Imp Emissary said:
Casual Shinji said:
Hazy said:
Absolute masterpiece of a game, and a title that gets virtually everything right. Naughty Dog once again proves their pedigree for making unmatched experiences.
I never expected them to be able to craft such an intense yet restrained drama though.
And points if you noticed the Jak and Daxter pinatas.
Also, is that Savage Starlight a real comic strip or what? Because it seemed remarkably authentic for it to be just a joke comic. Though it wouldn't surprise me with the amount of detail Naughty Dog put in the environment.
Well, I did see a Dark Horse Comics logo on the back, so they could be real. If not now, maybe later.
OH! You know what Naughty Dog should do for DLC?! They should make one like the Far Cry: Blood Dragon/ Boarderlands 2 Tiny Tina's Assault on Dragon Keep.
It can start with Joel getting Ellie the last Savage Starlight issue, and have her deciding to go back and read them all in order. Then we can get to play as Daniela, kicking ass all over the galaxy fighting the Travelers!
Yeah, it's a long shot, but I can hope.
Somebody give this man a job at Naughtydog! Brilliant idea!
As for my take on the ending? Screw those Fireflies, they tried to kill a little girl for some bullshit false hope. All throughout the game Joel talks about how he believes that the fireflies only deal in false hope as a means to get people to follow them. The entire reason why Tommy left is because he realized the futility of their vision and went off to create something better, a safe community for the few good people left to live in. It would have been ridiculously out of character for Joel to leave Ellie to the surgery, because on some level he simply doesn't believe that they have the know how or resources to create a vaccine (once again, not a cure). Or, even if they had, how were they going to distribute it with the pitiful amount of resources available to them? They had a small militia at the hospital (much smaller after I was done with them) and a few scientists. Was the Military faction really just going to let them sieze power with their vaccine? No, they would have been wiped out if they had gone public with it. Joel was not dooming humanity with his actions, he was preserving his own. And no, Ellie would not have let them kill her, I mean, did you guys play the same game I did? That girl's survival instincts are ridiculous. Yes, she does show all the signs of some serious Survivor's Guilt, but that doesn't mean that she wants to die. And nowhere was it ever stated she was given a choice, she passed out in the underground tunnel, and woke up again in the back of Joel's stolen car. Marlene says that "it's what she would have wanted" but how can she know that? Ellie was changed after her year with Joel, she was looking forward to living with him, he was going to teach her how to play guitar, and swim, and who knows what else. She says it herself, he was the only one who never abandoned her, for him to do so in the hospital would've been a gross betrayal. I don't know about anyone else but the themes of fatherhood in this game really got to me, when the time came to rescue Ellie I went through those fireflies with a sense of urgency that I'd never felt before in a videogame. I didn't bother with stealth, I kneecapped the first firefly I saw and took him hostage, killed everyone around him with that (amazing) handcannon and then he got a shiv to the throat. And thats how it went through that level, I was actually angry at them. When the time came for that final run through the hospital with Ellie in his arms I was honestly tearing up. The devs were purposely invoking your memories of the opening of the game, I was sure Ellie was going to catch a stray bullet and Joel would once again be left broken. When Joel shot Marlene I didn't feel conflicted, I felt relieved, the deciscion had been made, and it kept Ellie safe. I imagine Joel felt relieved too as he drove away from the hospital. That was something new for me, sure when I played Bioshock Infinite I liked Elizabeth, she was cool and fun, and sure I got some dark satisfaction when Booker promised to kill Comstock for her, but caring? I cared about Ellie.
Kudos Naughtydog for creating a character that I could inhabit, instead of just control. For me next gen is here, and it doesn't mean better graphics or a more "immersive experience," It means narratives that can affect me on that emotional level. Fucking amazing job Naughty Dog, I have a new favorite game.