Naughty Dog has been one of the most popular PlayStation developers, known for franchises like “Jak & Daxter” as well as “Uncharted”. That said, Naughty Dog’s great game is arguably 2013’s “The Last of Us” for the PlayStation 3, which blended cinematic gameplay with amazing storytelling.
Nearly a decade later, Naughty Dog has reworked the game from the ground up for PlayStation 5 as “The Last of Us Part I,” following the release of the original sequel, “The Last of Us Part II,” in 2020. Those who Playing the original game you will feel right at home with the updated graphics in the remake and improved gameplay mechanics. It’s also a great place for newcomers to experience where the franchise began.
The game follows a man named Joel and a girl named Ellie. He is tasked with escorting Eli across the post-apocalyptic United States as a fungal virus that kills other humans turns into cannibal creatures called infected. Throughout the story, both will have to fight the Infected as well as other hostile humans. Once they start out as ambivalent strangers, their journey eventually connects them together in a poignant father-daughter dynamic.
The gameplay involves using a variety of different weapons like shotguns, pistols, levers and Molotov cocktails to kill the enemies. Players can also choose stealth style and engage enemies from behind, with the goal of reducing numbers in a specific area, as alerting everyone can flood Joel with attacks and thus kill him.
In the first part, Joel and Ellie’s movements feel much smoother than in the original game, thanks to the undoubtedly polished character models. As a result of improved graphic details and facial animation, the game’s most emotional moments are more challenging than ever, even if you’ve already experienced them before.
Moreover, the DualSense controller for PlayStation 5 provides realistic haptic feedback when shooting weapons. You can really feel the heavy recoil from your rifle and the resistance of the bow string when you pull it back. The feedback from the console adds an incredible immersion in combat.
The game is also a 1:1 recreation of the original, so Joel doesn’t have any of the kinds of extra weapons and gadgets that Ellie was able to craft in “The Last of Us Part II.” This includes things like temporary silencers for guns, explosive arrows, and stun grenades. This was a missed opportunity to make Part One’s gameplay feel more modern, but it seems Naughty Dog’s intention was to stick to the vision of the original game as closely as possible.
One of the biggest additions to Part One is the incredibly extensive list of accessibility options. They are broken down into several different categories such as visual aids, alternate control functions, and audio cues. For example, a player may want to hold down a button to perform several recurring fighting attacks rather than tapping it repeatedly. Another player may want to click on a button just to craft items instead of holding down the button. There is also an option to enable narration for on-screen text and silent scenes that benefit blind players.
My favorite is the High Contrast mode filter, where the environment is muted and adds distinct contrast colors, mapping all of the different interactive elements. This mode was invaluable for discovering small collectibles and hidden items throughout the game. These accessibility options have been carried over from Part Two and arguably the best reason to play this new version – now the game is more fun for a wider variety of players than ever before in the original.
As with the latest big-budget PlayStation exclusives, Part One also includes a photo mode that allows players to capture snapshots of their favorite gaming moments. It offers an extensive list of options such as different filters and full-range camera movement so that players can take their perfect shot. For a game that is beautiful and stunning with its landscapes, it is sometimes relaxing to sit back and enjoy the view despite being surrounded by deadly creatures at every corner of the post-apocalyptic landscape.
There are some other cool features that add some replayability to Part One that weren’t originally available. The game has an official speed mode where it keeps track of the best times for each difficulty throughout the game. It’s great for those who want to see how fast they can complete the game and offers some friendly competition. For an added challenge, there’s also a permanent switch where players have to start over at specific points upon death, whether that’s at the start of a chapter, an act, or even the entire game.
Part One also contains DLC “Left Behind”, which are additional stories from Ellie’s perspective that take place during the main game events. Originally, it was separate content that players had to pay extra for. Here, it is all included with the remake. Although I consider Part One a complete package, it is missing the original multiplayer Faction component.
However, Naughty Dog is still working on a new standalone multiplayer title set in the game world, I’m sure she has her own story They are the size of their single player games. The updated version of Factions would have been a great addition to Part One, but its absence doesn’t detract from the fact that the game still has a lot to offer.
“The Last of Us Part I” is the definitive way to experience Joel and Ellie’s journey together. With all its new bells and whistles, the series’ warriors will fall in love with the gameplay, story, and characters all over again. For newcomers, Part One is an excellent entry point into the franchise as its flawless presentation makes for an unforgettable adventure.
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