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The Last of Us: Left Behind DLC Spoiler thread

Superflat

Member
Just finished it for the second playthrough, watching the credits roll once again.

Played normal on the first run, then Survivor on the second. TLOU really is a different game on Survivor.

My poor heart was working overtime trying to deal with the rush of adrenaline and tension in the combat and infected areas. All the memories of playing the main campaign in Survivor mode came rushing back.

Enjoyed my second playthrough even more than the first, thanks to the more unforgiving difficulty and analyzing the story more, now that I know what happens.
 

dakun

Member
I didn't play this because I didn't care for TLOU, but it's a little interesting that Ellen Page just happened to come out as gay today.

it's really not related to this thread.. but Ellen Page was so obviously gay anyway, it's like with Ricky Martin only in female form..

anyway.. i played the DLC and was blown away again.. i almost wished that there was even less combat and more story, that's how good it was..
 

Hubb

Member
My poor heart was working overtime trying to deal with the rush of adrenaline and tension in the combat and infected areas. All the memories of playing the main campaign in Survivor mode came rushing back.

Yeah I decided to go right for Survivor for my first play through and the game last a good bit longer because of it. When I got to the pet store I almost quit to start over, I was almost out of bullets and had no health.
 

SephCast

Brotherhood of Shipley's
I bought American Dreams and read it right before playing this. I was pleased. American Dreams isn't a groundbreaking comic or anything, but it brings nice context to a lot of the events of Left Behind.
 

Flandy

Member
I hope Ellie finds someone in a sequel. She was so happy for those few seconds when Riley took off the dogtag and the kiss. Poor thing :(
 
It does raise the question:

Assuming there is a sequel and assuming it still has Joel and Ellie, do you think ND will explore their relationship (perhaps Ellie coming to terms with her feelings) or just avoid the issue?

They seem to be establishing some consistent themes about how people interact in the changed world.



I liked the ending. Sometimes less is more you know?

I get that and that's one of the reasons I like the original games ending, but I felt this needed that because we already knew it was gonna happen. I wanted to see Ellie's reaction to her not being infected.
 
I hope Ellie finds happiness in a sequel. She was so happy for those few seconds when Riley took off the dogtag and the kiss. Poor thing :(

If there continues to be more installments to The Last of Us be it through DLC or sequels, I'll try to actually get into it more. I think it was just the level of hype, the reviews, the praise, and such that I went into the game with. The more I think back on it, the more it probably would have otherwise impressed me. I just felt like I knew what the point of the story would be, and I was right, and I felt there wasn't much more to it from a narrative standpoint; it was all extremely well done and executed and the presentation value was astronomical, but in the end I did feel a little let down due to those expectations and the fact that I saw virtually every story beat coming from a mile away.

The writing itself was very good; it had pretty natural dialogue, the cinematic direction was terrific, the actors were firing on all cylinders, and it's definitely one of the most "natural" presentations of humanity I've seen in a videogame. That being said, I felt like the enemy encounters should have been more organic instead of always bunched together in "zones," especially when it came to the infected (it made sense for the humans, but the infected?) and the entire scenario of Joel going Rambo through that entire fucking hospital against like 90 armed mercenaries was beyond ridiculous for me and sort of shattered the immersion of seeing this story and the characters in a natural, believable light.

Again, maybe I'm being unfair and am putting a few negatives up against an overwhelming wave of positives, so again I'll give it another shot now that I know what to expect, especially if they keep advancing the story.
 

Mooreberg

Member
This is like that time Trent Reznor spoiled Million Dollar Baby. :-\

Only worse, because I'm actually going to purchase this content.
 
Did the first clicker murder anyone else also? I crawled underneath that entrance no problem and clicker grabbed me out of nowhere. Almost scared me.
 

Endo Punk

Member
I hope Ellie finds someone in a sequel. She was so happy for those few seconds when Riley took off the dogtag and the kiss. Poor thing :(

Sequel already happened... in TLOU :p Ellie and Joel will live happily with Tommy and friends in his town. A sequel is moot imo, their story is told and there really is nothing else to say, well, nothing else that deserves a full game. I guess there can be new characters for the sequel but I'd rather it just be another download episode instead of a full blown TLOU2.
 

ciddative

Member
Just finished on Hard. Took 4-5 hours - I searched every inch of every surface. 14/14 artifacts, unsure about optional conversations - where would i find that stat? In the main game section?

A masterpiece, surpassing the main game at times.

You can really see how ND have improved their craft even since the main game came out.

The level design was more devious, felt a little more organic to its setting for me.

The visuals were noticeably better, especially in cutscenes. Previously you could tell it was real-time, but there were points during this where I was unsure.

The script/delivery/vocal performances were also better. Riley and Ellie's conversations were more naturalistic, more overlapping lines, exquisitely timed reactions etc.

The kiss was wonderful, totally felt a vibe from the photobooth, but I didn't feel it was platonic or romantic at the time, just felt like 2 young people finding who they were and exploring their relationship.

That whole scene, from the dancing to the "don't go", to the gunshot had me breathless, as in I literally had to remember to breathe afterwards. Stunning work by all involved.

The ending wasn't quite up to the original's, if that was what it was trying to emulate. Ellie's "Okay" was absolutely note-perfect, in execution and ambiguous implication. This time around the finale felt a little premature, and ending on "let's get out of here" when the preceding lines were all top notch, left me wanting.

It's coming to a point where playing a Naughty Dog game doesn't even feel like playing a game anymore. The storytelling present in this franchise is in a different league.

Regardless of hardware, for me The Last of Us feels pretty truly next-gen, and hopefully Druckman will be able to make good on his intent and take the medium even further.
 

Grisby

Member
Finished it.

The kiss took me a bit by surprise but not completely. I mean, they are at a curious age and the fact is, I imagine it's quite an achievement to be close to anyone in the world of TLOU.

I always thought it would be neat to see what happened between fall and winter so it was cool to see Eliie saving Joel. Luring the infected to fight the humans was cool and it's something that should have been in the main game. Really liked it.

The Halloween shop and the game store were my two highlights. The faux battle at the arcade was done so well, as were the photo booth options/closeups. Naughty Dog gave so much personalty in such a short amount of time.

Ellie and Riley's last run was neat because there was a moment where you could see the infected shadows chasing you and it was really tense. My only negative of the whole piece was that the ending felt a little limp. We know Ellie survives and while the fate of Riley is also known, it would have been cool to see or participate in. Especially considering this will probably be the last time we see her.
 

dcx4610

Member
I have to say, I'm pretty disappointed. 2 hours and 30 minutes and $14.99?

The dialogue and acting was fantastic just as the original was but with as little gameplay as they provided, it should have just been a movie, free or $4.99 at the most.

If you are a die hard Last of Us fan and I want to a little backstory on Ellie and what she did when Joel was injured, go for it. Everyone else, stay away.
 

Dany

Banned
I don't know how anyone can see the date between Riley and Ellie as anything less than a date. I mean they were into eachother, more than friends. They basically say it themselves.
 

ChawlieTheFair

pip pip cheerio you slags!
Ending felt a bit too hollywood IMO, especially compared to the main game's ending. And the whole kissing scene, like others said, felt like too much of a push to get away from the norm/tropes almost in a goofy/parody way. I mean think about it, a lesbian, interracial kissing scene, like come on lol. I haven't got anything against that mind, but it was kind of funny.
Overall, loved the character banter and all the dialog (bar the ending "fight to the last second") Naughty dog proving once again that story and good characters add so much play-ability to a game. Great DLC to a fantastic game, well worth the purchase.
 

Dany

Banned
And the whole kissing scene, like others said, felt like too much of a push to get away from the norm/tropes almost in a goofy/parody way. I mean think about it, a lesbian, interracial kissing scene, like come on lol. I haven't got anything against that mind, but it was kind of funny.

I never thought of it like that. I saw the two characters as they were and not 'tropes'. ND definitely did a great job in having their relationship grow in the DLC to that moments. It was sweet.
 

Wensih

Member
Haven't played the DLC yet, I will definitely get it after my Immunology Test on Monday though. I watched the kiss scene on youtube and saw those photobooth pics. All I can say is the facial animations are amazing.

I think it would be pretty hard to misinterpret that kiss. The hesitation, biting of lip and Ellie's soft apology is sort of a dead give away for intent. Not to mention other symbolic factors such as choice of song, and the day the DLC was released. Watching the scene kind of had me awkward/uncomfortable (in a good way), not due to anything such as homophobia, but watching an intimate moment (possibly first kiss) between two young kids, sort of gave me butterflies to some extent.
 

ciddative

Member
Ending felt a bit too hollywood IMO, especially compared to the main game's ending. And the whole kissing scene, like others said, felt like too much of a push to get away from the norm/tropes almost in a goofy/parody way. I mean think about it, a lesbian, interracial kissing scene, like come on lol. I haven't got anything against that mind, but it was kind of funny.
Overall, loved the character banter and all the dialog (bar the ending "fight to the last second") Naughty dog proving once again that story and good characters add so much play-ability to a game. Great DLC to a fantastic game, well worth the purchase.

I never felt it was anti-trope, as I've never felt ND needed to do that. Whilst innovating in some respects, they have often walked well-trodden ground but excelled in the execution. Tropes wouldn't be a concern for me as I'd have faith that they would deliver greatness with or without blazing a trail.

Again, the idea of the kiss being lesbian, and especially interracial, never entered my mind for a second. The moment felt earned, surprising yet authentic and natural in it's context.
 

Replicant

Member
God forbid same-sex kiss being of the norm instead of "anti-trope", as some people here put it. SMH @ some of the BS I read ITT......I can't wait until some dumbass mentioned "gay agenda" as a reason against the kiss.
 

Timu

Member
This game is beautiful, my direct feed screens I took so far(click to enlarge them):

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Flandy

Member
Sequel already happened... in TLOU :p Ellie and Joel will live happily with Tommy and friends in his town. A sequel is moot imo, their story is told and there really is nothing else to say, well, nothing else that deserves a full game. I guess there can be new characters for the sequel but I'd rather it just be another download episode instead of a full blown TLOU2.
Meh I feel Ellie can still grow as a character. Joels story feels finished but I want them to flesh Ellie out some more

Obviously this is the work of Naughty Dogs/Sonys marketing team
 

jwk94

Member
So what was the deal with the cutscene graphics? Is it just me, or were they a lot better than what we saw during gameplay?
 

Lord Error

Insane For Sony
Loved it, the whole thing was made meticulously to the same quality level of main game, which was fantastic to see, as I was worried we'd get something on the level of those Uncharted 2/3 co-op scenarios. Even after playing this for just maybe 3 hours, I again can't stop thinking about it, much like I couldn't with the main game. In terms of gameplay, I loved the pitting of infected agains the hunters, so simple and clever.

As for the girls being in love, to me it seemed obvious through several moments that Riley was in love with Ellie, but it also looked like Ellie just saw her as a really good friend, almost cooling things down any time Riley would make any kind of verbal advance/insinuation. The kiss seemed to me like Ellie knew it was the only way to not forever lose her best friend, combined with a bit of an infatuation of the moment, and not her actually being in love.

As for the earlier complaint about Ellie being too anti-trope, I don't know about that. She is IMO a pretty correct image of what a lot of modern youth is like, or at least the way they think of themselves / want to be like. Tropes that she subverts are nonsensical and outdated anyway, and she very much seems 'normal' by todays standards IMO. Even then, you could say that she has some trope-ish flaws (can't swim) and relies more on Joel saving her ass than he relies on her to do save his. Although both of those make sense in the context of the world.

So what was the deal with the cutscene graphics? Is it just me, or were they a lot better than what we saw during gameplay?
They were always better looking in TLOU. Cutscenes are offline rendered with better shaders, shadows and lighting. However, I was happy to see that on several occasions during this they had the 'cutscene graphics' rendered fully realtime. The scene where Ellie 'plays' the game for example, the Photo Booth, and something else that I can't remember now.
 

Estellise

Member
Honestly, I don't regret paying $15 for this DLC. It was amazing. Naughty Dog did such a perfect job telling this story. And I love the parallels when it switches with Riley and then with Joel.

Aside from all that the gameplay was great, felt familiar enough. The only encounters with infected or hunters was in the pre-winter mall area. It was interesting to see infected interact with hunters and actually affect the combat. I liked when you were with Riley and it was safe since it was all fun and jokes the majority of the time. The Halloween store was the best. I laughed a lot at all their jokes and those masks. As for that whole kiss scene. Whether it was full-hearted love or just admiration for each other, I don't think it matters. Riley was the only person Ellie was close to around her own age. Of course she'd be fond of her regardless of her gender. In which case it doesn't matter. Ellie loves Riley for who she is and I don't think anything else mattered. They're pretty young anyway, I don't think it was anything too deep. Romantic or not it was sweet.

The ending was expected of course, but it still left you feeling sad. Knowing what would happen next. I feel it was the loss of Riley that started Ellie's fear of "being alone". It made me realize that after losing her, Ellie really didn't have anyone special or close to her after that. Aside from, I suppose Marlene. So once she met Joel and went through that whole adventure with him, she did everything she could to protect him when he needed it most. Because she didn't want to lose anyone else. And I really love that. I think when Ellie listened to Joel's lie and accepted it at the end, even though she was hesitant, she understood because she remembered how hard they fought to keep each other alive. And maybe how Riley's words affected her somehow. Ellie and Joel both lost someone they love (Riley and Sarah) and Riley's speech and what Joel says at the end of the main game ties together. They fight for something. That's my take on it anyway. I just think the way Naughty Dog went about it was brilliant. The writing for this story was amazing.
 

ChawlieTheFair

pip pip cheerio you slags!
Loved it, the whole thing was made meticulously to the same quality level of main game, which was fantastic to see, as I was worried we'd get something on the level of those Uncharted 2/3 co-op scenarios. Even after playing this for just maybe 3 hours, I again can't stop thinking about it, much like I couldn't with the main game.

As for the girls being in love, to me it seemed obvious through several moments that Riley was in love with Ellie, but it also looked like Ellie just saw Riley as a really good friend, almost cooling things down any time Riley would make any kind of verbal advance/insinuation. The kiss seemed to me like Ellie knew it was the only way to not forever lose her best friend, or at most an infatuation of the moment, and not her actually being in love.

As for the earlier complaint about Ellie being too anti-trope, I don't know about that. She is IMO a pretty correct image of what a lot of modern youth is like, or at least the way they think of themselves / want to be like. Tropes that she subverts are nonsensical and outdated anyway, and she very much seems 'normal' by todays standards IMO. Even then, you could say that she has some trope-ish flaws (can't swim) and relies more on Joel saving her ass than he relies on her. Although both of those make sense in the context of the world.

Yes, in fact she is scarily accurate to a modern teenager, that part is great. I think however, the fact that she's gay (or bisexual, or maybe not even gay at all who knows) and she's a female protagonist who isn't a sexual image, and that she kisses another girl of a different race, feels so anti-trope that it almost stems to a kind of ironic, SNL style comedy. It's so left field (for video games at least) that it doesn't feel as serious as the rest of the tone of the game. Again, I don't have a problem with it on an ideological level or anything, but it just felt really out of place. I don't think it helped that they had to build up a relationship in such a short time frame (DLC rather than a full fledged game).

Edit: and for clarification, when I say SNL comedy, I don't mean like I laughed when it happened, but It stood out to me in a kind of "roll my eyes" way.
 

coolasj19

Why are you reading my tag instead of the title of my post?
Really? Where? I never got that impression during the main game.
Same. I need to see some quotes.
Yeah i'm just going to ignore that and pretend it's a friend kiss
Despite the creators detailing every part of this game including the DLC and the ending, they don't seem to really care if people interpret it differently. You're free to do so and that's what I thought too. It's kind of what I still do.
The universe is just screwing with us. But no seriously. It's true apparently.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1hlCEIUATzg#t=17
Seriously, Universe. Just... You work in odd ways. Or at least odd times.

It's just impressive what ND can do with 3 hours. They can wrap-up a prequel to where we know the very direct ending, and fill in the blanks of the main storyline at the same time. I don't know if I'm just paranoid but the entire Mall area with Riley always kept me on my toes, I was just waiting for the ending the entire time. I let my guard down after the kiss though, which I didn't see coming. I was a bit shocked at first but understood quickly after, unlike others I didn't hit the "Love" button in the photobooth or really get too much of that vibe until it started getting to the watergun fight.

How cruel, falling in love, confessing your feelings, and then that being ruined less than a moment afterwards. It's interesting/refreshing that the obligatory lesbian awkwardness that's always prevalent in such tales was completely bypassed as a function of no standing social perceptions in their world. It was a kiss and I would have honestly have been surprised if it didn't happen at all. And not just a kiss for the sake of making a statement, even the main plot hits at just how distraught Ellie is for Riley dying.

I suppose the story ended with them jetting off because it would be really messy trying to deal with their relationship and gameplay after that moment. Your imagination can very much so fill in the blanks, just like the blanks were filled during the Joel + Mall section before we even knew about the DLC. Congrats to ND for treating their story right. And getting the DLC out in a decently timely manner.
 

Superflat

Member
Going for a 100% trophy run.

Got them all except for one, which is for some reason really hard for me to do, which is beating Riley in the watergun fight. I can do the first challenge no problem, but Riley is just ridiculously good at the hunting game lol. The waterguns control horribad.

Doesn't help that it's sort of in the middle of a chapter so i have to reload the whole thing to have another go at it.

edit: Got it by cheesing it a little, lol. Waited in an advantageous area for Riley to come to me, then exploited her "pop out and shoot" ai. It was still definitely worth it for the extra bits of dialogue that comes with winning. If Riley wins the first round and you catch up for a tie, Ellie has unique dialogue for that too. Really neat.
 

Lord Error

Insane For Sony
Another thing I noticed, brilliant bit of facial animation went into final scene of this, just as it was in the final scene of the main game. It was Ellie's smile in both instances, and it was incredible looking both times.

ChawlieTheFair said:
It's so left field (for video games at least) that it doesn't feel as serious as the rest of the tone of the game
I think you could argue that it's more of a problem of maturity of the games as a medium than anything in this game. They were at the very least amazing friends here. They kissed - maybe each for a different reason. That shouldn't feel unnatural. I actually think that in such a short time span, they did a really good job making it obvious that Riley was in love with Ellie, without spelling it out entirely. I do have to say however that I didn't at all get the impression that Ellie was reciprocating that. That's why I got the impression that her motivation for the kiss was not the same.
 

coolasj19

Why are you reading my tag instead of the title of my post?
Another thing I noticed, brilliant bit of facial animation went into final scene of this, just as it was in the final scene of the main game. It was Ellie's smile in both instances, and it was incredible looking both times.


I think you could argue that it's more of a problem of maturity of the games as a medium than anything in this game. They were at the very least amazing friends here. They kissed - maybe each for a different reason. That shouldn't feel unnatural. I actually think that in such a short time span, they did a really good job making it obvious that Riley was in love with Ellie, without spelling it out entirely. I do have to say however that I didn't at all get the impression that Ellie was reciprocating that. That's why I got the impression that her motivation for the kiss was not the same.

That's exactly what I was thinking. Riley, for the most part was kinda piling it on in terms of the number of signs that Ellie wasn't just a good friend to her. Treking across a city and into hostile territory to get to Ellie, scavenging a pun book, turning on the power to an entire mall, and telling Ellie she's the only person that can stop her. It wouldn't surprise me if she actually plotted out the entire date beforehand.

It's actually Ellie that I was more surprised from. It's not like she was falling all over Riley the entire way. She went after her reasons more than once and berated her often enough. The way I see it, she wanted to communicate to her best (only) friend that she has to stay, and a hug just wasn't going to do it. A kiss it is then. It's not like there's any social stigmas really dictating what the meaning of the act is.

Yay for ND. This is gonna set off another wave of The Last of Us posts for at least 4-5 days.
 

Flandy

Member
That's exactly what I was thinking. Riley, for the most part was kinda piling it on in terms of the number of signs that Ellie wasn't just a good friend to her. Treking across a city and into hostile territory to get to Ellie, scavenging a pun book, turning on the power to an entire mall, and telling Ellie she's the only person that can stop her. It wouldn't surprise me if she actually plotted out the entire date beforehand.

It's actually Ellie that I was more surprised from. It's not like she was falling all over Riley the entire way. She went after her reasons more than once and berated her often enough. The way I see it, she wanted to communicate to her best (only) friend that she has to stay, and a hug just wasn't going to do it. A kiss it is then. It's not like there's any social stigmas really dictating what the meaning of the act is.

Yay for ND. This is gonna set off another wave of The Last of Us posts for at least 4-5 days.
You just made me realize that the DLC was essentially a date :lol Fitting that it would release on Valentines day
Just popping in here for a second to say that the Facebook post is the most brilliant thing ND has ever done.
What are you doing here? Go back to OT where you belong :p
In all seriousness I don't think I've ever seen you post in gaming :lol
Ellie coulda had her some Sam >_>.

Ellie didn't want her no some Sam :p

Which one?
It posts the photo you took in the photobooth on your facebook
1013279_720134771343527_728299860_n.jpg
 

hengyu

Member
It shows how a kid that was raised in a society without preconceptions would actually think. She had no idea what was right or wrong in a relationship.

Wouldn't a kid raised without preconceptions tend to incline towards heterosexuality? Simply from the whole "father, mother" construct and the mammal's biological urge to continue its species's survival?

Disclaimer: This post is not meant to be homophobic (in case some of you read it as such), I'm genuinely curious
 

coolasj19

Why are you reading my tag instead of the title of my post?
Wouldn't a kid raised without preconceptions tend to incline towards heterosexuality? Simply from the whole "father, mother" construct and the mammal's biological urge to continue its species's survival?

Disclaimer: This post is not meant to be homophobic (in case some of you read it as such), I'm genuinely curious

To carry out that experiment you would have to take a group of kids without mothers and fathers with a roughly (or exact) 50/50 male to female ratio, keep them all on a schedule, and treat them exactly the same regarding gender. Wait... that sounds like a military boarding school. More specifically, the one that Ellie attended. The biological urge thing? I don't think that's set until they get the biological urge to reproduce ( 11-13 ), but by then, the experiment would already be complete.

I guess when it comes down to it in that situation, who do you like being around more? Do they happen to be a boy or a girl? It doesn't really matter. Ellie didn't have any friends except for Riley. I can't say what the split of homosexual/heterosexual/bisexual individuals would be in such a cohesive experiment. But, I would bet it would either be a 3 way tie or bisexuals would be the majority. Maybe a tad off topic, maybe this will turn the thread into a bad direction.

I think considering the circumstances of both girls growing up and their relationship to each other pre-DLC, this outcome is nothing but expected.
 
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