The Long-Awaited Arrival
After seven years, The Last of Us Part II, a follow-up to the popular game, has finally arrived. The game draws comparisons to a next-generation title due to its lifelike graphics and impressive facial animations. The remarkable progress of both the gaming and filmmaking industries owes much of their success to the significant contributions of technological advancements. Naughty Dog’s games prioritize delivering immersive and captivating narratives over gameplay, a trait many filmmakers might envy. Within the gaming industry, The Last of Us series stands out with one of the most intricate storylines, often likened to the father-daughter dynamic found in Logan. The central debate around The Last of Us Part II‘s story revolves around whether it was poorly written or a too brilliant narrative. The gaming community and some segments of the YouTube film community have been discussing the story, with some asserting that it was poorly executed.
The Last of Us Part II’s Daring Narrative
In a remote village, a doctor believes he can take Ellie and develop a cure for the entire population. Joel, who has endured the loss of his daughter and is haunted by his past, is tasked with accompanying her. Risk plays a significant role in video games, as it is systematically defined, incentivized, and celebrated. It forms the basis for players’ decisions and is an integral aspect of the gaming experience. Potential risk shapes how encounters are designed, while mechanical risk governs how they unfold. Video games comprehend this concept because they immerse players in a high-definition, top-tier action-adventure scenario.
As Ellie and Joel become emotionally closer, they continually put their lives on the line for each other. Their journey culminates at a hospital, where the doctor informs Joel that Ellie must sacrifice her life to create the cure and save the world. However, when the outcome is anticipated, does it genuinely constitute a risk? Risk seems less like a possibility than an inevitability when we know what will happen. If risk and reward are fundamental to gaming, how can a game heighten the feeling of risk?
The Last of Us Part II presents a bold and finely crafted narrative that has divided the gaming community. The game takes players on an exceptional odyssey, evoking emotions seldom achieved by other games, movies, or series. It has ignited a substantial controversy in the gaming realm, reminiscent of the outcry over the final season of Game of Thrones. The game bore immense expectations as the successor to one of the most beloved titles on the PS3 and PS4, causing audiences to hold it to exceedingly high standards. However, the controversy surrounding the game exceeded expectations. The story follows Ellie, who seeks vengeance after a tragic event triggered by another’s retaliation, perpetuating a retribution cycle leading to a brutal and emotionally taxing narrative.
The Dichotomy of Narrative and Gameplay Risk
Joel, a man who had dedicated his life to saving Ellie, ultimately chose to eliminate everyone in the room, including the doctor who held the potential to develop a cure. He fled with Ellie, hoping to keep her in the dark about his actions.
Distinguishing narrative risk from gameplay risk, it has the potential to distance players, harm established franchises, and defy expectations. Games frequently follow a familiar structure, involving redemption arcs and incorporating elements like a central antagonist, surprise revelations, and climactic boss battles, as these have consistently proven effective in the past. However, when years of effort, a large workforce, and substantial financial investments are on the line, narrative risk can appear more as an obstacle to remove than a concept to embrace.
Now, years later, Ellie remains unhealed. Joel and Ellie have discovered a new community, a place to establish roots and individuals they deeply care for. They adapt to their new circumstances while the world changes around them. The story introduces Abby, a character who becomes a significant part of their narrative.
The Last of Us Part II is a video game featuring four distinct storylines, each with a unique plot and character development. While revenge is the primary driving force behind the story, it also delves into themes of forgiveness and empathy. Naughty Dog, a prominent video game company, took a bold risk by unconventionally presenting this challenging narrative. The game interweaves these four separate timelines, providing players with a distinct, multifaceted journey that offers fresh perspectives. This approach has generated debates among critics but was executed with a specific intent.
One of the game’s criticisms revolves around the forced portrayal of Ellie and Abby as protagonists and antagonists, which compels players to harbor intense hatred toward these characters. This deliberate choice transforms The Last of Us Part II into a rigorous test of empathy and forgiveness, profoundly impacting those who engage with it.
A Bold Narrative Approach
The Last of Us Part II is a video game that takes a bold narrative risk by dividing its storyline into two parts. This strategy significantly emphasizes storytelling rather than player comfort, consistency, or the player’s connection with the characters. Initially, the game unfolds Ellie’s narrative, followed by Abby’s, offering players a fresh perspective and challenging them to inhabit the character they may have strong negative feelings towards.
The game starts with exploring Ellie and Joel’s deep and enduring relationship, which encounters occasional strains. Players step into Joel’s shoes as he embarks on a patrol with his brother Tommy, and events turn dark. Along the way, Joel rescues a woman isolated from her friends and threatened by zombies. This woman turns out to be Abby. Ellie watches in horror as Abby ruthlessly beats Joel to his death, sparking Ellie’s determination for vengeance. She embarks on a journey to Seattle with her girlfriend Dina, resolved to hunt down Abby and her companions to eliminate them all. As Ellie pursues Joel’s killers, she finds a sense of satisfaction in her quest for revenge, even when it takes a grim turn.
In the middle of the game, players are compelled to assume the role of Abby and gain insight into her character and the motivations behind her actions. Abby has devoted years to pursuing Joel, making significant sacrifices and committing dark deeds to reach him. She was once the teenage daughter of the doctor tasked with finding a cure for the zombie plague, and she witnessed Joel murder her father.
Inciting incidents are pivotal events that propel the protagonist into their narrative journey, as illustrated in The Last of Us Part II. Here, the tragic death of Joel Miller serves two primary emotional purposes. Firstly, it strengthens the player’s connection with Ellie and allows them to share her motivations. The first game cultivated deep emotional bonds between players and Joel and Ellie, making them intimately experience their challenges and trials. The story was replete with moral dilemmas and difficulties but possessed a heartfelt core. The journey of a man striving to rebuild his life after a second chance at family resonated deeply with players, leaving them eager for more of their relationship.
In The Last of Us Part II, Naughty Dog aimed to immerse players in the emotions of those who witnessed Joel’s murder: shock, horror, powerlessness, and a thirst for retribution. This heart-wrenching and emotionally charged moment aimed to solidify the player’s connection with Ellie and transition them from identifying with Joel’s character to becoming Ellie herself. Following this traumatic event, both players and Ellie are united on revenge. The inciting incident in The Last of Us Part II catalyzes the protagonist’s journey and the story’s emotional resonance.
Narrative Focus on Forgiveness and Perspective
The Last of Us Part II centers its narrative on themes of forgiveness and perspective rather than revenge. The main character, Ellie, becomes consumed by her relentless pursuit of vengeance, causing her to question the moral worth of her actions. The game employs an unconventional storytelling approach by rewinding the narrative three days in time to unveil the truth to Ellie. This narrative choice leaves players feeling frustrated, as it introduces a significant cliffhanger that will only be resolved after an additional 10 hours of gameplay.
The change in perspective within the game not only allows players to step into the shoes of Abby as she embarks on a journey toward forgiveness but also provides a fresh interpretation of a pivotal scene from the first game. It reveals that Abby is the daughter of the doctor players were compelled to shoot in the closing moments of the initial game. This twist repositions Joel, the character players controlled throughout the first game, as the antagonist in someone else’s narrative.
The recurring theme that “everyone can be perceived as the villain in someone else’s story” has been explored in other narratives, including the first game, where Joel was portrayed as morally questionable for prioritizing Ellie’s survival over the potential cure for the Cordyceps virus. In that same game, NPCs acknowledged that Joel and Ellie had caused the deaths of many members of another group led by David, a cannibal who had inflicted lasting trauma upon Ellie. However, The Last of Us Part II takes this theme to an extraordinary level by immersing players in Abby’s perspective. It illustrates how, at the moment of Joel’s murder, Abby experienced the same intense emotional turmoil as Ellie and the player did during their quest for revenge.
Challenging Revenge as a Narrative Concept
The Last of Us Part II is a video game that challenges the simplistic portrayal of revenge in storytelling. Instead, it offers a narrative that explores the futility of seeking revenge and the cycle of violence it perpetuates, leading to more bloodshed. The game fully embraces the paradox of a universe where characters are expected to have dark pasts and noble intentions, pushing players to make choices that go against their morals.
The story unfolds from Abby’s perspective, underscoring that her quest for vengeance is just as justified, inevitable, and ultimately futile as Ellie’s. In Abby’s reality, Joel is the monstrous figure responsible for her father’s demise, placing her on equal moral footing with Ellie. As a result, players become the agents of vengeance, locked into a two-sided narrative that offers no alternative resolution.
Narrative risk should genuinely challenge players, allowing them to feel the weight of their decisions without following predictable paths. The Last of Us Part II takes substantial risks, including focusing on unconventional characters, addressing the trauma inflicted by violence, and disrupting the narrative flow with deliberate, contemplative flashbacks. However, its most significant departure is the structural choice to present conflicting and opposing perspectives, compelling players to confront the consequences of their actions and contemplate whether the relentless cycle of violence and the burden of vengeance have become too much for all parties involved.
Forgiveness as a Central Theme
The Last of Us Part II presents a gaming experience that challenges players to grant forgiveness to Abby, a character deeply embroiled in a bitter conflict with another faction called the Sephardites. Abby’s journey within the game revolves around seeking forgiveness, a path that leads her to understand the consequences of her actions and their profound impact on her friends, Joel and Ellie. The game meticulously crafts Abby’s character, gradually unveiling her motivations, imperfections, fears, and underlying intentions. As her perspective evolves, Abby begins to empathize with her adversaries, acknowledging their positive attributes and the authenticity of the challenges they face. This narrative approach encourages the audience to expand their perspective regarding Abby, portraying her as a multifaceted individual shaped by traumatic experiences.
Playing as Abby within the game enhances the bond between players and the character, enabling players to genuinely humanize her and providing an improved opportunity to comprehend her. Redeeming a character who committed the most heinous act against a beloved character presents a significantly greater challenge than can be achieved through conventional storytelling methods such as cutscenes or traditional films. Video games empower players to fully immerse in the character they control, fostering a sincere emotional attachment. Players essentially step into the character’s shoes, and their capacity for empathy undergoes a profound and deeply personal examination.
As an exercise, the audience is invited to imagine themselves fully immersed in Abby’s narrative while temporarily setting aside their knowledge of Joel and Ellie. This imaginative exercise results in a compelling storyline characterized by evident character development, well-structured plotlines, and the recurring presence of valuable thematic lessons. However, the narrative intentionally deviates from this course. Druckman, the creator, purposefully orchestrates Abby’s killing of Joel before unveiling her backstory, thereby strategically shaping our emotional responses toward each character in a particular manner. It is a striking illustration of how a writer’s chosen narrative framework can significantly influence the audience’s emotions.
Moral Dilemmas and Character Choices
The Last of Us Part II aims to elicit conflicting emotions by placing players in moral dilemmas regarding the characters’ choices. It is accomplished through scenes portraying Joel’s torment and ruthless actions towards the end of the game. Simultaneously, Ellie herself endures harrowing ordeals and faces pursuit by Tommy, Joel’s brother. Two pivotal moments in the game vividly illustrate this narrative approach, featuring confrontations involving both Ellie and Abby.
In the first significant moment, players are compelled to make Ellie endure suffering, including killing Jesse, causing harm to Tommy and Dina, and, notably, requiring the player to physically harm and strangle Ellie by pressing the square button. The theater fight sequence in The Last of Us Part II serves as an evaluative test for players, challenging them to reflect on their decisions and prompting deep introspection about their moral stance after understanding the story comprehensively from both character perspectives.
The second critical moment transpires at the game’s conclusion, where players engage in a relentless confrontation as Ellie is pitted against Abby. Despite Abby’s initial reluctance to fight, she is met with Ellie’s unwavering determination. Opting to spare Abby in this confrontation signifies a successful passage of the moral test presented to players. Neil Druckman’s goal is realized as both Ellie and Abby demonstrate their capacity for forgiveness and letting go.
The final cutscene in The Last of Us Part II contains a flashback depicting the last interaction between Joel and Ellie, explicitly emphasizing the theme of forgiveness for players. It unveils that Ellie never had the opportunity to forgive Joel for depriving her of the choice to make her immunity meaningful. Nevertheless, she was willing to actively pursue forgiveness, as evident during her last conversation with Joel. Abby’s quest for revenge ultimately denied Ellie that chance, making Ellie’s relentless and distressing pursuit more comprehensible.
Abby and Ellie endure profound losses in their quests for revenge, including losing friends and family, damage to their physical and mental well-being, and even Ellie’s ability to play the guitar. Only through forgiveness can they embark on a journey of self-redemption and rebuild their shattered lives. While the narrative has flaws, characterized by loose plot threads and a lack of a cohesive structure, Druckman deliberately subjects players to significant moral challenges, culminating in a pivotal mental choice at the game’s conclusion. The varied reactions of fans are a natural outcome, reflecting how individuals grapple differently with adversity and suffering. It aligns with the harsh reality of consequences within the dystopian world initially established in the first game.
Bibliography
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- Sheehan, J. (2021). Reading The Game: ‘The Last Of Us Part 2’. NPR.
- Simelane, S. (2022). The Last of Us: Ellie and the Art of Forgiveness. Game Rant.