Trailer Impressions: The Last of Us Part II – PlayStation Experience 2016: Reveal Trailer

I played The Last of Us when it first came out and I can easily say that the story told there is one of the best I have ever experienced in a video game. I am also in the camp that the ending was excellent and no sequel is necessary. Fast forward to Playstation Experience 2016, we get a cinematic trailer of The Last of Us Part II, and yes it was amazing, but I am a bit concerned. There are certain ambiguities, open questions, themes, and moral dilemmas to the whole story in The Last of Us that a story that answers or re-answers some of the questions in a sequel could ruin the first game’s importance to various themes, particularly the role of the Fireflies, Ellie, and the end of the game. (I’ll be generous and not provide spoilers.)

Having said all the above, the trailer was very well done, and as discussed in the Playstation Experience panel, it was filmed to be a trailer. The Last of Us Part II is in very early stages, but the trailer does give good nuggets to think about. I’m on the side that believes in the trailer Joel is dead, and the overall theme of the game will be Ellie (confirmed to be 19-years old) getting revenge for Joel’s death. The guitar playing and singing in the trailer is excellent. You can see a bunch of tattoos on Ellie’s arm, which I’m curious to know the backstory of. All in all, an excellent job on the trailer front by Naughty Dog to get people talking about a game that is years away.