Let's Get Sad - A Last of Us Video Essay
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 28 ก.ค. 2024
- Well...Its what it says on the tin. And since it would have made the title even more unwieldy, yes we’re covering The Last of us Parts 1 & 2
If you heard about the situation in Lebanon and would like to help out: helplebanon.carrd.co/#
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0:00 - Intro
2:31 - Chapter 1: Endure and Survive
12:00 - Chapter 2: We Are Survivors
16:13 - Chapter 3: They Should Be Terrified Of You
24:00 - Chapter 4: Swear To Me
33:28 - Chapter 5: I'm Gonna Kill Every Last One of Them
40:04 - Chapter 6: You're My People
56:12 - Chapter 7: I'm Just Going Over Home
1:22:26 - Credits
Sources:
HBomberGuys’s Pathalogic Review
• Pathologic is Genius, ...
Cosmonaut Variety Hour’s Last of Us Part II Review
• The Last of Us 2 Isn't...
Solidarity: How the coronavirus makes us more willing to help
www.dw.com/en/solidarity-how-...
Edges of the State by John Protevi
manifold.umn.edu/read/untitle...
Central Pa. woman charged after viral brawl over long wait for Red Lobster food
www.pennlive.com/crime/2020/0...
CDC calls on Americans to wear masks to prevent COVID-19 spread
www.cdc.gov/media/releases/20...
Hand sanitizer douchebag
www.nytimes.com/2020/03/14/te...
In California, Hanging Deaths of Two Black Men Summon a Dark History and F.B.I. Scrutiny
www.nytimes.com/2020/06/19/us...
America's legacy of lynching isn't all history. Many say it's still happening today
www.cnn.com/2020/06/03/us/lyn...
Lynch mob hangs three men in Seattle on January 18, 1882.
www.historylink.org/File/1965
Source for the 1863 Lynching Illustration
www.theguardian.com/world/201...
The wiki for the Cordyceps fungus
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cordyceps
The Last of Us part 2: Kotaku Review
kotaku.com/the-last-of-us-par...
The Last of Us Part II Lets Love In
www.pastemagazine.com/games/t...
The Last of Us Part II: how Naughty Dog made a classic amidst catastrophe
www.gq-magazine.co.uk/culture...
As Naughty Dog Crunches On The Last Of Us II, Developers Wonder How Much Longer This Approach Can Last
kotaku.com/as-naughty-dog-cru...
The Last Of Us 2 Easter Egg Might Be Making A Crunch Joke
kotaku.com/the-last-of-us-2-e...
How The Last of Us 2 redefines LGBT storytelling in gaming
www.trustedreviews.com/opinio...
The Cisgender Voyeurism of The Last of Us Part II
www.pastemagazine.com/games/t...
'The Last of Us Part II' brings queer stories to a pandemic-ravaged dystopia and not everyone is applauding
www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-ou...
‘The Last Of Us Part 2’ Review (PS4): Dig Two Graves
www.forbes.com/sites/paultass...
Naughty Dog mulls The Last of Us 2
www.eurogamer.net/articles/20...
That tweet from Laura Bailey
/ 1279173199918292992
Ava DuVernay’s tweet about the Black Lives Matter protests
ava/status/127235...
TV Writers Need to Stop Killing Off Their Gay Characters
www.marieclaire.com/culture/n...
Bury Your Gays: Why 'The 100,' 'Walking Dead' Deaths Are Problematic (Guest Column)
www.hollywoodreporter.com/liv...
Bury Your Gays: History, Usage, and Context
scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/vie... - บันเทิง
Omgggg Ellie jokingly calls Joel a dinosaur and Sarah's card to Joel on his birthday called him a dinosaur... 😭😭😭 I'm not crying, you are.
There's so much of those little things that if you're paying attention just fill the world with so much feels.
Another excellent little touch that nobody has been talking about. Or like how she loses her switchblade that she's always had and was her mother's connection that she loses just like the guitar! Instead people focus on just the leaks say theirs trans characters and therefore this game is pushing an agenda 🤦🤦🤦 art is subjective and THAT applies to everything. Also I absolutely think this game easily wins GoTY as it definitely is deserving. Best sequel since ac2
OH MY GOSH!!!! I didn't notice that!!!
uuuooooooooohhhhhhhhhh child's belly ______!!!!
@@dereksmidl8352 tlou2 is not a good sequel. None of the new characters are interesting and the game destroys Joel's character. Joel's death is so badly done. There were too many flashbacks and they were terribly timed as well. So many plot conveniences and contrivances happen like Abby not killing Tommy and Ellie in the beginning even though Ellie literally said that she would kill Abby and how Joel saved Abby even though that goes against his character. Abby's plot is uninteresting and the ending is fucking horrendous. Also, the only remotely interesting new character was Jessie and his only purpose to the story was being a glorified sperm donor.
*"If I ever were to lose you I'd surely lose myself"*
Basically the plot of the Last of Us 2.
People losing their minds for revenge because of the companions who lost their lives.
And that's awful, this mercyless killing doesn't add anything to an big plot twist. So this game lacks direction in so many ways
Guilherme Oliveira your comment lacks direction, for real it makes zero sense
It foreshadows Ellie's journey. She lost everything from Joel's death. It was admittedly rushed, a lot of people are mad he wasn't in the whole game like the trailer suggests but I don't think Ellie would have gone what she went through for anyone else but Joel. It's not unusual for trailers to do that. Hulk was in the trailer for infinity war but was in it for 2 seconds but no one's up in arms over that. I like to think that when she spared Abby, she thought back to fixing it with Joel and remembering that song, serving as a memory that woke her up to her biggest fear being alone. That's what she was, and maybe she didn't want lev to be the same by killing her. I dunno that's just how I saw it, we don't always have to be told how an ending is, or how to feel in a game or movie, inception is a great example, we aren't told how it ends it leaves it to the viewer that's what tlou2 did and I'm fine with that, endings don't have to be happy and satisfying so long as the story is good leading up to make it worth it. I had other things to say but I just woke up and keep forgetting so yeah
Also, the saying of the Fireflies reflect the story of Abby
"When you're lost in the darkness, look for the light"
So if someone killed your favorite person in the world, you would want them to walk away free. I dont think so
I'm so disgusted by the ppl sending hate and death threats to the voice actors..
I mean Laura Bailey is an absolute ray of sunlight and I dislike the ones trying to dampen that!
I absolutely despise Abby and TLOU part 2, but the actors are incredibly talented, just because I hate Druckmann's writing doesn't mean I hate the people who play the characters, only sick people send death threats to others.
@@LukesOffline - I hate when they take the sh t bags who send death threats, then someone like you who dislikes the game, then says stuff like ''Well everyone who dislikes the game are trolls who are sending death threats and they are the problem in gaming''. Disliking a game doesn't put you in the same category as someone sending death threats to the makers of the game.Yet they do it all the time.
@@williamgregg6339 ??????
@@LukesOffline I dont think Druckman is responsible its the lead writer Halley Gross
That is the epitome of fragility
"Violence is indiscriminate. If you use it as a tool, it will do more than just kill your enemies. Sometimes it will kill the ones you love most"
- Klaes Ashford, The Expanse
perfectly summed the entire game up for me^^
never thought i would see my two favorite medias (the last of us and the expanse) connected like this and i love it :’)
@@whalewhisperer I agree absolutely completely with your sentiment about the Expanse and The Last of Us.
The Expanse series is my all-time favorite TV show but 'The Last of Us' is working hard to replace the Expanse.
I will never understand the stupidity that comes with being unable to seperate an actor from their role, what is wrong with people ffs
Yup I don't like this game but I don't attack the actors and developers more the Guy heading the project for his weird often self centered story ideas.
TLOU2 is an incoherant mess similar to the Star Wars sequels.
@blazinho the problem is even the head developer sounds like he does not get that message or at least unable to do it in a good way instead resulting in a forgetable game without any real impact.
The problem was not the Message of the story the problem was the Story itself.
Moving back and forth between the 2 main characters, focusing on one over the other it was just too bloated really in the story sense wanting to do so many to the point it ended up achiving none.
There was also a difference between 1 of the Main Characters being robotic and Psychopathic in gameplay but starts to feel remorse after a boss fight with every level to the point it contradicts her arch later in the game which is probably a side effect of the overly ambicius lead developer.
@@forickgrimaldus8301 no, it's a masterpiece in terms if storytelling that most idiots refuse to analyse properly because they're too busy having a tantrum over Joel's death
@@supremeworld87 it does not make any sense even if the people in it suffer from PTSD their actions make no sense even people suffering from trauma have very clear motives, while one Character Abby is coherant for the most part until a sudden u turn in the end with little build up, Elli is not as I explained above.
Again while its not as bad as most people think, its also not a "Masterpiece" as most of the Story beats are increadibly flawed, I get the message they want to show but that message is lost when your story is built on silly string.
@@supremeworld87 there are also pacing issues due to the 2 characters 1 min you are having a heartpounding moment with Ellie the next you are in a flashback with Abby and its not when 1 character is slowing down in terms of action or story it just happens in the middle of it.
I would like to add on Ellie’s motivation. As someone that has had a conflicted relationship with their father, I think part of the reason why she pushes so long for revenge is because she personally feels like she wasted time and opportunity with him. Her inability to forgive him despite loving him, only to lose him as soon as she decided that she could try to welcome him back in her life, left their relationship incomplete. She never really had true closure with him, and to have that opportunity stolen from her was unforgivable- of Abby and of herself.
That is so true
Joel looks and sounds a lot like my dad and I’m the same. I can see this happening to me and it’s horrifying
up you go. I didn't think people wouldn't be able to see this as part of Ellie's motivation, but i guess it might not be as straightforward as i thought it was. I saw it as Ellie's guilt for having wasted so much time, spending the last 2 years hating Joel and ignoring him, and she felt that abby took that chance for forgiveness and time with joel away from her. but mostly, it was because of her own guilt and her hating herself for wasting so much time she felt like she needed to do something to redeem herself. aka, revenge for joel.
This. 1000% This was my biggest take away from the game and it astounds me that most people don't even touch on it in reviews.
EXACTLY
When I first played The Last of Us Part 2, I noticed how both Abby and Ellie became the person they hated most. Ellie was hellbent on getting revenge just like Abby was at the start. And Abby's journey with Lev mirrors Joel's own journey with Ellie in the first game.
Abby didn't doom humanity and only killed people in self defense though (except for Joel).
@@nerdienew911 bullshit, she was killing people based on prejudice and orders
@@nerdienew911 Because Abby didn't direct her anger at the world when she suffered. As Neil put it, Joel blamed the world for Sarah's death, and decided to punish world for it.
@@nerdienew911
I don't know if it was just flaws in the writing, but I never felt like it was believable that killing Ellie equaled saving the world...
I don't think the Fireflies were ever convincingly portrayed to have the capabilities that the second game tries to retcon them into, especially since there were actually collectibles in the first game that cast doubt on the cure.
I have a feeling that Neil wanted the first game's ending to have some ambiguity because "art" but then it came back to bite him when he tried to write the second game from a premise that the first game didn't fully support. Even the second game doesn't fully explain how the Fireflies could ever produce enough of this "vaccine" that it would even save a single city, much less the world... It takes a lot of resources to produce something like that.
@@willfanofmanyii3751 yeah but my point is Abby and Joel's journey isnt the same as Abby didnt take it out on the world and only punished those who specifically wronged her.
Ellie laughing while repeating her bookshelf joke at 5:17 sounds so natural and sweet that I wouldn’t be surprised if this was actually just Ashley Johnson flubbing the line and they kept it in
I think it is, actually
It’s nice that Ashley Johnson just naturally sounds like Ellie
@@allensu9363 she doesn’t sound like Ellie she IS ellie
from what i know it was a blooper that they liked so much so that they left it in
That first "baby girl" moment with Ellie was Troy Baker ad-libbing. And it's all the better for it.
In the podcast for the game, Troy Baker said that everything was ad-libbed except the "baby girl" bit. That was the only piece of direction that Neil Druckmann have him for that scene.
@@Mesfizzy I can confirm this
Sounds legit
Baby girl at the beginning when he said that to his daughter was ad-libbed.
Nothing in this game kills me more than seeing Ellie trying to play the song Joel sung to her with the guitar he gave her just to not be able to do it properly because she lost two fingers when she went down on that vicious twisted path of revenge that only ended up drifting her apart from everyone she loves, and her losing the last gift Joel gave to her - the ability to play guitar. Every single time I see that cutscene at the end gives me a huge lump in my throat and makes me cry.
now I want to cry to goddarnit
Have you ever heard of Django Rienhart? He was a guitarist who, after losing 2 of his fingers, still managed to learn to play the guitar, working around the hand he had been dealt. From this, he became a reknowned jazz guitarist, famous for creating complex melodies with simple gestures.
That part fucked me up so bad, not a single word said, but it spoke more and had more of an emotional impact than any game I've seen.
@@crazybabuskaman3923 Nice Vi profile picture :D 👍
@@bihko4928 Thanks! Really love Arcane.
My favorite detail is how the game begins and ends with the guitar. But more importantly, how it focuses on the moth on the fretboard. Ellie also has the moth tattoo. The moth resembles a firefly. It also symbolizes Ellie’s compulsion towards destruction. Ellie was willing to give up everything and end up alone because of her compulsion towards revenge (like moths are drawn to a flame). But in the end, she finds a way to let go of that. She is able to accept and forgive, then walk away.
funnily enough, moth motifs come up often in queer tattoos haha
Dude.. thats crazy
Killing Abby would have caused lev to hate Ellie the same way Ellie hated Abby for killing Joel.
I was so nervous that Ellie was going to kill Abby and then lev was gonna kill her lmao
I love how they ended the first game on a happy lie, and ended the second on a sad truth, yet still a hopeful one.
In that sense I am relieved.
That's what I think people miss when they talk about how "Ellie lost everything ever and Abby needs to be punished for that." Ellie did lose a lot, but the point is that now she's ready to move on, hopefully move past her trauma. It is a bittersweet ending for sure.
@@PayondeAwsome I think people forget that Abby lost all her friends to due to her seeking out revenge on Joel.
@@lilbubblegumleaks8104 People seem to ignore that Abby lost just as much if not more than, Ellie. She suffers just as much at least and she moves on before Ellie. Their stories are so obviously meant to speak to what they mean so when Ellie is trying to kill Abby we know it won't bring her peace because Abby killing Joel didn't bring her peace.
@@PayondeAwsome yea exactly couldn’t have said it better myself. Abby’s storyline is basically Ellie once she has completed her path of revenge. It shows the aftermath of what happens once she kills Joel. She still continues to have nightmares.
I like the ideas, but the ideas shouldn't have been used on the last of us, people liked the first game because of the relationship between ellie and joel, they threw it away and despite myself liking the ideas they had, I still think it was an abysmal piece of trash in terms of storytelling.
The Last of Us 2 came out roughly a month after I had lost my best friend, and one thing I found incredibly frustrating with the comments about Joel's death being pointless or not happening at the right time, was that knowing how you can feel when you've lost a loved one the main thing that really hits you is that it's never going to be a right time. Even if my friend had died a little old lady at age 90, with family and friends all around her, I'd still feel the same way. I wouldn't want her to go. So I found myself getting incredible angry at those comments, because I knew that for Ellie there would never be a "right time" for Joel to die. I guess it's one of those weird ways we look at death, as though dying in the "right way" can be done heroically and fittingly, when that's so rarely the case. So the shock of Joel dying felt truthful to me, because you're never going to find yourself satisfied that someone you love has died.
Sorry for your loss.
I'm conflicted on this point. The suddeness of joel's death is setting accurate. Even if we ignore the apocalypse, people die unexpectedly. Not a lot but still do. So while I appreaciate that suddenness coming down like a hammer on audience, I still don't think the death was justified. It was more like joel had to die for story to kickoff instead of joel actually dying. So they had to put the character in a situation they couldn't back out of to claim legitimacy but really it doesn't take a lot to fix it.
For example they could have added a scene where joel and tom argues about helping abby and joel is reluctant but tom convinces him by comparing "that girl down there" to ellie.
But no. For the sake of the death hitting as hard as possible they threw out character logic. You don't get any explanation for why abby is doing what she's doing, joel is tortured to death instead of a quick honorable death and they make you watch it through ellie's eyes. The death scene is completely for the sake of maximum misery and hatred. It goes too far to fuel the audience to push through the next drawn out long hours. It's a cheap death.
@@Userext47 I do understand why many people feel that way and can appreciate your point of view. I disagree with your sentiment, I don't think the death is cheap, but can understand why you feel that way. I do think Abby's decision makes sense in that she's lost her father and was then raised in a very ruthless, militaristic environment, so I don't think it's unreasonable that she wouldn't give Joel an honourable death. I'm sure she feels that her own father wasn't given one, so why should she return the favour? I appreciate that's with the benefit of hindsight, but then why would we know the motives of Abby at that point? And I grant you, I actually found it stranger that she allowed Tommy and Ellie to live, because that doesn't seem like a risk she would have taken at that point.
I don't think the Last of Us 2 is a completely perfect, masterpiece, certainly many elements of the story could have been refined. But I think logical or rational decision can often be overruled by emotions. I remember getting really angry with my friend's family, because they hadn't told me she had passed away and her partner had to, even though her family did not realise the closeness of our relationship. It was fundementally and completely irrational, it was downright unreasonable, but that was how I felt. Like ultimately it was more about my inability to do anything about the situation, but I could see why many of the characters reacted to situations from an emotional standpoint rather than a logical one.
@@1607hannah1 "because that doesn't seem like a risk she would have taken at that point."
IIRC she didn't want to, the others urged them to leave ellie and tom. There was a vague argument about it when ellie was on the ground.
@@Userext47 I suppose given Abby's characterisation then I didn't find the argument entirely convincing or feel that it would convince her, but I guess characters doing irrational or illogical things was my argument anyway! :) I think that might be why I did like it, because I quite like characters who don't really obey the rules of logic or sense.
@@1607hannah1 That's entirely fine, glad you enjoyed it!
If Joel played Life Is Strange, he would have sacrificed Arcadia Bay in order to save Chloe
and who among us hasnt sacrificed arcadia bay to save chloe?
@@boypaws Me, she was not a very nice person
@@ct-gv6yl yeah but im gay so
@@boypaws And I'm a lesbian
@@ct-gv6yl worm ok! i simply thought she was hot & cool. also i was like 16 when i first played it so i was v enamored by this hot, cool, older girl. that being said i would still sacrifice arcadia bay for chloe at 23. also, i think it's what MAX wouldve done. after everything that happened in the game i feel like max would have a very hard time letting go. i know saving the town is the true ending but 😔
I’m brown and didn’t really mind how the poc in this series were treated, however I appreciated the critical lense of analysis. The “black character dies first” stereotype is present in lots of films and other forms of media, which definitely isn’t a win for representation. Good vid
I mean, yeah, all the poc died. But so did all the white people. Dina, the baby, ellie, Abby, and lev. Those are the survivors. Of course, we have a long way to go with regards to representation.
If you watched the 100 the black guy dies first and I liked that guy
@@theashenstorm5509 yeah I did they did that guy so dirty, one of the only good characters he had so much potential, no reason to kill him the way they did but the show got boring after like 4 seasons anyways imo
I'm black and I agree with Eesh. The way poc were treated in the game didn't really bother me either, but I was more focused on the story to be fair.
I would much rather the game focus on telling a good and honest story than making sure all the diversity boxes are checked.
Is it a win for representation? No. However, at least in my opinion the game isn't about representation. I feel like the focus on representation is going to lead to a lot of less then stellar entertainment if people keep focusing on what the characters look like, rather than who they are.
That said, I really enjoyed the video and thout was very well put together. Great work!
And here's the thing, why focus on them being a person of color, their characters were written to die for a reason and that's how the story was structured, it has nothing to do with their skin color. So trying to imply that the characters who were people of color shouldn't have died because they were a person of color is a little ludicrous. They would have died whether they were black, white, yellow, blue or green
“Trauma doesn’t have to make sense.” THANK you. On a personal level and as a huge agreement to Ellie’s motivations.
@Shawn Lundin unironically used the word sycophants in 2022
what's wrong with sycophant?
Real life trauma doesn't have to but we should understand fictional trauma and it should make sense.
@@richenrd That's what annoys me about people who never bother to understand Ellie's anger at Joel's lie.
@@NC-dw1ir But doesn't simply knowing that she is hurting and is cursed with guilt imply that she will be a little non sensible, which in turn, makes her actions make sense?
"Show me a rock, I want to climb it. Show me a body of water, I want to swim in it..."
Oh lord if you play anything let it be Breath of the Wild
THIS
Y E S
Oh, those sweet 200 hours of fucking around before doing the main quests
Why, though?
You spend the entire game looking for shrines that are all exactly the same. It’s neat at first but after about 20 of them it’s mind numbing.
BotW is decent but there’s far, far better games out there. There’s even far better LoZ games.
@@Justin-hv7eu I think you just aren't that in tune with mindless exploration, and just focused on the goals. BotW is a game to play, not to win
53:45 That is an unbelievably well thought-out representation of trauma recovery in progress. "Editing memories" is a key part of ART and EMDR methods in therapy and greatly help to alleviate PTSD symptoms. Abby seeing the memory as just her dad standing there, alive and ok, is exactly the kind of change the subconscious makes when it's healing. This is a really incredible detail.
I think Abby's arms are the product of the hate she has for the guy that killed her dad and the desire to be ready and strong enough to kill him when she did find him. You have to play this game at least twice to truly appreciate it. The first time was just draining and I had to get past the anger. Once that happened, after the first play...what a great game. I Love this game and I've played and beat it on every level including grounded and permadeath. It's all i've played since 2 came out, 1 and 2 anyway
I lost my dad early in 2018. The last real thing I ever said to him was in 2008. It was "Leave and never try to talk to me again." That was so long ago and I don't regret cutting him out of my life. And yet, I constantly think about all the missing time we didn't get to have. All the opportunities I wish he had taken to get himself help so that we could have that moment Joel and Ellie had to start to reconcile.
In the beginning in 2019, I realized prescription antidepressants weren't helping me anymore, so my psychiatrist prescribed me a dog. His name was Rex, an akita/lab mix. He was a broody old man of a dog and he was the best thing that ever happened to me. My depression had never felt more manageable in my whole life than it did when he came into my life and I loved him with everything I could give and it never felt like it was enough. I didn't even have him for a year, I discovered he had lymphoma in late November and I said goodbye to him at the end of January this year.
While none of my family really got to have any closure with my dad, I was the only one who hadn't spoken to him in ten years. Ever since his death there's been this ball of nothing in my stomach I've had to sit with because I don't know what my emotions even are towards his death. And yet anything related to "dads" in media sends me into a fits bawling that take me ages to get out of because it just stabs at that hole all that lost time has left and that ball of nothing that sits in my stomach.
Back in May I played the recent Blair Witch game by Blooperteam which had a dog companion, Bullet, who I was told would not die and even looked pretty similar to Rex after choosing his coat color. But there was a moment in *that* game which had me relive the same emotions I had watching Rex's health rapidly deteriorate and the helplessness of being able to do nothing but the most basic of comforts. When describing this moment to a friend later I accidentally said "I refused to fail Rex again." when met with the obstacle the game presented me with.
Needless to say when TLoU2 came out, I wasn't sure I could handle it. I avoided all the leaks, but just intuitively I knew Joel was very likely to die and I was positive it would not have been a nice death. Then I heard I would be forced to kill dogs and then I *definitely* knew I couldn't handle it, even just watching the split-second clips in this video made me feel some not great things.So thanks for the hard work you put into this for people like me who wanted something more nuanced than a lot of the hot takes but can't really bring themselves to just play the damn thing.
P.S. Please, *please* talk about Kingdom Hearts, oh my god that would be the most wonderful thing.
Hello, It didn’t feel right that I could read this and not offer a huge internet hug 🤗 to you and say I really understand the difficulty of grief when it comes to a family member that you had a difficult relationship with♥️♥️
💕💕💕💕
Thank you for sharing your story. I understand how you feel towards your late dad, and I hope new relationships in life, human, dog, or otherwise, can take up so much more space in your heart that the hole doesn't feel as weary. Take care ♥
Empathetic and loving people are needed. Maybe more now than ever. I can’t say for certain that you are such a person, seeing as I don’t know you personally, but I’d like to believe that someone capable of going through as much pain as you have and surviving is such a person. I know it’s cliche but, remember that you are more than your pain and that the world loves and needs you. So I ask you to continue to be strong, not just for yourself but for everyone who deals with loss. “When you’re lost in the darkness look for the light.”
I feel you so much. When my father died I hadn't talked to him in a year, and to be very honest we hadn't had a conversation in almost 2 years. I know it couldn't have been any different, and I'm glad I chose myself at such a young age, but I did realize over the years that I dont just have to grieve him, I also have to grieve all the possible scenarios in which we could have reconnected later in our lives. And even if most of these are at best wish fulfillment, it still hurts to be denied to opportunity to be given a choice in the matter. Wish you best, I'm happy you have this amazing dog in your life (my cat also lights up my life).
Seeing the gaming world from a non-professional gamer is what the world has always needed
ThisIsMyRealName the folks behind NoClip are definitely gamers
Girlfriend Reviews is an A+ take on this idea. Should check em out.
@ThisIsMyRealName Geeks.and Gamers too
Razbuten has 2 videos about "gaming for non gamers" and Girlfriend Reviews is the most popular/successful of these type of duos, I think.
Wasn't there a whole conspiracy to ruin a woman for this some years ago 😂
Something you might miss is the first flashback scene with Abby's dad saving the zebra - it's foreshadowing for Abby later helping Yara and Lev. It's clear that Abby has had a "f**k you got mine" attitude the last few years. She has all the awful dreams because deep down she knows it's not what her father would have done, and then gets the resolution from her father's "spirit" once she finally does the right thing.
Also, notice how Manny makes a reference to Princess Mononoke being his favourite anime movie ("the one with the girl riding the wolf") - it's a similar movie about the cycle of vengeance and vengeance manifesting as a literal curse that grants unnatural strength but consumes its host after a time.
Pp0
Woah that’s actually pretty cool! I never looked into the anime that Manny describes, but that is definitely a nice detail… wow.
Oh, yeah. How about that? Even in the post-apocayptic future of fungus zombies, Ghibli movies are still relevant.
Really nice to hear a woman's perspective on these games, especially since the second game is all about women...and yet the vast majority of voices analyzing it, judging Abby and Ellie, etc. are guys. Thanks for making this video!
Wait, what does being a guy or girl have to do with anything?
Stop bringing gender and race into everything. The game wasn't about women at all it was about revenge and trauma.
@@KingSlayer_. Sure, but you can't ignore the fact that both playable characters are women. It's a revenge and trauma story about women, not men.
I mentioned this because I've watched just about every major video essay on it, and except for this one, they were all by men. Not that there's anything inherently wrong with that - obviously I'm a man and still relate to these characters. I was just saying that given that the game centers around two women, It's good to hear a woman's perspective.
@@EmmaComm-no5sxthis is a smart explanation
It's funny that you can't even say "I enjoyed hearing a woman's perspective" without some random men getting annoyed. kinda proves the point
I've never had a piece of media convey such deep sadness as when Ellie tries to play the guitar at the end. There were so many tough things to bear with but knowing she could never play that guitar again in her life as a result of giving up everything she had... shit really fucks with me.
I am still trying the mentally recuperate from that game, the ending so do deep with sadness and there is no justice for Ellie at all
and that sadness is stacked on top of a storyline FILLED with trauma and gore, so it all just feels like a pure pill of depression.
If Tony iommi could, so Can ellie😎
I just want to give her a hug and a mandolin. Mandolins have a lot of two finger chords.
As I man of color didn’t mind that other people of color in these games died. When Joel killed Marlene my brain didn’t go,” look a white man killing a character of ethnicity”, instead I just thought “It had to happen to save a person that I love”. But I did like how Ladyknightthebrave was able to show me why it could look bad.
Glad you learned how to think critically
@@hdhdu7634 glad to know the internet will never learn to not be rude
I 100% agree. It's not like they're demonizing minorities in this case. Some people happen to be black, white, asian, etc. Their skin color doesn't hurt the story
I don't think it matters at all. We should learn to look at other perspectives other than race. If we really want race not to matter anymore then we should stop acknowledging it in this way.
@@pocketknife I agree that we shouldn't condone racism in any way, but we shouldn't be bringing race into every single equation. I am sure that its a coincidence that every black character was killed off in tlou. Minorities should be treated like any other race, which most of the time that is the case. In the case of movies and video games I don't think it matters whatsoever unless it obviously shows racism being clearly portrayed in a modern setting. The story is what matters not the race of the characters who died. If we want race to not be that big of a deal we shouldn't discuss it in trivial things like this. I hope this helps you understand my point of view.
My gym-buddy has a similar body type to Abby.
I’ll always be thankful for her; she helped me lose over 100lbs. I never thought I’d ever see abs on my own body.
Respect the arms, my friends. They’ll take you places.
gotta say it's super funny and cool to come back to this video post-tlou live action release and see clips of pedro pascal as mando in the "gruff dads" portion....feels almost prophetic. and also hilarious how pedro has found himself in a "hard-as-nails man who has to escort a magical child somewhere and his fighting for his life not to get attached to them" role twice.
“If... these people are to be the last of us, I hope they can eventually learn to be the best of us.”
How dare you make me feel feelings right now. That line, and speaking to me through Professor Tolkien... that was a one-two punch I couldn’t handle, but needed to hear.
I think, with us staring down our own extinction, it is something we could all use to hear.
Thank you.
That LotR comparison was beautiful.
Fantastic fantastic fantastic line. Written from someone who truly understands the story and deeply understands the nuances of their own feelings towards it.
Thank you for putting into words what I wanted to say.
Funny that you mention how Mando and Joel are in the same genre of characters, since Pascal is now going to play Joel Miller!
I think the trans trauma for lev just goes to show that even in the apocalypse, people are still shitty. Honestly it makes sense and I appreciate all these characters
I also really appreciate how dena and Ellie see homophobia in the game. Telling the story in a realistic way makes much more sense than pretending somehow transphobia and homophobia just disappear after the apocalypse.
@@Chloefarm22 I kind of feel like it’s a hot take but I agree
“even in the apocalypse, people are still shitty” no. no way really?!?
@@Chloefarm22That also reminds me of something mentioned on TV Tropes: in the sequel, Dina and Ellie can come across some Pride flags (I don't remember where), and they don't react to it. They have no knowledge of the LGBT community beyond their own relationships and how others react to it. They know of homophobic prejudice, but nothing of the solidarity of the queer community of the world before, and that's quite sad.
This was a good analysis. Also just to rub some extra salt in the wound that comes from missable dialogue early on in the game; during the first parts of the story when Ellie and Dina are carrying out their patrol, they eventually stumble upon a small town with a few broken-down houses. As the player searches for materials amongst the rubble, Ellie and Dina are talking about their plans for the following evening. Dina mentions a campfire night with some of her friends, inviting Ellie too, of course. However, Ellie reveals that she was thinking of spending the evening with Joel and watching one of his favourite movies together. Keep in mind this takes place the morning after Ellie and Joel had that final talk on his porch. This little conversation between Ellie and Dina truly doesn't add all that much during the first playthrough, but once the player learns the full story, and its unchangeable course, it truly is a very bitter moment. Knowing that Ellie and Joel were on course to fix their relationship, but never got the chance to do it. I will forever be left wondering and imagining just how much their bond would have improved once there were no more lies between them. The Last of Us will forever be one of those stories which will always fill me with so many different emotions, but so little catharsis.
Ellie and Joel having a movie night before Joel is killed. Wow, what a nod to Sarah and Joel having a movie night before it all starts 😭
These games are masterpieces
@@neondouble_ I have no doubt about that statement. The definition in my opinion of a masterpiece is that it will forever be debated, dissected, wondered at and experienced as long as this world exists. If there is ever a place where bitten off fingers survive and thrive, Frodo's and Ellies would take the two top spots.
we love abby's arms appreciation in this household. the body shaming on twitter and reddit was absolutley disgusting
Abby's muscles are incredible, anybody who says otherwise is in denial.
@@bella-tt9hk Reddit gamers and general discourse in "gamer" circles is always toxic when women or minorities are involved. The line being drawn at abby's body is very in character for them because she's a woman. There are obvious, in game examples for how somebody would build their body up like that. We literally see a gym in their base and she's a fucking soldier out soldiering all the time. It's crazy that people find a problem here. It eases the logic muscles when you realize it's just sexism.
@@bella-tt9hk it's like I know how bad it gets, yet I'm still always shocked by the intolerance on display. It makes me kind of sick and reluctant from even engaging in the toxic discourse surrounding things like TLoU2. I still do it, but that's only because I'm a masochist, I guess. And I can't get enough pain. The Abby as trans thing particularly was straight up awful. People jumped to the conclusion that the trans character in the game was the buff woman, and of course that comes with all the speculation of some "SJW conspiracy to have the big trans woman beat the bad cis male (Joel)." Absolutely ridiculous.
@@bella-tt9hk Oh, I dont know, because males have much higher testosterone levels than females? Maybe if you paid attention in biology
Dude, have you ever seen female bodybuilders? Ever heard shield maidens? Men may gain muscle easier but women can get swole without caring about their looks. Some men look feminine and some women look masculine. It’s biologically, since you seem so obsessed with it.
I don’t get why people say Ellie’s motivation for revenge doesn’t make sense. What people don’t realize is that Ellie has survivors guilt ever since Riley died. Since the first game, she been looking for what Joel said at the end, “something worth fighting for.” To Ellie, she thought dying for a cure was that. Then that option was gone, then someone she loved in Joel was gone; she had nothing to fight for. She was searching for a release from her survivors guilt in her revenge spree against Abby; but as she was watching Abby drown, she knew killing Abby wouldn’t grant her any release - it didn’t give Abby any release when she killed Joel for her dad. LOU2 is a complex story about a complex girl, who wants nothing more than to find purpose in her life when her immunity has done nothing so far but bring death to those around her while she survives each time.
I know this is an old comment but I just wanna chime in - totally agree with you.
Furthermore, if people don't understand Ellie's motivations, then why would they understand Abby's? They both wanted to kill the murderer of their father figures.
@@lulucanpy3513 exactly! By the end of the game I had even forgiven Abby for what she did to Joel. I definitely don't like Abby, but that actually has more to do with her personality (I cheered Mel when she called Abby a piece of shit lmaoo). This game has a lot of flaws, and I mean A LOT, but no game has ever made me feel so many different emotions and had so many opinions. I applaud Naughty Dog for taking that risk.
@@transientfireworks5000 I'm glad I'm not the only one who dislikes Abby who can give a reason other than "she killed Joel" haha I mean it's a perfectly valid reason to dislike her but it also seems to be the only one given when there's so many others. Then of course you get the people who like her, assuming the people who dislike her just never gave her a chance.
But as pissed as I was about what she did, I tried to give her that chance. I just couldn't stand her character lmao I mean, she treats her "friends" like crap consistently, why do these people tolerate her? The only one she shows any sort of affection to is Owen and even that's not much. It irritated the hell out of me when Mel calls her out and instead of facing up to it she plays the victim and gets comforted? It felt like it wasted what could have been a cool character moment.
Also, the game trying to show Abby as a good person by her helping Yara and Lev never really worked for me. "Ooh she's helping these kids when they're supposed to be enemies she has depth" Okay, so fair enough they saved her life and she kinda rethought her stance on these people from this group who have potentially hurt/killed people she....at least convinced herself she cared about, cool......But, Joel also saved her life and she didn't for a second consider there was more to that story to be aware of? ...Hmm.
Sorry didn't mean to go on a full tangent haha just bugs me when people act like her only flaw is what she did.
@@coffeepowered6033 totally agree with you! Abby is an unlikeable person to me, not because she killed Joel, but because if I knew someone like her in real life, I'd be calling her a piece of shit daily. Same goes for Mel and Manny - especially Manny! His only personality trait was that he was horny all the time and liked anime [which is funny cause he's the only Spanish character in the game and his sexually promiscuous nature is shoved in our faces...do with that information what you please but that's a little fishy/stereotypical to me]. Owen was okay - he was Jesse 2.0 to me; just an all-around nice guy with no other personality trait than being the voice of reason.
A big flaw that the game has is, in the narrative, they try to shove down our throats of "Ellie bad" "Abby good". Like how with Ellie, you're blowing up dogs, who are trying to kill you, left and right, but with Abby, you play with them. If you're trying to force me to see the good in a character like that, it makes me dislike them more. Show don't tell Naughty Dog; that's writing 101. An example of giving Abby redemption the right/subtle way was after Yara dies and Lev says, "Those were your fucking people," and Abby replies, "YOU'RE my people." That was the first and few times in the game I actually connected with Abby on an emotional level - which I applaud and give credit to Laura Bailey for her brilliant voice acting. Another example was at the end of the game when Ellie cuts Abby down from the pillar. Abby cradles Lev and, instead of questioning why Ellie was there, or trying to be antagonistic in any way, she just turns to Ellie and says, "The boats are this way," letting Ellie know where and how to escape the island. I wish the game was more subtle in the way they portrayed Abby's good side instead of forcing it down our throats, begging us to like her.
All in all, Abby isn't a good person, and that's okay; a character doesn't have to be a good person for us to like them. Ellie has her flaws too - but with Ellie, we see the good in her through her subtle actions and dialogue. With Abby, we're forced to believe she has good in her in not-subtle ways; which is where I think Naughty Dog messed up her character.
Press F to pay respect
I thought Lev was a fantastic character. I feel for his suffering but i was glad that he found Abbey and found someone to accept him despite but also, Yarra had his back. He’s her little brother and her love for him was absolute. The way it should be.
“Look at what this person did. See how understandable it is from their perspective”. Those two sentences perfectly encapsulate the heart of the TLOU Part 2. It’s a complex and nuanced game and without doubt my favourite game of all time. I can’t wait for TLOU series to start in a few weeks to see how it portrays this story.
Wow I just read the comments and realised I watched this 2 years ago. 😂 I recently replayed second game and love it even more now than before.
Finally, somebody I don't have to argue with on the quality in part 2! I love both of these games.
Part 2 is a FUCKING masterpiece
@Boram Kim story wise not quite
@@sbevexlr848 disagree
"There's this little shuttle, and for Ellie's birthday, Joel was able to get a recording of some rocket launch"
Ahh, the space nerd in me weeps... It wasn't just a "little shuttle," it was an Apollo-era crew capsule, and it wasn't just "some rocket launch," it was the Apollo 11 launch that first put humanity on the Moon.
It was literally the greatest birthday gift that has ever been given in the history of gifts, real or fictional
Not to dig on your review which is great, and not everybody has to be a space nerd. But oh my god did that section connect with me. My dad used to take me to the Museum of Science in Boston, like... regularly. I'm sure at some point he got sick of seeing the same exhibits over and over again, but I sure didn't.
Thanks for this.
That piece of information makes that moment that much more special.
Seriously thank you
@@eduardoce41 or did you mean... SPACIAL?
Hahah, I said the same thing when I heard that. Imagine being able to actually sit inside a real Apollo command module. That would be wicked cool. I actually looked up where there are Apollo command modules on display to see if the one at their museum was an actual flown one. But, i don't think it would be, as of now there are no CMs, flown or otherwise, on display any where is that Utah/ Colorado area. Maybe in 2013 there was though.
Also the Museum of Science was my shit when I was younger. I must have went there 4+ times a year for most of my childhood. Haven't been there since, idk like 2010, Thanks for the reminder that that place exists, I'm going to have to check it out soon.
It's very poetic, when you think about it. Apollo 11 was the first time humans landed on the Moon, the first time we stepped on a world not our own. It was a glimpse of a hopeful future beyond our planetary confines. How fitting, then, that it's the birthday gift to the only (known) person immune from the fungal infection currentlt killing off humanity, the spark of hope around which the first game revolved? Just makes what happens in the sequel even sadder.
I was so driven to save Ellie in TLOF that I killed every single one of them with no hesitation and after her ‘okay’ I felt empty... the TLOU2 did the same thing, left me questioning and empty
Someone in a different review pointed out that even if they found the cure, they'd weaponize it like humans do everything else. Only give it to the "rich" and higher class survivors and leave the lower class ones to die because "theres not enough vaccine to go around
@@moxiemaxie3543 that sort of rationalization makes the story worse though. The entire reason the ending is so great is because of this choice between Ellie and humanity. By looking for a way to make the choice unambiguous, you ruin a lot of the themes and messages of the ending
@midnightblink
In a story where nuance abounds, and where there is no “right and wrong”, or “black and white” why would you ask the audience to stop questioning and thinking only now. In reality, if a small bit of rationalization that the firelight’s are a terrorist organization that would use the vaccine to monopolize power and destroy their opponents is enough to wreck the story, then it wasn’t that good in the first place. The story is deeply flawed, especially the ending. There’s no surety that they would actually complete a cure, in fact it is entirely improbable. Especially considering that the doctors didn’t even take blood samples, do testing, or ask the child for permission before putting her out and trying to kill her. The firelights weren’t and were never good people. People act like Joel was getting his just desserts by having the “innocent” doctor’s daughter kill him.
In actual fact, the man was about to murder a child, he did not follow any of the code of conduct as a doctor, and in the game, if you don’t kill him, he stabs you. Joel was entirely in the right. Those people were going to kill his little girl. Does this realization lessen the impact? Yeah, but it’s better than “Joel kill innocent fire lights that were just doing job, ruining the sure fire cure. Monkey brain ooo ooo.”
As a blk person I never paid mind to the fact that majority of the poc characters didn’t make it. But I’m glad you’re bringing it to peoples attention
"The relationship is gorgeous but it's also deeply, deeply flawed."
Especially in the second game I couldn't stop seeing myself and my dad in Ellie and Joel's relationship. Can't believe this game helped me introspect into my relationship with my dad
I've recently started dating this girl who has only ever seen video games at other people's houses, never really played them. I've been slowly getting her to play through a couple games, like Portal and Portal 2. But it's amazing just how many things, that are second nature to me, don't come naturally to her, or systems that make sense but not to her. It's been incredible seeing her knowledge and understanding of video games grow. You've given me a really important insight into the kind of mindset she's in when playing games and I want to thank you for that. Any way I can better understand how she feels when she plays lets me make it even more fun for both of us.
Type "video games for non-gamers" in case you haven't seen his videos. He recently did an update on his wife's progress 😆
Razbuten's video on gaming for non-gamers is everything I wanted to say about being a non-gamer trying to get into gaming. Portal 1 & 2 were also my gateways!
Me before this video: what’s The Last Of Us?
Me after this video: *sobbing uncontrollably and feeling attachments to these characters*
HBO picked it up, just so you know 😉
same
i was sobbing uncontrollably throughout the video because I knew (from watching a lets play) how it all ends, and reliving everything was so intense
@@psychedelicyeti6053 God, please, don't let them do it dirty...
im just sorry for people that havent played it for themselves and did not experienced the whole 12 hour journey of the first game and 25 hour journey of the second game, it is truly masterpieces and games that shows non gamers what interactive media are capable of and how much can they affect your everyday life and thinking
*SPOILERS IF HAVEN’T FINISHED VIDEO*
Honestly the most crushing part of the game for me was Abby and Lev getting captured by the rattlers after the glimmer of hope that they’d get to start over, and Abby would get closure from the long fuckery that was the WLF. And I know most of the fans have no love her, but I really connected with her character and actually cared about what happened to her, so getting put into slavery and seeing how she looked once Ellie got to her really fucked me up. She got a newfound optimism that was immediately crushed, most of her identifiable traits gone from slow torture. I wished she got a happier ending after all the revenge business but it never happened. 🤷♂️
I didn't think I would like playing as Abby when that but started and... didn't end as soon as it started, but I had a blast. Knowing the world as it was, her relationships and how... broken she was. And how human that feels. How they were mirroring each other in a senseless quest such as we had to mirror the events at Seattle again. And the ending made me feel like "well, I would not care that much for Abby and would not be wanting her to live if I hadn't known her"
she got a happy ending, lev and her found the fireflies
With the HBO show airing, I thought it was only appropriate to re-visit this video. Definitely some top notch work and one of my favorite video essays, probably ever.
There are some hints that Dina actually took Ellie back by the way! When Ellie leaves to track down Abby, she isn't wearing Dina's bracelet and she's carrying guns. When she returns, she's wearing the bracelet, her guns are somewhere else, indicating time passing, and she isn't surprised to find the farm abandoned. There was a note from Jesse's parents saying they'd always have a place with them in Jackson, so that's where Dina would go, and probably where they live now.
I don't know if this makes for a more or less satisfying ending, but it's a detail worth knowing about imo. Anyway, great video!
Oh so she dropped her stuff off at jackson and then headed to the farmhouse to let go of joel
I love that you said "That boy is still all heart" because Lev means heart in Hebrew (which Druckmann speaks)
Oh my goodness, I know very little Hebrew. I didn't realize that! Such a good name for the boy
@@Ladyknightthebrave and Yara’s name is arabic for butterfly i think. Butterflies obviously represent metamorphosis. so together these characters literally represent Abby’s change of heart
@@liamross340 Metaphorically, rather than literally. But yes, good point.
@@liamross340 That makes "Clip her wings" even worse to me ):
And on Joel’s guitar? A silvery butterfly.
I loved this game on the first play through and felt less upset about Joel’s murder than most. I was acutely aware that Joel’s violence left open the possibility of a reckoning and I knew that Abbie was similarly complicated because she spared Ellie. The first’s narrative inherently offered hope, but the sequel shows the inevitable consequences of people seeking justice when traditional avenues are unavailable or fruitless. It all made sense.
Im speechless. This is such a descriptive, acurate and respectfull essay om The Last Of Us. This game literally changed My life but havent thought about a lot of the Things that this essay touches.
Great work. My god. 🙏
When you see that final flashback it also clues you in on why, despite knowing what Joel did, Ellie went on her revenge: While she took two years to get to that night, she was willing to try to move forward, and Abby and the others took what could've been from her. But luckily, the memory reminded Ellie that if she was willing to move on and forgive Joel, then she could do the same with Abby.
the idea that struk me while i was watching the video is that when Ellie sais "im the one that you want" means that she tries to redeem joel in abbys eyes. That might sound obvious, but the thing is that she blames herself for being loved by him. Within herself she believs that her relationship with joel was a mistake, but she also loves him, for her her love is a curse.
The fact that this essay cites the Mandalorian as a part of the Gruff dads many years prior the release of the TV series, proves that Pedro Pascal's cast is the correct one in my opinion
I love how you describe Last of Us 2 as a story about empathy and forgiveness. I walked away from it with a whole lot of mental mess to unpack and I found the parallels between Abby and Ellie deeply moving and emotional. In a sense, they have the same story in the game, they're just in different places. Abby starts the game at the end of her quest for revenge, but starts Ellie on that same quest with her actions. They pass their own trauma on over and over and the cycle doesn't end until there's forgiveness. The game wasn't perfect, and I so wish my poor Ellie could have had a happy ending, but I love the story they told. Haunting, but there's hope in there too.
No
At the end when Ellie returns to the farm she's now wearing the bracelet Dina gave her - the one she took off when she left her to peruse Abby one last time.
I like to think that's a small glimmer of hope for her
Plus the fact she doesn't have all her gear with her suggests she's dropped it off somewhere nearby that she will return to. Jackson is the only place I can think of that is nearby and that can serve as a permanent home where Ellie might leave her weapons. This on top of having the bracelet has to mean she goes to Jackson between the beach scene and the epilogue.
@@benmac7552 I think she's also wearing Dina's boots and one of her shirts
@Reiner Braun what?
I feel that maybe Dina and her will get back together, now that Ellie has let go what has happened. I wouldn't be surprised if they come back to the house, gather her things, and move back to Jackson permanently.
@@mjr8888 I really hope Jackson is not going to be attacked in the next game
I'm a simple man, I see you do a long analysis on media, even though I don't care about the media itself, I watch cuz DANG your analysis is GERAT
GERAT 👁👄👁
When I heard you quote the article that Joel did die, just 4 years later that he should of; the first thing that came to my mind was Firefly:
"No, son, you murdered yourself, I just carried the bullet a while"
A thought about the ending to Part 1: Joel (as a character) is capable of only one choice (murdering everyone to save Ellie). But as the player, we have an overriding control over the situation. We can stop playing once the Fireflies have Ellie. In that way, Joel does not go on a homicidal rampage. The doctors live. They complete the procedure. Ellie dies. A cure is developed. And the world is saved. Joel is incapable of making that choice, but the player is. But like a ringing phone has to be answered, a game's final level has to be played.
The Lonesome Road DLC from Fallout New Vegas actually makes a point of this "just turn around and stop playing" idea. Graffiti all over place tells you to turn back. Ulysses repeatedly talks to you about how all you do is what you're told to. There's a point somewhere along the way where you cannot progress without pushing a button which launches a nuke, and on my first time through, I reloaded a save to see if there was any way to not launch the nuke. There is but one way: turn around and leave. And unlike all the other DLCs for that game, the area that one takes place in actually does let you leave at any time (the others require you to finish the story before they let you leave). It was an experience that completely changed how I see video games, and it left me with a distaste for gameplay that boils down to "follow compass marker and press button to continue."
Sometimes the only winning move is not to play.
New Vegas is so good! And the Lonesome road, and really all the DLCs with their through line story, is some of the coolest writing in a game I’ve ever seen. I feel dumb that I never picked up on the fact that I could just leave and not complete it. You kinda just blew my mind.
This is basically what happened with me at Sans fight lol. What he literally tells you to do: Stop playing before you actually kill everyone.
This is what Kojima has been talking about for years
I find it so naïve of people to want a character to die a heroic death with meaningful last words. You rarely get that in real life. I've lost many people and I cannot remember our last conversation, it is a rare gift to tie up these loose ends. People are taken from us in many ways, unexpectedly, roughly... sometimes we loose them long before they are actually dead. I know it hurts, but I think think the game was actually brilliant in that.
edit: I think I need to add that I am in no way saying that I think he should have died, nor that it wasn't stupid for the events to go down the way they did. I am simply saying that I found their last moments together very realistic and liked that portrayal of death. Because I could somewhat relate.
As I said, I had many relatives who I was close with die, at different stages of my life, and their death felt very similar to what the game showed. Just brutal, savage, nonsensical, real and heartbreaking.
This is a game 2 escape reality in lou1 we got close 2 the characters like you got close 2 nathon drake etc we no how this world is its brutal that's not the problem for some of us the story jumping from liking them 2 killing Joel. maybe it's my opinion I get what they were doing unfortunately it didn't work for me it was done start of game distastfully brutal World or not. I even enjoyed some of abbys play through moments and some of the new characters the visuals gameplay I found amazing the problem for me is how they used the shock factor as a cheap story we could argue all day each 2 there own for me it was all for nothing. as beutifull and fun lou2 the gameplay was say you killed drake then introduced a new character and killed drake I could go on about many characters in other games we played as Joel in lou a tiny bit of Ellie and dlc I see comments saying oh Joel fan boy wich is funny using that as a reason of course we loved Joel it was the main character ha ha for me I wouldn't have minded Joel dying but better written story way not just a hero way. and if that was your daughter in lou you would have done the same as Joel wich monster would let there daughter die for humanity even irl I would do the same but would they allow this 2 happen in our world? Its murder she was 14 she can't allow this consent even for humanity they are the murderers if anything I enjoyed smashing up the docs at end of lou it's about the story of Joel and Ellie and that's why 2 is broken for me and I respect anyones opinion it's not because we don't get the story or have 1 iq it because we don't like the story or for some parts of the story
@@darrenjones3181 I guess it’s didn’t bother me
Exactly
BUT YOU SHOULDN'T DO IT AS A SEQUEL TO ONE OF THE GAMES THAT WAS LOVED FOR ITS RELATIONSHIPS, PLUS THE CHARACTER SHOULDN'T DIE IN AN OUT OF CHARACTER WAY WHEN THEY WERE ABLE TO TELL AN AMBUSH FROM ONE PERSON JUST ONE GAME AGO.
@@LukesOffline we all have opinions some are okay with it
It’s not death it’s the way he died. It made no sense for Joel to tell him his name and where they lived especially after the first game
I was just happy to see *any* Asian representation in part 2. Honestly can't think of literally any games that take place in the US with many Asians with speaking roles.
Theres always hopper in homefront 😃
the silent asian trope is really weird, i agree!
I had to pause the video because I need to say this: your vocabulary, your varying intonations and inflections when you talk, your pronunciation, enunciation... everything. YOU ARE AMAZING. In a sea of monotone TH-camrs who read every sentence of their script the exact same way, and who use long words to sound clever but mispronounce them every time, you are an island. You stand almost alone. Listening to you talk is an absolute pleasure and I'm so glad I found your channel. I'm subbing and would sub ten times if I could.
Please keep up the exemplary work! :)
P.S. Just a quick one, but as most of my family is from Scotland, I know about Scottish names - Riley McLeod who you quoted, their surname is pronounced 'McCloud', rather than 'McLeeodd. Just for future reference, you know. You have such a wonderful speaking style and your grasp of language is outstanding, so I thought it might be of interest. Other than that small thing, I bow down to your superior skills.
Yeh Lady is gooood at this.
I love how in the segment about Joel being a gruff dad there’s clips from the mandalorian, with the show coming out and Pedro Pascal playing Joel it feels very fitting
As for people bonding in times of distress: I always got the feeling that most of the survivors are so caught up in surviving that preserving their own in-group inevitably leads to othering the rest which makes it easier to get rid of them for their own safety. So basically they've been conditioned to make selfish decisions and when everybody acts badly there's no telling good or bad people apart, it's extremely risky to trust in these circumstances
Yeah but from most accounts I've read during a crisis people *do* acctually tend to come together because at the end of the day humans are an extremely social animal that generally tends to realize how fragile we are and the more help we have the better off we'll be. Ofcourse there are other incentives that might get in the way on a case to case basis but generally when people feel vulnerable they tend to try and reach out
Good breakdown of it. Even if I don't think the environment makes a lot of sense if I think about it to hard, but ny love for tlou trumps the tiny inconsistencies in it's world.
You are actually a far better gamer then you give yourself credit for. Others might be better at "beating" a game, but you are very professional at experiencing a game. And congrats, this is one of the best analytical channels on TH-cam.
A person that's good at experiencing games isn't just gonna open their arms at everything that's somewhat story based
@@isaywhateveriwantandyougot7421 i don't care for your opinion
@@archivesofarda986 You cared enough to comment 😂
@@isaywhateveriwantandyougot7421 He was simpin for a bright little heart...and he got it. LOL
It's like how people criticized game reviewer Noah Caldwell-Gervais for his supposedly "subpar gameplay," when the fact is that man knows how to get to the core of what games are trying to do better than probably most other people on the platform. He may be, to quote his words, "a stoner and a fool," but he gets the important of games as an experience, beyond the skill of playing them.
When she said “ How many days are there !?” I never felt something more cause I felt the same exact wayyyyy!! 😂😭
Okay, coming back to this video essay because I just watched episode 3 of TLOU live action and at the end of the ep I was bawling and kept saying 'I'M SAAAD' in your voice holy shit my emOTIONSSS 😭😭😭
I think the fandom’s reaction to Abby and Lev is what completely turned me off from them. I remember trying to watch a review of LoU2, and within the first 20 mins he had called Abby transphobic slurs and called the sex scene with Abby and the dude “Gross transexual sex”. Understanding the LoU and the horror behind Joel’s death, I was disgusted and horrified with how the fandom treated Abby, some of them even proudly stating that they made Abby die in horrific ways just to get that catharsis. They not only spat on ND for what they were trying to show, but also sent those horrific tweets and DMs to the VOICE ACTORS of the characters. Im not calling LoU2 a great game, I was uncomfortable for the majority of the game, I didnt like Abby for a lot of it but I held a respect for her developement and could understand why she wanted revenge, but I only started liking her as you mentioned, she was able to heal from her dad’s death through helping the people she cared about, not by getting revenge. I found myself disliking Ellie not because of her journey, but because of the lengths she was willing to go to get Abby, and I found myself rooting for Abby to survive because of their journeys. So many people call LoU2 “ruined by the SJW agenda”, but to me, its an uncomfortable, ruthless story about grief, the true horrors of their world, and learning that revenge only created more hatred and angry, vengeful people. I liked the ending they gave Abby and Lev, they represent hope and healing to me, I dont know about Ellie, I think she should have gotten at least a sweeter ending, like awarding her in some way for sparing Abby to nail in the fact of healing, but I certainly dont think LoU2 is a bad game, or ruined. I think its disgusting how people were so easy dehumanize Abby and Lev, it was disgusting and those people should be ashamed of themselves
THIS... I don't like the game because it just felt like they're trying to force me into that "revenge is bad" story while the entire time i played the game i was like "NOOOO why are u forcing me to press the button to torture this girl" and it went like that for FAR too long. When i reach Abby's POV, i was already tired with Ellie's story and just not that interested anymore and by that point i begin to be critical with the game before even finishing it.
The thought that runs in my mind when playing as Abby was "Oh the developers want me to sympathize with her" and from then on it seems very obvious to me what they're trying to do and consequently ruined the game for me. Suddenly I was very critical with the story and everything becomes predictable from that moment on. Like from the time we spent time with Lev early on, i have a feeling that in the end Lev was gonna be the one who tells Abby that violence is not the answer because knowing from Ellie's POV, she killed all her friends and Abby sure will want some revenge.
I think they nailed representation wise compared to other games. I rarely see any asian characters in other games that played an important role. They made Lev a really likable character and not just a trans character with no depth. I like Abby's character progression in the story although tbh i don't really like her as a character but i like her enough that i don't hate her. And when people start to criticize the game, some start to hate on the characters. I was very upset when people start to hating the character because they don't like the game. Like making memes about Lev being trans and calling it liberal bs. I get that it was meant as a joke but it is very discriminating so don't. The fact that some people sent death threats on the actors is sadly unsurprising for me. It is so childish that it's very likely just a bunch of 13yr old edgelords being edgy a little too much. But i get why people don't like the game.
I think when people say "it's a game, i played it to escape the harsh reality of the real world not to be choked on a nihilist constructive criticism about it" i kinda relate to it in a way. I played the game expecting those feelings the first one gave to me. A touching story about lovable characters while they're trying to live in an uncertain world as cliche as it may sound. I loved the interaction that Joel and Ellie had in the first game. It gave me a feeling that there will always be hope no matter what the circumstances are.
I'm in a bad situation in the last couple of years and i really need some new stimulation. I was hoping that this game would give me that same feeling the first one did. It didn't sadly. I was looking for some enjoyable moments but instead i was given a very long dreadful and uncomfortable experience and it didn't help that it features those same characters i love and got attached to in the first game. It left me feeling really miserable at the end and that is not what i need.
Art is art and it is what the creators intended it to. But i guess i can't help but feeling that this isn't a vessel for such story and message. At the end it's a game. Its very consumer based and takes a lot of efforts from a lot of people. And like every consumer based products, it relies on profit. It's a story that people generally enjoy and love. And to make a very ambitious continuation of that story, you must know the backlash it will get from people and the effects of that backlash. Sorry about the rant :v
Muhammad Ghifari I can totally see your point, and Im sorry that LoU2 was released at such a horrible time for you; and its values were released at a horrible time in general. I think ND failed on a lot of portions, especially on the part of it being a successor to the first, to the pint where I think people would have been a lot less angry about LoU2 if it was an entirely separate game and NOT the sequel to LoU.
I still think that its values are still very important and it was good that a big AAA game company made a game about how horrible violence and hatred really is; there are too many games that have desensitized us to it that a giant game such as LoU2 putting a spotlight on it is important. I don’t think however that they wrote it correctly in a way that would get people to really understand, because they had absolutely no emotional ties to the characters, and the characters we do recognize are incredibly bastardized. The characters we were introduced to either died too early, or were Abby. Lev was great though, I liked him despite everyone saying how bad of rep he was, Im trans myself and I think compared to what we got before Lev is a step in the right direction. Not perfect, but he’s okay and I appreciate that they didnt kill him off, rather he had a hopeful ending.
So yeah, don’t really know where Im exactly going with this but I agree that LoU2 wasn’t great as a sequel to the legend that was LoU, it probably would have been more successful if they just replaced the known characters with brand new ones and made a brand new game/franchise. None of the characters even feel like the originals so it probably wouldn’t have been that hard aha. It was a disappointing experience for the fandom though I don’t think that means it was okay to do what they did in retaliation. They could have just, idk, said it was shit and not buy it. Don’t blame the people who were probably forced longer than mandated hours to record lines and forced to work on it basically 24/7 because Naughty Dog as a company is shady as fuck
Which TH-camr said that?I watched many of these reviewers but none of them ever used transphobic slurs but instead highlighted and discussed the plot holes and shock value in the story
@@HypocriteHunter666 there’s this one guy named tyler1
@@lostinthecosmos6095 As much as I hate those fanboys who accuse others of being homophobic and transphobic for simply disagreeing with the aspects,I also give the same treatment to those who issue things like death threats to the VAs
holy shit I just cried while watching a REVIEW of a game i have not played. Ladyknightthebrave is just. that. good.
Damn!
Well, I played it twice almost 2 months ago, and I am shaking and holding back tears. This game did things to me like nothing ever before. For this very thing I will never forget it.
Why did you cry?
Honestly same, it didn’t hit me til the imagery of the guitar and the song at the very end but like wtf how dare this video game review make me feel real emotions
ME TOO. GODDAMIT. I'm glad I'm not alone though XD .
I love your take on this, but another point I found more important to make: thank you for adding such perfect closed captioning. As HOH, it means the world to get everything you’re saying and sounds, it means so much to feel seen a little.
I could listen to you talk all day. Holy shit. I didn’t even realize I was watching this for one hour. Your voice is so soothing and kept everything so interesting. Loved this.
I'm glad I'm not the only one who made tortured involuntary noises while playing through parts of the game. For instance, at the end of part 2, I was literally shouting "stop it! no! Why can't you guys just get along?! You're breaking my heart." Also, I think when it comes to TLOU I have a special type of scene that makes me cry. The part that made me cry in both games isn't any of the sad or horrifying bits, it's the parts where Joel and Ellie argue. I just can't handle these characters that I love so much say such mean things to each other.
@@Christian-gr3gu I mean I get why they can't be, but being an eternal optimist it still hurt
I was saying they both are going to be put in naughty corners 😂 time outs for everyone
I cried when in part 1 when Joel found Ellie in that house and then the two exchanged words . In part 2, when Ellie just pushed Joel away in the pub, seeing her eyes moving, is a good scene.
@@averagesionenjoyer8948 uh, but Tlou 2 is so great tho
@@averagesionenjoyer8948 Wow, I'm impressed. Literally, everything you just said was wrong. Also, I think you need to look up what the word objective means. I don't think it means what you think it means.
Btw did people see that at the end of the last of us II, Ellie came back to the farm and had Dina's bracelet on, which she did not have prior throughout the whole story except right at the end!
yup! she also didn’t have her weapons
Girl I cried like 4 times in this review just the short snip it’s were able to bring me to tears. an amazing review keep up the good work
I love the honesty and truth within this video. It changed my perspective of trying to be on a certain side of the good and bad. To be honest, you ARE NOT. A bad gamer. You don't have to beat the game. It's the experience. I love the quality time you spent to speak your mind. I should do that more. Love your video and I hope your day goes splendid. 💗
Gaming is entertainment. Entertainment is what you make of it. There is no good or bad way to enjoy entertainment. Of course there are objective ways to better experience media. Like sitting on a chair with 1000€ AV equipment. But it doesn’t make enjoying music with 20$ earphones while jogging bad or not valid. Same with games. There is validity enjoying games with hard difficulty as it can increase emotional attachment etc. It doesnt make playing the game with lower difficulty for the story any less valid.
@@pasikuisma1948 very well said
"It has value even if it makes me unbearably sad."
So well said! My thoughts EXACTLY! This is an impressively long video and it's very well written so far!
"Tortured whale noises" definitely sums up my squeamish experience playing most bloody action games. I'm glad you broke down the Last of Us series, specifically focusing on empathy. These games present a microcosm of no-win scenarios and it's psychologically hard to get through. It's less a game in the sense you're experiencing a fluffy mario escapism and more a societal commentary. I also hated playing the sequel, but I appreciate that they made the games.
You've landed yourself in my favourite video essays playlist - for creating one of the only TLOU2 videos that improved my perspective on a game I can't stomach from all the excessive violence and hopelessness involving characters I love. The pain this game brings me feels meaningful now and I realize it has more to be credited for despite its major flaws. I initially just wanted to ignore its existence and pretend the story didn't go this way, but it's probably okay if I don't. :) Thanks for the engaging content, I'm off to check out your other videos 💕
I feel like i've reclaimed my sanity finding a review this good! Thank you for putting so much thoughtful work into this.
Ok I tried to look for someone who might have commented this, and didn't find it, so this is me saying it for anyone who's interested; the ending for Ellie might not be as sad as it seems. Of course it's an interpretation, and as far as I know not canon, but when Ellie enters the farm house at the end of the game, she has Dinas bracelet on. She doesn't have it at all the whole time she's looking for Abby in Santa Barbara. She doesn't have it on and it's not in her backpack. So the logical conclusion would be that she left it when she left Dina, and she might have gotten it back again from Dina before the ending scene. In the letter Dina left for her, it says that she went to live with Jesses parents (as far as I remember) so Ellie would know where to find her. I think they purposefully didn't give any of the characters a 'proper' happy ending - because people wouldn't think about the point of the game as much then. The end is the end of the story and the conclusion to the themes the game is about - and the characters stories might be more nuanced than that, but it's not what you are suppost to take away from the game, and therefore it's not in there. This is a really lovely video essay btw! I cried... it was great! 10/10
Dina left her a letter?!?!?!? How did I miss that?!?!?! Oh no that's so sad!!!!😭😭😭
I dont remember dina leaving a letter for ellie ? Sounds like your getting mixed up with the letter from jesse's parents to dina in teh first farm section.
bEnMaC hmm yeah that might be true.. I could have sworn there was one though, but it might just be my brain playing tricks on me :/
At first they were going to make Ellie grab a toy for the baby, but that would have made it too clear where was she going, so they made a more sad/ambiguous ending. In my head she goes to find them
I have literally never played the game before, and seen maybe a few playthroughs of part 1, but my god was this video super insightful and entertaining. It made me care for characters I didn't even know about, so I really appreciate your analysis of this game! I hope you do more gaming content in the future on other story-based games bc I'd really love to hear your input.
Came here after the show and that clip of the Mandalorian aged like fine wine
This is the best and most wholesome commentary on this series I’ve yet seen. Props to you!
So I’m trans and I absolutely love Lev, I didn’t really mind the story with him, like how it focused on a lot or hardships for him were because he’s trans. I mean that is some people’s reality.
Also Abby is my favorite character I love her
I didnt really think there was much focus on that part of the story. Maybe i havent noticed it but i played the game several times by now. When you ask me about Lev i mostly think about a likeable character, kinda badass, caring, sweet, and helpful that's stuck in a shitty world AND crazy religion. He just happens to be trans, i dont mind or even consider it a big deal because he has many other traits
One thing that bothers me is when he cuts his hair, like for me it's irrational that someone would do something like that when he knows damn well he could get killed. I think that part would have made more sense if instead of death the consecuences for being trans in that religion is excommunication, in that case it could have shown that he evaluated the decision and decided it was better to leave a community that doesn't accept him.
@@oscarchavezavellan2738 if he didn’t cut his hair, it would show he’s weak and afraid of who he is. That’s NOT a message you’d want to convey
Abby and Lev are the light of this game, literally and it's so beautiful to watch them walk away from the horrors of their circumstances to look for their own happiness, putting a true positive spin on the mirroring of Joel and Ellie's flawed relationship, makes TLoU2 perfect for what it made me feel.
As a non-gamer who appreciates game storylines, 75% of my video game knowledge comes from video essays and 25% comes from BDG Polygon videos making his job amusingly complicated.
Also, yea! Another Ladyknightthebrave video, and it is basically feature length about flawed nuanced haunting games. Well, it’s a good time to cry.
:)
20:00
I don't think it's a problem. Even if you're purple, I don't think the color actually matters. More a case that Joel happened to be white. The main antagonists are white in TLOU P2 (most of em) and they get slaughtered, all except Abby, it just makes sense in the themes of the story (from my perspective anyways), anyone can be justified in killing anyone, and unjustified as well. Color ain't got nothing to do with it from my perspective. But that's just me. Also before someone tries to call me a racist cracker, pay attention, I ain't white.
Your essays are always beatifully written, and your words are very on-point, I'm here rewatiching this one for the 3rd time, because everytime I rewatch them I get a new perspective, thank you for your hard work on these!
I was so obsessed with part 2 when it came out that I couldn't fall asleep at night all I did was think about what would happen next, and it took me a week to finish the game, just because I tried to limit my playtime to no more than 4 ish hours a day.
On another note, I will never get over the genius that was the first fight between Abby and Ellie and making the player control Abby. It's their first confrontation since Joel's death and as a player, we've been waiting for this moment to get revenge, but by playing as Abby, the game is depriving us of the catharsis we've been waiting for. And when the time finally comes to get revenge on Abby, at the very end, we don't want it anymore. There is absolutely no satisfaction in that fight, it's not a boss fight it's the last bolder we're desperately trying to push to the top for the story to reach its conclusion.
I agree. Big time.
I'm really happy you enjoyed the game but I have to say the final fight was not narrative genius of any kind. Remember we as players are experiencing an extreme amount of dramatic irony. In other words WE know that Abby killed Joel to avenge her father. Ellie does not. From her point of view she has not learnt ANY information at all to change her mind about killing Abby. She just randomly decides against it. That flashback should of actually encouraged her to kill. Abby.
Hell if Ellie waited a week before going Abby would of died anyways. She'll probably die on the boat either way
@@lesedimokgobi7399 In a game that states that violence and bloodshed will always bring more violence and bloodshed and that you should forgive and move on with your life, even if it's hard and painful, do you really think Ellie's final act should have been to kill Abby? It doesn't matter that Ellie doesn't know why Abby did it (although she has an idea, she clearly knows that it's retribution for what Joel did at the hospital, even if she doesn't know the exact specifics), what matters is that she's able to move on from her anger, and begin to heal.
@@arcanistnpc4751 I'm pretty sure the issue here isn't what Ellie is "supposed to do". It's crystal clear that the healthy move for her was to forgive Abby. The issue is that many people feel that her sudden forgiveness was contrived. Like @Lesedi Mokgobi said, Ellie hasn't learned anything that would make her give up getting revenge. What's even more concerning is that by the end of the game, she has killed countless WLF members, dogs, and even Abby's closest friends. It's appalling that she's able to kill a pregnant woman and still continue with her quest for revenge, but somehow holding Abby's head underwater for a few seconds is enough for some magical saint-like conscience to arrive and pull Ellie out of her murderous rage. The idea that Ellie did despicable things to people she had never met and then suddenly had a change of heart right as she found the one person she actually had any motivation to kill seemed confusing and out-of-character to a lot of people, from what I've heard.
Also, to your earlier point, I think it's really risky to toy with a player's motivation to continue playing a game. Although what you said is probably exactly what Naughty Dog was going for with the climax of the game, for me the lack of satisfaction came from apathy more than anything. By that point, Ellie had become just as unlikable as Abby, and neither of them had my sympathy. I honestly thought Ellie was going to die there, for becoming everything Joel had hoped she wouldn't. I had no reason to care about the game anymore; Joel was dead, and the only other character I cared about had become vindictive and bitter as a result of her own selfish decisions. Although there are certainly ways to evoke dissatisfaction successfully in a game, I'm not convinced TLoU2 managed it. It's not that the game made me think "I'm not sure who I agree with in this fight", but rather "I don't really care what the outcome of this fight is". Although that's completely anecdotal, I think this was the reason I didn't find the ending as impactful or interesting as it was supposed to be.
The "shuttle" is actually an Apollo capsule, and the recording is of the launch of Apollo 11, the one that went to the moon. Most people won't know this or whatever but I think it just shows how Joel went the extra mile, it wasn't just a random recording on a random spaceship.
You're commentary on race is really interesting. I never noticed that before and I'm glad you spoke out about it. They definitely could've made more POC survive.
The most heartbreaking thing about tlou is how Ellie has no agency. In the second game her revenge story could be argued to be about her trying to reclaim her agency. She gets mad at Joel for defending her against a homophobic guy. Her "over reaction" to him defending her could be because she's still dealing with the emotions of finding out what Joel did to the fireflies at the hospital. And she still feels like she doesn't have agency, although she's older and grown up. Then when she tells Joel she will try to forgive him that is taken away from her by Abby. I think Ellie's story is ultimately about agency. Her revenge for Abby killing Joel isn't as simple as she killed him so now she wants to kill Abby and her group. It's about how once again her agency was taken from her. Ellie's chance to forgive Joel for is actions in the second game was robbed for her, and she thinks getting revenge will bring back some of her agency and choice over her life. And in the end her greatest fear is realized... she ends up alone.
I think Abby could have stopped the cycle of violence when she sees Joel save her. Maybe she regrets it. The "Guilt" could have also been her killing Joel who saved her just like how the Serphaites did save her even though they did the same that Joel did, kill her people. But she didnt turn and kill the kids even though they saved her. She changed after she killed Joel. Which I assume because of guilt. If not for Joel, would she maybe kill the kids after they cut her down?
a few days ago i watched your jojo rabbit/book thief video. and then i watched about every single other video youve released. and then i watched the haunting of hill house. and then russian doll. and then a bit of russian doll again. i didnt even play the last of us, but i watched lets plays when it first came out. i didnt play tlou2, and i probably wont, but this video is going to sit with me for a while. i think youre a genius. i think the way you structure arguments, and in turn, these video essays, is genius. you deserve millions and millions of views and support. keep up the good work!
This comment is all of my thoughts and more and deserves more interaction because it is so true and I hope the creator sees this and realizes that she is incredible beyond words
An aspect I've seen some people talk about (and I agree with) is the ambiguity of the Fireflies. The end of the first game was not a clear choice of "save Elie or save all of humanity." All throughout that game we see the Fireflies failing, dying, and not being efficient. Even right before the end, they find a man performing CPR on a drowning child (who is the one they think can save the world) and they knock him out. And in the notes/recordings we find out that they've tried this before a few times and mucked it up. They THINK they MIGHT be able to make a vaccine if they kill Elie, but they have a horrible batting average, and Elie is our daughter. Yes it was a violent siege, but it's not like the Fireflies are these saviors of the apocalypse as much as they try to frame themselves that way. I haven't played or watched Part 2, but if they try to frame it as Joel definitively dooming humanity, then I'm not on board.
Whether or not you can make a plausible argument about how a vaccine wouldn't work, I don't think it matters to the world and story that was portrayed. The characters believed it would work, and I believe the writers intended it to be a Holy Grail of sorts, whether it was technically plausible in our real world or not. Because if there was never any chance of a working vaccine, then the entire story starts to fall apart. The importance of an immune kid would be lost. The character's motivations would be entirely different, and the stakes drop dramatically to almost nothing. The themes the story explores would be diminished. The quest itself would be pointless. Tess's sacrifice would be for nothing.
Picking holes in the science or logic behind the zombies is an interesting discussion, but let's not lose sight of what the story is actually about. Let's not be so beholden to our formal analysis of the technicalities that we go against the spirit of the story.
@@xensonar9652 I wasn't discussing the science or logic of zombies. I was talking about the emotionality behind the characters decisions. Elie being immune is a big deal that gives people hope for a vaccine being made. But there was no proof that it would actually work. If the game had built confidence in the characters that the Fireflies were "the heroes" and could and would save the world if given the chance, then Joel's decision at the end would thematically be him giving up on humanity so that he alone could be happy seeing his daughter live. But that wasn't what it thematically felt like. It was more grey to me. They had confidence enough that killing her was worth it. He didn't. So he chose not to give up the 1 certain happy thing in his life on a gamble. He found something to fight for. I'm not saying he definitely made the morally right decision. I'm saying that it was a complex emotional situation where it was up to the player to decide how they felt. So if part 2 comes down clearly as "Nope, he's the villain of mankin." then I don't appreciate that.
@@KrisKrisKrissy I disagree. The saving of Ellie is so much more mythic and poetic if it required Joel to commit great wrongs and go so far into damnation to achieve it.
@@xensonar9652 Well, that's fine. We don't have to agree. I liked the way the story thematically worked for me. I wanted to bring up this interpretation since I know that I'm not alone in seeing it this way.
@@KrisKrisKrissy It just seems to me that the one of the main themes was how far would you go to protect someone you love? That's the theme of the dilemma at the end as I see it. If it's a choice between a) your daughter lives or b) she dies so a shady organisation can kinda, maybe, possibly, might or might not, as a long shot, make a vaccine, then it's not even a dilemma. There's only one reasonable and moral option, because all the stakes are on one side. But if its a choice between 1) saving your daughter or 2) saving mankind, well now you've got yourself a real dilemma. I believe the latter is what the writers were going for, to really get you thinking what you'd do in that situation, or how heavy the cost of living with that choice would be.
And if the latter is not what the writers intended, then why isn't it? Because that's so much more interesting than the former.
i obsessively watched playthroughs of this game and i couldnt afford it so i asked my dad and he made me write an essay for it which i did, 3 pages just explaining the game what i saw in the lets play and why i wanted to play it. i got it as a gift a few weeks later and took over the living room. cried multiple times, replayed multiple times. i love this game :3
This was the most well put together review of a game I've ever seen. I truly believe you broke down and understood each game to its core instead of just desiring what you wanted from the game. This was my approach as well rather then expecting something from TLOU2 I took it as it came and what the true story was trying to convey. Masterfully done!
As someone who deals with PTSD (and recently discovered/confirmed childhood PTSD as well) part of this vid (don't own a playstation, so haven't played the game) is rough. Particularly in that, even talking about issues, someone can assume that the cycle is continuing; i have a bad relationship with my dad (the cause of said childhood PTSD) because any time i talk about what i went through, he thinks i am just accusing him. So seeing the rather frank elements of PTSD and trauma....it's affecting. And glad to see you talk about it.
I'm really glad you talked about the crunch, because people avoid even mentioning it in their reviews to avoid getting blacklisted by publishers. And I'm glad you also mentioned the toxic fandom aspect. Kind of sad you didn't mention this habit of uncritical praise gamers have sometimes though, because publishers also have this really toxic mindset that anything other than uncritical praise has no value (and that's how you end up blacklisted). Like yeah the stories can be good even amazing, but it's also a game and too much of a product. In any case, I greatly appreciated this and all the points you raised, the strengths and weaknesses of the story.
You know, seeing as you're like me in that you like to play stealth, use your bow, and having the option of NOT killing NPCs? You might really enjoy Dishonored
Oh god thank you! There was so much about toxic fandom stuff but nothing said about the multiple reviews praising the game and the shutting down of reviews that were geniunely critical from people that were dissappointed in the game. Overall the video essay was good, although I disagreed in multiple different portions, it's amazing to see the perspective of someone who doesn't really play games and just hearing a different opinion. But this game was extremely overly praised by big companies due to the fact that many honest reviewers were blacklisted if they didn't give the 2nd game big marks. I know the creaters of the game have overall control but the reviewers of big game outlets put them in an echobox that blocks out all criticism. Lots of geniune critics were just deemed homophobic for no reason other than the fact that they disagreed with the game.
@@Sophie-qr3lv Agreed.
The thing that really shows that the big budget gaming industry is the utter pits was the creators and some team members getting really snide when people brought forth legitimate critiques about the game or the response to it. Yes, the most toxic aspect was definitely the homophobes, transphobes and death threats getting flung around in the world's shittiest game of ping-pong. But publishers dunking everyone who has something negative or, more accurately, not 100% positive praise in the same boat as the toxic idiots, is the equivalent of a child plugging it's ears and screaming loudly.
Taking offense with everyone, when people are rightfully (though playfully) mocking one reviewer's insultingly bad take comparing the game to Schindler's List, was deplorable.
Baker's "I'll just leave this here" QRT in response to Jason Schreier's participating in the meme wasn't just gauche, it was genuinely fucking stupid.
Pointing out that a game isn't the best thing since sliced bread, isn't the "masterpiece" that they so desperately want it to be lauded as, is not an attack on their supposed genius. And that's really what I think was missing in this video: How big budget video games feel like they deserve to be compared to Schindler's List or The Godfather. Deserve the very very best metacritic scores, otherwise they won't pay one of their sub companies because the meta critic score was just a smidgen under what they had projected. Bethesda.
I mean, I get it, it's the POV of a casual gamer, that mentions some stuff about toxic fandoms. But it would also be nice if more people talked about the toxic aspects of the publishers as well, because oh wow there is a lot to talk about there and it should be at least mentioned.
Also, I feel that very very few people have been talking and highlighting the truly amazing accessibility features this game has, and honestly I think that is a way way healthier and interesting thing to talk about.
chills. genuine chills (with some tears as well). this is the second video of yours that i have watched, and i have cried both times. the way you formulate words is truly a gift.
I'm halfway done and this is already the best video on TLOU parts 1 and part 2 I've ever seen. Hating this game was so easy for so many but loving this game takes real effort and real patients. This is a beautiful video.
Personally, this was my favorite video game and I loved it more than the first game. So seeing somebody give it at least a little respect and intellectual honesty is so refreshing.
POC here, and I think the POC argument is really unfair to ND. As someone mentioned above, most of the side characters die aside from Bill (and if you make Bill a POC then you're representing a POC who is emotionally unstable and neurotic, so not a positive light). And I never got the feeling the game was justifying Joel shooting Marlene; it's a morally convoluted story in a fucked up situation.
In LOU2 you get tons of positive POC representation who die due to the actions of the playable characters, which would have happened if they were white or not.
As a point of constructive criticism, non-poc getting upset on behalf of POC reeks of white saviorism. We don't need non POC getting offended for us, especially when the narrative is clearly not trying to show us in a negative light. The nature of the story is that the side characters die because of the PCs actions. It's not like ND specifically showed black people getting lynched just for shock value.
So yeah, it didn't bother me. But to end on an upper I do really love your videos and I look forward to seeing more.
I mean a point that I guess got lost was that I don't think Naughty Dog had some secret racist agenda, I just thought they maybe didn't consider the ramifications but I'll concede on the rest
this!!! i was heartbroken by Yara's death (im asian) but not once did I think it was a race thing. The POCs in this game are pretty awesome characters too. Just because they end up dying doesn't mean the characters got bad treatment. Its just the world they live in.
Asian here, I understand your points but I also think it's a good thing for white people to use their platforms to (constructively and civilly) discuss potential racist issues such as this. I find myself understanding Lady's point, and while I'm not sure I agree with her I think it's always a good thing to bring possible problems like this to light to be discussed and scrutinized regardless of who is talking about them. I don't think she's trying to speak over, or for any PoC and imo calling white people who want to talk about these things (again, constructively and without pointing fingers) white saviors discourages them from possibly speaking up in other situations where their voices may actually be needed.
@@gluttony8974 I get that. Reading my first reply I think the white savior bit reads a bit more antagonistic than I intended, so apologies to @ladyknightthebrave. However, I do think it's reductive to put every situation in terms of POC and Non-POC. In the case of LOU2 there's really no way for ND to win since the main characters do terrible things (so making them POC is a negative portrayal) and almost all the side characters either die or are also terrible. And if ND just made them all white then it's lack of representation.
I think calling out bad portrayals of POC for shock value should be reserved for media that blatantly portrays POC negativity or disproportionately shows Non-POC as the hero. For me the fact that ND bothered to give us great characters of all backgrounds (and whose race/sexuality wasn't their only defining trait) shows progress.
I think if there was more attention drawn to them being poc and they died, it would’ve been a different story
“If these people are to be the last of us, I hope they can eventually learn to be the best of us” that is the best line I’ve heard from all the essays/reviews of the game, it’s great to see how this work sparks conversations and critical thinking
Wow!! I am borderline speechless. I’ve never played either of the 2 but I’ve seen many analysis videos on it, none of which were able to make me feel little more than slightly sad. But your narration and thought process was actually very cathartic for me and I was close to tears through almost the whole video. Incredible work, you have a gift for speaking your truth and that’s a rare thing to find these days; keep up the great work and thank you.
this game broke my heart, but you’ve helped me accept it more. i think it needed to hear that it’s ok that i didn’t want this story. the story is allowed to be told, allowed to exist, and i can respect that, while also desperately wishing for my own enjoyment that it went a different way. amazing job!