joel
The Last of Us season two 'Through the Valley' recap: Well, that happened
HBO's The Last of Us showed viewers in season one that it would lean heavily on the source video games for major plot points and general direction of the season while expanding on the universe, and season two has followed that to the most extreme end possible. Episode two sees Tommy and Maria lead the town of Jackson Hole against a massive wave of Infected, the likes of which we haven't seen in the show (or video games) yet. This was a complete invention for the show, one that gives the episode Game of Thrones vibes, or calls to mind a battle like the siege of Helm's Deep in Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers. It's epic in scale, with the overmatched defenders showing their skill and bravery against overwhelming odds; there is loss and pain but the good guys eventually triumph. That mass-scale battle is paired with the most intimate and brutal violence we've seen in the entire series so far, as Joel's actions finally catch up with him.
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Pushing Buttons: Is The Last of Us remake really worth £70?
I've been playing The Last of Us Part 1 this week, a PlayStation 5 remake of Naughty Dog's landmark horror classic, first released in 2013. There's been a lot of justified grumbling about whether a nine-year-old game – which has already been remastered for the PlayStation 4 – can justifiably be sold again for £70; for most players, no graphics upgrade could ever be worth that much. People have praised Naughty Dog's dedication and attention to detail on this remake. It really does look and feel like a modern game. Personally, playing it again has made me think about how the world (and my own life) have changed in the last decade.
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Now that I've finally played The Last of Us, who wants to talk about that ending? Dominik Diamond
'OK, Dad, this is an incredible essay on the effects of grief and grey morality in a postapocalyptic society," says the eldest child, AKA the millennial. "It's got proper female characters, progressive takes on sexuality and tonnes of rain." "They've made a video game of The Handmaid's Tale?" And both games have the best ending ever." Now she has my interest. Video game endings fascinate me, because my generation started out with arcade games that didn't have them.