The year was 2013 when Naughty Dog’s video game hit “the last of uscame out on PlayStation (PS) 3. At the time, I was a freshman at a university and I didn’t have the luxury of owning a gaming console. So I did what every poor man and female gamer did – binge- Watch the campaign story mode on YouTube and call it a day (HAHA).
Even though I’ve never played the game, you can tell it was definitely one of the greatest games of all time and many still consider it as such. Eventually, The Last of Us Remastered came out for PS4, then was followed by The Last of Us Part I (PS5 Exclusive) Which is a faithful remake of the original. However, is this just a cash grab attempt by Naughty Dog and Sony Interactive Entertainment?
That’s the question I think is on most gamers’ minds and I’m here to tell you what I think about The Last of Us Part I. Just for the record, this will be the first time I play the game. This is a review from a fresh pair of eyes. And since Part I is a faithful remake of the original, you already know the story if you’ve already played it (or at least, are familiar with it). For the uninitiated, there are a few new additions to the remake that you can refer to below:
You can set different difficulties for each function!
- New Very Light, Light, Moderate, Hard, Survivor and Grounded game difficulty
- permadeth mode
- speedrun mode
- new cosmetic skins
- better photo mode
- Scene settings up to 4K @ 30FPS or 60FPS, 4K HDR @ 60FPS
one of the accessibility functions
- accessibility presets
- Left Behind chapter included
If you’ve played The Last of Us Part II, you’ll be glad to know that the accessibility features are back for Part I. This makes the remake more accessible to gamers who have vision, hearing and motor problems, with customizable options across the board. , This includes HUD scale, motion blur, navigation, audio cues, and more. Overall, if there’s a specific way you want to play the game, you have tons of settings to adjust. Plus, the gameplay is still the same, so don’t expect anything new, at least in that aspect.
Showing the difference between the two versions, courtesy of Sony Interactive Entertainment
Looks like they’ve added more leaves
More depth of field scenes with better facial expressions added
realism is on top of the roof
Obviously, the biggest highlight of Part I will be the graphics overhaul but it is much more than that. The remake of Part I is not only updating the previous graphics to HD, but also bringing a fresh imagination. Everything you remembered from the original and remastered looks very different. It is not only the realistic facial expressions of the characters, but also the environments. Overall, the world of Part I is mostly gloomy and bleak compared to the brighter looks from the original and remastered version.
Well, even the way the clicker and the infected creature fall to the ground are as real as they can be. If you have a fear of seeing bloody death, blood and what not in real life, you may want to exercise caution while playing Part I because of how impactful it can be. Along the way the blood splatter from headshots or exploding organs (if any) from an enemy is visceral, if not downright bloody (there’s an option to turn it off), and the surrounding stuff being separated from multiple bullets, Sometimes it makes me feel anxious in those stressful situations often.
Apart from this, the AI also seems to be quite smart (even in medium mode). They seem to be quite sensitive to sound and yes, they have been ported from Part II. These AIs even know how to communicate with each other to flank you! Thankfully your AI friends are also smart enough to hide or attack whenever the enemy is approaching. Otherwise, I would have imagined myself really lashing out at my teammates for being an idiot.
You can forget it as a scene from a movie
Dynamic range is well balanced
The attention to detail on everything you see in the game is insane
Like other games, your screen will also have the effect of raindrops
Another depth of field or blurred foreground view
OK, enough dark screenshots. here’s a bright
Wow just wow
With the realism in play powered by PS5, Naughty Dog aims to really immerse you in the world of The Last of Us. I’d say sound performance is one of the biggest upgrades for the best immersive experience, though you’ll need compatible headphones (like the PS5 Pulse 3D or InZone series) and TV speakers. At times I even felt some haptic feedback from moving under heavy rain. Plus, the PS5 DualSense will vibrate accordingly when punching someone, firing a pump-action shotgun, and drawing a bow.
Working on the bench is also great. I was told that this feature was improved over the original and remastered version because earlier, it only showed the interface display. In Part I, you’ll see every weapon modification animation and weapons skin changes. Speaking of changing skins, you can do the same for Joel and Ellie but you have to finish the game first.
You can set your DualSense vibration to your liking
workspace in action
Extra stuff you can see
In addition to changing the cosmetic skin, other mods will also appear in the gameplay modifiers. It includes bullet speed which is super useful for this kind of action-driven third person shooter game. However, I’m not sure if I want to play the full game again after finishing it. That said, if you want to challenge Speedrun Mode, it’s definitely worth it. Plus, you can unlock exploding arrows!
So, is The Last of Us Part I worth buying? Granted, it costs RM299 in the Malaysian market. But for someone like me who’s never played the original or the remastered version, I think it’s a must buy because it’s an absolutely great graphical enhancement to one of the best games ever. This is also the most definitive version of Last of Us if you want to play it. Overall, fans of the series don’t really need to splurge for this as I think the game is indirectly made for newbies to the game.
The Last of Us Part I is officially released today (September 2) exclusively on PS5. In case you’re wondering, it’s also coming to PC in the future, most likely on Steam and the Epic Games Store. So if you can wait for it, there’s no rush to get it and trust me we’ll see lots of fun ways to game when this game ends.
Anyway, this is just my take on the game. But what do you think? are you going to get it? Tell us in the comments below and stay tuned on TechNave.com for more gaming reviews.
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