The Last of Us: PS3 Demo Review
Platform: PS3
Released by Naughty Dog and Sony Computer Entertainment
It's fair to say
Naughty Dog has one of the most anticipated titles of the year with post apocalyptic title,
The Last of Us.
I've already had a bit of
hands on time with the first Last of Us demo back in March, and it's completely honest to say that the demo more than got me excited for the actual release in June. So, when a code dropped offering me a beta preview of two of the factions of the finalised game, it would have been stupid to turn them down.
Based on initial perceptions and demonstration of the demo, it's clear that Naughty Dog have got a real hit on their hands. As you may already know, the game is an action-adventure-survival-horror story centring on two characters, Joel and young charge Ellie, who are on an Earth where a fungal infection has swept the world, turning some survivors into really nasty creatures, desperate to chew your face off and rip out your throat.
In this beta demo, you take on the third person role of Joel (there's no indication yet that you can take control of Ellie as well, though it'd be a safe bet that this is not a real possibility given how the AI works for her) and you get to choose between two stages of the game - Lincoln or Pittsburgh.
Starting with
Lincoln, first, the game transports you to woods as the duo cut through the land into the outskirts of a compound. Swiping supplies on the way (this is a survival game after all) you have to build up an inventory of health and weaponry as you go. But weapons are not as easy to find to be honest - and what you do have in firearms, comes at a cost.
There are no infinite bullets here, merely a scattered handful here and there, meaning you have to plan your attacks more effectively than simply shooting without any sense of precision or aim.
It does mean that bottles and bricks become a weapon or a chance to distract the infected as they wander around you. Clickers, as I've already described them, are
humans with a cross between a piece of popcorn, a mushroom and a horror mask for heads - and they're completely deadly if they find you. Though, they can be bashed with a melee weapon. In one particular moment, I wasted six bullets trying to kill a clicker, before deciding on an old fashioned bow and arrow - when one arrow killed the thing dead immediately, I'd become frustrated that I'd lost six bullets that I could potentially use later.
Moving around the compound, a combination of climbing and using planks to traverse the rooftops, brings you into conflict with a clicker very early on - and the first of your decisions as to whether fight or flight are the best methods of approach. Unfortunately as a locked gate prevents you from getting out of the compound, flight is not an option and it's up to the melee weapon (a giant pipe) to help save the day as you bash the clickers dead. A search of the building the clickers were guarding / hanging out by, shows that there is plenty within; from supplies to a note which helps build some of the back story to the infection, it pays to actually take the time to search within the building rather than simply scurrying off.
A little help from Ellie gives you the chance to escape the compound and the search carries on - this time for a character called Bill, who appears to share some kind of past with Joel. Deserted streets are littered with smashed up cars and barricades, and in this particular section of the game, booby traps are all around, proving to be more deadly than you would have expected.
But it's the quieter moments in the Lincoln section, which really make this game and mark it out for something interesting. There's a real sense of a father / daughter relationship and bond growing between Ellie and Joel. A detour into a disused cafe/ bar finds Ellie lingering by an old arcade machine - pressing the triangle button gives her the chance to wax lyrical about the game and brings a sense of life beyond the catastrophe and a hint of a deepening friendship.
The Lincoln section concludes with Ellie and Joel finding Bill, only to be ambushed by clickers and running infected. Joel's hoist by a rope trap and has to fend off the would be killers from upside down, while Ellie works to free him. It's here that accuracy plays a major part in the game - and with Ellie being slowly picked off by the infected, you'd better hope that your aiming is up to scratch or Ellie's a goner. A final part sees an all out attack in a laundromat, where only a degree of stealth and choosing the right moments to attack will see you survive. Even using your melee weapon on the clickers isn't a limitless thing - they need repair or will fall into disuse. Repairs are possible thanks to gears collection and tools which can be found scattered around - but even then, choosing to repair could result in the loss of other some weaponry being upgraded further down the line.
That's the thing with The Last Of Us - it looks like every decision has very real consequences for the pair. And it'll give you the feeling that there's no absolute right way to complete the game; stealth and plans will change each time you are confronted by choice. The post apocalyptic world is well presented too - I wasn't distracted by the surroundings (always a surefire sign that the designers have got it right) but I did feel I was immersed in the environment right from the very beginning. As you trawl around this urban wasteland, you get to pick up weapons, ammo, bits and bobs which could help you survive. Shivs can be crafted from getting scissors and tape; there's promise that batteries can be collected for a flashlight - but they only have a limited life span....
The Lincoln section concludes with a cut scene where Bill promises he'll help Joel one last time, hinting at tensions and unease in this alliance. As the trio set off to find parts for a car in an uncertain part of town, the demo in Lincoln draws to a close..... It's a deeply atmospheric start to the game and one which shows off the AI of Ellie, the AI of attackers, which appear to adapt to you very quickly and the fact strategy is needed if you're to survive the day.
By contrast, the Pittsburgh section of the demo is all action and conflict, which proves that there's a real mix of all kinds of gameplay after the relative peace and quiet of Lincoln.
It begins with
Ellie and Joel driving from an unknown destination before a man staggers onto the blocked freeway begging for help. Ellie says they should help the wounded man, but Joel knows better and within seconds, they're under attack, the soon-to-be victims of a scavenger attack. With the truck they're in smashed into a dead end garage, and with Ellie snatched from within, you've got no choice but to fight back here, using a series of
Quick Time Events, and pure stealth and fisticuffs.
But it's here that the first hint of
Naughty Dog's Balance of Power system comes into play. With an adaptive AI, an onslaught from a group of scavengers can become fraught with death. For example, firing off a series of shots and taking out a couple of them can only result in the empty clicking of your gun chamber, which the enemies realise is your potential downfall. It's here, once again, that stealth comes into play.
Using the R2 button, Joel can activate his listening to work out exactly where the enemy are - and then you can work around them before attacking. Using brawl, brain and brute strength are the only ways to build on success in this game - though it's great to note that the AI for Ellie means that she hurls bottles and bricks scattered about at the baddies attacking you, meaning that while they're stunned, Joel can rush in and deal the death blow. It's a great touch, which means that Ellie's a part of the action rather than an albatross around your neck as you play.
Once you've taken out the group, with a chance to regain some of your health from what's scattered about, and some crafting of objects, it's back into the search mode and scouring of the buildings nearby. A chance to pick up smoke bombs, upgrade your weapons and get a training manual (which proffers up more help and advice) makes taking the time looking in every room worthwhile.
The Pittsburgh demo, while shorter, ends with Joel seeing a bridge in the distance and telling Ellie that that is their way out; his last words being "Let me go first" to Ellie, before it fades (frustratingly) to black....
There's a lot to love in this
demo for The Last of Us - from the brilliantly realised waste lands and atmospheric cityscapes, to the pure jump out of your chair in utter horror as an unexpected clicker awaits you around the corner and rips your throat out, it's really a chillingly effective package of spooky tension with clever adventure. But it's not just the gaming that's likely to appeal - there's a real sense that you'll care about the outcome of these characters thanks to the time taken to develop the inherent father/ daughter type relationship between the pair of them, thanks to an AI which works with you when it needs to, the character moments are engrossing and bring a real human side to the game.
With mixes of the
Walking Dead, I Am Legend and hints of a natural Earth doco mixed in with a Day of the Triffids style horror,
The Last of Us promises a really evocative ride when it releases. It looks to be a real thinker of a game, where strategy is as important as kill skills - it's playable, intelligent gaming and based on the few hours of play offered by the
BETA Demo, The Last of Us looks certainly like Naughty Dog will have more accolades piling up at their door.
The Last Of Us hits PlayStation3 on June 14th
