SPOILERS!!!
OK do not go any further if you don't want SPOILERS!!!
OK I have had a day to think about this game, and it is fair to say it is one of the darkest games you can play, It is a story of revenge, and how ultimately it destroy's you and those around you.
The beginning and end were powerful scenes, putting the whole thing into perspective, Joels' death itself an act of revenge, was as sad as it was pointless, the cycle continuing as Ellie becomes consumed by the darkest sides of human nature.
I might as well add some gameplay thoughts. Naughty dog have definitely improved the enemy AI. enemies now will try and flank you, and once discovered will overwhelm you with bodies or firepower, so stealth becomes even more important, luckily there is plenty of long grass and foliage for you to hide in (which looks very impressive I might add) you can also crawl laying down, and still able to shoot.
One new enemy we are forced to take on are dogs, who will actively sniff out your position, and the importance of taking them out early is soon realised. Clickers are even more detailed, and their movement is appropriately awkward, making a head shot difficult. the Sound in this game has also seen an upgrade, and adds hugely to the tension, especially around Clickers.
There are two new enemies, Shufflers, which are basically Bloaters with bad breath, that will dissolve your body, I didn't find them as bad as they sound.as they are generally slow moving, and easier to kill than the Bloaters from the original. One new enemy were some sneaky sons of biatches, that would scamper around hiding behind furniture, popping their head out momentarily waiting for an opportunity to rush you. and once one grabs you, the others follow. I actually thought they were cool, but caused me all sorts of problems, even if they are not that hard to kill individually.
There is a huge beast you meet in the Hospital, this thing takes some killing, and I found him to be overkill. all the other ememies made sense in the way they might evolve, this thing just seemed a bit random. So I was glad when I finally killed it.
The weapons have not changed too much, most will be familiar, although the ability to craft ammo and explosive arrows is a nice touch.
I would have enjoyed this game more If the storyline had been more positive like the first. but this was more dark and angry, and I really didn't want to play as Joels killer, or fight Ellie. So this game forced you to face uncomfortable feelings, it certainly wasn't the game I was expecting or wanted. but it did it's job, and I'm sure there will be plenty who will enjoy the dichotomy pf playing as Abbey.
Those are my thoughts, Anyone wanting to add their's, feel free
This is a place anyone who has played it can post their thoughts about the story and gameplay. This is just me kicking it off with a few thoughts of the story and maybe the start of a bigger conversation about the game in general.
TLOU 2 SPOILER review
posted on 2/7/20
Comment Deleted by Site Moderator
posted on 6/7/20
Finished it over the weekend. Definitely didn’t feel as if there were as many light moments compared to the first one, and the light moments were mostly in the flashbacks rather than part of the main story.
I think relative to others I thought after TLOU1 that Joel was a feckingarsehole for what he did at the end, so didn’t have the grief others may have had for him.
I also thought the reaction to folk thinking the game was “woke” was utterly bizarre. I guess it had something to do with people’s own insecurities.
posted on 12/7/20
Just finished it now. Got to say I liked abbey as a character. Yes she killed Joel but let’s face it, she had good reason too. Kind of wanted her to off Ellie towards the end (Before the Santa Barbara chapter) as she was starting to become a little too bloodthirsty
posted on 13/7/20
I finished the game last night and in my opinion it is an absolute masterpiece.
I don't think anybody saw this happening to Joel, certainly not in the early stages of the game. I was in shock but was not worried that this would spoil the game. Initially I was annoyed by having to play Abby as I just wanted to continue the game with Ellie and get my revenge. The more I played with Abby the more and more I liked her. She had every right to do what she did to Joel, and the more her story unfolded the more and more sense it made.
The graphics are the best I have seen from the PS4 and that includes The Order 1886 which after 5 years still looks stunning. If they could improve on the gameplay imagine what a sequel of that game will be like on the PS5!
The combat was an improvement on 1, and I really liked the ability to crawl laying down, hiding amongst the long grass and stealthily taking out enemies.
I played this on Hard which I found a little to easy so will play it again on Survivor. Screw Grounded , as Amiga said the hospital boss was a bit of an overkill so imagine that on the hardest difficulty.
Those 'sneaky sons of biatches' that Amiga talks of were a royal pain in the arris They were a great enemy and scary as fack as they would jump out on you if you were not careful. That section of the game in the office block where there are about 8-10 of them, I soon realised after a couple of deaths that you couldn't go in gung-ho as they would surround you. Once you had 3 of em on you it was almost certain death.
I loved the first one but I love this one even more and will no doubt do another play through in a couple of days time. There was nothing I disliked about it. My only small criticism was not being able to play a bit more of Joel, and perhaps ND could have delayed his death a little longer. You have to hand it to them though in making such a polished sequel without the protagonist from the first game.
Do I think there will TLOU3, yes I do. Ellie sparing Abby at the end suggests this imo. I think the 3rd in the franchise will be based more around Abby, but will include Ellie to an extent.
Just hope I dont have to wait as long as I did for this one.
posted on 13/7/20
Also, was anybody surprised to see Tommy appear at the end? I could have sworn Abby shot him in the head in the cinema!
A prequel with him and Joel may work but the story cannot continue with him at the helm. Imagine him in a room full of runners
posted on 13/7/20
It is like I was saying Raptor. If you let go of the first game there is a lot to enjoy.
The polish on this game is top notch, and it is one of the stand out games this gen. Too many people just can't handle losing Joel.
posted on 15/7/20
That section of the game in the office block where there are about 8-10 of them, I soon realised after a couple of deaths that you couldn't go in gung-ho as they would surround you. Once you had 3 of em on you it was almost certain death.
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I threw bottles to lure them out one or two at a time as I was too scared to go charging in
posted on 15/7/20
I think the manner of which Joel was killed is the part which annoys a lot of people.
Most people accepted Joel would probably pay for what he did in the last game, but the writing which lead to his death didn't match his character at all.
Instantly trusting a bunch of sinister looking strangers, sharing information which identify's him. It took a long time for even Ellie to earn his trust last time round.
Some people cite that the years in Jackson will have eroded his survival instincts somewhat, but they still dealt with infected and bandit raids so that doesn't sit well with me.
Having said that, i'm glad a decent amount of the community have enjoyed the game. Seven years is a long wait.
posted on 15/7/20
I think people are reading too much into it all. Joels death was meant to well up strong feelings, and people will try to justify their opinion, with any argument they feel works.
Naughty Dog certainly gambled big. Personally I wish they hadn't. Not because TLOU2 is a bad game, it isn't.
But they took a beautiful story and turned it into ugly. But that was the game, it was trying to show you revenge is not pretty. to me they succeeded.
That does not mean it was the game I wanted, but I can accept it for what it is.
posted on 17/7/20
comment by BraveheartTyke (U6173)
posted 2 days, 1 hour ago
I think the manner of which Joel was killed is the part which annoys a lot of people.
Most people accepted Joel would probably pay for what he did in the last game, but the writing which lead to his death didn't match his character at all.
Instantly trusting a bunch of sinister looking strangers, sharing information which identify's him. It took a long time for even Ellie to earn his trust last time round.
Some people cite that the years in Jackson will have eroded his survival instincts somewhat, but they still dealt with infected and bandit raids so that doesn't sit well with me.
Having said that, i'm glad a decent amount of the community have enjoyed the game. Seven years is a long wait.
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Im with you There 100% Tyke it doesnt make sense, it felt like they wanted him out of the game as brutally and as quickly as possible.
I also found the pacing off, not many light or humorous or even real special moments for me and even have to question Abbys decision to tell the voice on the phone exactly where she was? It was a bit of a Joel moment.
I also found the whole forced theme of revenge vs redemption a bit pretentious.
But saying that I did enjoy some moments, I did enjoy the gameplay and some of the battles.
7/10 for me