The Last of Us

[Shoulders?-Stomach!]

Looks good, funny how Resident Evil has never developed any sort of stealth function despite many opportunities to do it. It just went from crude, difficult to control (but still quite good at the time) tense, jumpy horror with a nicely gruesome atmosphere to action shooter with QTEs.

This seems to combine elements from Splinter Cell and Resident Evil, while having a story that is far more interesting than either. Even if the general gameplay is 'shoot bad guys'. The action seems quite stop-start so that should keep things pretty tense, I'd say. Also, the 3rd person view is an option with some pretty fixed advantages and disadvantages.

[Moribunderast]

Have just been hoping that this game could live up to the hype. I've deliberately avoided any gameplay trailers or information about the story (aside from the basic premise) and, having seen this get a 10/10 at Destructoid (whose reviews I rate highly) I am beyond excited. I rarely, if ever, buy games new (see the Here, Have Half thread) but I may have to make an exception for this. Could anyone advise of any online UK stores that deliver overseas at a reasonable price? I'm already seeing I could get this on eBay for $68 Australian dollars or get it locally for $98 (Australian prices are FUCKED) so I'd love a couple of options.

I'll be intrigued to see if this pans out as a close sibling to the survival horror genre or if it ends up playing closer to Uncharted, with ridiculous waves of enemies towards the end. I do like the Uncharted games but the dearth of decent horror games going around have me solidly hoping it's the former. A genuine AAA horror game (as opposed to whatever the hell Dead Space and Resident Evil have become) would be very, very exciting.

[chocky909]

I think I might have to buy this for full price now I've seen the reviews coming in and I strongly suspect it's going to get spoiled by people talking about it. It sounds like my kind of game; low effort - maximum experience.

It's been a while since I bought a brand new game though and all these preorder DLC packs make it confusing. I also don't know whether to go for PS3 or X360. What are y'all gettin'?

Oh wait, it's not on the 360 is it...

[Moribunderast]

Yeah, the first day DLC does muddy things somewhat. I'll just get the game itself as I've no interest in anything beyond the single-player campaign and it appears the Extended/Moneygrubber Editions are all more to do with offering artwork, soundtrack and pay-to-cheat XP advantages for multiplayer.

I actually hadn't taken spoilers into consideration in terms of buying this immediately but that's a good point you raise. I've found it difficult enough to avoid videos and information about gameplay/story in the lead-up to release. Once it's out, I'm sure it'll be discussed widely and publically among the corners of the internet I haunt.

I wonder if it's true that they had to go back and remodel the main female character to look less like Ellen Page once Beyond: Two Souls was announced. It sounds like a silly rumour but I want to believe.   

[mcbpete]

the first day DLC

How on earth did this become the norm ?

[Josef K]

How on earth did this become the norm ?

To be fair, it;s only multiplayer boosters that are first day, the rest of the DLC packs, 1 of which is single player content and the other 2(?) are multiplayer map packs, have been confirmed to be new content being made after release.

These booster packs are a shitty habit though

[The Βoston Crab]

This has been in the back of my mind since I first thought about getting a PS3. My missus goes on holiday on the 17th for a week. This will be the first game I buy full price.

[Hangthebuggers]

Tempted to buy a PS3 just for this alone. Just watched a trailer showing off the combat/action sequences and bloody hell it looks amazing.

[chocky909]

Ordered this today so hopefully will get it in time for the weekend.

By the way, I used Flubit to pricebeat Gamestop's £34.97 preorder so I pay £30.81. I'm not exactly sure how they do it but I think they bargain with the retailers in bulk and then place orders on our behalf so we get them direct from the retailer we originally quoted. Payment is through Paypal. They are getting quite popular it seems so I thought I'd share.

[Thursday]

My copy arrived today. It's early in the game, but I think it is going to test the patience of people who hate linear games where it's walking you through story and set-pieces, but it does it brilliantly. The opening sequence felt genuinely unsettling and later when I was in my first real combat sequence there was some real suspension, even though I've crouched behind walls to shoot at enemies so many times in games now, I actually felt hesitant to do so this time because it felt like there was an actual risk to wasting bullets and getting shot myself.

[chocky909]

I haven't even had my dispatch email yet. Hopefully they just forgot it and its on its way. :(

[Thursday]

I recommend simplygames.com as when I've used them, they dispatch before release date, and it ends up arriving early.

[chocky909]

I'll remember that for next time I preorder.

[Subtle Mocking]

Shopto as well usually ship their orders on Wednesday. Can't remember the last time mine didn't arrive on Thursday.

Probably gonna trade in Bioshock Infinite for this later on.

[Moribunderast]

About two hours into this and really enjoying it. There's some genuine suspense and an eery atmosphere during certain sequences that I wasn't sure they'd be able to pull off. Those who dislike the Uncharted games for their linear nature may have an issue with Last Of Us, as it shares those qualities but the stealth is better developed and, thus far, the story (while not brilliant, by any means) shits all over other Naughty Dog fare.

Spoilers for the first two-to-three hours here. Highlights so far have been:

Spoiler alert

The opening sequence. Obviously I expected the daughter to die but the way in which it happened took me by surprise - very well handled, harrowing scene.

The first time you come across some infected people. I fired a shot, expecting it to kill a fucker but instead two bastards came running straight at me which led to some clumsy and brutal melee action which felt organic and quite visceral.

Wondering where my companion was only to have her help me out and kill a patrolling soldier, making me realise that the NPC-partners in this game can take care of themselves and even be useful, rather than the cumbersome baggage they can tend to be.

The segment I just got through, where you have to tiptoe through a dark area while 5 or 6 clickers amble about, making their disturbing noises and generally being freaky monstery things. Though I imagine it may become frustrating later, thus far I'm liking that if a clicker gets you, you're dead. Makes it extra tense when you're trying to avoid them, especially when there's one mixed in amongst a group of normally infected bastards.

[close]

Thus far the praise seems warranted. I'm hoping the narrative and the central relationship will grab me a bit more and really elevate it. I'm not expecting a Walking Dead-level attachment to my non-playable comrade but something similar would be great.

[Bored of Canada]

I did grimace the first time I walked through this beautifully detailed and realised world and entered an area with very obvious cover spread about, and oh surprise, a fight breaks out. It's getting better a few hours in, but there's some very clear combat-arena places with a bunch of chest high walls about where it's clear there's an ambush set up. It's getting better now with areas that feel a lot more realistic and use the environments really well, but the beginning does have that Bioshock Infinite feel where there's story bits then highly blatant combat arenas ahead of you.

That said, really enjoying this at the moment. The praise definitely holds up and the gameplay systems work well with the story and the combat's always incredibly tense. I do have a nervous concern realising that you can eventually (Not a spoiler but maybe you want to discover it yourself)

Spoiler alert

craft holsters to hold lots of guns.

[close]

As I worry that the end game is just going to devolve into lots and lots of shooting guys, when the cover-based shooting is the least fun part of the game, and the Uncharted Series, and most all games in general. The stealthing around and vulnerability keeps this game super fresh.

It is just utterly tense and I keep catching myself holding my breath like a dick.

Plus the opening is really fantastic.

[Bored of Canada]

Those who dislike the Uncharted games for their linear nature may have an issue with Last Of Us...

I've just gotten a little further than the sections you talked about and it's really starting to open up. So I wouldn't worry about linearity. It doesn't become an open world game obviously but you get really large areas to explore soon.

[TIAL]

Just a heads-up that many people are having problems with saving/autosaving the game, which can result in lost progress.

http://www.gamefaqs.com/boards/652686-the-last-of-us/66456918

I've loved the first hour so far, but the only saved game was 15mins in when I came back to it. Hope there's a fix soon!

[Bored of Canada]

Just a heads-up that many people are having problems with saving/autosaving the game, which can result in lost progress.

http://www.gamefaqs.com/boards/652686-the-last-of-us/66456918

I've loved the first hour so far, but the only saved game was 15mins in when I came back to it. Hope there's a fix soon!

I lost a full hour when I was last playing and didn't have the heart to go through all that again just to get back to where I was. Just assumed it was a freak occurence. Don't really want to hop back in if I'm going to lose it all again.

[Moribunderast]

Cheers for posting that TIAL, I just went back and checked that I hadn't lost any progress and thankfully I haven't. Shall be saving manually every 15 minutes or so, I guess. Am about four hours into the game now and really enjoying it. As BoC mentioned, it has opened up somewhat and the pace of the story is very good. Thus far I'm most impressed with the combat and stealth. There's a genuine sense of care and dread as you're trying to go unnoticed and when madness and enemies descend you can panic and die quite easily. I've barely used my gun/s thus far, opting instead for melee and stealth combat whenever possible. Gameplay (Non-Story) Spoiler:

Spoiler alert

I'll be intrigued as to how/if the upgrade system comes into the game. Four hours in and I've only upgraded my health bar. It seems a somewhat unnecessary add-on as I don't really want to be able to craft things quicker or heal at at a faster rate - the fact that you have to stop to do these things adds to the atmosphere and realism (for lack of a better word) of the game. It feels like using these upgrades would diminish the challenge.

[close]

Story spoiler (4 hours in): Enjoyed the

Spoiler alert

hanging upside down set-piece. I'm a shitty aim in these types of games so it took me a few goes but it was a great, frenzied little segment. Am now off to set about finding car parts. The relationship between the two leads is coming along nicely. I like that Ellie's not just a vulnerable tag-along but can actually help and holds her own in verbal stoushes with other characters.

[close]

As I said in my earlier post, a real highlight of this game for me is that it manages to be a bit creepy and scary, something I wasn't convinced it could achieve. As a massive fan of the survival horror genre who has watched "horror" in video games become code for "MONSTER SUDDENLY JUMPS AT YOU", it's a very welcome turn to have a game this big and well-publicised actually put some effort into frightening me.

 

[TIAL]

Looks like the autosave issue has been solved, no patch download - just restart the game:

We've addressed the autosave issue, it was related to servers on our end. Please quit to XMB and restart the game. SP and MP are OK to play!

[The Βoston Crab]

Can't wait to get stuck into this. Just had a work night out where I didn't drink. Well up for some brutal Killin rig about mow

[chocky909]

Fuck Flubit/Gamestop. I should be playing The Last Of Us right now instead of typing this.

[The Boston Crab]

It's very depressing. I thought it would be a 28 Days Later type of situation but the actual game world (only two hours in) is much more realistic and believable, and therefore depressing. Every interaction is hopeless and self-serving; I can already see how Ellie's relative innocence could cut through that darkness.

I've only fired one or two bullets so far but quite enjoying the grittiness and inconsistencies of the melee combat. Graphically, I think it's very impressive but despite the constant shift in environments, it's all a bit similar, broken red brick and greenery. I've no sense of the geography. Granted, there's been an awful lot to take in. I've definitely got that feeling where I feel rushed through unbelievably detailed areas. I think that generally a good thing.

[Thursday]

I'm seeing double here. Four Boston Crabs!

[Bored of Canada]

Finished this today. Absolutely brilliant. I mean, really brilliant. And an incredibly substantial length! Didn't expect it to be quite as long as it was. It's actually an epic. It goes places where you don't think it will. If you've got access to a PS3 I highly recommend you give it a go.

My only regret was that I didn't play it on a harder difficulty. I loved the oppressive feel to the combat where you need to make every shot count, but I bet on a harder difficulty, that'd come across even better, as I generally always had a bit of ammo to spare throughout.
But man, what a game. Seriously.

I remember really enjoying Bioshock Infinite, and when things get critically acclaim like that did, generally there tends to be a bit of nasty backlash where everyone sticks the boot in a couple weeks after everyone finishes it. I can understand the flaws and criticisms aimed at the Bioshock series, but I actually think that's not going to happen with this one. It's incredibly hard to think of anything negative being said towards "The Last Of Us".

The gameplay systems, the environments and the overall story all contribute to each other to create one truly unique experience.

Summary: It ain't a complete piece of shit. 

EDIT: Apparently you can turn off the enhanced listening perk in the options menu. That'd definitely be an interesting one to do. I assume it'd take off the shadows and leave the actual sound bubble things, so you'd only know where people are if they're talking or making noise, (stepping on glass, coughing and such). If that's the case then I'd definitely recommend new players who are used to video games to give that a go. If it takes away absolutely any indicator of where people are, well, maybe keep it on as it feels like it's somewhat designed for the former. I feel that definitely did give me too much of an advantage.

[Thursday]

I'm on medium difficulty and wishing it was less generous with supplies. It does limit how much you can carry to a sensible amount, and it's not like I'm constantly having to leave stuff - the balance is very good, but I think every bullet should feel like it counts even more.

[Moribunderast]

EDIT: Apparently you can turn off the enhanced listening perk in the options menu. That'd definitely be an interesting one to do. I assume it'd take off the shadows and leave the actual sound bubble things, so you'd only know where people are if they're talking or making noise, (stepping on glass, coughing and such). If that's the case then I'd definitely recommend new players who are used to video games to give that a go. If it takes away absolutely any indicator of where people are, well, maybe keep it on as it feels like it's somewhat designed for the former. I feel that definitely did give me too much of an advantage.

Though I haven't turned this option off, I've avoided using it as much as possible and it does add to the challenge/atmosphere in a good way, for me anyway. I too am playing on Medium difficulty and while you never have loads of ammo, I have managed thus far to keep more than I'd perhaps like. I Am Alive was pretty great in that regard, especially on Survivor Mode where you really had to ration out your gun use. I'm only 5 or 6 hours into the game still - 38% according to my last save - and my highlight remains whenever a frenzied battle unexpectedly kicks off. In a patch I just got through, I was very carefully stealthing around trying to avoid a fight and then, just as I thought I was through, attracted the ire of one stray enemy which screamed and brought on all the rest I'd successfully avoided. Though you're not punished harshly for death in this game, if you can take the mindset of avoiding it at all costs, the combat sequences can be genuinely stressful and harrowing.

Can't wait to get deeper into the story as every post I've seen by people who've gone further than I have has been very, very positive. It really seems Naughty Dog have achieved something here.

[Josef K]

I'm on medium difficulty and wishing it was less generous with supplies. It does limit how much you can carry to a sensible amount, and it's not like I'm constantly having to leave stuff - the balance is very good, but I think every bullet should feel like it counts even more.

I don't have the game to hand but I'm fairly sure you can change the difficulty in the settings menu, even during the middle of the campaign. Not sure how it affects difficulty trophies though.

Can only echo the praise it's been getting. First three hours I was filled with thoughts of "Ok this is good, but I think I hyped it up too much". Once it hits its stride it doesn't let up and surpassed my expectations.

[Thursday]

Does anyone know the difficulty affect the game though? Does it make supplies more scarce, or does it just make enemies stronger and you weaker?

Anyway I'd rather finish it off on medium, then play through it again on Hard, which I never did with Uncharted, I enjoyed them all, then quickly traded them in after playing through them once.

One of the things that annoyed  me about Uncharted and the recent Tomb Raider was the lack of any real breaks in the action and the constant throwing of more men to shoot, at you. This is better simply on account on having some fairly long sections of just quiet exploring. Those other 2 games had some beautiful locations where I just wanted to calmly wander around and look at things, but they wouldn't let me. Less really is more in this case.

Even though there's been more gunfights with men and less zombie based fights than I'd expected (although that may change in the final third) they don't get repetitive and frustrating.