Intro:
When we think of a remake, we think of Resident Evil one or Final Fantasy 7. We think of games that have been remade after the game has been out already for years, if not decades. What happens when a game gets remade, not re-mastered after only 9 years from when it was released? Is it in need of being remade, is it too clunky, not study or did it simply just not age well? Since the Last of Us already got a re-master just a year after its initial release in 2013, many would argue that the game is in sturdy enough of a condition and did not need to be remade, and then being priced at a whopping 69 USD.
After playing this game for the first-time last year, and now playing the remake, I was caught feeling biased and happy because, well, I love both Last of Us games, but also trying to remain objectively pessimistic because why does a nine-year-old game need a remake that badly? Is it the HBO show coming out, because Naughty Dog wanted to make their game all move to the PS5 hardware, maybe they truly believe that the game was in desperate need of repair, or maybe it was all of the above which is possible.
A Delicate Balance: When the Last of Us Part 1 was announced for a remake, the gaming community I felt paused as a whole. This announcement, for some was when they threw a fit over a $70 game, some people genuinely thought it was too soon, and then there’s me thinking that it was too soon, and “who knows maybe this will work” and, spoiler it worked out. In the end after playing this remake I feel as if all points were hit on. The accessibility, the graphics, the use of the duelsense controller, even photo mode got a serious upgrade. When this game first came out it was well received on all fronts.
With Naughty Dogs unique take on the zombie as a whole and immersive game play, we saw this shift in storytelling, characters and game dynamics bringing The Last of Us to a unique place in gaming history. One where its mark was made so severely positive and groundbreaking, that bringing reality and the pain that comes with it to a game an almost necessity in how games are built now. If it’s not going to make the player feel something, then what’s the point? If I’m not questioning my life and the lives of those around me, if I’m not fighting for something (be it positive or negative since the game HEAVILY places emphasis on both scenarios) then, again I ask, what's the point?
To play devils advocates, we could discuss all day about the fact that games are a form of escapism, and not something that should reflect life too much since a lot of gamers are trying to get away from life when playing a game. By all means there should be that balance between cozy games that make you relaxed, emotionally violent games that make you think, and horrific games that bring you to your knees in awe. That’s why there are so many games for so many pallets, the Last of Us bridges that gap between horrific and action and made a small placed nestled in between those two worlds.
Accessibility, and a Way Forward: with how much the accessibility changed, and how much was added, this game in some ways is and will feel like a brand-new experience for some players. The way in which the gamers were and are the first priority when recreating this games accessibility is a wonderful thing. The sound design is also something that I was fully blown away by. The binaural immersive nature that cloaks the game is truly something I was in awe of. The clickers even managed to sound scarier than ever before if you can believe that.
Even looking at the characters, I was FLOORED at how different they looked, and how beautiful and more realistic the surroundings got. Some may not see it, or simply choose to ignore the fact that this game is a remake, from textures to accessibility, to remaking whole areas of the game from the bottom up, I am truly amazed at what was accomplished with the Last of Us part one Remake. Not all games need to follow a mold of what others deem be a remake, when we look at game, we need to see them as their own "thing" if you will. An individual, a fingerprint, a personified extension of its creator.
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