The Last of Us Part II hit PlayStation 4 exclusively in 2020. Developer Naughty Dog brought us back into the world of cordyceps, Fireflies, Ellie, and Joel alongside new threats and characters like the WLF, Abby, Yara, Lev, and more. Game Informer gave the game a 10 out of 10 – read the review here – and I would have agreed with that score in 2020. I still agree with that score today, too.
If I wrote what I want to say about The Last of Us Part II's story, I'm sure you'd find it very familiar because it's largely how I felt around the game's original release. Instead, my wife, Gabriella LeBlanc, played through The Last of Us Part II Remastered's story for the first time ever, mostly unspoiled of the adventure, and it was awesome listening to her thoughts in real-time about the game. I wanted to share those thoughts, so I interviewed her. Below are 20 questions about The Last of Us Part II's story with answers from someone who beat it for the first time in 2024, unaware of the leaks that happened before the game's 2020 launch, the fates of certain characters, the ending, and more. Enjoy (and be nice to her in the comments)!
Game Informer's Wesley LeBlanc: What did you think The Last of Us Part II would be about going into it, unspoiled by the internet?
Gabriella LeBlanc: I honestly did not have much of an idea. I remember watching the trailer way back when the game was being released the first time, just passively because you were watching, and thinking, «Weird, what does this have to do with anything?» and that was with an already very basic idea of what the first game was even about. It seemed like some kind of culty witch-hunt vibe, which definitely sounds cool, but had no idea what it had to do with The Last of Us, so I didn't really know what to think.
What was the biggest surprise?
LeBlanc: The biggest surprise was not Joel's death overall, but the timing. Unfortunately, I did know that Joel was going to die because I'd seen it on Twitter or something at some point, probably a meme or something. So I knew it was going to happen. But I did not think it was going to happen so fast. When it did, I was thinking, «Okay, for real now, what is this game going to be about?»
How did Joel's death affect you? How do you feel about its place in the game's narrative?
LeBlanc: Mostly just disbelief because of the timing, as I mentioned. Since I've finished the game, I like that it happens so fast. It just provides such a shock factor that they would kill the main character, and so quickly, that it made me want to keep playing to see how this would play out for Ellie.
After Joel's death, what did you think the game's plot was going to be?
LeBlanc: At this point, I had a feeling that Ellie was going to go
The website gametalkz.com is an aggregator of news from open sources. The source is indicated at the beginning and at the end of the announcement. You can send a complaint on the news if you find it unreliable.
Developer Rocksteady Studios has taken its new live-service multiplayer shooter set in the Batman: Arkham universe, Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice Leauge, offline after Early Access players hit a «story completion» bug. While the standard edition of the game doesn't hit PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC until this Friday, February 2, players who purchase the more expensive Deluxe Edition, which costs $99.99 compared to the Standard Edition's $69.99 price tag, can jump in three days early.
Publisher Bandai Namco and developer Spike Chunsoft Co., Ltd. have revealed 24 fighters for Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero, and they're all Goku and Vegeta. Unsurprisingly, considering Goku and Vegeta are the two main characters in the Dragon Ball Z saga (amongst others like Gohan, for example), Spike Chunsoft is giving players the chance to fight using their various forms. This includes Super Saiyan, Super Saiyan 2, Majin Vegeta, and more.
The Last of Us Part II Remastered arrived last week, and if the cutscene commentary from the game's director, writer and key actors wasn't enough for you, Naughty Dog has another behind the scenes piece coming. Grounded II: Making The Last Of Us Part II, a documentary on the game's creation, will arrive on February 2 at 12PM ET on YouTube as well as in the game itself. There's a trailer in the remastered game currently, and the full documentary will be added via a downloadable patch. That patch will also have some new skins for Ellie and Abby in the main game.
Earlier this month, developer Naughty Dog announced Grounded II: Making The Last of Us Part II would be coming to its recent release, The Last of Us Part II Remastered, in a post-launch update for the game. Now, we know exactly when this behind-the-scenes documentary will be live: February 2.
The Final Fantasy XIV live-action television series first announced back in 2019 is «dead,» according to the production company that was working on it. Hivemind, which also worked on Netflix's The Witcher, was developing the series with Sony Pictures Television, but co-founder Dinesh Shamdasani revealed on Twitter that the project is dead when asked about it, as reported by PC Gamer.
Koji Kondo, longtime composer for The Legend of Zelda and Super Mario Bros. franchises, will be inducted into the Academy of Interactvie Arts & Sciences Hall of Fame at this year's D.I.C.E. Awards. The presentation will take place at the 27th annual D.I.C.E. Awards in Las Vegas, Nevada, during the ceremony on Thursday, February 15, at 8 p.m. PT/11 p.m. ET.
Nintendo has announced that it will stream full pre-recorded concerts for The Legend of Zelda series and its Splatoon franchise next month. Both concerts were set to be a part of Nintendo Live events in December of last year and this month, too, in Tokyo, Japan, but these events were canceled over safety concerns, as reported by VideoGamesChronicle. Now, everyone will be able to watch these concerts when they hit the official Nintendo YouTube channel next month.
Nintendo revealed during a Direct last September Splatoon 3's Side Order DLC would be coming to the game sometime in the spring of this year. Now, just a few months later, Nintendo has revealed exactly when: February 22, 2024. That's when Wave 2 of the Splatoon 3 expansion pass, which features Side Order as the star of the show, goes live, and it's when players can explore the Spire of Order, a brand new location.
Nintendo has revealed pink Joy-Con controllers for the Switch alongside a new Princess Peach: Showtime gameplay trailer. Fittingly, these new Joy-Con are pastel pink, just like Peach's signature dress. They will be available for purchase at select retailers and Nintendo's online store for a limited time, although Nintendo did not mention exactly when players can buy them.
Developer Rocksteady Studios has pulled back the curtains on the free seasonal content coming to Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League after the game's launch on February 2. Season 1 will kick off in March and includes the most famous villain in the DC roster: The Joker. Not only is The Joker joining the game, but he'll be a new playable member of the Suicide Squad.
Palworld first captured the attention of gamers (and their internet sphere) when it was revealed back in 2021. While that reveal included details about the survival aspects of the game, including multiplayer, crafting, and farming, viewers honed in on the idea of it being Pokémon but with guns. You can capture Pokémon-like monsters called Pals in special balls (and you can capture humans, too), but it's smart to shoot them or hack at them with an axe first to lower their health. And then, once under your command, you can give them their own guns to use, of course.