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PREVIEWS The Last of Us Preview
With Naughty Dog releasing a new IP in just a few short weeks, we got hands-on one more time. But don't worry: This is a spoiler-free preview.
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The Last of Us Preview

danielrbischoff By:
danielrbischoff
06/07/12
PRINTER FRIENDLY VERSION
EMAIL TO A FRIEND
GENRE Action Adventure 
PLAYERS 1- 1 
PUBLISHER SCEA 
DEVELOPER Naughty Dog 
RELEASE DATE 06/14/2013
M What do these ratings mean?

What's Left Of Us.



In a world taken back by nature, Joel and Ellie are kindred spirits, surrogate father and daughter, point and counterpoint. The Last of Us represents, not just a sea change for the survival horror genre, but a genuine shift in the stars for the developers at Naughty Dog.

In an E3 demo on Wednesday, Naughty Dog's Bruce Straley was kind enough to show us another angle on the gameplay section they played on stage at their E3 press conference. For those that missed it, the stage demo for The Last of Us was the highlight of all the press conferences.



While you can easily view that playthrough for yourself above, the version we saw behind closed doors took Joel and Ellie on a slightly different path, focusing more on stealth, enemy AI, and the world that's overgrown itself twice over.

Objects in the the environment can be used to trigger dialog between the two protagonists. A movie poster elicited a dismissive response from Joel, but the genuine curiosity in Ellie showcased how the female lead has grown up in a world without order and with a heaping helping of crazed lunatics and zombie monsters.

Moving forward in the demo, the two come upon the same group of enemies and instead use stealth to get past the bulk of them. On the second floor, though, their footsteps draw the attention of three enemies.



Joel again uses the bandages, alcohol, and empty bottle, but not to create a Molotov cocktail as he does above, but to heal himself after an injury and to distract enemies with a crash in an adjacent room. Players will be able to explore every nook and cranny for supplies, or even loot them from fallen NPCs, but how they use them will vary from situation to situation.

It's up to you to carve your own path through hostile territory. While Joel could have snuck by one enemy, he decided it best to make use of the lead pipe he picked up earlier in the demo. You could shoot an enemy, choke him out, use an environmental hazard, or stab him. Joel decided the enemy's brains weren't flat enough this time.

We still don't know how Joel and Ellie were thrust together or what circumstances propel them from the quarantine zones on the East Coast to the lawless West. Still, it's the mystery that makes The Last of Us so compelling and entertaining, so watch with us as we learn more leading up to the game's 2013 release.


More GR previews for this game:
The Last of Us preview posted on 05/20/13.
January 2013 Showcase Preview posted on 02/04/13.
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Comments
  • Alex_Osborn
    Alex_Osborn

    Joined: Jan 2012
    Posted: May 20th, 2013 at 2:04 pm
    I'm soo excited... to watch this game on YouTube.

    :P
  • Sourdeez
    Sourdeez

    Joined: Feb 2012
    Posted: May 20th, 2013 at 2:22 pm
    This is one of those games I wish they would port to pc. Damn ps3 exclusives.
  • Alex_Osborn
    Alex_Osborn

    Joined: Jan 2012
    Posted: May 20th, 2013 at 2:32 pm
    Luckily your PC has access to YouTube :D
  • knight123
    knight123

    Joined: May 2013
    Posted: May 20th, 2013 at 2:46 pm
    Can YouTube help you come up with better jokes?
  • Sourdeez
    Sourdeez

    Joined: Feb 2012
    Posted: May 20th, 2013 at 3:19 pm
    Awwww. So harsh.

    One day we will have a awesome ps3 emulator.
  • Starling
    Starling

    Joined: Apr 2013
    Posted: May 20th, 2013 at 2:53 pm
    The problem I have with zombie games is that there's bazillion of them. Worse, even before the brainless horde of zombie shooters swarmed us, I played a lot of zombie mods on my games. Especially Half-Life 2 which has like a hundred zombie mods.

    That's why I'd likely pass this game even if could get it. I'm passing anything with zombies these days. :/
  • NecroWolf
    NecroWolf

    Joined: Oct 2005
    Posted: May 20th, 2013 at 4:51 pm
    The flaw is that they aren't zombies, at all. Zombies are undead, as in, they aren't breathing, alive, or aware of their surroundings, and want nothing but brains and flesh.

    The Infect in Last of Us are more terrifying than Zombies for a simple reason: They're alive, and a part of them is aware of this horrible thing that is happening to them. Stage 1 Infected are insane, but aware of the horrible things they're have impulses to do. Imagine being a hostage in your own body, your brain aware of everything. To varying degrees, this is true of every stage of the Infected.

    They aren't zombies, don't use blanket terms like that, it isn't fair to developers and story writers who go out of their way to avoid tropes. Just because its ugly, and chases you doesn't mean it's a zombie. A more appropriate term is monster.
  • Starling
    Starling

    Joined: Apr 2013
    Posted: May 20th, 2013 at 5:23 pm
    It's dumb, it walks around in packs, it eats people, it used to be a human, it's horribly deformed.

    It's a zombie, no way around that, use what name you will, if it does all that I wrote above, it is a zombie. Take a zombie, claim it's not dead person but infected one, slap a new name on it and it's still not a different thing!

    If you show it to anyone and don't say it's a mushroom infected man, they'll tell you it's a zombie.
  • whytenoiz
    whytenoiz

    Joined: Feb 2011
    Posted: May 20th, 2013 at 3:06 pm
    "Remember that time on June 14th I called off work for a week and played The Last of Us in every way possible, got platinum trophy, deleted my account, got platinum again just to have the satisfaction of doing it multiple times?"

    This is the story I will reminisce with my friends 25 years from now, after my wife has left me because I wouldn't get over the fact she wouldn't let me name our daughter Ellie or pretend to be a fungus zombie for purposes of my arousal.
  • elmoreoocyte
    elmoreoocyte

    Joined: Apr 2012
    Posted: May 20th, 2013 at 3:42 pm
    Sex and fungus don't mix.
  • whytenoiz
    whytenoiz

    Joined: Feb 2011
    Posted: May 20th, 2013 at 5:42 pm
    They've got meds for that. ;)
  • sli
    sli

    Joined: Mar 2012
    Posted: May 20th, 2013 at 3:37 pm
    If they suddenly surprise-released this today, would it trump the xbox reveal?

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