Sahar Hosseini

At first it came as a shock to me to the point that I kept letting myself get killed while playing as Abby because I just couldn't tolerate her ! Even after I finished the game I couldn't make any sense out of it . but after a month or so , the realization hit me out of the blue . Why would naughty dog kill Joel ,the beloved and relatable character of the game , at the beginning of the game ? then it hit me . maybe the game is trying to manifest a deeper meaning . think about it. every gamer hates it when they are told that they don't get anything out of playing games .so what was the true meaning behind The Last of Us? The Last of Us part II is more than just a survival game . The work that was put into the details are crazy . take the letters for instance . each one showing an aspect of the lives of those who were killed or infected .you get to see that neither the people from WLF or fedra believed in what the groups were doing . After so much bloodshed ,they are faced only with guilt and immense pain . they now know that the solution lies elsewhere . All of this suggests empathy and love instead of chasing false idols and systems that take your identity and sense of individuality as a whole away from you . this reveals the darker truth . that even when the governments are taken down , when we are all obliged to be physically present ,when we are seemingly and to some degree in the same position , we are still not free , because even at this dire situations , there are still people trying to role over others . so the problem is us ! we have to learn our differences ,try to understand each other and still be united . This game comes with a hope .A hope that such people will be "The last of Us" . both Abby and Ellie did some terrible things but in the end , Abby leaned how to understand someone she thought was so different than herself and care for her . And as for Ellie , she let Abby go While she had her life in the palm of her hand Because she came to accept the pain and anger inside her and realized that it was mostly herself that she was mad at . she couldn't tell Joel that she had started to slowly forgive him , she couldn't get closure . All the frustration , all the pain , all the boiling hatred , all the blood . she sensed that none of those are gonna fill the emptiness that she feels after Joel's death . nothing could or can or will . and that's it ! We all may have voids inside of us we cannot fill . but through time we learn to accept that loss and rediscover our identity in this new world . we can find a purpose through the support and love of the people we cherish .And so, the game starts with a truth and ends with a lingering hope for new beginnings .