Ellie, who had to endure so much at a young age, grew up. It was around seven years ago that the teenager first traveled through the end-time version of the USA together with her companion Joel in "The Last of Us" in 2013 and had to cope with situations that nobody – especially not a teenager – ever experienced should. This Friday, "The Last of Us Part II" will be officially released exclusively for PS4.
Revenge on everything?
A good five years after the events from part one, Ellie, who is brought to life by actress Ashley Johnson (36), has settled with Joel (Troy Baker, 44) in a community that is in a recaptured and extreme nature dangerous world promises at least a certain level of security and maybe even normalcy.
It was foreseeable that a largely peaceful life would not last. A mutated mushroom has turned much of humanity into willless, zombie-like cannibals, quite a few survivors are desperate and ready to do the utmost. After a harrowing experience, Ellie embarks on a vengeance campaign and gets caught up in a spiral of relentless violence and moral questions. Death is a constant companion.
In all its consequence, it is not the action that is likely to captivate players in front of the console. Rather, the survival adventure is driven by its world, history, characters. It is about constant loss and difficult decisions, about intense moments and deep pain, about relentless monsters and the fragility of human existence.
It probably won't get any better
The trade press is almost in agreement: "The Last of Us Part II" – like its predecessor – is an absolute masterpiece. Many publications give top marks. The German "GamePro" describes the video game as a "gripping" experience "with an emotional story that hits both the heart and the stomach." For "IGN" the second part is one of the best exclusive titles on PlayStation 4 and at the same time one of the best games of the current generation. And "Game Informer" speaks of an "incomparable successor that takes storytelling in video games to unimagined heights".
"Maturity, courage and class" attests "4players.de" to the developer Naughty Dog and "God is a Geek" describes the game as a "true work of art". With all this praise, players can be sure that with "The Last of Us Part II" they will be given a title that is anything but ordinary. And what could be more appropriate in the current situation than to explore an end-time world in all its rundown beauty?