The Swing That Changed The Last of Us

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Edited by VFXShaun Shauns Twitter: https://x.com/VFXShaun Shauns Portfolio https://ytjobs.co/talent/profile/3229?r=333 Shauns YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/c/PlaystayShaun Support the channel: https://www.patreon.com/thatboyaqua Follow my Twitter: https://twitter.com/ThatBoyAqua Follow my Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@that_boy_aqua Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/VBJwTUa Other Essays: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL0hudNq_z8tDAoBj0iR1bO2f0U8TRQDu8 #thelastofus #thelastofuspar2 The following video will contain full spoilers for The Last of Us Part 1 and 2. Be warned. The Last of Us Part 2 is more than anything, a story of grief, and conclusion. Its predecessor was received well, to say the least, and while it left a lot of loose ends untied, those ends weren’t begging for clarification. Making a sequel to any beloved product is going to run the risk of souring the original, and for some, that was the fate of The Last of Us Part 2. They saw it as an unfitting end for their favourite characters and being forced to play as a character they already disliked didn’t help. For others, it was a worthwhile sequel that answers all the questions the first game left unanswered, and introduces a new character for us to grow attached to. Like my discussion of the first game, I won’t be engaging in a debate regarding the game's quality. Both fans and detractors of The Last of Us are so unbelievably hostile that it foils any meaningful discussion before it can occur, and this is doubly so considering that, anecdotally, a majority of people who told me the game was good, bad, or somewhere in the middle, hadn’t played the game themselves. So, this is a reflection, not a review. Fundamentally, the thing I appreciate the most about The Last of Us Part 2, is that it didn’t need to happen. It does retcon a few characters and events, but they are minor tweaks, and they don’t take away from the power of the ending. Despite this, I felt Part 2 was a successful sequel that not only made me appreciate the first more, but it made me feel satisfied knowing what happened to all these characters, even if it took some time for me to forgive the game for shattering the potential happy ending for the characters in the first game. I know this isn’t a universal feeling, and I get it, sometimes things happen to characters that I may not be happy with... but I don’t believe I’m always supposed to be happy with it. I want to tackle this first; what happened to Joel. Joel is a character players should feel attached to, it was a primary goal of the first game, and when the game expertly allows our thinking to parallel Joels, we are more capable of empathising with his situation. I stand by the idea that Joel is the bad guy, but he's not a bad guy. It makes sense that Joel would need to face the consequences of his actions, but he doesn’t need to die. I hated that he died, I hated that he seemed to have become soft, I hated Abby, and again, I think that was the point. I need to go on a necessary side tangent here, because it applies to story focused games like this. Sometimes, when people play games, they don’t connect with the characters, they don’t feel the way the developers intended them to feel. When I play something, I try my best to feel the way the game wants me to feel. I don’t take pleasure in looking at a sad scene with a grin, feeling like I am above the game, as if I bested the game, for not falling for its tricks. Any longtime viewer knows I try to meet a game more than halfway, even when I really shouldn’t, and this is rooted in just wanting to enjoy the game. At the end of the day, making these videos takes countless hours. I don’t want to spend those hours playing, writing, recording, editing a video for a game I didn’t enjoy. The Last of Us is a series I now feel satisfied with. After discovering the villain of The Last of Us Part 1, moving on to The Last of Us Part 2, was difficult. I mentioned in my The Last of Us review that I had hoped for a happy ending for these characters. This second part of my The Last of Us critique will see how. Ihad to forgive the game for shattering that expectation. This The Last of Us 2 analysis is meant to be watched in tandem with part 1 of my The Last of Us retrospective. The Last of Us story is one that now cannot be isolated to one part, so watching both is recommended. The Last of Us gameplay has improved here, but I hope it continues to improve more in a potential The Last of Us Part 3. The Last of Us explained a lot, and while The Last of Us Season 1 and The Last of Us season 2 will likely explained more, they will not be used to inform the games. If you don't have the ability to play the game, you can watch a The Last of Us walkthrough and then come back to this video. This video will not cover The Last of Us Factions.