Ellie, Joel, Tommy, Maria, the Fireflies, the infected … Few will be those who, having had a PlayStation console in the last seven years, do not know those names and probably less those who are not biting their nails to hear them again. The Last of Us (2013) was one of the great titles of the previous generation and its sequel, The Last of Us Part II , is set to be one of the great events of 2020 and the final fireworks with which to fire the PlayStation 4 .
The long-awaited title will be on sale from June 19 but at MUY Gamer we have already tried it and we want to open our mouths with our first impressions of the latest Naughty Dog creation.
ATTENTION! Although we have avoided making direct references to the plot, from this point on we will talk about a specific mission and the mechanics of the game.
The thing starts in Seattle, a city in which much of the action of the game will take place and to which Ellie has arrived moved by the circumstances. Our objective in this case is to go from our “base of operations” to a hospital controlled by a certain Nora. Simple, right? Nothing could be further from the truth . The Last of Us Part II maintains the level of difficulty and tension of its predecessor but adds new elements that will put us against the ropes easily and manages to function in a more open atmosphere that makes the feeling of danger a constant exhausting .
Something old, something new
Let’s start by talking about the news that the game offers. Keep in mind that The Last of Us Part II is a SEQUEL with capital letters, that is, it takes all the elements that worked in the first one and uses them as foundations to build a new experience in which changes can be appreciated without the feeling of familiarity disappears.
The story takes place in a larger world than in the previous one but that we still cannot explore with total freedom, but with more spacious spaces and places to search for supplies (which is still a key element). Seattle is a very large environment in which we have spent even more time than usual searching every store, house and drawer that we have come across and even then there have been times when we have been in a very hurry. To the precious boxes of ammunition and melee weapons we must add the different objects with which we will extract our MacGyver vein, the survival manuals and the collectibles and documents that contribute a great element of metahistory and lore to the plot. Perhaps it is just a mirage but it seems that in this second part the safes are even more important than in the first so, when you see one, you should find a way to open it before continuing.
From miraculous girl to lonely llanera
Let’s now look at Ellie, a character who captivated us in the first installment and who on this occasion becomes the main protagonist . The girl who traveled half the country thinking she was the key to saving humanity is now a 19-year-old who grapples with her past as she continues to fight her way through a hostile world. Ellie is a more than worthy successor to her mentor, Joel , and offers us a different game experience adapted to her own person. The combats are still based on shootings and melee fights but we find the addition that Ellie, more agile than Joel, is able to dodge enemy attacks or sneak through small gaps that are inaccessible to others. In addition, it has its trusty automatic knife that will help us survive on more than one occasion (especially with the damned clickers).
These new movement skills make things like climbing, climbing ropes, jumping between platforms or simply running for life weigh more weight and make the game a much more dynamic experience. As a counterpoint, Ellie is more resistant to damage and things like being hit or shot will cause her to stagger or fall to the ground.
Infected, wolves and scars
Finally, it is time to talk about our adversaries. During the mission to the already infected classics (runners, clickers and swollen) it will be necessary to add new variants of the mutation that we will comment on below. And of course there will also be humans who are now divided between the Wolves (WLF for Washington Free and Strong) and the Scars , both being extremely violent groups with their own tactics and weapons.
The infected will continue to make our hearts skip a beat and we end up abusing the listening mode for fear of being surprised at any moment. The staggers (a kind of mini swollen that are difficult to kill and who should not be approached) and the stalkers (who will hide behind the corners to jump at your neck) raise the stakes and force the player to adapt to this new situation and relearn how to deal with them. The other great novelty are the famous hunting dogs, some animals that will accompany the Wolves and the Scars that can detect our trail and lead the enemy directly to us . In theory you can mislead them by throwing an object or moving constantly to confuse them but, taking into account that they usually appear with many more enemies, it is likely that even the most convinced animalist will end up taking them out of the way the bad way.
Obviously, the passage of time is noticeable in some technical details, among which we should highlight the visual section (just as starkly beautiful as in the first game but with the properties of the new generation) and artificial intelligence. The infected seem to be more savvy when it comes to detecting, chasing and attacking you and the groups of humans that we meet will act as an organized hunting party in which we can never lower our guard or trust that we have a clear path.
Concluding …
Naughty Dog took the risk when embarking on this project, a sequel that came almost a decade after the first part and that dared to continue a story so beloved and with an ending as good as The Last of Us . In short, players around the world will be able to put themselves in Ellie’s shoes and assess for themselves if the company had a straight flush or if they bluffed but, at least for our part, the experience we have lived so far in The Last of Us Part II it has been very satisfying. It is a game that knows its place and grows without losing sight of where it comes from.
