Cole Allen

*SOFT SPOILERS* I’m not exactly sure why this game is getting so much hate. Yes, one of the most important characters that fans love is killed off fairly early in the game. But the whole theme of the game is how actions snowball, and if no one is brave enough to break the chain of revenge anyone and everyone around you has a chance of getting caught up in your avalanche. Also, I love how this game has a wide range of diverse representation, in enemy NPCs and the main cast; the world is so diverse and it makes sense that in areas of high population there would still be pockets of these people in the apocalypse. The ending does not leave a sweet taste in your mouth, but personal growth, and in this case all the horrors that led to the ending in this game, rarely feels sweet. The combat didn’t evolve much from the first game, which lead to some stale encounters near the middle and end game, and at times the combat was clunky. I had an especially hard time dodging melee attacks near walls that led to inescapable 3-hit combos. Graphics are absolutely stunning and I actually enjoyed the way in which the plot was framed as the flashbacks and perspective changes allowed for ideas to truly develop in my head as I played, at times creating a sense of unreliable narrators whose motives I was forced to question multiple times as I played. I would give this game a solid 9/10.