The Last of Us 2

I can’t really put it into words how I feel about this game without going super in depth to the point of monotonous philosophy, so I’ll just copy and paste the notes I made (with edits) while I was playing the game.  Please note that this post contains spoilers.

I have more feeling for Owen than Abby

I don’t like that Abby gets so much stuff (upgrades, etc.) so fast as compared to Ellie.  You’re really gonna tell me that no one in Jackson ever learned how to craft bullets but Abby does?  And pipe bombs?  I don’t buy that for a minute.  Also think it’s bullshit that Abby can stomp enemies to death and Ellie can’t.  That’s lame.  (Edit:  I played the game on Very Easy difficulty and after comparing notes with friends that have finished, they also gained upgrades for Abby very quickly as well.  I assumed it was my difficulty setting, but now we collectively think that it was to put Abby at an even field with Ellie since at the start of Abby Seattle Day 1, Ellie is quite a bit more advanced in skill trees.)

I didn’t like being forced to play as Abby during Seattle Day 1, 2, and 3.  I don’t have any sort of attachment to her, I don’t care about her as a character or a person.  (Edit:  At the end of the game, I still had more of an attachment to Ellie than Abby, but I definitely disliked Abby less than I did at the start.  I mostly just felt sorry for her.  For both of them really.)

I felt more remorse for killing Nora, Mel and Owen than I did for anything that happened to Abby.  And Jesse’s death too.  (Edit:  After a couple weeks I still feel this way.  Nora’s death – if she even was killed – still bothers me the most.)

I liked the early parts of the game with just Ellie and Dina the most.  The banter between them was pretty amazing.  I could do with an entire game of just that.

Inventory limits feel pretty arbitrary and dumb and I feel like they should be removed when playing on Very Easy.

Visually a stunning game.  The environments feel like they were crafted with a lot of care and attention to detail.  Music is fitting and pleasant.  Sound design is top notch.  Stealth killing feels so GOOD.  The sound the Clickers make still makes my skin crawl after all this time.