Amongst the plethora of scenes that combine to make this DLC so great, the arcade scene sits firmly at the top. I referenced this scene within my Last of Us Part II article, comparing it to the scene when Joel gives Ellie a tape of the moon landing, and for good reason. This is your punch, this is your kick, and you block with this.- Riley This couldn’t be more clear when the duo steps into the remains of an old arcade in the mall.Īlright come here.
Most importantly it shows Ellie being true to who she is, especially when it comes to how she feels about Riley. This shows Ellie just being herself, not having to worry about the overbearing presence of FEDRA. The main portion of the game introduces Ellie’s best friend Riley, then follows them as they sneak out of the Boston quarantine zone together to explore a derelict shopping mall.
It won’t change our experience of watching a relationship develop, and in the case of Left Behind it adds to the overall experience as we know these are the last moments Ellie and Riley will have together. With this being the main focus of the story, the ending almost becomes a secondary matter. The central theme of loss/fear of loss ties Ellie and Riley’s relationship to that of Ellie and Joel. Similarly, Left Behind tells the story of Ellie coming to terms with losing Riley, first by going to join the Fireflies (a militia group) and then succumbing to the bite of an infected. The first game’s narrative tells the story of Joel, a grief-stricken man finding hope, love, and compassion through his connection to an equally closed-off Ellie. But in Left Behind knowing the ending is one of the games’ many strengths. We Know the Endingįor many games, knowing the end actively hurts the overall experience, as any tension that would be created is lost. As shown by the aforementioned similarities and drawing parallels between the characters’ relationships, the developer deepens our understanding of each one by comparing it to the other. In doing so Naughty Dog crafted two unique scenarios but found a way to link them together. It’s no coincidence that both timelines take place within a mall and that both display pivotal moments that come to define who Ellie is and will become. Unlike the first game where the focus was just on Joel and Ellie, Left Behind has a dual focus on Ellie’s relationship with Riley and pivotal events that change the nature of her relationship with Joel. Left Behind is like the first game had an update, in the form of parallels drawn between Ellie’s relationship with Riley and the one she shares with Joel.
Importantly, Naughty Dog didn’t just copy and paste the formula, change some lines, and call it a day, but neither did they fully re-write. Sound familiar? That’s because it mimics the same tried and proven formula that was used in the first game, compressed down into a 2–4 hour experience. Spoilers for The Last of Us and Left Behind DLC follow.Īt its core, The Last of Us: Left Behind is a story about the relationship between two characters.
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