The Last Of Us Part 2

Controversy aside, The Last of Us Part II is a masterful, genre-defining title. It does what it sets out to do, shock and provokes and pull at the emotions.

88%Game Brain Score

story, gameplay

stability

90% User Score Based on 78 reviews

Critic Score 85%Based on 6 reviews

Platforms

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About The Last Of Us Part 2

The Last Of Us Part 2 is a single player survival shooter game with a horror theme. It was developed by Naughty Dog and was released on June 19, 2020. It received positive reviews from critics and very positive reviews from players.

Get The Last of Us Part II, Action, Adventure game for PS4 console from the official PlayStation website. Explore The Last of Us Part II game detail, demo, images, videos, reviews.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

+49

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Reviews

90%Audience ScoreBased on 78 reviews

story22 positive mentions

stability2 negative mentions

Outstanding visuals and animation quality with breathtaking, detailed environments and smooth character animations.
Engaging and emotionally impactful storytelling that explores complex themes and offers a mature, well-written narrative.
Refined gameplay with challenging stealth and combat mechanics, smart AI, and meaningful improvements over the first game.

The story is divisive and at times feels bloated or unevenly paced, with some players disliking key narrative choices and character developments.
Some players find the game's violence excessive and the tone overly dark or bleak, making it unsuitable for sensitive players.
Certain gameplay elements feel repetitive or less polished, and a few narrative inconsistencies and pacing issues can disrupt immersion.

story
82 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
27% positive mentions, 69% neutral mentions, 4% negative mentions
The story of the game is widely praised for its emotional depth, bold and complex narrative, and strong character development, especially Ellie’s portrayal. While many find it a powerful, immersive continuation of the original with a nuanced and riveting plot, some fans of the first game feel the story is controversial, overly long, or poorly executed in parts. Overall, it stands out as a masterful but divisive narrative that challenges expectations and evokes strong reactions.
- “A genuine work of art, The Last of Us Part II is Naughty Dog's best game, bravest story, and proof that games can put players through the emotional wringer.”
- “With The Last of Us Part II, Naughty Dog have crafted yet another masterpiece of storytelling and game design, capturing lightning in a bottle—again.”
- “The Last of Us Part II is a stunningly beautiful and impeccably written story of family, consequences, horror, and loss.”
- “The story is generally not a bad approach, but the characters and dialogues are so incredibly badly directed that I just had to laugh.”
- “If you loved the first part or are here for the story, then better stay away from the game and keep The Last of Us part 1 and its fascinating journey through the post-apocalypse as you remembered it.”
- “Characters I cared about are either sidelined or twisted into something unrecognizable, all to serve a new story that doesn’t really connect to the original in a meaningful way.”
gameplay
47 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38% positive mentions, 56% neutral mentions, 6% negative mentions
The gameplay of the sequel is widely praised for building upon and refining the original's mechanics, delivering dynamic, tense combat and stealth that encourage strategic, resourceful play. While maintaining core elements like creative combat and environmental puzzles, it introduces smarter AI, more varied enemy types, and improved progression systems, resulting in a polished and immersive experience. Some minor critiques note repetitive moments and pacing issues, but overall, the gameplay is regarded as a standout aspect that enhances the emotional and narrative depth of the game.
- “The combat, stealth, and overall mechanics are a blast to play with.”
- “A bold, brutal story that isn't afraid to take risks; Ellie shines as a conflicted and complex protagonist; an excellent cast of actors, backed by amazing writing and acting performances; tense stealth and combat; enemy AI is devilishly smart, and new enemy types are great additions; a much more potent brand of horror; great level design that leverages Ellie's expanded movement options perfectly; engaging and rewarding exploration; makes smart and meaningful improvements to progression mechanics; beautiful visuals, thanks to impressive tech and striking art design.”
- “Unparalleled presentation combines with an engaging gameplay loop that puts you in the shoes of its characters – and forces you to feel all of the tension and misgivings of its cast.”
- “The story tries to do too much and goes on far longer than it should, and that fluff also makes the gameplay grow repetitive, despite how solid the core is.”
- “With solid but unimportant gameplay mechanics, a title that should have been game of the year is instead relegated to the sales pile.”
- “The last of us part II is a spectacular sequel, it’s a brave and unexpected direction for the series, expanding on the world both narratively and mechanically, producing a far sounder and rounded experience that never falters or gets in the way of the game’s clear storytelling strength.”
emotional
22 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions
The game delivers an exceptionally deep and emotionally intense experience, combining a rich, nuanced story with powerful character development that evokes strong feelings of attachment, joy, heartbreak, and reflection. Praised for its masterful narrative, stellar voice acting, and immersive visuals, it offers a gripping emotional rollercoaster that builds meaningfully on its predecessor and leaves a lasting impact on players. While some note that the emotional weight relies heavily on prior attachment to characters, overall it is regarded as a groundbreaking and unforgettable saga in gaming.
- “This journey sometimes makes you happy, breaks your heart; you feel and suffer with the characters, developing understanding and rejection... this emotional impact can probably only be experienced by playing the game yourself and forming a bond with the characters.”
- “Story, characters, and presentation are top-notch and make this game an emotional rollercoaster unlike any other.”
- “The Last of Us Part II is a perfectly paced emotional rollercoaster ride from start to finish and a worthy sequel that lives up to the original.”
graphics
13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
69% positive mentions, 31% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions
The graphics of the game are widely praised as stunning and top-tier, featuring breathtaking, highly detailed visuals and impressive tech and art design. The visuals blend seamlessly with cinematic storytelling, enhancing the immersive and emotional experience. Overall, the game's graphics are considered a generational highlight that significantly elevates its strong narrative and gameplay.
- “The graphics are still top-tier, and the stealth-action gameplay is second to none.”
- “The Last of Us Part II combines powerful storytelling with frantic gameplay and beautiful graphics.”
- “Truly engrossing story that subverts expectations, breathtaking visuals are generational highlights, superb art and voice direction draws players in, a welcome, necessary evolution of gameplay intensifies action and stealth.”
optimization
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions
The game demonstrates exceptional optimization, delivering smooth controls and impressive technical performance that enhance its striking visuals and seamless cinematic gameplay experience. It efficiently balances high-quality graphics, fluid animations, and smart AI without compromising performance. Overall, the optimization contributes significantly to an immersive and polished player experience.
- “A technical masterpiece, outstanding writing and performances, challenges expectations in the right way.”
- “Controls feel smooth all around, fantastic performance paired with outstanding visuals.”
- “Beautiful visuals, thanks to impressive tech and striking art design.”
stability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
0% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 100% negative mentions
The game generally maintains strong stability with only minor glitches and occasional frame rate dips, particularly on the Pro version during water-heavy scenes. Some out-of-bounds glitches may require reloading saves, and occasional visual issues slightly affect immersion.
- “[A couple of out-of-bounds glitches forced me to reload my save, frame rate dips on Pro around the water-heavy sections, occasional screen space reflections break immersion]”
replayability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions
The game offers significantly improved gameplay, structure, and pacing compared to its predecessor, resulting in a much more enjoyable experience with notably higher replayability.
- “The gameplay and overall structure and pacing, while still not the thing that matters here, is thrice as good, making this a far more enjoyable experience, with a higher replay value from the original.”
music
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions
The music is praised for its moving and emotionally impactful soundtrack that complements the game's phenomenal storyline, enhancing the overall immersive experience.
- “Phenomenal storyline from start to finish, moving soundtrack, flawless visuals at 4K, exhaustive accessibility options, in a word -- perfect.”

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Critic Reviews

85%Critics’ scoreBased on 6 critic reviews

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Tom Holland's Favorite Game Is The Last of Us Part 2, But He's Avoiding the TV Series

July 30 on ign.com