Which is better,which is overrated. Bioshock infinite vs the last of us

[Frankster]

Haven't tried Last Of Us but bought Bioshock Infinite at the last steam sale it was 75% off, mostly cos I remembered about the many accolades it received, the perfect 10/10 reviews and it being "one of the best game eva" according to the overdramatic and "contender for GOTY" according to the rest.

So I bought it expecting my pants to be utterly blown away and well... I wasn't. Didn't even end up finishing the game because I found the gunplay and shooting to be..I dunno can't put my finger on it but boring? pedestrian? unexciting?
And yes I put the hardest difficulty mode on cos I heard otherwise the game was too easy.

The 2 weapon limit pissed me off for my entire experience so that didn't help matters, just meant I stuck to the same weapons throughout except at boss fight points where I'd drop the shotgun for the rocket launcher or w/e heavy weapon I'm given. Whoop thee doo how tactical.

Really the only noticeable thing about infinite that stuck with me was Elizabeth being an effective companion, I'd like to see more like her in other games. But wasn't enough to motivate me to keep playing it ><
Instead I ended up playing a few visual novel type games I bought on steam and had way more fun with those ones.

Honestly reading other peoples comments I feel like I've missed something in Infinite. I mean everyone here just seems to agree it was amazing.
Heck I got more enjoyment out of watching a let's play of "Beyond 2 souls" which if memory serves the majority of the escapist community didn't like, so go figure.

Can't wait to play TLOU if it ever hits pc and see what the fuss is about for that game.

 

[Wasted]

For me, Bioshock Infinite was one of the biggest disappointments that I have ever experienced. The story was a mess, the universe logic is non-existent (game establishes infinite universes meaning every possible causality has occurred, is occurring, and will occur; jk the ending said nope because what a twist!), the mechanics felt poor, and the little RPG mechanics from the first game were removed to just focus on run-and-gun. It's a shame because the visual/audio design was amazing.

The Last of Us actually lived up to my expectations. Good story and slid mechanics made it a great experience. Planning on getting the PS4 remake even though I beat the PS3 version plus the DLC a few times.

 

[Arslan Aladeen]

Both? I guess I'll go with Last of Us cause most of the problems I had with that game didn't really crop up until I tried replaying it, while Bioshock Infinite felt like a chore to get through at points.

 

[AzrealMaximillion]

What got TLOU its praise was its story, which means the best part of the game is its cutscenes, not the gameplay itself. Rip out the cutscenes, and TLOU isn't anything new or exciting.

I've heard this statement many times, and it always baffles me. The story wasn't only in the cutscenes, the cutscenes were chapter intros and closings. You watch a compilation of the cutscenes from TLoU on youtube and it'll feel like just that; a compilation of story moments.

What got TLoU its praise was its strong characters and character interaction (among other things), the majority of which was presented within the gameplay. Without the gameplay all those fancy cutscenes have exactly zero weight.

Because with TLOU the gameplay mechanics that "progess the characters" as you put it feel shoehorned in. Like having to carry Ellie while wading through water is supposed to show the connection between Joel and her as a "father-daughter team" relationship. That is undone by Ellie being a marksman shot with no training and an apparently trained military medic.

There's no cohesion because the game breaks it so often.

Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons conveys the story almost entirely through gameplay. Having you control 2 protagonists at once that rely on each other showed the struggle of their journey through emotional, visual, and surprisingly physical means. A lot of the Telltale Adventure games as of late are pretty good for this as well.

TLOU and most 3rd person character adventure games fail to do that through gameplay to it gets shoehorned into some auxiliary mechanic that rarely shows up in game and is annoying when it has to be done. Most of the story with weight in TLOU is in the cutscenes.

 

[Casual Shinji]

Because with TLOU the gameplay mechanics that "progess the characters" as you put it feel shoehorned in. Like having to carry Ellie while wading through water is supposed to show the connection between Joel and her as a "father-daughter team" relationship. That is undone by Ellie being a marksman shot with no training and an apparently trained military medic.

There's no cohesion because the game breaks it so often.

Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons conveys the story almost entirely through gameplay. Having you control 2 protagonists at once that rely on each other showed the struggle of their journey through emotional, visual, and surprisingly physical means. A lot of the Telltale Adventure games as of late are pretty good for this as well.

TLOU and most 3rd person character adventure games fail to do that through gameplay to it gets shoehorned into some auxiliary mechanic that rarely shows up in game and is annoying when it has to be done. Most of the story with weight in TLOU is in the cutscenes.

I'm not talking about the palette sections. Those were odd forced moments that don't make any sense, since palettes don't even float. Certainly not well enough to carry a person.

You said the story is only in the cutscenes, which it isn't. Not even most of the story with any weight is in the cutscenes, since that weight won't be present unless you've played through (and liked) the game. Unless you've played through all those tiny little moments, optional dialoges, and traversed through the environments that tell their own story. Without that the cutscenes are just story clips. The two most weighty moments in the story are actually the final two gameplay sections.

But in the end it's just my word against yours. You didn't like it, I did. That's that.

 

[woodaba]

I think both games are fine. We don't need to turn this into a versus kind of thing. I personally prefer Bioshock Infinite for it's aesthetics and story, but I like the Last of Us quite a bit too, despite not really being a fan of the story and characters. I think TLOU does atmosphere really, really, well, and the gameplay is definitely more interesting than Bioshock, even if the enemies are a bit bullet-spongy. If I had to call one of them overrated, I'd say the Last of Us is because some fans seem to think it's perfect (no game is) and will insult and demean you if you think otherwise. But, yeah. Both games are good, no need for fanning the flame wars.

 

[Goliath100]

Snip

Metro 2033

The game has a Moral Point System, it's like a Moral Choice System, but directly tied to the main mechanics. Basically, if a specific requirement is fulfilled, the player get a positive or negative moral point, concluding in a "good" or "bad" ending. What's interesting is the context of the player character and the requirements. The journey of the game is Artyom's first major time outside his home station. So its a coming- of-age story, that arc where the protagonist grows up. And in 2033's case, so many of its requirements reflect that. Many of them are about widening one's horizons, taking responsibility and fighting one's instinct. The standout to me is the last request, which is entirely up to the player to keep.

You do see way this is interactive storytelling? Because they recontextualize the main mechanics into a 100% player driven character arc.

 

[Casual Shinji]

Metro 2033

The game has a Moral Point System, it's like a Moral Choice System, but directly tied to the main mechanics. Basically, if a specific requirement is fulfilled, the player get a positive or negative moral point, concluding in a "good" or "bad" ending. What's interesting is the context of the player character and the requirements. The journey of the game is Artyom's first major time outside his home station. So its a coming- of-age story, that arc where the protagonist grows up. And in 2033's case, so many of its requirements reflect that. Many of them are about widening one's horizons, taking responsibility and fighting one's instinct. The standout to me is the last request, which is entirely up to the player to keep.

You do see way this is interactive storytelling? Because they recontextualize the main mechanics into a 100% player driven character arc.

Not that I played this game, but unless it somehow managed to circumvent the issues that plague every other moral choice/points system I've seen in games, this is just as rigid a means to tell a story in-game. Morality in games nearly always translates to some invisible karma god judging your every move, and then handing you a report card at the end. To me it always results in gaming the system to get what I want, instead of acting naturally to the given situations.

I'm not suggesting Metro 2033 has the blatant 'Save little sister/Harvest little sister' morality options, but never does a morality system get implemented as such that you're unaware that it's a morality 'system'. And that's why to me this is a very self defeating mechanic, because the player obviously needs to be made aware of the mechanics that are at their disposal, but by doing so with morality it turns something emotional into something mathematical.

But like I said, I haven't played this game, so maybe it actually pulls it off. It would be the first though.

 

[Lightknight]

I really liked both games. I wouldn't say that either was overrated. I'd say that Infinite was overhyped by their superb marketing department but beyond that, people cut to the quality of the actual game pretty fast after that initial hype wore off whereas The Last of Us stole the show after being released which is only a credit to the game's quality.

I'd say that both deserve their game of the year contender positions. I cared about the Last of Us characters far more and that's why I'm glad it won so many more game of the year awards, but I also enjoyed the world of Infinite as well as several other things they did very well. Looking back at the charts it actually looks like The Last of Us was first, Grand Theft Auto V was second, and Bioshock Infinite was third. But I haven't had the opportunity to tackle GTA V yet. Sounds more like a sprawling world with tons to do rather than a traditional "game" where the story mode gets the award.

Overrated is entirely a subjective term. Looking at the games as objectively as possible I'd say both are very good and memorable games. But I'll maintain that the Last of Us deserved its top spot and Infinite deserved a solid score. There are a few other games that I'd have personally put a little higher than they came in at. Like the Stanley Parable. But I'm in no way disappointed to see the last of us take so many awards.

 

[Sigmund Av Volsung]

I think both are great, but they are both definitely over-rated.

I honestly think that the only way to properly enjoy these games would be to have played them before they got popular.

Praise, of any kind, already begins raising expectations, and almost always turns out badly for those who are interested.

So I think both are over-rated, but I cannot say this without raising those said expectations(lol), but I think both are great, both are of equal greatness and that there's room enough in this world for both of them.

So instead, next time someone asks me of my opinion of a game I'll love, I'll say "it's good", and end it there. I feel that if I want people to enjoy a game to the maximum, then their expectations shouldn't be raised whatsoever, and they should enter it without knowing much. That way, they can enjoy it without the thought of "is it over-rated or not?" hovering over their heads as they play it.

 

[PoolCleaningRobot]

Snip

Metro 2033

How is that any different than what's already been said about LoU? Because the player makes choices? Not every story needs to be decided by a player. And can you please explain to me why combat difficulty isn't interactive enough to convey a message?

I'm not suggesting Metro 2033 has the blatant 'Save little sister/Harvest little sister' morality options, but never does a morality system get implemented as such that you're unaware that it's a morality 'system'. And that's why to me this is a very self defeating mechanic, because the player obviously needs to be made aware of the mechanics that are at their disposal, but by doing so with morality it turns something emotional into something mathematical.

I've played 2033 and as much as I like it, it does end up being math. Just look any guide for the good ending. Given a kid a bullet is 2 karma points, etc. A better example of story telling through gameplay would probably be Metro's use of bullets as currency and how it relates to the gameplay choices. Bullets literally = life is a better concept than subtle moral choice system

 

[Casual Shinji]

I honestly think that the only way to properly enjoy these games would be to have played them before they got popular.

Praise, of any kind, already begins raising expectations, and almost always turns out badly for those who are interested.

That's pretty much impossible, since both games were popular the moment they got announced. The pre-release hype on both titles got so fucking obnoxious that I sorta started disliking them before I even played them. All the 'Ellie this' and 'Elizabeth that', and the hubbub around Ellie being on the cover; Whoopty-freaking-do!

The irony being that because of the hype I lowered my expectations, which made me so pleasantly surprised by The Last of Us. So the hype worked in an odd way.

 

[Lightknight]

The irony being that because of the hype I lowered my expectations, which made me so pleasantly surprised by The Last of Us. So the hype worked in an odd way.

Yeah, interestingly enough I borrowed the game from a friend who was so hyped up that the game failed to meet his expectations that this was the second coming in digital form. So he so downgraded my own expectations that the game just blasted away my hopes for it in the best way possible.

That they actually managed to make an entire game an escort mission that I liked is one of the biggest achievements yet. That's gotta be my least favorite type of mission in any other game. What's next? A swimming level that I actually enjoy and think is controlled well? Nope, even the Last of Us couldn't solve the crappy history of swimming mechanics in platformers.

 

[synobal]

Bioshock Infinite is better because it reached more people thanks to the multiplatform release. The Last of Us might of been the best game of the century but I wouldn't know it thanks to its Playstation only release.

Sorry sony but I won't go buy your expensive bluray player just to play a video game because you bribed dev to make it an exclusive.

 

[deathbydeath]

I think both games are underrated now due to their overrated status.

Which coincides with some truly overrated game critics underrating these games and most underrated game critics overrating them.

I give this topic a five out of six apples and two out of twelve oranges.

I may not give a shit about either game, but I do give a shit about this post. Congratulations.

The only game from last year I cared about is Gunpoint, and in my hubristic opinion Infinite and TLoU can go suck on its Bullfrog Hyper-Trousers.

 

[bossfight1]

I loved both of them. Plain and simple. Infinite had some spectacular writing, Columbia was beautiful, the Skyline system was fun and I loved Elizabeth, both in the story AND as an escort character?since this escort was made much better by enemies completely ignoring her, so you don't need to worry about her getting shot.

Last of Us, on the other hand, is a great way of showing where humanity can go in the darkest of times; where even the character you're controlling isn't some super badass, all around good guy, but someone who's willing to do some rather dark shit to survive. It actually feels like legitimate survival; it's not like Resident Evil, where you're playing as some cop, soldier or whatever... you're playing as some guy who's been worn down by the world around him.

Gameplay-wise? I tended to remember both games for their stories and moments more than the actual gameplay. This, by no means, indicates that they were BORING, far from it; it's just that the stories for both shined brighter for me.

 

[Sigmund Av Volsung]

I honestly think that the only way to properly enjoy these games would be to have played them before they got popular.

Praise, of any kind, already begins raising expectations, and almost always turns out badly for those who are interested.

That's pretty much impossible, since both games were popular the moment they got announced. The pre-release hype on both titles got so fucking obnoxious that I sorta started disliking them before I even played them. All the 'Ellie this' and 'Elizabeth that', and the hubbub around Ellie being on the cover; Whoopty-freaking-do!

The irony being that because of the hype I lowered my expectations, which made me so pleasantly surprised by The Last of Us. So the hype worked in an odd way.

I still think that the colloquial hype made it worse.

Marketing hype can be ignored, but when the community starts buzzing, it can be a bit more difficult to ignore, so I see the second option as the more important factor in inflating expectations.

Also, I don't recall them becoming uber-popular upon release: it was around the 2nd week/later in the first week of release that people began the usual "GOTY" talks for both games.

 

[Casual Shinji]

That they actually managed to make an entire game an escort mission that I liked is one of the biggest achievements yet. That's gotta be my least favorite type of mission in any other game. What's next? A swimming level that I actually enjoy and think is controlled well? Nope, even the Last of Us couldn't solve the crappy history of swimming mechanics in platformers.

Well, it's not so much an escort mission, since Ellie is untouchable for most of the game. Something I wished Naughty Dog had worked on a bit more. I know they wanted to avoid having her be someone you'd constantly have to babysit, but it does mean she lacks a certain physical presence in the gameworld. This ultimately didn't matter too much, because she's so well characterized that I came to love her anyway.

As for the swimming, I actually kinda liked it. It felt heavy and cumbersome, which is exactly how a human swimming would feel. But I'm also one of those weirdos who liked the Metal Gear Solid 2 swimming.

 

[Lightknight]

Well, it's not so much an escort mission, since Ellie is untouchable for most of the game. Something I wished Naughty Dog had worked on a bit more. I know they wanted to avoid having her be someone you'd constantly have to babysit, but it does mean she lacks a certain physical presence in the gameworld. This ultimately didn't matter too much, because she's so well characterized that I came to love her anyway.

If I had to babysit her for any significant portion of the game then I'd have hated the game more than anything I could imagine. I've stopped games cold over escort missions. I'm not alone on that either. They conveyed the overall message of an escort mission without dragging it down with the specifics of one. Perfect on them. Every single escort beyond that would be a negative for me. I did enjoy the sniper scene where you're protecting them from invading enemies. But that's hardly escort material so much as cover fire.

As for the swimming, I actually kinda liked it. It felt heavy and cumbersome, which is exactly how a human swimming would feel. But I'm also one of those weirdos who liked the Metal Gear Solid 2 swimming.

Oh? I don't know how you swim but I'm fully capable of swimming in the direction I want. Doors submerged in water don't magically confound me. Heck, in real life I'd grab hold of the door frame and pull myself through. But Joel just can't seem to understand the difference between trying to swim into a door and trying to swim into the wall immediately to the left or right of a door. The main risk of drowning arose only from his blatant and frustrating incompetence and recognizing what the player was trying to do. That is a flaw in any game.

 

[zombiejoe]

Interesting story about that.

I was psyched for Bioshock Infinite right from the start, and when I played it, I did enjoy it. And then slowly I began to realize that it really wasn't as good as it could have been. It's an ok game, but not nearly as good as everyone claimed it to be.

Conversely, I actually held negative opinions on The Last of Us a long time before it came out. It was childish, but I felt as if a lot of what was being promoted in TLOU had been done in a lot of other games that didn't receive nearly the amount of attention they deserved. But when I did play The Last of Us, I gotta admit, I did think it stood as a very well done game. I'm not sure if I would play through it twice, but I really did enjoy it, even as time passed.

So if I was going to recommend one game over the other, I'd say The Last of Us is better. But the hype it got was still silly.