Hong Beom Lee

Firstly, all the one-star reviews are completely baseless and exaggerated. They heavily rely on story details (which I'll get to). So, do yourself a favor and try not to be misguided by emotionally biased reviews. As many people have said this game is a "technical marvel". The sound, level design, acting, graphics, and gameplay are engaging. The world is so beautiful I found myself just staring into the horizon or playing with the photo mode. The realistic facial expressions greatly help show the different tones in dialogue, hell, sometimes non-verbal expressions helped me understand how the characters felt more than their words. The music simply puts you in the moment. Whether it's an eerie deep bass melody or a simple guitar arpeggio, the game does an amazing job to make an atmospheric environment. If you're not into the story that much, all these aspects alone guarantee an enjoyable experience. Now, perhaps, the most polarizing aspect... the story. SPOILERS AHEAD I understand how people are upset that Joel is killed in such a random way. It wasn't a proper send-off to such a beloved character. While I agree, and there are many things I would've done differently, this game wants to tell a specific story, one in which Joel dies brutally —which is in-line with the unforgiving and violent post-apocalyptic world in TLOU. Once you overcome this issue, the narrative is quite amazing. There are parallels between Ellie and Abby that produce relativistic antagonism. An act of extreme violence, like the death of Joel is rebutted by an act of kindness when Yara and Lev save Abby. The very beginning cutscene and the very last moment of the ending cutscene are also parallels, the former symbolizes uncertainty and lingering of the past while the latter a sense of renewed purpose and forgiveness. This game is as thematically complex as a novel. It's not your typical Call of Duty where characters are flat, with no internal conflicts. This isn't your typical story game either. It's so rich in symbols that I can't fathom how people are so focused on Joel's death. While Ellie forgiving Abby is definitely a debatable topic, it's by NO means a turn-off or deserving of a low-score. It's almost heart-breaking to see how much hate this game gets. The game isn't perfect, there are problems with pacing and some may argue that gameplay is repetitive, although I differ. Nevertheless, I'm glad I bought this game and recommend it to someone who wants to experience a proper AAA game and maximize the PS4's potential.