why the story can't be separated from the structure | The Last of Us Part II Analysis

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Please enjoy this in-depth analysis of the structure of The Last of Us Part II.
This video was created for educational purposes only. This is my own interpretation based on multiple playthroughs and hundreds of gameplay hours, my experience as a game writer, and listening to interviews with/commentary by the creators of the game. I am not affiliated with Naughty Dog or any of The Last of Us creators.
Music by Gustavo Santaolalla and Mac Quayle.
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Beyond: Two Souls
Until Dawn
Detroit: Become Human
Assassin's Creed III
Romeo + Juliet (1996)
Romeo & Juliet (1968)
Romeo & Juliet (2013)

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13 окт 2024

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@dorkangel1076 Месяц назад

Thank you. That was a really interesting analysis of it following an actual story structure as its something I've heard people complain about. I totally agree though from a slightly different perspective. Naughty Dogs intent is for also us to feel a story. We need to feel Ellies rage. Abby's story isn't really about Ellie (bar her being Abby's final boss fight) so it could go first or second but Ellies story needs to go first. To feel what Ellie feels we need no information about Abby, just a burning rage over what happened to Joel and a desire to know why. We uncover the information at the same rate Ellie does. Dina brings up questions that we might be thinking (why did they let Ellie live) and why did they kill Joel. Knowing that in advance kills that. The memories played out with Joel remind us of our loss as much as they do for Ellie (and slowly uncover the hidden story of Joel and Ellies relationship which is only fully revealed at the end). This helps drive us on just like Ellie as she gets more and more vicious. With Nora I didn't want to press the button but like revenge drives Ellie, the game drives me. At the Theatre when Tommy says we have to go back to Jackson, like Ellie we feel "What? That's it? She gets to live?". When Abbys story starts, we don't like her and feel lost and deflated. We just strived hard for something, went through a lot to get there and didn't get what we wanted. We feel frustrated. That's how Abby feels. She doesn't like herself and after four years of sacrifice and hunting down Joel, didn't get the release she wanted. Now he's dead and she's still having nightmares. Like her we're having to start from scratch. This is the part where some people started fighting with the story rather than letting it do its job. If you let it, like Abby we gradually find something worth fighting/playing for. Yara and Lev. We also start filling in gaps in our knowledge and gain new insight into the story to help keep us interested. When I started Abbys story, I just wanted to get back to the Theatre. By the end of day three I found I was dreading it as I didn't want Abby or any of them to die. The structure may not be the best way to tell a story (if by tell you mean being easy to follow) but it was the best way to feel a story. The two halves together tell the complete story, but unlike the characters, only the player gets to see it all. Each character only has an incomplete picture of what happened (eg. Ellie still thinks it was about the cure and Abby doesn't know Joel was Ellies father figure). It is a complicated story and due to the length, details get blurred in our memories as to who knows what and when. A lot of the criticism of character actions I see are based on them knowing something that was actually in the other persons story. With multiple playthroughs though you see more and more connections and what seemed like a throwaway comment in a conversation gains a new meaning and actually foreshadows something later on and details discovered later change the perspective on things that happened earlier. For example, the first thing I noticed on my second go was when Abby wakes up at the start of the game, she's just had a bad dream. Now I knew what it was. The nightmare of finding her dad dead. It explains her desperation to go off alone and why she was so brutal to Joel when she got him. To her it was like her dad's death had just happened again. I also knew they were actually there looking for Tommy in the hope he had a lead of Joel, not Joel directly.

@bountyhunterx123 Месяц назад

"Maybe not the best way to tell a story but the best way to feel a story" sums it up incredibly, I think. Feeling that motivation to kill Abby along with Ellie for the first half of the game immerses the player so much. And then having that hatred shattered by the end of the second half is sobering and really highlights how complicated the situation is. All of it really makes the ending hit home. Sometimes are no easy answers.

@dorkangel1076 Месяц назад

@@Gamfluent How exactly was it not bad for Abby?

@dorkangel1076 Месяц назад

@@Gamfluent That’s odd because I remember all her friends dying (including the man she loved) plus her getting hurt and injured loads of times? The only reason she got a “good” ending was because she found something to live for instead of revenge. That’s the point Ellie had reached at the end of the game. She just needs to find what that thing is. Maybe that will be in part 3…

@spideycooldude 23 дня назад

my main issue with the story is more so to do with abby's character and her arc as a whole. She wasnt for me at least a compelling character, or charismatic. Just not really likable so that reduces the enjoyability when I play her parts. The lev and Yara story arc for her was essentially Joel's arc with ellie in the first game but more watered down because I did not really care for any of the characters. And it felt like a waste when they just killed Yara off abruptly after we did so much to save her life. I understand it wants to be "realistic" but a good story has everything done with a purpose, meticulously done in a way for it to be compelling, and to matter. the game kills off a lot of supporting characters for what? shock value? the same treatment was done to Jessie's character and they werent fully developed characters to really care or feel their deaths. I also dislike how Abby's character almost lacks empathy when she finds out Dinas is pregnant and she says "good". While I understand that she lost her pregnant friend because of Ellie, that was not Dina's fault and again why be the worse villain then, she has an unborn child. Idk just makes her even more unlikeable. But yeah the structure makes sense with what they wanted but how successful it was is arguable and sometimes whether its a story or a design for anything, they just don't always work.

@lungfulldrummer8921 10 дней назад

@@spideycooldude Abby's story (and gameplay style for that matter) very much mirrors Joel's arc from the first game. Loses a loved one, gets bitter and angry, acquires a young companion that gives her something to fight for again.

@dansken610 2 месяца назад

I'm thankful there are so many of us still unhealthily obsessed with this game 4 years after it's release 😄

@tlou_explained 2 месяца назад

every time I think I'm over my hyperfixation some tidbit from ND or the HBO show gets released and it starts all over again lol

@Imagination5002 2 месяца назад

same

@AmandaRiu_1 2 месяца назад

Same!

@josuemartinez9688 2 месяца назад

man.. this game immediately became so important in my life

@Jadensburg 2 месяца назад

My poor suffering friends and family have got to be so tired of hearing me talk about these games and the show that was made from it…

@kingpinpasta2934 2 месяца назад

An aspect of the game that I find interesting is how many times Ellie is close to Abby without even knowing it. First time was when Ellie was in the hospital chasing Nora, Abby is below fighting Rat king. The second time is when Ellie reached a fork in the road when she decided to go to the aquarium, instead of helping Tommy. Had she decided to assist she would’ve run into Abby, because Abby wasn’t at the aquarium she was fighting Tommy

@AmandaRiu_1 2 месяца назад

Yes!

@segevkrespi8609 2 месяца назад

Second time is correct, however the first encounter timeline is kinda weird - when Abby exits the hospital, everyone is looking for her but things are quiet, so Ellie probably didn't get there yet, or maybe she just got there but she's sneaking into the hospital silently. When Ellie chases Nora down there, you can hear strange noises that sound like the Rat King, but it should be dead at that point as Abby already left the hospital, so maybe it's just other infected down there?

@tlou_explained 2 месяца назад

@segevkrespi8609 when Ellie arrives you can hear some soldiers talking about how Abby took a boat, so Abby is actually already gone by the time Ellie gets there.

@segevkrespi8609 2 месяца назад

@@tlou_explained I don't remember them mentioning the boat, just that Abby is gone. You remember which WLF said that? They have plenty of dialogue but it's easy to miss if you get spotted and they start shooting lol

@tlou_explained 2 месяца назад

@@segevkrespi8609 yeah it's when you enter the hospital on the right side without being caught

@sailren179 2 месяца назад

"players are forced to reckon with their discomfort and biases" that right there.

@HakuYuki001 2 месяца назад

And as gamers do, they immediately retreated back into their shells whilst screaming they are the victim of "woke" writers.

@tink6225 2 месяца назад

and they still do till this day

@ZaZaa-g9z Месяц назад

@@moonmoon2479 Objectively speaking it did not suck, games that suck don’t win the objectively based awards it won

@sussyslurp Месяц назад

@@HakuYuki001Woke writers can suck, but from what I've seen this narrative seems pretty good, not as good as the first but plot holes and all it tells a story about the damage that occurs in every human's core during a zombie apocalypse.

@whatamidoing4890 19 дней назад

@@HakuYuki001 gonna be completely honest the controversy around the last of us part II made me leave the gaming community. I still play games, but I refuse to interact with any part of the gaming community. the controversy around this game made me realize an overwhelming majority of gamers are so dumb, whiney, and violent that scream woke at literally anything

@Ronphyxia 2 месяца назад

“Thank you TLOU Explained” we say in unison!

@viennapatel7809 2 месяца назад

oh we're eating this month

@RAdams-z2e 2 месяца назад

Eating good

@jewels8655 2 месяца назад

Good soup :)

@tlou_explained 2 месяца назад

stock up on jerky cuz idk when the next one will be

@guisilva9815 2 месяца назад

@@tlou_explained next month, I know 🤓

@Flo-qw4jr 2 месяца назад

@@tlou_explainedHaha as if it’s gonna run out 😂

@BandacootK13 Месяц назад

I think one of my favorite aspects of the story is how, from a players perspective, both the games end the exact same way. With both protagonists deciding not to do the one thing they've spent the whole game trying to do at the last possible second. it's kind of beautiful

@nelsonagarez4268 17 дней назад

I loved TLOU ending and hated TLOU II ending, as it feels forced to me, but never thought about it as parallels. Interesting

@theoutsiderjess1869 10 дней назад

@@nelsonagarez4268 both girls are dealing with the tramua of their dead dads and dont even know it.

@nelsonagarez4268 10 дней назад

@@theoutsiderjess1869 exactly, they should be gal pals, really

@DelCity. 2 месяца назад

Man, i wish I could analyze this game as good as you. In think the reason why TLOU2 story structure is so engaging because it breaks almost every rule in the order of story telling. The story has multiple insighting incidents, and multiple falling actions. Each character gets one. A fake ending and a real ending. It's almost the opposite of Romeo and Julet, where for their's there is one big moment where everyone come crashing down in the last of us it's domino effect that's spread though in world time and in the sequence of storytelling. But that's just how I see it. I don't study it like you do.

@kill4oj 2 месяца назад

your analysis is still really good! i never thought of this as a sort of dark “hate” romeo and juliet, that’s so cool

@bernardodantas1615 Месяц назад

@@laphonz why are you in a video praising the story just to create hate comments?, go fix your face first and then you can talk

@JH-xc9we 2 месяца назад

I hope more people find this video. I tried to argue in favor of the games structure in a comment on another video that was trying to suggest ways to "fix" Abby's story and get you to like her more. The structure might be the game's most misunderstood aspect. Also thank you for bringing up that the game isn't forcing you to like Abby. If that was the intention, they would've never let you play as her to fight Ellie at the end of her section. In the same way, the game is not trying to vilify Joel, which is a similar take I see a lot. The game wants you to learn about who she is, understand her, and explore your willingness to empathize and let go of hatred. Her reasons aren't any more or less valid then Ellie, who we all backed anyway. I grew to really like Abby, but a character doesn't necessarily need to be "likeable" to be a good or great character. And I love how the story took full advantage of the medium as a video game, to truly have us walk a mile in her shoes. Cutting between Ellie and Abby throughout the entire game would've made that a hell of a lot harder to do.

@pastlife960 2 месяца назад

I always wonder why people were so vehemently against playing as Abby. The most common complaint I’ve heard is that the game was ‘trying too hard to make us like her’. But everything in her story shows her to be an extremely flawed, hard to love obsessive who is only now trying to find some light. I wonder if people were angry about the game trying to make us like her or were angry with themselves because they were indeed slowly growing to understand her and why she killed Joel.

@ryanli8371 2 месяца назад

Its possible. But I bet my two cent that a lot of people are generally adamant in the face of being challenged to view the perspective of a different character other than the one they grew to love (Joel). Especially the said character is the one who killed our loved character. I think also people mistake tend to mistake "playing a different character's viewpoint" for "playing a different character to make us like them". Liking them can be an added bonus if you DO end up liking that character. But that is not really the goal. Its really about understanding that character's viewpoint.

@toji6952 2 месяца назад

Definitely the first one, that people are angry at the game trying so hard to appeal to pretty much all of Abby’s pov in the game. They understand what the game was trying to do, but are still criticizing the game for what it actually did, and that’s probably why there’s a split in the fandom even today. People happy with what they got vs people wanting a less polarizing game.

@slickstar96 2 месяца назад

@@toji6952@toji6952 some people wanted another ellie and joel adventure vs other people wanting a challenging philosophical story like the first thats the divide

@jynxycats 2 месяца назад

It's usually self-reporting. Finding a neutral viewpoint on some hot-button issues in life is a difficult personality trait for generally everyone on the planet. Some just don't possess this quality at all though, and will find ways to justify it. It's the game's meta theme, that happens outside the game, as talked about in this video.

@JebediahDurango 2 месяца назад

You’re also not forced to like her at the end of the game. You can understand her reasoning, her past and her search to be better/pursue a better lifestyle as Lev’s guardian. You can understand the game entirely and still not like her due to her own actions. That is also up to the player to choose for themselves.

@gavinjohnson4010 2 месяца назад

WAKE UP BABE TLOU EXPLAINED UPLOADED A NEW VIDEO!!!

@HumBug_05 2 месяца назад

You beat me to this comment smh 😔

@zeato6320 2 месяца назад

So happy you're a writer for games, the industry is so much better because of it!

@euphemiakaterina-vr9fp 2 месяца назад

"While some believe that reordering the story's event would make the story better, it would actually just make it a different story." Oh my god, YES! This bit hit the nail on the head! I have long felt that this game's story IS the way it's told. It so gratifying to see someone else word it this way.

@callymilller Месяц назад

I absolutely love that this was said because it’s got me thinking so much about how the second season of the show will be structured. Noting how Neil’s inspiration for Part II was this exploration of empathy and the comment about changing the structure would change the story altogether makes me wonder if maybe they WILL change the structure for the second season, to keep those who played the game on their toes. A different story, a different moral, etc. but we’ll all still know what happened because we played the game. A part of me wants to think that maybe they’ll put off showing Joel’s end because they got so much backlash for having it at the beginning of the game, but then like it was said, that’d change the story. But like, I’m kind of down to see it all mapped out differently! These characters are so greatly flushed out that it’s almost a shame to not play around with the world Neil built when given the chance.

@blackfalcon2252 2 месяца назад

Never thought to see the game's plot in the same structure as a Shakespearean tragedy and it feels so obvious in retrospect lol. Banger video as always

@lordptk4115 2 месяца назад

I was preparing to write a comment to argue for pretty much the same things as you did, but I think I couldn't have said it any better. I respect Naughty Dog so much for their creative choice to not only ask the question "can ONE emphasize with someone they hate", but asking the player directly "can you?". The game forces you to consider that question and for that to happen, the structure had to be the way it turned out.

@gushmii7851 Месяц назад

Very refreshing take on a 4 years old game. It is a shame there’s people that till this day still hate on it because they hold personal grudges and biases. Loved the video

@aydaybaynay Месяц назад

Something that I noticed at the very end of the video is the parallel to Abby and Joel with the scene of Abby carrying Lev to the beach. It reminded me of the first game when Joel is carrying Sarah away from the madness of the outbreak as well as carrying Ellie away from the hospital. Even though she's walking slower than Joel did in both of those scenes, there's urgency with both of them to take someone that they've considered to be their child and under their care out of a dangerous situation. Ellie knows that Joel cared about her but she never experienced seeing someone in her life ever doing that. Risking life and limb for someone you've sheltered and protected in the world is such a heavy burden. And I don't think how she had been protecting Dina is the same. I think in part it's because when Ellie finds out that Dina is pregnant, she calls her a burden. Which it does create a hardship for Ellie and her goal, but this frames Ellie's perspective as single minded to her own goal unlike Abby and Joel which regardless of their goal, they divert their attention back to who they are protecting to prioritize their well-being. Her perspective does change but not until things have spiraled out of control. This is from a perspective of having children of my own and going from hating to empathizing with both Joel and Abby. Having Ellie witness Abby carrying Lev I think demonstrates that Abby is more similar to Joel than (until that point) Ellie ever had been or potentially could be. And she may never see it until she is placed in that position of caring for someone like that in that way. BTW I love your videos and think they are so amazing to watch.

@SnackMuay 2 месяца назад

Recently, I was watching a tv show and it dawned on me why people are frustrated with TLOU 2. *minor spoilers for the show outlander* I was watching the show outlander which is about a time traveler who spends significant sections of time in the 1700s. At one point there’s a flash forward to our protagonist who has gone back to present day, and she learns the outcome of a great battle that everyone she cared about participated in. Then the show flashes back to her in the 1700s trying to avoid the war or change the outcome. While watching, I found myself extremely frustrated with the flash forward. I wished the show hadn’t teased me with that information, because now I had essentially been spoiled. This made me think back to other extended flashbacks in media and whether or not I’ve felt differently about them or if I’ve been consistently frustrated by this story technique. TLOU was an example of a story where the extended flashback felt almost seamless to me. I was able to set aside my interest in the events at the theater and explore Abby’s experience of Seattle. But perhaps people who find issue with this game are so incredibly invested in the ultimate fate of characters like Abby and Ellie that they’re frustrated by anything that gets in their way of learning more about what will ultimately happen to them. It was interesting for me to get a potential window into the mind of somehow who dislikes this game’s story.

@pastlife960 2 месяца назад

So essentially people are impatient. You’re not wrong

@slickstar96 2 месяца назад

Exactly this, im in camp i like this game but joel death scene and then playing as ellie for hours cemented people's bias, so by the time the switch comes their anger levels is stoked to the highest heights that they just disconnect and start examining abby just as she examine joel in the death scene and the saraphite until she is challenge to question her own thoughts...

@tlou_explained 2 месяца назад

I have so many problems with Outlander lol, especially season 2 for the reason you pointed out. beginning the season with how it ends was a...strange choice lol

@jynxycats 2 месяца назад

I still say to this day that the game has a wild social experiment embedded into it. Gives you a lens into the a person's innerworkings, traits and beliefs.

@JengibreRallado 2 месяца назад

I hear from Neil that the structure also has to make sense on a gameplay perspective. That's why we start with Abby with a new set of weapons and skill trees. The set action pieces are more grandiose because they assume the players have been already playing for hours.

@jynxycats 2 месяца назад

Gameplay dictates story often. A fact that we gamers generally aren't faced with as we aren't out there working on games personally.

@saramckenna9008 Месяц назад

jacksepticeye had asked neil why there wasn’t a back and forth between abby and ellie, and apparently he said it’d make more sense gameplay wise, cause of the new weapons and upgrades and stuff. it wouldn’t be efficient if u keep having to get the same skill set up twice rather than all in one go. also since switching between the two would confuse ppl cause of their difference in gameplay

@blackwidowbrigade5042 2 месяца назад

As someone who wasnt a big fan of TLOU II, your videos always give me an interesting perspective

@elucilin 2 месяца назад

I just want to say how much I appreciate the depth and insight you brought to this video. You’ve managed to capture the intricate layers of “The Last of Us Part II” in a way that truly resonates. I absolutely loved the way you dissected Ellie’s and Abby’s story. The way you highlighted the complexity of their characters, and how the game forces us to see the world through their eyes was amazing. Thank you for creating such a thoughtful and heartfelt analysis. It’s videos like yours that remind me why I love stories like TLOU2 so much.

@TheMarine316 2 месяца назад

I loved the structure of the game from start to finish.

@mauriciopitta 2 месяца назад

I don't know if the last moment is a subversion of tragedy conventions. At least considering Greek tragedy, it seems to me more of a full realization of the convention. Ellie is like Oedipus: when (spoiler alert for a work with more than 2000 years) Oedipus learns he's a patricide and has committed incest with Jocasta, he pierces his eyes. It's the catastrophe: the moment where he loses everything, but also the moment where the possibility of lucidity emerges. Ellie loses her two fingers, together with Dina and her link with Joel (playing the gee-tar); but it is at this moment that she can begin to reconcile with her past and make life anew.

@tlou_explained 2 месяца назад

Totally, I think the catharsis comes from the character having reached rock bottom in whatever way and the only way they can go from there is up

@Gabriel-Tár 2 месяца назад

I guess it makes no difference whether Ellie killed Abby or not. I think Ellie intended to kill her, when she landed the knife blows it could have actually slashed her jugular. They were fighting for their lives and I think Ellie was even ready to die in the fight herself. But Abby's luck was being able to disarm Ellie and lead her to drown her. I believe the drowning was the reason Ellie hesitated to kill Abby. Drowning someone who is looking at your face is something extremely difficult to do, it may be the hardest kill for a human being to pull off. In another universe, Ellie slashed Abby's jugular and she bled to death shortly after. Yet Ellie's story would have been the same, because there are people far more innocent than Abby on her conscience.

@oscillis Месяц назад

@@Gabriel-Tár It makes an entire difference if Ellie had killed Abby. Abby is the one on her conscience, the one that beat Joel to death IN FRONT OF HER, the source of her PTSD is through Joel and Abby. In Abby's story, which you consciously for some reason choose to avoid to think about in how you explain yourself here, you know that Abby killing Joel for killing her dad did nothing but hurt Abby's mental state worse, because her friends distanced themselves from her. Abby was losing friends left and right, they were a part of her pain from the Fireflies and her dad. Instead of continuing on her self-destruction, the destruction of countless kids and elderly or all of the innocents on the Scar's side, she was forced to see a different perspective before she could die. She was saved by her enemy. She was forced to consider a different path rather than death and destruction all around, and that's what made her start healing from her pain and trauma. By the time Ellie met up with Abby the third time, at the ending sequence, Ellie had lost a lot of blood and was severely wounded and verging on the brink of mental destruction. After killing Abby and returning to an empty home, Ellie would have killed herself. Maybe even before she returned to where Dina had previously stayed. She would have had nothing left. She would NOT have been able to forgive herself for the death of Joel, nor would she forgive herself for killing a protector of a kid much like Ellie in the first game. No humanity. No family. Nothing. This is a circle of destruction, that Ellie knew deep down wouldn't help her feel better. She needed to know, though. And the pain kept going to a higher extreme the more Abby and Ellie fought, because causing pain to try to heal pain will not work. It will only create more pain. Ellie's story would have been completely different if she had killed Abby. Abby's story would have been different if she had killed Ellie and Dina back at the cinema, or Ellie back when she found Joel. Ellie let go of her pain and trauma when she let go of Abby. She forgave Joel, she forgave herself. She still kept ahold of her humanity. Do you still think that killing Abby would change NOTHING?

@Gabriel-Tár Месяц назад

@@oscillis Sure! I understand what you mean. And I'm also glad that Ellie spared Abby, I wasn't denying that. Allow me to explain my thought better. Ellie's future is uncertain, after the fight with Abby all we see is her returning to the empty farm and leaving. Personally, I don't have any idea for an alternate epilogue, in case she had killed Abby. I'm curious to know what other epilogue scene you had in mind! Feel free to share. The only other important scene in the epilogue is the flashback of her and Joel's last conversation, but that happened in the past. Ellie had that memory from the beginning. Here too, whether she killed Abby or not, nothing would change. As I say in my comment, the fact that Ellie was killing Abby through drowning, and in a situation where Abby was extremely vulnerable and already half dead is something extremely fortuitous. These fortuitous factors definitely precipitated Ellie's realization that what she was doing wasn't right. What if Abby hadn't been kidnapped by the Rattlers and Ellie had found her living peacefully on her beached sailboat? What would they have done? I don't think they would have chatted in that scenario. We know that Ellie would kill Abby in the theater, because the "Game Overs" show Ellie killing Abby, so it's canon that Ellie had the intent to kill in the theater, and the only reason why she doesn't do it it's because Abby has the upper hand. But Ellie was definitely going to kill her. Furthermore, since during the last fight Ellie strikes violent knife blows against Abby, even impaling her chest, it means that in this case too Ellie goes there with the intention of killing Abby, and even almost does it given the wounds she inflicts on her. Ellie goes to Santa Barbara with the intent of killing Abby. We know that Ellie does this because she has PTSD and can no longer sleep, eat, etc. But she believes killing Abby is the solution to stop this disorder. Because if she knew from the beginning that the solution was to forgive her, Joel and herself, and let everything go, well, she wouldn't have gone to Santa Barbara and left Dina and JJ. That's the point. What I said so far is the reality that the game shows, I didn't add anything of my own interpretation. Now I'll add something that isn't in the game, but it was revealed in some Behind the Scenes documentary. In Neil Druckmann's original script, Ellie killed Abby. And that was the case for most of the game's development. It was Halley Gross who, when it came time to shoot the scene, changed the script at the last minute because it was too dark for Ellie. And Neil Druckmann eventually agreed. The reason a change like that can be made so late in development is precisely because it has no effect on the rest of the script. The story works regardless of that last minute change of heart. That's why Neil Druckmann wrote the ending like that initially. It put Ellie in the same spot Abby was at the beginning of the story. Abby can realize it late, but Ellie must realize it before? Why? If anything, this ending makes Ellie better than Abby, but it doesn't make her less guilty, because in the end Ellie has killed many people, guilty of being Abby's companions, such as Nora, Owen, Mel and their unborn child. So, you think that letting Abby go will make that unborn child that Ellie has killed come back to life? Obviously Ellie is going to suffer for her revenge quest regardless of Abby. Are Nora, Owen, Mel and the unborn child forgettable secondary human lives? Is Abby's life worth more than them? Would Ellie have made the situation worse? Yeah, but does this fix everything? Absolutely not. It fixes less than you think. Ellie is still going to experience the consequences of her choice. She left Dina, which is horrendous, the worst thing Ellie has done in the entire game (after the torture), and so Dina left her. She let Abby go, though. What changed? Is that going to be Ellie's excuse to ask for Dina's forgiveness? She made the decision to leave to kill Abby and whether she killed her or not doesn't matter to anyone. Ellie doesn't even know one single thing about Abby other than her name and her being a former Firefly. Just like Abby didn't know anything about Joel. We empathized with Joel and now we empathize with Abby, but neither Abby nor Ellie had the chance to even know who these people they wanted to kill were, so the intent to kill them stayed pretty much intact and constant through time. Between Ellie's Day 3 and Santa Barbara we experienced Abby's days, but Ellie didn't. So Ellie still hated Abby as much as she, and we players, did at the end of Ellie's Day 3. Let's say, Abby wanted to kill Joel, but instead of doing that, ended up killing Ellie, Maria, Tommy, Jesse, Dina and her unborn child, BUT let Joel go at the last minute because she has this sudden realization that violence is not the answer and that Joel is just a poor old man. Would that make Abby suddenly not in need of a redemption arc? Would her nightmares suddenly stop? Would her relationship with Owen be suddenly fixed? No. That's the same thing for Ellie. Wouldn't Ellie have had the same bitter realization that the solution to everything was forgiveness even if she had killed Abby after finding her chilling in her sailboat instead of hanging half-dead from a pillar? Wasn’t that empty house already waiting for her? Wasn’t that memory of Joel already there since the beginning? Seriously, what would have changed?

@jakekilemade3313 2 месяца назад

This is probably the most well explained story-beat explanation ive seen. Bravo

@ec949 2 месяца назад

I love the structure of TLOU2 and non-linear storytelling in general. One of my favourite shows is Lost which also has a "climax" halfway through the show which turns out only to be the midpoint.

@sk8ermGs Месяц назад

And that show became terrible

@artemis_liz7096 2 месяца назад

Just started the video, but I loved the switch to Abby halfway through. The game took my emotions and directed them where they wanted to take me. This is why the game is the GOAT for me, because it was an experience.

@andychoiboy 10 дней назад

This is a beautifully written essay on TLOU2. Thank you.

@tlou_explained 2 месяца назад

i dont know where the song at the end went lol??? bruh

@ImUnchartedsoya-neverknow 2 месяца назад

I hate when that happens when i try to make a video and it just ain't going right

@Daren_PNW 2 месяца назад

reading this comment after the video i started questioning if it's the same person haha 😅

@tlou_explained 2 месяца назад

@@Daren_PNW once I get all the professionalism out of the way with the video I just vibe

@Pastelsnek 2 месяца назад

Lowkey, its kinda nice, its like a one on one with you as a person. With the music it would just feel like an outro

@ManiacKiki 2 месяца назад

Your analysis are always always so inspiring for me because no one, literally no one has analyzed this game in such a deep way. The Last Of Us 2 is a game that seriously needs this quality of study. It has so many layers to explore in its visuals, environments, gameplay and of course, the story. That's why everything on this game has such a level of detail. I am so serious, you are so inspiring to me, you take so much time to analyze each detail of this story and you always make my experience even better about this game even more than how much I loved it at first. Really thank you really really much for this.

@Wattywatasaurus 2 месяца назад

I like to say that both characters have specific tableaus that take place at the climax of their respective character arcs, and in turn at key points in the story. The first tableau is when Abby escapes the Seraphite island. It’s the moment where she and Lev ride through abject carnage , dodging burning buildings and crossfire between two warring factions that both hate them, and row away, escaping a literal inferno of hate blazing behind them, illuminating people viciously slaughtering each other. The second takes place at the beach in Santa Barbara, where Ellie and Abby have lost all their weapons, are both practically at death’s door and are still trying to kill each other, at the end of a violent and bitter feud that has almost destroyed them. Those tableaus, to my mind, are the key climactic moments in the story. And neither of them would be as dramatically striking if there hadn’t been the total immersion that the structure offered.

@MrWhchrd 2 месяца назад

I completely agree! I hope they don't change the structure for the show.

@scottrigby5627 2 месяца назад

Rapidly becoming my favourite RU-vid channel. Elite content every single time.

@tamatebako_yt Месяц назад

Yes! 💯

@WhatchaGot2Say 2 месяца назад

The most rewarding TLOU 2 explanation video I’ve ever seen.

@aamarts6439 2 месяца назад

THANK YOU!!! I always see people criticize the structure of Part 2 but the structure of the story and the order in which we're shown events is SO INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT to the story!!! It is so important to play through all of our "hero" Ellie's section and see her becoming a sort of "villain" and then swap to our "villain" and witness her becoming a "hero". If you change the structure of the story you change the story itself. I very much hope that the TV series follows the same pattern of the game. An excellent analysis video ❤

@Nappy-pp9jh Месяц назад

Thank you your in-depth videos. People hated this game so much when it came out, but I was blown away how it successfully manipulated my emotions. I loved it from day one, it’s better than the 1st.

@oldmothslight 2 месяца назад

As someone who's *_special interest_* is TLOU, this channel is a *_huge_* comfort for me. Seriously, its a whole channel about this specific thing that's so deeply important to me. Kid (me) meets candy store (this channel). I've been a fan of this world since I was 12 years old, and I'm almost 24 now. I couldn't have asked for a better sequel to a game like TLOU, and I genuinely wouldn't have changed a single thing about it. So it's so nice to see people analyzing this story for what it is. Even though I totally agreed with you even going into this video that the structure of the game is VITALLY important to the story itself, you brought things up in this video I had never even considered as factors for that. I'm so excited to see how this storyline is handled in the show, what will change and what will stay the same, and if that'll be for better or worse. I also admittedly can't wait to see your videos about it lmao. Love your content

@madelynricket 2 месяца назад

TLOU has been a hyperfixation of mine for almost a year now so I understand-- it feels so demoralizing when people just tear down the second game. I love the way this channel approaches it's analyses with love for the game and of the story.

@aryan7767 5 дней назад

@@madelynricket most people who tear down the second game dont come from well intentions tbh. theyre regurgitating opinions of stupid people online who have many subscribers. yes this games story is definitely difficult emotionally and it is DRAINING, but thats the point of the story. remember how people used to make fun of audience members for hating a movie simply cause it has a sad ending, even if it is masterfully executed?? same type of reaction to this game. and obviously we cant ignore the alt right hijacking any normal discussion of this game

@Storm87778 2 месяца назад

The impact certain moments have wouldn't have the same impact if the story was just spoon fed to us. We'd know oh Joel is about to die. It's the not knowing until time allows the answers to be revealed. It feels more imersive how this game was executed. Thank you so much for this. ❤TLOU

@Anonymous-vb7fw 2 месяца назад

These videos are so comforting, thank you for making them

@sytheion169 Месяц назад

This was a fantastic analysis of perhaps the best written story I’ve ever seen. Loved your rationale and the way you present it. Beautifully put!

@kassadingdong 2 месяца назад

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THIS. Every time someone tries to criticize the structure of this game, I am just absolutely baffled - there IS NO WAY to structure this game better than it was done and have it tell the same story and cause the same emotions. If it were any other way you would not be 100% behind Ellie’s vengeance, and interrupting that with random Abby days would be insanely confusing and would not result in the ultimate goal of “I like both of these girls and don’t want either one to die, please stop it you two.” There is only one way to appropriately tell this story, and it is the one they did. Thank you for being basically the only youtuber to see that!! ❤

@kobeyhaywood0 Месяц назад

I love the structure of the game. The way information was revealed to to the player completely enhances the game. The way they play with expectations and recontextualized events with flashbacks was masterful. That final flash back hit me like no other story has before.

@clubnightmare 2 месяца назад

i’ve been a last of us fan since i was 8 years old; i turn 19 this coming thursday and i wanted to say that finding your channel has solidified my decision of becoming a communications major (concentration tv. and film). i may not end up having half the mind to do media essays/analysis on youtube, but i strive to work and think the way you do in order to be in spaces like naughty dog. you’re amazing and you’re appreciated ❤.

@cherryredcola 2 месяца назад

seeing the game i hold nearest and dearest to my heart get this type of analysis is such a gift. thank you TLOUE, you don't ever miss with these

@eyalruf Месяц назад

Can't help myself from crying from every one of your videos. This story is the biggest goldmine of emotions and compelling narrative. Too good to be real. Please, please keep making 'em.

@elenamunro5720 2 месяца назад

I love so much that your channel was the first one i saw that talked about TLOU when I played for the first time a couple months back - pointing out how genuinely clever, deep and beautiful this story is has been so amazing for me - going beyond the surface level 'this game is about revenge' like so many, pointing out its more about forgiveness, explaining the subplots and relationships with Abby, Mel, Owen, and even Dina has been amazing, and only deepens my appreciation. I LOVED when I played and I immediately knew what ND was going for, asking me to empathize with someone I was meant to hate, and seeing if I could even feel happy for them if they try to be a better person??? I think Part 2 may well be my favourite game of all time, despite how stressed I was playing it, and it's definitely been helped by your analysis, thank you! It's become a special interest for me in the last few months since I played for the first time, and your content is just so damn good and well written. I would personally love to see a discussion about Jesse and his characters purpose - he's a bit of a background character but I'm sure there's a lot to him I just can't see, plus the symbolism of Seattle and the dreary weather being a forecast (hehe) of the story to come and how bleak the futures are for everyone and how the rain changes with the story!!!! There was one channel that mentions this, but TLOU P2 was only talked about really, really briefly and I think you'd nail it.

@alyssa01825 Месяц назад

I’m replaying tlou2 and it’s just a masterpiece

@rubemortenson1724 11 дней назад

Best game ever made, imo. Improved upon the gameplay of the first game in almost every way. People don't have to love the story... but those who say it's "bad writing" are honestly just butthurt over not liking the story. Lmao. I don't usually use that word because it's generally so dismissive. But the story is VERY well written. Whether you like it or not.

@malachifreedman3975 2 месяца назад

I don’t know what, but something about TLOU II’s story really clicked with me. I get that there are problems, but I’m the type of person that can suspend my disbelief of the coincidences and just truly enjoy something. Everything that TLOU II tried to convey to my conveyed it perfectly. I was shocked at Joel’s death, I hated Abby with a passion, I felt good killing Abby’s friends, and resented having to play as her. At first I was playing through Abby just to try to finish the game, and then I really ended up sympathizing for her and understanding her. I liked her relationship with Lev, I hated Mel, I didn’t want Ellie to kill Abby at the end, and sighed with relief when she didn’t. I honestly liked TLOU II more than I liked the first game. While the pacing and structure did aggravate me at first, I thought it really did its job well and communicated the story to me in the way it wanted me to understand it.

@tamatebako_yt Месяц назад

I think you should watch another video on this channel. Mel is often misunderstood and doesn't deserve the unfair amount of hate she's getting.

@malachifreedman3975 Месяц назад

@@tamatebako_yt So I just watched the video, and yeah I stand corrected. The points made a lot of sense.

@tamatebako_yt Месяц назад

@@malachifreedman3975 Lovely! Glad I could change your mind, at least a little. :3 tysm

@omas1178 2 месяца назад

I find it really interesting how the structure offers one story split between 2 characters. We start playing as someone pursuing violence and then we're following someone that deals with the ramifications of the violence they commited. God i do love this game

@PyrrhusofEpirus-g9u 2 месяца назад

Wow, your TLOU videos are on another level. The depth and breadth of your analysis are truly unparalleled-I've never seen anything like it. If I were an executive at Naughty Dog, I'd hire you in a heartbeat!

@flatpacked 2 месяца назад

I HAVE NEVER BEEN SO EARLY I HAVE NEVER BEEN SO EXCITED!! welcome back!!

@rachellily 2 месяца назад

I am SO happy I found your channel. TLOU is my special interest and having someone who is also so passionate about it’s story and characters is so exciting for me. Your videos are PHENOMENALLY good. Comparing Part 2 to Romeo and Juliet is a stroke of genius. Can’t wait to see your next deep dive!

@omarsharief3848 18 дней назад

I bought over 100 games on PSN store. Haven’t really finished about 95% of them. But it’s this game that keeps pulling me back in! The emotion and feelings in this game was heartfelt! Once ended, I had to play it a second time to experience it again and it felt different second time around.

@child.of.turmoil 2 месяца назад

Absolutely beautiful summary. This is ultimately my most beloved game. There is truly no story, that I’ve ever played, which has gotten under my skin as tlou2. There is indeed no words to describe, how I felt whilst playing this game for the first time.

@paddyladdie. 5 дней назад

Losing her fingers was like losing the last piece of Joel she could have held onto. She could no longer play the thing he promised to teach her. She left the guitar behind just like she'll have to leave Joel behind to move on with her life.

@calhoungames 16 дней назад

I went into TLOU Pt2 with the knowledge of people’s criticism of the structure. Though after the games end it became one of my favorite stories of all time. I think we need more games that challenge us with their stories.

@celestehaslett1995 Месяц назад

Perfectly said. This is exactly how i’ve always felt about this game and why i think it is an incredible experience to play

@guilhermegomes2668 15 дней назад

It's amazing to see how Poetic by Aristoteles has an impact on storytelling even now. TLOU 2 has an amazing narrative!

@GamingTree990 2 месяца назад

Real shit, I was the player that was intentionally dying when I first switched to Abby. But goddamn is Ellie scary to play against and I was really annoyed/relieved to finally beat the shit out of her back at the theater. Fucked up how all that goes

@madelynricket 2 месяца назад

Saaaame except i was intentionally dying and crying when i realized i had to fight Ellie. i was distraught

@logarugamon2645 16 дней назад

There’s only 2 things I’d have changed about TLOU2 1. Every time there’s an arena change in the theater fight the player character switches back and forth between Ellie and Abbey. 2. There should have been a section where we play as Abbey again where she tries and fails to escape the prison with Lev at the end and that’s how she ended up on the post where Ellie finds her.

@dachless Месяц назад

great video, I havent seen anyone explain TLOU story like this and it has shed a new light to me as to why Naughtdog did what they did with the structure

@MarceloGarcia9 10 дней назад

This game is a masterpiece in storytelling. It is the biggest gut-punch and dares to ask “can you forgive?”. The most difficult thing for a human being to do

@rupertmcbutters1748 Месяц назад

Beautifully done.

@gotthatthangonme6644 Месяц назад

This was a beautifully well told explanation of the story of The Last of Us

@ellielvrsss 15 дней назад

I think the show is gonna beautifully depict this arc. Craig has said the game will mot likely be stretched into more than 3 seasons. Season two focuses on the prologue and Ellie’s revenge, light Abby details included. Season 3 focuses on the midpoint and Abby’s storyline along with here revenge, season 4 rounds off the whole show into a gorgeous epilogue

@rubemortenson1724 11 дней назад

Let's not forget that ND is working on TLOU3

@haddonbarker1 Месяц назад

I've always found it baffling when I've seen people say that the story should have unfolded in chronological order - my first thought in response was always "Clearly you know nothing about story structure." This video is a fantastic breakdown. Thank you for making it and sharing it. :) Not every experience will work for everybody, but no other piece of art has moved me to the degree that The Last of Us Part II did. To me, it's an absolute masterpiece.

@universome511 2 месяца назад

When I played this game I had the exact opposite problem as everyone else I just went oh ok she's mad about her dad, same as Ellie, wants revenge, fair enough got it If you just naturally skip over the struggle session that makes up the theme because of your instincts it loses a lot of the reasons to complain or fawn others had I did think the ending about how she has to get over forgiving Joel more so then getting revenge was interesting and original

@tlou_explained 2 месяца назад

No same! I mean I was shocked but mostly because I couldn't believe this game had the balls to do what it was doing. I was SO excited to play as Abby and learn what her reasons were. As soon as I connected the dots about her dad I was like OH I get it.

@universome511 2 месяца назад

@@tlou_explained I actually predicted that because you didn't see her at all or any of the other crew more then once during the Elle Missions. Add on that they were writing them as more fully themed characters, she's mentioned doing other stuff off screen and the hour or so you get to set up Abby at the start and I was not remotely surprised when the switch happened. So when a lot of people got mad when that happened I thought ah this is the part where it happens It reminded me of the time I met a guy who predicted the twist in the sixth sense so he was just sitting in the theatre knowing what would happen before the ending actually occured But hey I knew Joel was dead for sure at the start of the Announcement trailer so I guess this was always how it was going to be for me

@Ren-fo4lg 2 месяца назад

Never been so early and so excited for a video! Thank you for making another insightful essay.

@andrewstewart95 20 дней назад

The ongoing thought that seems to come up in defense of this game is idea that people don't understand it, and that's why they don't like it. I understand the story, and I fully believe Neil achieved exactly what he was aiming to create; I just think what he made wasn't good. Super good video, and I enjoyed your in depth interpretation.

@oranski3299 2 месяца назад

I say this on every video, just wow. Every point made so well. Perspectives I've yet to consider, and those I have, framed and explained so eloquently. Truly every video on this channel is a gift

@JohnSmith-mz2zo 2 месяца назад

Thank you so much for these eloquent and illuminating analyses. These have quickly become some of my most favourite and replayed game analyses AND video essays. You have a very effective way of presenting theses and do so in a way non-belittling of the viewer. Ty ❤❤

@AmandaRiu_1 2 месяца назад

Another excellent video! Thank you for your high-quality and inspiring content. I love the these deep-dives - I learn something new each time and learn to appreciate the brilliance of this game at a whole new level. People are always astonished that I actually prefer TLOU2 over the first one. I loved the first one, it will always hold a special place in my heart, but it's hard to let go of the emotional ride TLOU2 took me on. It challenged me in so many ways. By the time Ellie was trying to drown Abby towards the end I was screaming at the TV and crying and wishing this insanity would just end! I'd never played a game like that before...that forced me into such emotional turmoil.

@Macheeoo33 17 дней назад

This was a brilliant explaination on the 2nd game's story and structure. I think even reframing our understanding the story as a "tragedy" rather than a heroic narrative with tracgic moments like the first game, or most games with a hero/protagonist, goes a long way in the player understanding the point of the story. Great video 🎉

@PrimeParadiso 10 дней назад

As someone who only enjoyed the game at a mechanical level and felt like the writing held back so many other aspects of the game, just gotta say this is a really good video essay and one of the few that takes criticism a lot of fans had to give of the game as valid beyond “being haters” and opened some real discussion in the comments. Great work!

@kevinfunkhouser4707 Месяц назад

This was beautifully put together great job.

@Blag_Cog Месяц назад

Its very satisfying to see someone else has the same perspective as myself after 4 years. I am a staunch defender of the game but I also recognize the pacing problems. I would say though that the part at 6:25 where you say we are reaching the middle is presented as a climax (a fake one ofc) and then instead of moving upwards to the real climax, it restarts us at the ground. In my opinion that is where the pacing issues begin, and as much as I value the first section where you play as young abby saving a zebra its just a heavy handed way of executing that transition compared to the incredible climactic anticipation that is built up in most players at that point. It wasn't until Abby woke up on day 1 that I felt we had actually been calibrated back on track for the storytelling. And at that point its not only reseting the 3 days in seattle its also resetting your building up your character. I feel this would have been executed better if the game said "End of Act 1" or "End of Chapter 1" when it cuts from Abby holding up Ellie at the theater, and then sending us all the way back to the menu where it reveals we have unlocked a new chapter (kind of like Left Behind sat in the menu of TLOUpt1, or how No Return sits in TLOUpt2r). This way the player is both intrigued as to what comes next because they feel like they unlocked something AND it feels less jarring to start a character all over again because we essentially started a new game. Obviously thats just my opinion.

@jynxycats 2 месяца назад

Babe wake up, a new TLOUe video dropped

@Eclipses915 Месяц назад

I love this game so much I feel most people need a opened mind to really get into it

@ellielvrsss 15 дней назад

If I had this video back in freshman year when I was studying Romeo and Juliet for English I would’ve understood it so much better. You put my special interest into it and hot damn I’ll eat if off the palm of ur hand

@blakecovington6128 24 дня назад

I am so glad you made this video analysis walking through the importance of the structure for this incredibly innovative and powerful narrative story. Thank you for your time, effort, and thoughtfully detailed discussion. I’ve been a gamer my whole life, but this is the first game that I felt everyone should play, not because of the violence, but because of the empathy experience it forces you to undergo. I think globally we could all improve the world if everyone was taught empathy in school, the same way we’re taught other subjects. And I think Neil Druckmann is a genius for putting together a game that attempts to give people a journey in empathy where the stakes are this high. I think your commentary absolutely nailed it! I hope the structure really challenged some people who maybe don’t venture into the realm of empathy very often to find it within themselves to forgive all characters involved. I really hope that the HBO show can find a way to challenge viewers to do the same and go deep to find empathy for those they hate, I hope the show can encourage people who might be on opposing sides to open up to others people’s perspectives and start developing more empathy. The last of us is about so much more than zombies and that’s what makes it so powerful. that’s why it’s so critically acclaimed. It’s about: “these people are not like us. Those people are not like us” and how that kind of thinking makes us create barriers between each other and go against each other, and feel like we are justified in whatever we do to the other because we’re taking care of our people and they are not like us. They are not our people. When instead, we should be seeing how we are all US. We are all the same. We are all love and wanting to be loved and we should show each other that love we all crave, that kindness we all need, that support we all deserve. We are all us

@senencito 9 дней назад

What a spectacular analysis. I’ve always loved this game , but this just adds a lot of valuable information to the why of the story. Loved it.

@dudu_tuga_2002 Месяц назад

Amazing vid! As a huge TLoU fan that doesn't understand art and storytelling it's always amazing to see why I love this story so much and why it works so well in me, thanks a lot for these analysis!!! Can't wait to see more 🙃

@maxim5690 2 месяца назад

Haven't watched a whole lot of this video yet but I think this is the first one I've caught shortly after it came out so wanted to leave a comment expressing my appreciation for your channel. I think I've watched basically every other video (especially the more video-essay-type analysis pieces) and loved all of them. I had played the remastered TLOU back in 2015 or 2016, after which it became probably my all-time favorite game until I played part 2, which mesmerized me from the moment I picked it up (I think sometime in the Spring of 2022 -- miraculously I had managed to avoid both spoilers and even being aware of the reactions and discourse the game had prompted). Part 2 had a profound and lasting effect on me, and I still think about it often, and I find that almost every time I engage with it in any way I notice some new interesting detail, some shade of meaning, some deft bit of storycraft, etc. which somehow deepens its significance even further. As a result, I have definitely spent a good deal of time (honestly too much lol) perusing commentary on the game, both out of curiosity about what insights other people have or what significance the game has to them and also occasionally some weird masochistic impulse to listen to some sweaty gamer bro rail against how the game was "ruined by woke" and all that (no idea why I do this to myself). There's definitely a lot of good stuff out there, but I wanted to say that I've consistently found your commentary to be the most interesting, the most insightful, and the best articulated (for starters) by a *significant* margin, and I really hope you keep making these videos so long as you feel you have something you want to say. I don't know what platform would be good for it but I genuinely think you could turn these videos into to some excellent (non-video) essays too. Anyway I should stop myself now; I might leave another wall of text more pertinent to the actual video after I watch it. tl;dr good shit, love to see it, keep it up,

@The_Story_Of_Us 8 дней назад

What people won’t acknowledge when talking about the flashbacks in this game is that they aren’t placed arbitrarily. Yes they’re placed for the sake of pacing, but their placement is also KEY to understanding and framing the current events. I can prove this by the way, after the second flashback where Joel stonewalls and gaslights her about the Fireflies, Ellie, deep in thought, asks Dina why she didn’t tell Jesse she’s pregnant. So there, proof of what I’m talking about, which is that the flashbacks you watch are the thoughts and memories of the character experiencing them at that point in time. The flashbacks in Ellie’s section are key to understanding how she’s processing (or not processing) her grief about Joel. For Abby they’re absolutely key to understanding her relationship with Owen and how her obsession with Joel ruined her. The story NEEDS these flashbacks where they are and they are multipurpose in story and pacing, it really isn’t an area of the game that warrants criticism. My explanation? It’s just an ad hoc excuse, a scapegoat. People refuse to engage with Abby’s side of the fence or with much of anything after Joel’s death and so they justify their own wilful disengagement by blaming the game for it, but they often can’t pretend to be objective if they just say they checked out because Joel died, so they start fabricating criticisms that just don’t hold up to scrutiny. Sadly this sort of thinking is endemic to humanity, rationalizing instead of engaging and understanding our own feelings.

@jonathanslater5643 2 месяца назад

Commenting and liking for the algorithm! Thank you for these videos, I'm so happy someone out there is doing real analyses on this game, its structure/themes, and how fans react to its content. There are so many low effort videos out there just lazily rehashing the same "controversy points", your channel is truly a breath of fresh air!

@skincrawlbaby Месяц назад

I know it’s been used in theory but comparing tlou to Shakespeare feels truly correct. It will absolutely go down with the same legacy. Amazing video as usual ❤

@surcrumplefart 2 месяца назад

i'm so glad you make these videos. it's one thing to analyze tlou2 but then to dedicate all this time to dissecting the game is a brilliant choice of narrative taste especially given there isn't much like the tlou franchine (narratively) out there rn. im so glad we are seeing such an appreciation of this game and that hopefully neil and halley, and the rest of the devs who helped see this and feel even further proud of what they made

@MANTRAPLAYSGAMES 19 дней назад

Awesome, thank you for making 🙏

@emporioalnino4670 12 дней назад

This is what my take on the game has been but I haven't been able to put into words. Probably the biggest critique I see is the structure is unconventional but that's what makes TLOU2 so interesting! Really great video here! Will check out your others

@Jellybob69 2 месяца назад

On a technical level this is the single greatest game ever made, and it being paired with such an ambitious and unique story makes the entire experience unforgettable. For those of us who, y’know, actually played it.

@nklan7 2 месяца назад

i binged all of your videos yesterday im so happy u uploaded a new one YIPEE i love your analyses so much

@smokeyskeet1694 2 месяца назад

Man I cried anytime I tried to have a conversation about this game for 6 months after it came out. It was one of my most intense hyperfixations. Now I just have a regular obsession with it.

@theoutsiderjess1869 10 дней назад

I love that Ellie didnt actually forgive Abby but rather herself and that was my favorite part of the game. She had every reason to be mad at Joel and the day she finally forgave him Joel dies. Which is tragic. I also believe that playing as Abby first wont be a betrayal. If we saw Joel as the monster in Abby's pov it wouldnt be a betrayal it would be inevitable.

@miguelfg98 Месяц назад

Single greatest story ever told

@DinaSupremacy 2 месяца назад

LOVE this series, your way with words is just so good I can't stop listening to you lol

@yosos2 14 дней назад

Great video this a very common and baffling argument, like sure the story would be different if the structure was different that's the freaking point

@eleanorkim0390 Месяц назад

I am so glad you made a video about TLOU structure, it is so important!! THIS is the best analysis of the game I have ever seen. Its explained so clearly and really puts into perspective the tragic aspect of the story we are experiencing here. It is so hard for people to accept that a game wanted to portray TRAGEDY, the death of a protagonist, the complexity of human relationships, the sense of injustice. But its so tragically beautiful. This game has my heart.

@carlgriff 2 месяца назад

As soon as it switched to Abby I remember being so excited that we’d be able to see how she got to Ellie in the theatre. I wanted to see how she found her friends, how narrowly she might have missed bumping into Ellie, and I wanted to why she did what she did. I adore the pacing

@carlgriff 2 месяца назад

It also just wouldn’t work if the days alternated. We’re supposed to go on the journey of blind revenge with Ellie. If we know about Abby, we can’t follow those emotions with Ellie.

@lungfulldrummer8921 10 дней назад

When the switch happened I remember excitedly thinking "oh we're doing this. Let's see where this goes" I never understood the whole trying to hard to make you like abby critique. Maybe it comes from discomfort, because players see she's just a normal girl and not a monster.