I sort of agree, but I think it’s more nuanced than what you’re saying, at least in regards to the WLF. Remember, they started off as a resistance group that was fighting back against the brutal, authoritarian control of what was left of the government. Did they lose their way completely and end up becoming similarly…

Eh, this kind of story is going to strike people differently. That said, I think it’s incredibly easy to defend the argument that this game is about empathy. I mean, it’s literally structured so that you are forced to “walk a mile” in the ostensible antagonist’s shoes; to learn about her struggles, her fears, her…

That’s why I do take hope when I see various people online telling their story of how the game clicked with them; how they HATED Abby at first and were dead set on loathing the game, but in the end they put the pieces together and saw what the game was trying to do.

Yeah this game has been a fascinating litmus test for all kinds of things. It’s prompted all kinds of passionate discussion, and while a LOT of it is idiotic, bad faith toxicity (this article not included, to be clear), a lot of of it has been fascinating. And I respect any piece of media that swings for the fences…

My New Game + playthrough has been great. Parts that really dragged for me the first time have been way more enjoyable, strangely enough. Even if I do still think the game is a good few hours too long.

That is the thing; I sort of understand that for some people, the theme is too simple and obvious, whether you think the theme is “violence/revenge is bad,” or “Empathy is good.”

One could definitely argue that it’s way too long. It’s a messy experience, no doubt, though most of that is by design, imo.

Calling this game torture porn or a misery simulator is deliberately reductive. Getting very tired of these “The Last of Us 2 is just a game that tries to tell you violence is bad” takes. If that’s the case, Mad Max Fury Road is just a car chase movie. Get Out is just a “racists are bad” movie. Parasite is just a“class…

lol are you fucking kidding me

Yeah, this was a bad move. Anyone who is like 5 hours or more into the game will know whose baby this is.

Yeah, I seriously had no idea this game existed until people started talking about how badly it was doing.

Yeah, at the end of the day we have to realize that at some point we’ve just hit critical mass on these colossal, live service multiplayer games.

You lose all perspective.

Holy shit I didn’t realize there’s FINALLY an HD version of it on Youtube. Thank god.

For sure, obviously that possibility went away as soon as anything was made public. I just wonder about the effect on his family.

Okay, I’m happy to be corrected on this, but could this not have been a behind-the-scenes deal where an announcement was made about him leaving the project for personal reasons? I’m not saying this with the intention of protecting HIM, but his family just got thrown into the public spotlight in a way that is pretty…

God the character designs and voice acting are so, so bad. I’m sure there are lots of talented people behind this game but the overall impression is a straight-to-video Avengers knock off.

I love a LOT about The Last of Us Part 2 but there’s no reason why it couldn’t be 5 hours shorter.

Honestly I’m thinking I’ll do the exact opposite, lol. I kept the game on moderate the whole time during my first playthrough, but for NG+ I’m going to crank the difficulty way down. I really love a LOT about this game. I think it’s brilliant and beautiful many ways, and it’s been sitting in my chest for the last…

It’s really well done. The gameplay is so much smoother than the first Last of Us.