Joel appears totally different in The Last of Us Part I. It took me some time to note, however as soon as I did, it was exhausting to unsee. There’s a ache in his eyes. His garments and options are the identical, however there is a quiet, unmistakable torment imprinted on his face. I’ve performed The Last of Us practically a dozen instances throughout PS3 and PS4, and I had by no means seen it worn so plainly. I do know Joel has a troubled previous as a result of The Last of Us Part I goes out of its method to present you a traumatic dying within the opening scene, however that ache was by no means etched into his facial options this clearly.

There’s an argument to be made that The Last of Us Part I is too much like the PS3 and PS4 variations to be thought-about a remake, and a part of me agrees with that sentiment. The story is equivalent, the extent design is strictly the identical, and the gameplay–apart from some quality-of-life improvements–is unchanged. On paper, when you’ve performed The Last of Us and bear in mind it nicely, there’s little cause to return to it on PS5.

But The Last of Us Part I is greater than the sum of its components. It’s an unrelenting tour de power that strategically leverages the ability of the PlayStation 5 to push its story and themes a little bit additional. Slight although lots of them could also be, all its enhancements serve the story, and the story is simply nearly as good because it was 9 years in the past.

The most evident manner The Last of Us Part I does that is with its visuals. The overhauled lighting, sharp new textures, and smoother animations make The Last of Us a prettier sport, but it surely’s the small print within the faces and characters that make it a extra significant one. I can really feel the repressed ache in Joel, sense the pervasive hope in Marlene, and glimpse fleeting moments of innocence in Ellie.

These particulars could not alter the way in which you consider these characters, however they actually add extra depth to them. Admittedly, these are additionally particulars that I’ve internalized by way of my a number of playthroughs, years of occupied with the sport, and hours of consuming evaluation of it. But the intricacies in the way in which characters at the moment are depicted imply that, for newcomers specifically, the nuances are extra instantly perceptible. The writing and performing stay as sturdy as ever, and though not one of the adjustments recontextualize characters or occasions, delicate retouches give them larger gravitas.

What does recontextualize the characters is the existence of The Last of Us Part II. Joel’s actions are tougher to abdomen understanding their eventual penalties, and Ellie’s bloody quest for revenge within the sequel makes her character arc in Part I all of the extra tragic. Even when you did not just like the path the narrative took in Part II, it makes the ultimate moments of The Last of Us Part I more durable to swallow.

What’s extra attention-grabbing is that, regardless of understanding how issues would finally shake out, I not often questioned Joel’s motives all through the sport, even in these ultimate moments. It’s a testomony to Naughty Dog’s excellent storytelling and improbable characters that–despite understanding full nicely what Joel’s actions entailed–I wished to guard Ellie in any respect prices. All these sophisticated emotions The Last of Us left me with 9 years in the past got here again stronger after I wrapped up Part I.

The gameplay enhancements, though delicate, are additionally finished in service of the story. Aiming is extra responsive, weapons have a satisfying heft to them, and Joel is a bit simpler to maneuver. He’s not as nimble as Ellie is in Part II, however numerous the tough edges within the unique have been smoothed out. This form of stuff is to be anticipated in remaster or remake, however within the case of The Last of Us Part I, it removes one other barrier from the expertise. The tweaks to the fight and gameplay give Joel a extra cohesive characterization on display. It could look like studying a bit an excessive amount of into it however consider the instances you’ve got clumsily missed your gunshots due to the way in which the aiming works and the way that undermined a personality we’re informed has been preventing to outlive in a hellish post-apocalypse for 20 years–he should not be whiffing photographs in issues of life and dying. With the tweaks, The Last of Us Part I’s Joel feels extra like a chilly and calculated combatant. He is as ruthless as you’d anticipate from somebody in his place and together with his tragic historical past.

The improved AI, in the meantime, brings with it a larger sense of peril, particularly on the more durable difficulties. Enemies are extra aggressive and make use of superior techniques. Some will strain you from afar whereas others will flank you when you aren’t paying consideration. Every from time to time an enemy will wait so that you can strategy and go for an ambush. The unpredictable AI makes for some harrowing firefights. Success calls for a mix of forethought, improvisation, and ability.

What actually makes the AI so efficient is its tenacity. Enemies will battle tooth and nail to outlive. If you are taking an enemy hostage, they are going to attempt to discount with you. Others within the neighborhood will attempt to discuss you down earlier than taking motion. If you maintain a hostage for too lengthy, they are going to wrestle free and return fireplace. The enemies you come throughout do not simply really feel like an impediment it’s a must to overcome. They really feel like individuals desperately making an attempt to outlive in a world that has been torn aside.

It helps that companion AI is a lot better, too. In the unique, Ellie, Tess, and Bill would incessantly find yourself in locations they should not have been. They could not alert enemies, but it surely was at all times jarring to see Ellie run in entrance of an contaminated whereas searching for cowl. Occasionally in Part I, a companion did get in my manner in some tighter areas, however I have never seen anybody carelessly wander into the fray on this new model. It’s a small repair however, as soon as once more, it makes this world really feel extra genuine.

Where The Last of Us Part I exhibits its age is in its degree design. Just like the unique 9 years in the past, the sport usually depends on pallets, dumpsters, and ladders for its traversal puzzles. The Last of Us Part I takes place over the course of a yr, and Joel by no means takes the time to show Ellie to swim. This implies that each time you encounter deep water you should discover a conveniently positioned pallet to ferry her throughout a small physique of water. It was exhausting to miss again then, but it surely’s even tougher to miss now. Naughty Dog has gone by way of nice pains to immerse the participant on the planet, and these easy puzzles do not match the tone of the sport. They are rote online game moments in an expertise that doesn’t want them.

The Last of Us Part I is an unrelenting tour de power that strategically leverages the ability of the PlayStation 5 to push its story and themes a little bit additional. Slight although lots of them could also be, all its enhancements serve the story, and the story is simply nearly as good because it was 9 years in the past

The fight arenas additionally really feel a bit too enclosed and easy. There are some standouts, just like the docks originally of the sport or the bookstore in Philadelphia, however a lot of the encounters happen in linear corridors with waist-high objects used as cowl. This lack of freedom limits your choices in fight and makes it tough to improvise when your again is up in opposition to a wall. It’s a disgrace as a result of Joel’s arsenal is diverse, and his craftable gadgets will be enjoyable to make use of.

It’s even tougher to miss given how spectacular Part II’s degree design was. The cause why fight felt so dynamic in Part II was as a result of there was at all times room to improvise and a number of avenues of strategy to assist this. This is unmistakably a type of moments the place the restricted scope of this “remake” undermines the thought of making concord between the primary and second components of The Last of Us’ total story. While the narrative and characterization actually really feel extra cohesive now, the identical cannot be mentioned for the way it feels to play the 2 video games.

The largest instance of that is Joel’s incapability to go inclined. It could have appeared like a minor mechanic in The Last of Us Part II, but it surely essentially modified the way in which I approached fight. Obviously, Part I used to be not designed with a crawling Joel in thoughts. There isn’t any grass to cover in, and canopy is nearly at all times waist-high, however the incapability to go inclined does create extra of a dissonance between Part I and Part II.

However, fixating on gameplay discrepancies between each video games diminishes The Last of Us Part I’s achievements. The brilliantly-paced narrative is supported by among the best environmental storytelling within the enterprise. So a lot of the world and its inhabitants will be extracted from the smallest particulars. A throwaway line between two hostile enemy NPCs can make clear different components of the world, whereas a easy message scrawled throughout a wall hints at how the outbreak was dealt with twenty years in the past. The environments are wealthy with particulars that add taste to Joel and Ellie’s journey.

The most welcome addition to The Last of Us Part I is its spectacular suite of accessibility options. Like The Last of Us Part II, there are a variety of visible, auditory, and problem settings that considerably decrease the bar to entry and make the expertise extra accommodating. You can customise subtitles, tweak screenshake, allow totally different imaginative and prescient modes, and retool the controls at any time to suit your wants. Even when you do not assume you want any of those options, you would possibly discover one thing in there to make your expertise a little bit smoother. I incessantly performed with high-contrast mode enabled to assist me monitor down smaller collectibles that I would not usually have the ability to see, however for others, these newly added choices would possibly make what was beforehand an unplayable sport right into a playable one.

Additionally, The Last of Us Part I provides a ton of recent unlockables within the Extras menu. Like in earlier Naughty Dog video games, as you play by way of the story you accrue factors that can be utilized to unlock all types of issues. There’s idea artwork from each the unique and remake, new and returning character skins, gameplay modifiers like infinite ammo and explosive arrows, and a handful of behind-the-scenes movies and podcasts. While none of this essentially adjustments the expertise, I spent hours digging by way of this menu to admire all of the intricately designed character fashions and check out the brand new gameplay modifiers. These bells and whistles do a great job of rounding out the package deal.

The most painful omission from this remake is Factions, the stellar PvP mode from the unique sport. The multiplayer mode had gamers select a faction and construct out a camp of survivors by working Supply Raids, which have been matches that pitted you in opposition to the rival faction. Success would earn you sources to maintain your compound afloat. Naughty Dog is engaged on an expanded standalone multiplayer element set on the planet of The Last of Us and its sequel, but it surely’s a disgrace the unique Factions mode did not make the reduce.

Those searching for a little bit longevity from the sport can as a substitute strive the speedrun and permadeath modes. The permadeath mode specifically suits properly with the themes of The Last of Us. It’s not for the faint of coronary heart, even on simpler difficulties, but it surely considerably ups the stakes. Every encounter should be tackled with precision, and a wasted bullet might result in an premature dying. The speedrun mode however feels at odds with what The Last of Us accomplishes with its story. The considerate tempo and quiet moments are undone by a timer and a scoring system. It’s not essentially a foul inclusion, and it is out there as an possibility, but it surely’s positively not the way in which I’d wish to expertise The Last of Us Part I.

All these enhancements taken by themselves could appear minor, however collectively they make one of the memorable video games of the PS3 period even higher. In some methods, the 2 components of The Last of Us at the moment are higher aligned, making transitioning between them a lot smoother. However, in different methods, the years of progress in sport design and growth are all too obvious. But whereas among the degree design could not have aged all that nicely, the vivid solid of characters and noteworthy story are extra poignant than ever.