Let’s be realistic, The Last of Us Part II probably won’t be coming out this year, no matter how much we clamour for it. However, that doesn’t mean that we can’t theorise and talk about what we want from the game. So, in anticipation of The Last of Us Part II’s eventual release, these are the five things I hope to see from the sequel.
Focus on the continuation of Joel and Ellie’s Story
There is no doubt that Joel and Ellie and their relationship are The Last of Us’ most valuable assets. The story of the growing relationship between the two is what made the title an instant classic upon its release in 2013. The second Part II trailer introduced a bunch of new characters with no glimpse of Joel and Ellie at all. Despite this it’s safe to assume that Joel and Ellie will yet again be the main focus, with the characters shown in the Paris Games Week trailer being support characters that will aid Joel and Ellie in Part II. The story of Joel and Ellie must continue (not simply because TLoU finished on a cliffhanger between the two), and preferably, the sequel should begin right where the first game left off (although the announcement trailer showed an older Ellie). The end of the first game could’ve served perfectly as an ending that fans could speculate on forever, but now that there is a direct sequel coming, the story threads of the first game need to wrapped up in a convincing way that doesn’t muddy the brilliant yet dark ending of the first game. The continuation of Joel and Ellie’s story must be executed perfectly if The Last of Us Part II aims to be just as good as the original, and I have belief in Naughty Dog to not let us down.
A lot has happened since we last saw these two
Expansive Explorable Environments
In a gaming space littered with open-world games, Naughty Dog remains a team that focuses on high-quality linear narrative experiences. The Last of Us Part II should by no means become an open world game, but it should attempt to expand and add more variety to its environments, while also remaining a well-paced story-centric title. A decent blueprint on how to develop such environments can already be seen in Naughty Dog’s latest Uncharted release, Uncharted: The Lost Legacy. The open-world segments of Lost Legacy were a little half-baked, but I believe it’s a perfect idea that could be further developed and utilised to give the player more freedom and variety in Part II.
The open-world segments of Uncharted: The Lost Legacy are a great blueprint for Part II to learn from
A Darker, Grittier Story
The Last of Us was already a dark, dreary and depressing game at times, but from the material seen from Part II so far, it’s safe to assume that it’s going to get a whole lot more intense. Upon the release of Part II’s first trailer, director Neil Druckmann stated that the game would focus on hate, in direct contrast to the first game, which centred on the premise of love. The second trailer further indicated the game’s desire to come across far darker with some truly brutal moments that would make even those desensitised to high violence in video games wince. The older, bloodied and far more mature Ellie indicates that a lot has happened since we last saw her. Is the hate that Druckmann speaks of in relation to her feelings for Joel and the fabrications he’s made? Or has something else happened (possibly to Joel) that has lead her down this road? I guess we can only really speculate for now.
Let’s be honest, this trailer was pretty brutal
Better Development of Side Characters
The Last of Us had some amazing side characters without a doubt. Characters like Bill, Tess, Tommy, Henry and Sam all provided short and enjoyable story arcs that succeeded in breathing life into the world of The Last of Us. The only issue with most of the game’s side characters is that they come and go very quickly, all in a rather predictable and similar way; you meet them, spend some time alongside them and then they either die or move on. Rinse and repeat. This isn’t inherently bad, and in a way succeeds in showing how unforgiving the world can be, however it’s upsetting to have characters that could easily be built upon killed off or forgotten so quickly. The fact that Part II’s second trailer focused solely on characters other than Ellie and Joel gives me hope that side characters might be further developed in the sequel. If we can get some side characters as interesting as those in the first games, perhaps with a bit more character development, it’ll go a long way in making The Last of Us Part II an amazing sequel.
Hopefully the new cast of characters have important roles
Improved Combat and Stealth Gameplay
Let me be honest, the combat of The Last of Us was arguably the weakest aspect of the game. The shooting in particular felt rather stiff and difficult to control, and I never felt confident in my shooting ability throughout the game. I know that I’m not alone in disliking the combat, I feel like it’s something that can be addressed by Naughty Dog in order to provide a much more rewarding and enjoyable gameplay experience. Stealth in The Last of Us wasn’t particularly bad (I can think of far worse games), it just felt a bit inconsistent. Some enemies are easy to sneak past, whereas others seem to have eyes in the back of their heads and attack despite you making what seemed to be a successful stealth approach. It was also extremely jarring and immersion breaking to see Ellie running about in front of enemies in a tense situation and have them not notice her (seriously though, has she been a ghost this whole time?). Small tweaks to the games stealth mechanics could make a world of difference in Part II.
Combat and stealth was okay, but hopefully we can see some improvements in Part II
If Naughty Dog can manage to make some or all of the improvements above, I can’t see why The Last of Us Part II couldn’t supersede the first game in terms of overall quality. If there’s a studio capable of succeeding one of the most revered games of all time with an equally as amazing if not better sequel, it’s Naughty Dog. We’ll just have to wait a see.
