The Last of Us (PS3 & PS4)

[Lamor]

The Music of The Last of Us - Documentary Video

 

 

Gustavo Santaoalla (probably my favourite composer) talks about his work on TLOU.

 

This game's soundtrack is going to be amazing... nothing can beat 'The Motorcycle Diaries' OST though.

[PSI Wind]

Even though I won't be able to play it, I know this'll be in GOTY awards, probably alongside Watch_Dogs. And I'll have no idea which one to choose because this game is going to kick some MAJOR ass!

[Lamor]

Even though I won't be able to play it, I know this'll be in GOTY awards, probably alongside Watch_Dogs. And I'll have no idea which one to choose because this game is going to kick some MAJOR ass.

 

It really depends on what do you want to get. Open world game with lots of possibilities or linear, heavily story-driven adventure.

 

I prefer the latter.

 

EDIT 1:

 

The Last of Us Development Series #3 - Death and Choices

 

 

Crafting is going to be a blast. Get it? 'Cause we can craft bombs. I'm so funny

Edited May 20, 2013 by Lamor

[Badnik Mechanic]

Live stream event this friday at 7:30 BST

 

http://blog.eu.playstation.com/2013/05/22/the-last-of-us-livestream-this-friday/

 

exclusive interviews with Naughty Dog, see a live gameplay demo from the team and take part in our live Q&A with not only the Naughty Dog team, but also Hollywood actress Ashley Johnson, the voice of Ellie.

[Badnik Mechanic]

Last of us Live stream happening right now.

 

 

[Lamor]

Yep. Watching it now.

[Badnik Mechanic]

They're about to show the demo which hasn't been made public yet. Should be quite interesting.

Holy crap this game is quite violent!

 

And lol the game director just died in his own demo! Usually they have god mode turned on for these things. It looks pretty great so far.

[Lamor]

That livestream was good. I loved the new bits of the Pittsburgh demo. Ellie's behaviour was really funny and great.

 

I also liked that guns did so much damage to you (hope this was normal difficulty).

[Badnik Mechanic]

Trophy list.

 

Platinum Trophy (x1)

• It Can’t Be For Nothing

Gold Trophies (x6)

• Firefly - Complete the Firefly Journey.
• For Emergencies Only - Fully upgrade all weapons.
• Hunter - Complete the Hunter Journey.
• No Matter What (Survivor) - Complete the game on Survivor.
• Scavenger - Found all collectibles.
• The Last of Us (Survivor+) - Complete the game on Survivor+.

Silver Trophies (x9)

• Everything We’ve Been Through - Fully upgrade Joel with supplements.
• I Want to Talk About It - Engage in all optional conversations.
• It Was All Just Lying There - Find all Artifacts.
• Look for the Light - Find all Firefly Pendants.
• No Matter What (Hard) - Complete the game on Hard.
• No Matter What (Normal) - Complete the game on Normal.
• The Last of Us (Easy+) - Complete the game on Easy+.
• The Last of Us (Hard+) - Complete the game on Hard+.
• The Last of Us (Normal+) - Complete the game on Normal+.

Bronze Trophies (x7)

• Endure and Survive - Collect all Comics.
• I Got This - Find all Training Manuals.
• Knowing the Basics - Win a game of Supply Raid and Survivors in Find Match.
• Let’s Gear Up - Craft every item.
• Master of Unlocking - Unlock all shiv doors.
• No Matter What (Easy) - Complete the game on Easy.
• Populace - Build your clan to 40 people in Factions.

Hidden Trophy (x1)

 

That 40 people one sounds a bit... err...

 

Also IGN state there are MORE multiplayer trophies that they've not listed yet... joys...

[Gabz Girl]

Ah crap, I was hoping there wouldn't be any annoying multiplayer trophies for this. Guess I'm wrong! They might be easy to get though...I hope.

[Badnik Mechanic]

Depending how it's set up, the 40 one might not be so bad if it awards every person in a 40 player clan (assuming it is real people) gets it at the same time, you'd just have to join a huge clan, and you can bet that some of the trophy sites will have ones that big.

 

Thes ones they put on that list won't be too bad, just a matter of time thing.

 

It's the great unknown thats the problem.

Oh hang on.

 

That trophy list is the full list.

[Lamor]

Second Issue of The Last of Us: American Dreams is out

http://www.darkhorse.com/Comics/22-393/The-Last-of-Us-American-Dreams-2

 

I bought it and it's pretty cool. First issue was kinda better though.

 

 

The Last of Us Season Pass Confirmed - Two Multiplayer Packs And a New Single Player Adventure

http://www.naughtydog.com/site/post/the_last_of_us_pre_order_the_digital_edition_and_the_dlc_season_pass/

 

As long as the Single Player DLC isn't day one I'm fine with that. BTW I find it funny that people are buying this season pass. Seriously, we know NOTHING about the multiplayer!

 

 

Trophy list.

 

These trophies look okay. At least they are better than Uncharted's 'Kill X enemies using Y' trophies.

[Badnik Mechanic]

The review embargo has lifted. Have naughty Dog delivered?
 
 

OPM UK magazine 10/10
 
"A work of art in which amazing sights and sounds fuel an emotionally draining, constantly compelling end of days adventure. This is Naughty Dog pushing the PS3 to its limit. Over to you PS4"
 
Empire online 5/5
 

"The Last of Us is not just the finest game that Naughty Dog has yet crafted and an easy contender for the best game of this console generation, it may also prove to be gaming’s Citizen Kane moment," "a masterpiece that will be looked back upon favourably for decades."

[Jango]

I didn't really followed this game, only saw a couple of trailers, looked a lot like I am Alive, which I didn't enjoyed much. But since it's ND, I have no doubt that it's a masterpiece. I want to play it one day.

[Badnik Mechanic]

Multiplayer details finally out...

 

 

The premise is that The Last Of Us’ multiplayer involves the player choosing to join one of two teams – two groups of humans taken from the singleplayer portion of the game. We’ll not spoil anything in terms of names, but chances are if you’ve been keeping an eye on the game recently you’ll have some idea of who we’re referring to.

Whichever you choose, you can then begin to customise your character in terms of appearance (with various options for hats, masks, helmets and gestures – most of which will need unlocking rather than being available from the start) and you can also design an emblem, although you’re really pulling from pre-made shapes rather than creating your own.

More interesting are the load-outs – there are four default ones (assault, sniper, support and stealth) and four custom slots. Each has a small and large weapon (for example, the stealth class has a silenced 9mm pistol and a bow) and there are also additional bolt-on skills, like Covert Training 2, which lets you crouch-walk without showing up on an opponent’s Listen Mode tracking.

Yep, Listen Mode is in, although unlike the single player in Factions it’s limited to a few seconds at a time before it recharges. Generally keeping still will mean you’re not visible to others, but the skill mentioned above at least lets you move undetected, albeit slowly.

Other skills available from the off include the ability to craft items (something the single player game is heavily focused on) in half the time, the sniper’s deadly Sharpshooter 3 (less scope sway and regenerating health for headshots) and the ability to know when you’ve been ‘marked’. There are also one-use boosters, but you’ll need to grow your clan population before you can use those.

When you select a clan, you’ll get a handful of survivors too. The aim is to play matches over a series of days and weeks (each match represents a day) and get enough supplies out on the battlefield to slowly grow your survivor count. Pretty much everything you do in a battle is translated into supplies, including crafting and healing.

The two game modes are Supply Raid and Survivors. Supply Raid sees players from each clan scavenging for supplies with a twenty-life limit, although anything crafted or bought is carried over if you die (assuming there are lives left). Survivors is more brutal: once you’re dead you’re dead until the end of the round, and there are seven rounds for each match.

Both game types allow up to four players per team, eight players maximum.

http://www.thesixthaxis.com/2013/06/03/the-last-of-us-multiplayer-modes-played-and-tested/

The gameplay itself is perhaps a little less inspired. Stealth is a much bigger emphasis, with maps littered with deserted cars and derelict buildings. You’ll find yourself in a prone position most of the time, weaving around the extremities of the arenas in order to get the angle on your opponents. Without a true cover system – the game simply detects when you’re near walls and allows you to hug them tightly – it can be difficult to peak around corners, but with practice you’ll eventually learn the best method to position your protagonist in order to scout out adversaries without giving yourself away. As you’d expect, gunfire prompts you to appear on your enemy’s radar, so it’s best to be as deadly and quiet as possible at all times.

Of course, it’s impossible to avoid chokeholds, and when you’re caught in a conflict, you’ll have a handful of options. You can sprint away from danger to lose your pursuers or drop a smoke bomb if you’ve managed to craft one earlier. You can also engage in a fist-fight if you’re close enough to your opponent, with each successful brawl or firefight unlocking the prospect of a deadly execution sequence. Fail to follow through with the finisher, and your enemies will have a short window of opportunity to resurrect their fallen partner, making ruthlessness a key attribute in the wasteland.

http://www.pushsquare.com/news/2013/06/first_impressions_is_the_last_of_us_multiplayer_mode_worth_surviving

- Multiplayer ties into the story and world of the single-player experience

- Multiplayer modes are like a 4v4 deathmatch of sorts

- This has you and three allies taking on another group

- Respawns are limited each round

- Choose from different weapons and loadouts

- Bring two weapons to each game and a selection of passive buffs and game-wide benefits

- All maps can be navigated in different ways, such as clambering over objects to reach higher ground or sneaking around the back of a building to enter through the back

- Looting caches litter the ground throughout each map

- Each of these has a selection of items, including the ability to craft additional weapons to use in that round

- Pick a faction before beginning a match: Hunters or Fireflies

- Difference between the two is essentially aesthetic

- You’ll be put into a crew once you decide

- Crew is filled with NPC survivors, initially five but increasing exponentially with each match played

- Start on Week 1, Day 1

- Objective: survive for as long as you can

- It ties into the lore of the world well, though the details of this are provided with little more than a menu screen with a radar on the right

- Radar includes a dot that represents every survivor you have in your group

- Need supplies to keep your group alive, which is initially fairly low but as the group increases in size so will the requirements

- Gather supplies by taking them from the bodies of anyone you kill in a match or converting claimed gear from loot caches into supplies

- Every match counts as a day

- Necessary supplies are deducted after each day

- Leftover supplies are bundled into a total, which acts as an XP system enabling unlocks of new weapons, upgrades, buffs and customization options for your character

- Zombie attacks and sickness will cause problems throughout the different days

- These can be overcome with missions

- Missions have players completing a different set of actions during a set of matches

- Ex: special executions, headshots, other trackable statistics

- Successfully complete this and sick survivors will be cured or more survivors gained

- Can craft one of six items to assist you

- Parts for each of these are scattered throughout each map, scavenged from the loot caches that are dotted at specific points

- These aren’t first-come first-served

- Every survivor gets their own selection of stash from each crate

- Contents of each crate are random

- You may not be able to have a craftable item immediately; need to get extra pieces if you want to really put your supplies to good use

- Can craft shivs for easy stealth kills, molotovs for setting people aflame, nail bombs, smoke bombs for creating diversions

- Parts and equipment do not carry over through each round

- Gear: currency of sorts, earned as you battle through a match

- Kill enemies, execute headshots, survive the round the longest to earn more Gear

- Gear can be used for purchases between rounds

- Armor lets you take extra damage

- Begin each round with a base set of ammo

- Can purchase additional ammo and expensive upgrades for each of the two weapons you’re carrying

- Upgrades are maintained through each round as long as they exist

- Enabling the customization of passive effects – such as stronger melee attacks and the like – that will help tailor your character to your play style

- Loadout points prevent players from becoming overpowered

- Upgraded weapons such as silenced or scoped weapons cost more points, but you’ll unlock more as you ‘level’ up

[Lamor]

Multiplayer Gameplay

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ejL44YihoU8&feature=player_detailpage

 

Looks pretty good.

 

EDIT:

 

Multiplayer Trailer

 

 

We finally get to see machete and smoke bomb in action.

Edited June 4, 2013 by Lamor

[Detective Shadzter]

The Last of Us review round-up: 'Easily Naughty Dog's finest moment'
All the review scores in one place...
http://www.computerandvideogames.com/410928/the-last-of-us-review-round-up-easily-naughty-dogs-finest-moment/

 

That's a lot of high scores. 

[Badnik Mechanic]

More review scores.
 
Destructoid 10/10
 
 

There is more to The Last of Us than just combat and "emotional" story tropes. To touch on its setpiece moments, to detail its beautiful changes in pace, would be to spoil too much. It cannot be said enough, however, that Naughty Dog's new best creation is complete, and when I say complete, I mean it to pay the highest of compliments. I do not want more from The Last of Us: I do not need more. As the last line was uttered and the credits ushered in the close, I was done. The Last of Us had achieved everything it needed to achieve in order to provide me with everything I wanted.

And it ended perfectly.
 

GamesRadar 5/5
 

The Last of Us is the definitive statement on what the genre has achieved thus far. Made of wildly eclectic gameplay mechanics polished to a sheen, bound intelligently and movingly to one of the most affecting narratives in games, The Last of Us succeeds where so many pretenders have failed.

It combines DNA strands from across the genre, yet reworks and recontextualises them to become far more than the sum of its parts. Its storytelling is peerless, as affecting and multi-layered as it is grounded, underplayed and real. In terms of everything the modern action game has strived to be, The Last of Us is the full-stop at the end of the sentence, leaving no more to be said. Until next-gen. If this is our starting point for that, then the next five to ten years could be truly amazing.

VideoGamer 10/10
 

The Last of Us isn't just the PlayStation 3's swan song; it's the best exclusive on the console full stop.

Gamereactor 10/10
 

This is a masterpiece: play it as soon as possible.

Machinima 10/10
 

Overall, multiplayer is light on modes and it may not expand on the core story-driven experience, but it’s still a thoughtful addition to a superbly executed package.
 

OPM UK 10/10

"A work of art in which amazing sights and sounds fuel an emotionally draining, constantly compelling end of days adventure. This is Naughty Dog pushing the PS3 to its limit. Over to you PS4"

PushSquare 10/10
 

An assured, touching, and engrossing adventure, The Last of Us represents a watershed moment for the medium. The unlikely bond that blossoms between the title’s two lead characters is both heartrending and poignantly paced – but the release delivers much more than captivating cinematics. This is a meaty slice of survival action that masterfully depicts the horrors of life in a post-pandemic setting. The conclusion may feel a little hurried, and the multiplayer somewhat surplus to requirements, but this is still an essential tale of survival that will consume you quicker than a cloud of contaminated spores.
 

Cheat Code Central 5/5
 

The Last of Us is one of the best games I have had the pleasure to play in my life. The graphics are gorgeous and believable; the soundtrack is pure audible gold for the ears; the story and actors deliver in a way that it should become industry standard. However, there is one thing The Last of Us does better than many games out there--it treats you like an adult. It doesn’t hold punches; it doesn’t try to hide away from hard issues; it is just what it is. You are not a stupid gamer, and Naughty Dog realizes this and therefore doesn’t treat you like one.

Adam Sessler(Rev3) 5/5
 

One of the finest games I have ever played.

Guardian 5/5
 

The Last of Us is visually arresting, mechanically solid, maturely written and by turns heart-rending, tense, unnerving and brutal. Check your ammo. Grab your shiv. Just try your best to stay alive.

Empire Online 5/5
 

"The Last of Us is not just the finest game that Naughty Dog has yet crafted and an easy contender for the best game of this console generation, it may also prove to be gaming’s Citizen Kane moment," "a masterpiece that will be looked back upon favourably for decades."

The Telegrapgh 5/5
 
 

The Last of Us is a triumph.

Examiner 5/5
 

The Last of Us delivers a lasting experience that will be spoken of for years to come. It shows people why there is still plenty of life left in this current-generation console and why PlayStation still has some of the best properties in the industry today.
 

 

Digital fix 10/10
 

 The Last of Us is the last outing for Naughty Dog on the PlayStation 3 and there is no finer way to exit the stage of this current generation than with the performance of your career. Bravo and encore.
 

EGM 9.5/10
 

 Naughty Dog has crafted what’s probably their best game yet—a game that serves as a fitting end to the generation that’s made projects such as The Last of Us realistically possible.

GamesTM 9/10
 

 It’s the relationships that really make The Last Of Us. It’s a technical marvel, a true triple-A with best-in-show production values, but it’s the beautiful combination of performance and story that elevates it clearly above the competition.
 

GameBeat 9/10

 

When it was over, I put my controller down as I tried to process what just happened. But the only words that came out of my mouth was, “Well done, Naughty Dog.”

 

So... it sounds quite good then.

[Lamor]

MY HYPE LEVEL IS OVER 9000!!!! I WANNAAAAAA!

 

:U

[Badnik Mechanic]

MY HYPE LEVEL IS OVER 9000!!!! I WANNAAAAAA!

 

:U

 

It's not over yet Snake! It's not over yet

 

[Ming Ming Hatsune]

These scores are a joke right? I mean, 10/10's everywhere. Is it really better than Uncharted 2?

 

I was going to ignore this game but I change my mind if it's that good.

Edited June 5, 2013 by Ming Ming Suzy

[Autosaver]

Game of the Year? I have to pick this up.

[Carbo]

Oh I'm sure it'll be a flawless experience to die for just like GTA IV, Skyrim, Bioshock Infinite and every other over-hyped game people and journalists got excited for despite the games when actually looked back upon weren't all that great and were really just bog standard at the end of the day.

Jokes aside, any universal 10s across the board will always raise red flags for me, especially ones that go out saying it's "the Citizen Kane of Gaming". Come the fuck on, that's not even a compliment anymore. Citizen Kane isn't even the Citizen Kane of movies these days. These reviews are really not telling me much, it feels like blind gushing. I'll admit I'm guilty of a lot of that myself but for someone who was only mildly interested in the game to begin with, it's kind of making me not want to play it. I just know I'll go into the experience with a jaded mindset.

I'll wait a couple of months until the dust clouds settle. Hopefully a price drop might come with that.

[Barry the Nomad]

I love how much shit this reviewer is getting. http://www.nowgamer.com/ps3/ps3-reviews/1952400/the_last_of_us_review.html

 

Since when is an 8.5 bad?

[Badnik Mechanic]

I love how much shit this reviewer is getting. http://www.nowgamer.com/ps3/ps3-reviews/1952400/the_last_of_us_review.html

 

Since when is an 8.5 bad?

 

I think theres more questions over the Polygon review, mainly because theres been tons of accusations and evidence that Microsoft pays for a lot of their reviews and content. Whilst the score is over 7, there is a bit of a 'It's the second lowest score for a PS3 exclusive thats getting universal praise?'

 

The lowest score so far comes from I think it was either a Sweedish or Norwegion tabloid paper that gave it 2/5.