scores over critique, comprised only "a bunch of meaningless numbers and a lot of rage".The playable Abby chapters were controversial, as players had expected to control Ellie for the majority of the game. Writing for Collider, Dave Trumbore felt that Abby had been unfairly maligned by audiences, feeling they had failed to understand the story's message. Some players criticized Abby's muscular physique, and theories spread online that she was transgender; Polygons Patricia Hernandez and The Independents Amy Coles argued that this perception was a result of the lack of body diversity in games, and that the story showed Abby had the resources to achieve her physique. Bailey, who played Abby, became the target of online death threats in response to the character.
In another article, Hernandez observed that the discourse surrounding The Last of Us Part II had become adversarial, with "bigots" attacking the game for its diverse cast and Naughty Dog becoming defensive. Vices Zacny claimed that, in response to his critical review, Sony contacted him on behalf of Naughty Dog to discuss his criticisms, which they disagreed with; Zacny said the discussion, while cordial, was unusual from a large publisher. On Twitter, Druckmann also expressed disapproval at journalists mocking a comparison of The Last of Us Part II to the 1993 film Schindler's List. Baker responded to a comment that "Video games are too long" with a quote from US president Theodore Roosevelt about critics being less valuable than creators. Hernandez concluded that this was "not an environment that is conducive to encouraging honest reviews or critical discussion, which is ultimately a disservice to the game itself". Bailey of USgamer wrote that the strict review embargo prevented meaningful discussion of the narrative.
Sales
In its release weekend, The Last of Us Part II sold over 4million copies worldwide, becoming the fastest-selling PlayStation 4 exclusive, beating Marvel's Spider-Mans 3.3million and God of Wars 3.1million in the same period. In the United States, it was the best-selling game of June 2020 and became the third-best-selling game of the year within two weeks, generating the highest first-month sales of the year. In the United Kingdom, it became the fastest-selling physical PlayStation 4 game, outselling previous record-holder Uncharted 4 by at least 1% and The Last of Us by 76%. In Japan, it was the best-selling game during its first week, selling an estimated 178,696 physical copies. In Germany, it sold over 200,000 copies in June 2020.Awards
In 2017, The Last of Us Part II was named Most Anticipated Game of the Year by readers of the PlayStation Blog, Most Wanted Game at the Golden Joystick Awards, and Most Anticipated Game at The Game Awards; in 2018, it was awarded Most Anticipated Game at the Gamers' Choice Awards, and nominated for Most Wanted Game at the Golden Joystick Awards. It received Special Commendations for Graphics and Sound at the Game Critics Awards in July 2018.| Date | Award | Category | Result | |
| November 17, 2017 | Golden Joystick Awards | Most Wanted Game | ||
| December 7, 2017 | The Game Awards | Most Anticipated Game | ||
| July 2, 2018 | Game Critics Awards | Special Commendation for Graphics | ||
| July 2, 2018 | Game Critics Awards | Special Commendation for Sound | ||
| November 16, 2018 | Golden Joystick Awards | Most Wanted Game |