Andrew Cooke

I am someone who trusted Neil Druckmann in the beginning when he explained that he would handle the characters from the first game with sensitivity because of the amazing relationship created between Joel & Ellie. I felt like he valued this incredible creation of his & understood how much it meant to the fans. Many of us didn’t want a second game, the first ended perfectly balancing multiple themes & the complexities of the human condition within the contexts of this dangerous, yet often beautiful world. Preferably, I would have rather had a new cast ensemble within the post apocalyptic setting, at least the old cannon could remain intact. The game could simply be its own experience & explore darker themes with new characters. It is completely fair to utilise the first game to effect my review of the second as this is what Druckmann has done to create the second game. With the story & characters being the most acclaimed part of the first game, it is the most important aspect of the cannon. I took Druckmann at his word & the sad truth is he understood what the first game meant to so many & decided to utterly destroy what everyone loved for the sake of twisted art. As many have stated, it wasn’t that a beloved character was killed & another one maimed, it was the context. There was nothing of value to be gleaned from the game for the sacrifices made or liberties taken. The new philosophical undertones were juvenile at best & the themes were reinforced with a level of sadism no healthy minded player would wish to engage in & yet are forced to participate. The new bleakness of Ellie’s life in the end of the game depresses me almost more than Joel’s death. Taking it step further, Neil Druckmann used models of Joel in trailers for scenes he was not it. This is absolutely egregious. Graphics, nor gameplay can make up for these actions. To be clear, Neil Druckmann has every right to do this, he is the creator & artist. But he has eternally lost me as a patron. He didn’t simply loose my support, he lost my respect & he lost my trust for anything naughty dog attempts in the future.