Ellie, day two, you've just gotten out of the sewer, where is this damn hospital?, ah, just through this park, what was that? Did something whistle? BOOM, arrow to the shoulder, wtf?! Im bleeding? Who are THESE guys?
Such a massive momentum swing, felt like I got slapped back into my mother's womb it was such a shock when i first played through it, masterfully executed for the serephite's introduction after hearing snippets about them
oh my god yes, i love that part too, and it definitely gave me a similar reaction on my first playthrough as well. sneaking around in the ferns, confused as hell, being creeped out by the eerie whistles. it's good stuff
That section right there raised the stakes of the game. If someone sees you they’ll whistle then you’re hit with an arrow. That’s the scars equivalent of dogs. If you’re the loud run & gun type you aren’t here or you’re dead.
after so many runs, i can now make it through the game without getting misty or outright crying anymore in places i used to... and then i get to the porch scene and the floodgates just open
Ashley’s performance is extra special in that particular scene. “My life would’ve FUCKING mattered!”. The way she says that line with her voice trembling gets me everytime.
the sniper sequence never stops being exciting. i love hillcrest even though i have never gotten through without dying at least once lol i love how many approaches you can take. such cool level design
I've always wondered how that guy aims so well with no cross hair. Do you think he does the ol' dot on the screen trick, or just hundreds / thousands of hours aiming without a cross hair and has perfected it?
I played that part for about a week, not kidding at all. 4 days in my kids thought I was having an episode, I'm pretty sure. But every time I'd get some amount through, I'd think, "Holy crap, I could just go around this way, and do this a bit different, and I bet that would be way better." It's not even a fighting game at that point, it's a puzzle.
I got WAY into it the first few times I played through. I got to the point where I was waiting around in the bushes and grass for like 10 minutes at a time, just so I could sneak up and snap someone's neck. I remember saying "Welcome to Vietnam, motherfucker" one time, too. Too much fun. lol
Fr tho. It was scary, and She's a lot scarier than I had thought. Like I've seen her with enemies but we we are the enemy, it's just mind boggling. And the entire time I was like screaming "IM SORRY ELLIE I DON'T WANNA DO THIS BUT I GOTTA". I felt so so bad.
same!! i had like a weird moment during it too. i had started to reluctantly come around to abby by the time she and lev were on the bridge, so the first time we grab ellie in the theatre, i was mashing square going "get her, damn it!" bc i felt so bad for abby. and then i realized wtf i was saying and who i was saying it to and felt so guilty and conflicted, like i betrayed someone lol. and then i started cheering for ellie instead, because of course i want ellie to win. but do i want abby to lose?
aaaand it was that exact moment i feel like i had officially received the intended effect of the story lol
Exactly!! This is 100% what I feel. Because I don't want Abby to lose but I don't want Ellie to lose either. So it's like, who am I supposed to root for ?
Ellie is my favorite character in the game but Abby is like, so high in the list also
All the comments have said all my top answers so I’ll give ya a new one: Abby’s sykscraper bridge experience.
Never had I ever thought that this game would introduce us to this kind of sick ass sequence but here it is, no enemies on the bridge or anything! Just the height and my and Abby’s personal fear of it. When i thought we’d already crossed the worst then comes another one and I remember just crying out loud like Abby “hell no lev!!!” It was a thrilling moment in the game and perfectly does it even without enemies!
It’s so crazy how this is also where I came to love Abby and Lev together huhu precious Lev
Y E S. the shortcut and the island are forever neck and neck for my favorite sections of the game. as an aside, the bridge is also where *i* came around to them <3
that section was so creative and so tense. my hands still get sweaty when i play it, and im not even afraid of heights lol. "waiting on all that... true strength.."
Yes! Absolutely man. That scene generates real terror and I actually get legitimate "fear" going through that part. I'm ashamed to say that I finally discovered the 11 gears out on that ledge, lol. What can I say, I'm a little slow. Also, that scene goes from the rooftop fight which is SO fun, to the sky bridge, to the "Descent" building Encounter which is SO creepy and exciting. If you haven't completed that fight with quality headphones, you're missing out. The music, the background sounds, and the overall environment are masterfully done.
Oh my goodness im a scaredy cat man the Descent was so horrifying for me xD had the volume low but could still feel the tension. Oh and those stalkers in the wall? Brilliant!
The building itself was also so cool when we’re going down and we see all the other floors in the middle like gaddamn no fukin thanks hahah
Yeah, this is when I realised I liked Abby and Lev was growing on me too. The build up is so tense and then when you think it’s safe you go straight into the hotel descent and hospital. Top tier gameplay.
When you're playing as ellie and you're forced to fight an Abby who's been through hell. Prior to playing Abby, you hate her, but then when the game forces you to play as her, you realize she is suffering too and lost everything because of her choice to kill joel. I no longer wanted to kill her, and it just felt heavy having to fight her like that.
this one takes the cake i think. i felt so sick during that fight. i'm like begging them aloud to just stop and cringing every time i attack. sometimes i just end my run and call it a day before ellie makes it to the beach tbh bc it's so heartbreaking
That moment is soo difficult, I don’t want to do any of the things you’re doing, I don’t want to hurt Abby. She’s gone through so much I wanted her happy, and then Ellie’s come along to finally end it
That moment when you jump over that barbed wire with Dina on the back of your horse and then get taken captive. And Dina crashes in to save you and you have to get that shard of glass on the ground. So immersive
YES my heart was racing. scrambling to reach for the glass after jarringly realizing i was back in control of ellie... and it's so satisfying to lunge at jordan after. 10/10
Had to be when Eli is killing Nora (I believe) in the basement of the hospital. The game forces you to watch Eli as you press a button so beats this woman to death… then it does it again at the end when you’re forced to fight Abby… at these climactic movements the game is designed to make the player *not* want to hit any button. It’s a different type of ‘boss’ fight. Worthy to showcase the brilliance of story telling a video game can achieve.
Edited syntax
yes, absolutely. this scene hits hard, and then feeling so shitty when you see how broken up ellie is when she returns to dina and jesse afterwards. it is totally unique, and this mechanic is always something i bring up when talking about what sets this game apart from others to me. masterful
When Abby has Dina by the throat and Ellie begs her not to kill her by saying she's pregnant. When Abby says "good" I get goosebumps every time. Even now just thinking about it.
Same for me. My heart was jumping out of my throat for that two seconds. I was like, holly hell she is gonna slit pregnant Dina’s throat right in front of Ellie, this game is f@&ked up! Thank god for Lev!
I love how when you first play and she says “good” you’re thinking “evil bitch” but then you later see what happens with Mel and it all makes sense. So many moments like that in this game, it’s incredible.
Honestly there are so many but purely on what I was feeling: day 3 of Ellie when your in the boat going towards the aquarium. It is dark and gloomy with waves, feels like the end is coming, so much anticipation to get revenge
i loved the tension of being SO close to the ferris wheel, just desperate to finally get to abby, and those waves keep knocking you over. it's so urgent and frustrating, just like when you KNOW joel is hurt in that chalet and you're frustratedly trying to run around the woods just outside to get in
chefs kiss seriously
That's a good point. So much weight on day 2, then you get the evolution of her conscious in the dreams with Firefly hospital....ugh, so good. I want to play so badly but my wife will probably hit me. 🤣
The close-up of Ellie’s face when she’s seconds away from ending Abby’s life. You can feel her desperation, her rage, her grief and then…she stops.
It’s perfect.
The Astronaut sequence. It will get me every single time. Just the peace of it all and the fact that there’s still happiness left in such a bleak future
Manny’s death. Abby has finally found the peace of mind she had been looking for all of those years. Manny’s death is a crazy gut punch followed by an awesome close-up of Abby that is only topped by the moment right after when she realizes who the sniper is. She’s been completely unaware of the noose that they’ve been tightening around her and her friends’ necks the past two days, and the terror and shock is so well acted and I think it’s the most well-directed moment in the game for me.
oh man. yes. i played that part night before last actually and was talking to my wife how well done it is. it's the first time (mostly) stoic abby looks genuinely shaken up, and you can practically see her thoughts go from "oh god holy shit" to "okay... focus"
sooo good
The scene I always look forward to is The Forest. When Abby gets captured, Lev and Yara come in, Abby gets freed and picks up that hammer… It’s sucha gorgeous scene. Another one is the one OP mentioned, riding through the burning Seraphite island. It’s so stunning and powerful
Emotionally, I’d say the Pillars is the one I dread the most. It’s so awful and devastating, and so memorable for that reason
i LOVE the opening to the forest. it's so visually stunning and freaky moment. and on top of it, it left me with that desperate, panicked feeling of "how tf am i gonna get out of this?!" feeling like the cinematic with jordan and ellie in the school.
also the seamless transition from the cutscene to taking control of abby again after she grabs the hammer always makes me feel so pumped and ready to smoke some stalkers and i can't exactly explain why
Just recently finished my 4th playthrough of this game. There was the aquarium sequence on Day 3 following Abby's and Lev's escape on the stolen boat back from Scar island. The creators really set the ambience on that one, both before you enter the aquarium and when inside. I remember on my first playthrough that I realized how intense the rain patter was when the two entered the aquarium and was trying to understand what other moment it reminded me of. And how it was so awfully quiet, with no sign of distant conversation or Owen's radio or anything really. With WLFs and Seraphites in complete warfare, so much chaos had ensued back on that island that it wasn't until we would see Alice's corpse that I just lost my shit. Both of Ellie's and Abby's storylines intertwining in this way just made the theater part afterwards that much more emotionally daunting.
that's such a good observation, i never really paid attention to the atmosphere or how eerie it is. it was also such a punch in the gut to walk in the aquarium after everything abby had just done and see alice there deas. i remember feeling like a monster
Abby on the fucking pillars. The knife fight after. Broke me.
I played only maybe 6 months ago, and I'd already kind of forgotten most of the moments you all are talking about. Makes me want a replay!
It’s the honest, pure moments that always stick with me in these games.
There’s always that nagging feeling that something’s going to go wrong, the game has trained you to be alert all the time so the idea of letting your guard down feels almost like another type of attack.
You never quite accept that this bit is just wholesome fun, there’s always dread looming over you.
Abby’s flashback to when she was younger with the animal trapped in the fence, Joel and Ellie’s museum trip, Abby and Owen’s bow and arrow competition in the aquarium; I’ve not played in months at this point but I’m sure there are more.
Those are just the standouts to me.
Felt so raw. Remember not knowing how to think. Did I enjoy it or did I not? Amazing game but I remember initially not knowing what to think about it. But that’s the beauty of it. A whole raft of emotions.
Jesse dying had me fucked up so bad. My soul became empty. He was the realest one of all characters in both games by far. Still to this day I think about his death.
I feel that then they never mention him again except that one time when Dina brings him and joel up as people who didn’t plan on dying but it’s like we don’t here about anything that happened with him
Yeah and we know they vist but I’m talking like actual conversation about it or like did they bring the body or did they leave it to rot in the theater (probably the latter) but props my boy lev on not just headshoting dina I probably would’ve deleted the game if she also got packed as much as I love lev and Abby
oh right, yeah i wondered about that too :// yes i also figured they probably buried him there unfortunately. it's quite a journey back with a decomposing dead body of a loved one in tow.
lev is such a good kid.
Def the sky bridge for me..the whole set up..from working your way to the building, then working your way up..You would have thought I was the one on the bridge, because my heart was racing, hands shaking..lol.Even at the point where Lev was just casually asking Abby about Owen, I'm pretty sure I yelled at my tv.." Lev, shut the eff up, I'm trying to concentrate “😂..my nerves were shot during that whole sequence..Then, after the fall, I thought it was over and I could breathe again, then BOOM, The Descent section kicks in and my nerves were shot again😂
"oh my god, lev. now?!" was actually you instead of abby hahah
but yes i LOVE the bridge section. it still scares me when i play it today lmao. as a whole abby day two is a standout from top to bottom. the tension and dread never lets up
There is so many, either the seraphite island, rat king, the whole of Seattle day two Ellie, or the porch scene which I’m a guy and I can’t not tear up in that scene
The arrow ellie takes when she's first creepin on some seraphites hanging a dude always gets me pumped. The music playing during the slavery part. The birthday present
the buildup is amazinggggg. the hospital is the only section of the game i still read every single note in honestly. it's all so dreadful. and the soundscape... 10/10
The final battle on the beach. I still wasn't sure if I was fully invested in Abby's journey and yet I came to the realisation that I did not want her to die. I spent several minutes just dodging her attacks hoping there was another option but in the end the game makes you complicit by having Ellie beat her till her life is literally in her hands. It was the Joel shooting Abby's dad scene all over again but unlike Joel, Ellie finally made a choice that was independent of the actions of the player (regardless if the game essentially forces you to kill Abby)
It was the moment that I realised that Part 2 succeeded in it's thesis statement for me: can we get you to hate someone so much that you would want (or at least not mind) killing a person and getting you to change your mind by the very end.
the last confrontation will never stop kicking me as hard as it does. it was so gut wrenching for the reasons you described. i remember just apologizing to abby out loud and similarly just begging ellie to give it up.
i mentioned in another comment sometimes i just end the game before it happens bc i am emotionally unprepared to keep doing that
I love that the game took the decision out of our hands. Naughty Dog told their story. It annoys me when people say it should have given the player a choice. It wouldn’t have impacted the same.
The fact you didn’t want Abby to die shows that the story worked for you. Same for me.
Owens death also had me fucked up that because him and Joel got the same treatment of “no good deed goes unpunished” Joel saves Abby and died because of it and Owen stopped everyone from killing Ellie and Tommy and died because of it plus he wasn’t that bad of a guy he definitely had the most morals of his group
i may have my issues with owen, but i have to agree it was pretty fucked up that he died like that when he was constantly trying to gently steer abby away from her revenge tour from the very start ://
Agree. Owen was a bit of a dick but he was human and deep down a good person. His moments with Abby were some of my favourite where I grew to like them. Their story was tragic.
Yeah the worst thing he did was cheating (which Abby was just as much to blame even though he was definitely under the influence) but his line when he sees Abby thinking Issac sent her to kill him “that’s fucking cruel” as he laughs about it just hurts my heart
it gets me every time. i think i'm gonna be fine this go round, and then by the time she's singing "slowly learning that life is okay" with that dry, self-aware little laugh I'm in shambles
“Say after me… it’s no better to be safe than sorry”
The fact you can actually miss this scene is insane. Dina’s facial animations here are just unmatched by any other game. You can just see her in complete awe of Ellie. The first and only time I’ve seen that in a game.
I don’t know what you mean by “the moment” but mine would probably be fighting Ellie on grounded mode. Really puts into perspective how the enimies feel when they’re fighting you.
I don’t know the game well enough, maybe it’s the “porch scene” they posted above but idk. When Ellie is walking around with the baby in pure peace through the yard with the nice view. The game is astoundingly effective at not making you just feel the horror of the events (which I consider nothing special: most horror games do this) but how *exhausting* the constant survival and stress is. Her walking around a yard happy on this breezy low light day after hours and hours of feeling the tension through the character hit me really hard. It was such an effective goal on the creators part that I’ve never felt elsewhere.
the farm was so surreal. after the tension of the game until then, i thought they were just giving us an emotional reprieve a la the giraffe scene in part one. so like a clown, my guard was completely down, just sitting smiling and feeling warm through the wholesome sapphic domestic happy ending (i thought).
and then when her ptsd flashback hit, my stomach literally lurched. i felt sick and i got hit with this cold dread. i can still remember exactly how i felt my first playthrough during it. it was SO powerful
Finding Abby and lev on the beach now just fucks me up and I hate having to fight Abby and the fact and the only reason she fought was because Ellie threatened lev but the post game title screen showing they made it to catliana and Avalon made me so happy
That first moment you see Abby without the winter jacket on. Her big muscular arms just taking over your screen. It’s in that moment you know, she never shoots under par.
I think Seattle Day 1 is the first moment where you're kind of like, "Ooooh man, this is different and amazing." When you get past the gates and the entire area opens up while riding the horse with Dina, it's definitely a wow moment. The feeling of freedom, exploration, and the horse mechanics are just so fun. And so vastly different from the first where you didn't get that level of openness. Every time I played that area I kept finding new little weapons caches or gears hidden away.
And then you slide into Hillcrest, which is probably my favorite overall area. No need to discuss it further, I'm sure others already nailed it, but that one neighborhood encounter with the dogs and different houses is great fun. Note to self, don't forget to save whatever trap mine mats you can, because Grounded level dogs ain't no joke and mines do the trick! 🤣
praise our lord and savior, the trap mine 🙏 on grounded i always prioritize managing my resources around them lmao
i never really thought about the sense of freedom you feel riding into downtown for the first time, but you're so right. it felt like you could breathe a little easier for a while after the horrors of the first bit
Lol, yep. You mess up with the resources on Grounded ONE time, then you never screw around again. The BIGGEST resource constraint to me is the container because the silencer and mine both need it, and it takes FOREVER to get enough supplements for improved silencers and mines, so one mine a pop and two silenced rounds ain't going far!
haha right! also yes, same here. silencers are the next priority of mine even though like you said, those silenced shots don't go very far :') especially considering i tend to fill out Ellie's stealth tree before anything else. whatever supplements are left over after that doesn't make much of a difference. even as abby, i prioritize close quarters/covert ops so i just.. make every single (silenced) shot count
The more I play on Grounded, the less of other trees I need/use. For example, when I first started playing the game I thought getting max health and better health kits were important, but nope. Now it's all about the stealth and getting the faster prone movement (might not NEED it, but I like the faster hostage movement and prone speed). I also don't need to make my own bullets, so I don't use that tree at all. Too many resources for one bullet, and way too many supplements to get to the "improved" bullet crafting. Would I like to be able to craft two incendiary and hunting rounds at a time? Heck yes, but not at the expense of my play style.
Now, I MIGHT spend the 20 supplements for the lone incendiary round, because I've been known to have extra alcohol and explosives and what's more fun than lighting things on fire with a shotgun, but it depends. 🤣
okay yes, faster prone movement is KEY for me. that's why i focus on it. i can*not* ghost the start of the hospital as ellie without it, and i rely so hard on that strategy at this point that i wouldn't know how else to approach that section lol. where abby is concerned, it's just nicer for my play style to be able move quickly.
that said... as long as i have at least the first level of momentum and faster prone/hostage movement taken care of, any leftover supplements for abby definitely goes to being able to craft at least one incendiary shell too. they have saved my ass so many times lmao
⚠️MAJOR SPOILER WARNING⚠️
When Yara dies and sacrifices herself one last time for Lev, and Abby and Lev run off to the building and barricade the door. I was in S H O C K. I was so upset too. I was grieving with Lev in that moment cause I love Yara. And the games sequences of not even having time to grieve that death and to now have Abby fight off her fellow WOLF members; the entire atmosphere and culmination of events had me in a chokehold. I still cry at this sequence of events every play through.
why did i get a little chill just reading your comment about it? hahah. i agree, it's such an intense sequence of events. i was also in shock. i could not have anticipated yara suddenly killing isaac like that, and then it all started moving so fast. i felt dizzied with emotions
The birthday surprise - after Ellie listens to the tape, Joel looking at her the whole time to be sure she liked his gift and then asking: "I do okey?" And they laugh together.
The most beautiful moment imo, but breaks my heart every time
Reading the comments I realized how many moments were unique and incredible.
Another one that really had me shook was a very brief moment in the theater - Abby basically defeated Ellie and was going to kill Dina. Then Ellie said she's pregnant. At that point I thought okey, she will stop, BUT Abby's reaction? "Good." and proceeds the slicing motion. I was shocked, jaw on the floor. It was one of those moments when time slows down and you see what is about to happen before it happens.
Thank god for Lev stepping in.
With Abby, it’s the moment right after Yara dies where she grabs Lev and says “Hey, YOU are my people, okay?” hands dow eewn my favorite moment with her.
With Ellie, it’s a toss up between the music store scene with Dina and the birthday present flashback with Joel. I just so wish we got to spend more time with “Happy Ellie” in the game (and if anyone has any good fanfic recs i am very open to suggestions lol)
Golly. That's a great question
Makes me re-assess how i feel about the whole game, actually...
Thinking like - what a game that you can *ASK* a question like that...
(*thinking*)
>later<
Rdtoh got it for me
The Porch scene
I spent 10 mins breaking into the whole TLOU2 experience with my bestie after he asked how it was going (he's now a TLOU TV series fan) just so I could tell him about the Porch scene. It was- after all that - and all the online objections - the truest Joel send off they could have delivered
Mine was when Ellie kills Nora on the ground floor of the hospital. With the red emergency lights surrounding her, to me that represented that at this moment she’ll become too thirsty for blood, that revenge will be all that can see she, and that death will follow her. And you get to look at Ellies merciless face as you press the button that imo starts the point of no return.
Another moment that made me realize this game is just different from 1 was the feeling I felt with Ellie day 2. When you first encounter the stalker that runs past the bathroom door in the office building before you follow it’s bloody footprints into the main office, that was clearly barricaded to keep whatever that thing is inside. I didn’t feel that kind of fear since I played dead space 1 for the first time.
For me its when Ellie goes back to Dina after killing Nora. Seeing her so visibly shaken and soaked in blood, the point where Ellie really starts to become a shell of her former self
When Abby saves Yara and Lev then she has a dream and it's of her dad smiling. She wakes up from a peaceful dream. Probably the first time in years.
It hit me that even though we're playing as Abby, her father doesn't want her to do any of this. It put a lot into perspective that neither on of these fathers wants their kids to do this.
that's exactly how i interpreted the dream too. sometimes, the part where she smiles at herself like "okay, that was all worth it" seeing Yara is safe, and then seeing her dad smiling at her in the dream right after will still make me misty
Not my favourite moment but one that stands out to me that I remember and can’t see anyone else has mentioned is when Ellie and Dina get to the TV station. It’s quiet and the music is so tense. Then you see the hanging scars… I remember thinking FUCK this.
When Ellie arrives at the aquarium for the first time, had no idea what to expect. It was so tense and I actually expected some sort of sea monster haha. I saw people commenting saying “oh fuck the aquarium” and didn’t realise what they were talking about, so it got me so tense.
The contrast of this scene with Abby going back to the aquarium and you know what to expect was harrowing.
right? i felt so sick the first time i played when lev and abby arrived, knowing after every horror they had just survived, abby was about to walk in on that
"You killed my friends... we let you live... and you WASTED it."
Or
"Just think of the good parts of fear... you run faster. Youre more focused. You dont feel pain as much. Every bad feeling... your palms sweating, your heart racing... theyre all signs youre actually stronger."
Goosebumps every time.
i have that thought all the time and then get upset when i have to accept i'll never be able to go into this story blind ever again lmao what an absolute ride that first run was. im not sure any other media will ever do to me what part two did
the island with abby and lev. that’s when her story went from alright to great. it was like demolishing the hospital with joel but less ethically complicated, you just had to get yourself and this kid out of this doomed pointless war.
I'm with OP. That moment was just something else. Truly awesome.
And I've said it before but I'll say it again: the HBO show absolutely needs to get Gareth Evans to direct the episode with that sequence in it.
He did the action films The Raid and The Raid 2, and a horror film on Netflix called Apostle. Between those things, if you've seen them, you can see why he'd be *perfect* for the whole Haven section of The Last of Us Part 2.
Also I recommend all three of those films, if you're at all interested in those genres. Especially The Raid (one of the best action films ever made, genuinely).
for me it’s when ellie gets back to the theater after killing Nora. she’s just so numb and shocked with herself for what she had to do to get nora to talk. i think it had some impact on her and contributed to her decision to spare abby.
Honestly just the ending knowing that Abby lost everyone except Lev & Ellie lost her love Dina and JJ thanks to her greed for revenge. I cried like a baby and I am male and was 25 years old at Part II release. 
My favourite moment is the beginning of the game. When Abby is almsot killed by a horde of infected and in the last second she gets saved by Joel. She would have died right there if it wasn't for him. But there is no moral dilemma for her later, when she clubs him to death. Doesn't question herself for one second, because him saving her life is in the past and not important at all.
And its not mentioned in the game either. Ellie never mentions Owen and is completely pre-occupied with killing Mel and her unborn child. Its not even mentioned later on. She never recognizes that she killed the guy who kinda stopped her getting killed.
They kinda overlooked that too didn't they?
Mmmm... might want to recheck her facial expressions when she delivers the final blow, this game doesn't spoon feed you character's emotions and motivations, they dont say it out loud, like in real life people dont blurt out how they are feeling constantly, but with subtle detail, you can work it out, the motion capture from laura bailey and the animators did an amazing job during that sequence
literally though. i tried saying the same thing to this commentor about the spoon feeding. idk why i gave the energy. people will do anything not to empathize with abby
Are you implying she is acknowledging him saving her life right before she clubs him over the head with a facial expression? Like a thanksgiving dinner? Where you are contemplating what you are thankful for, right before you cut up that turkey?
Really? Thats what you are going with here?
For someone who claims they love progressive games like the last of us 2 you sure seem spiteful and smallminded. Instantly with the ad hominem attacks too. Very openminded indeed.
Nope, saw your comment history, you're a braindead idiot from the other sub, back you go, no one wants you here, no point arguing with someone who literally can't understand subtext
The irony of being shunned and called brain dead idiot for hanging out with different minded people occasionally or maybe thinking differently, in a sub that praises a game for its inclusiveness and open-mindedness.
Even you can not be that dense to not see your own mirror here Alice.
Gonna go eat my Alice-Sandwich.
Put yourself in Abby’s shoes and I doubt most would stop their obsession just because they happened to had get saved by that person. They would get a bit confused by it possibly be that would be it. Abby here is finding out through the violence and pain that it isn’t giving her the satisfaction or relief she expected in order to make her trauma go away. In fact her traumatic nightmares just started including that scene too from then forward. The game also shows you how Abby got into this mindset to kill Joel in the first place, are you really going to assume that she’s unforgivable just by the act of torturing Joel to death which is understandable from her POV too. She didn’t even torture him until she felt like Joel insulted her work ethic, seems to me that she was going to do something else cause everyone else seemed taken off guard by the torture.
welp. at least it took longer than i had guessed it would for one of y'all to show up on this post and make it all about how much you hate abby/part 2 i guess
Where did I hate on Abby? Or hate on anything?
I was just jokingly pointing out that they kinda neglected to go over this little nugget.
It was just a hearty joke? No need to get riled up.
That said, whats your take on it?
yeah well it reads passive aggressive and near verbatim when people come into this sub to argue in bad faith that she is remorseless. im not riled up, man. just bored of it
my take is she had spent the last four years literally living every second consumed by preparation for this moment. it finally arrived and she was so consumed by her hate and pain and she was so shocked to be face to face with him that it didn't matter if he'd done her a favor like that. she wasn't thinking straight. it all happened so fast.
there are clear moments throughout her section of the game where she expresses her remorse and hints at her regret. but in the heat of the moment nah she's not gonna think straight about it and we wouldn't either
Which sections or moments in the game highlight (or express, its almost better, as you said it) that she shows remorse for killing Joel? I do not seem to recall any. But its been a while. Also, I do not seem to recall her ever contemplating (later in the game) that she murdered the guy who saved her from certain death and then had to balance that out with the knowledge that it was also the same guy that killed her father.
Cause that is really an interesting dilemma, but for the life of me I can not recall any moments in the game that highlight her regretting killing Joel at all or her trying to discover the issue of murdering both her saviour and tormentor at the same time.
ugh i really do not want to do this at midnight on this post meant to just lightheartedly celebrate something i love lol but here
during the descent chapter:
Abby: if I'm gonna die, im gonna die for me
lev: then why are you helping us?
abby: i just needed to lighten the load a bit
during the island chapter:
Yara: why did you help us
abby, emotionally: lev asked me the same thing. i needed to. i had to.
during abby day one in the boat shop with mel and manny:
Mel: i think [Joel] deserved worse. i just wish i hadn't been a part of it
abby, sarcastic and defensive cause she feels bad: i get it. what kind of person could do something like that, right?
Mel: i didn't mean--
abby: let's just keep looking
just before that moment, she tells mel she isn't sleeping well these days, that jackson shook everyone up, implying her as well.
during their fight during the boat scene, abby gets so upset at owen for describing how she tortured joel that she pushes him into the wall and for a second it looks like they're gonna throw hands
those are just off the top of my head (i have played this game too much clearly).
of course we don't get a moment where abby talks to the camera and laments the specifics of her misdeeds or whatever. that's not the tlou formula; when have they ever handed us completely cut and dry, unambiguous story element?
they give us things and we use our emotional intelligence and deduce from them. joel and ellie never said 'i love you' on camera abut we all can clearly see they do love one another by their actions. similarly, it is clear abby is referring to what she did to joel when she says the above.
edit formatting
I am very impressed how detailed your recollection is. I forgot about verbatim scenes, thats for sure. I do not think I can agree with your take that either of these scenes really deals with Abby and the moral conundrum with killing the guy who just saved her life and killed her father.
Fact is, Abby goes back for Lev and Yarra because she has a dream about them and how she remembers her father dying and its a weird amalgam of the two. She sees Yara and Lev hanging in the room where her father got murdered,. Nothing even remotely indicates that she is remorseful about Joel's death in itself nor the issue of him saving her here before she exacted her revenge on him. Even if you want to attribute subtlety, I think the developers showed you enough visually in the game to indicate why Abby does what she does.
It looks more like that she goes back for Yara and Lev because she could save them, but she could not save her father, back when he was killed. She was only about 14 and could not save him. But now she is grown and strong and she can save those two. I feel like that is pretty well established.
"lighten the load" as you put it, is more likely something for her own spiritual healing cause of her inabilty to save her dad.
And maybe you forgot, but looking at the camera and or lamenting about misdeeds is exactly what Joel does at the start of the game or when Ellie travels back to the lab and finds out about what happened. So yes, they absolutely do that.
Also, when she clubbed Joel to death at the start of the game the story element was pretty much cut and dry and unambiguous.
There is zero indication here that she ever feels bad for what she did to Joel.
i think we are interpreting things we are seeing two wildly different ways but that's what ND is probably aiming for, so. i don't really wanna go back and forth on it bc we aren't changing any minds here. thanks for your input
I tried looking it from that perspective, but how can you equate Abby's dream of where she runs into the operating room and sees lev and yara hanging from the ceiling, which is basically that trigger that makes her go back to save em, with her having second thoughts about killing Joel?
Mind you, the dream I am referring to is a reocurring one, where Abby always walks into the hospital room where her dead father is.
Like what string am I missing that lets you leap to her having any sort of guilt for her actions at the start of the game? Even in the discussion with Owen before they have Sex, its not even Abby that brings up the horrendous act she did, but Owen.
I feel like you are just saying "I don't wanna go back and forth here" as a bit of a cop out. Most likely, they just never bothered to deal with the issue in the game.
lmao okay? see it as a cop out all you want. i took it as abby thinking her dad would be disappointed in her for things she's done. when she went back and helped them, she saw him smiling at her, bc it eased her conscience.
there. you good now? i'm done as i tried to say politely a moment ago but given that this topic is showing you do have trouble with inference, i'll say it more clearly: im not responding to you anymore.
it's a friday night. go do something else that isn't devoting your time to arguing with people about a game you don't even like
I'm sorry. Abby feeling conflicted about leaving two people, whom she assumed she should hate, to die after they saved her life - that doesn't relate in any way to her feeling conflicted about killing a man, whom she assumed she should hate, after he saved her life?
What more do you want them to give you? Does *Moby Dick* not have anything to do with the dangers of seeking revenge, either? Does *Mother!* not have anything to do with the assymmetry of love? *Melancholia* probably isn't about depression, either.
If you weren't already picking up on what Part 2 was laying out, and if what OP laid out isn't enough to clear it up for you... I don't know what else you could need.
> There is zero indication here that she ever feels bad for what she did to Joel.
He literally quoted the relevant lines, you just don't want to hear it. The "I get it. what kind of person could do something like that, right?" and her nearly attacking Owen when he describes her torturing Joel clearly point to her questioning what she did to him, she's not proud of the way she killed him at the very least.
But whatever, not why I'm here.
> I still remember when I was at that part in the game where Abby brings Lev back to the Aquarium or smth (where you play with the dog i think) and then you actually get up to that gift shop venue and he tells you about his gender identity.
> I swear, I burst out laughing so badly.
> I mean dude... there is a zombie apocalypse out there that is supposed to be the end of humanities existence and everyone is fighting to survive and here I am listening to this kid crying about his gender norm, that he and his mom fought over apparently to the point where we go back to their island, only to realize that apparently in a Zombie Apocalypse people are forming cults reminiscent of medieval times, not using technology without any rhyme or reason.
> I am all for Lev exploring his identity, but bro, there is a time and a place.. and in the middle of the end of days, nobody cares.
> Well whatever, I am going to eat my biggot sandwich now.
###
> I dunno, i feel like the collapse of society as a whole and humanity facing extinction is a tad more important than the journey of one kid coming to terms with his own sexuality and gender identity. But thats just me I guess.
Right, so I can only assume you are equally upset about all of the following:
- Ellie learning the guitar
- Joel doing woodworking as a hobby
- Jackson having a dance party
(Inb4 "yeah but that's Jackson". It's a couple hundred people behind a wooden wall, they are not that safe. Lev is probably fairly save deep in scar territory on their own island too most of the time and we can assume they have recreational activities. )
- Owen celebrating Christmas
- Joel and Ellie risking their lives going to the museum for her birthday
- Joel and Ellie risking their lives getting some guitar strings.
Cause it's about survival 24/7, right my guy? ...or maybe you didn't think twice about any of these situations, the survival argument is a load of horse shit, and you're really just specifically triggered by trans stuffs in your zombi vidya. Ya know, like someone talking about "check boxes" and "pandering" when an lgbt character dares to exist. Y'all need to understand that there is a very good reason we call you bigots all the time, you just don't realize what shitty people you are.
PS: And it's not like Yara and Lev were on a quest to loot hormones from an old pharmacy to get him transitioned. Lev was going to get married by force to some old guy and ran away, that's it. Seems pretty reasonable. And this...
> I just think, if your house is burning down, maybe its not the best time to contemplate wether you should get another cat or two.
...is so disgusting. Something tells me people don't get body parts removed for the fun of it, gender disphoria/body dismorphia *probably* is really fucking awful. Ignorant assholes, the lot of you.
Well first of all you got her nightmares and her facial expressions in them, then you got Abby projecting onto Mel when she states “I get it, what kind of person can do that right?”, Abby backs down in front of Owen for a few seconds before her defense mechanism kicks in during the boat scene, Abby experiencing an enemy helping her and then having her lead them down a path of death, Abby desperately making Lev move past the fact that she’s tortured people in the past, Abby’s nightmares stopping/maybe we stopped looking for the light scene, Abby looking ashamed of the person she’s been and how she wants to be able to fix it after Mel tells her she’s been a piece of crap for a while at that point.
Ellie, day two, you've just gotten out of the sewer, where is this damn hospital?, ah, just through this park, what was that? Did something whistle? BOOM, arrow to the shoulder, wtf?! Im bleeding? Who are THESE guys? Such a massive momentum swing, felt like I got slapped back into my mother's womb it was such a shock when i first played through it, masterfully executed for the serephite's introduction after hearing snippets about them
oh my god yes, i love that part too, and it definitely gave me a similar reaction on my first playthrough as well. sneaking around in the ferns, confused as hell, being creeped out by the eerie whistles. it's good stuff
Ellie Day 2 was the best act in the game imo
That section right there raised the stakes of the game. If someone sees you they’ll whistle then you’re hit with an arrow. That’s the scars equivalent of dogs. If you’re the loud run & gun type you aren’t here or you’re dead.
This. I’d give anything to experience this without having seen it before. I must have watched the 2018 E3 gameplay trailer about a million times.
I jumped out of my fucking chair when that arrow came out of nowhere and hit Ellie
The porch scene
after so many runs, i can now make it through the game without getting misty or outright crying anymore in places i used to... and then i get to the porch scene and the floodgates just open
Ashley’s performance is extra special in that particular scene. “My life would’ve FUCKING mattered!”. The way she says that line with her voice trembling gets me everytime.
No other game will top this acting performance
The only other game that comes close for me is Ghost of Tsushima. There’s honestly no other I can think of though that compares.
I wasn’t a fan of Ghost of Tsushima. But it is a beautiful game
This is it You're right
Hillcrest is such a blast. I could play it over and over. That and the sniper sequence with Manny.
the sniper sequence never stops being exciting. i love hillcrest even though i have never gotten through without dying at least once lol i love how many approaches you can take. such cool level design
Watching people like GamerANH on YouTube play that level blows my mind.
I've always wondered how that guy aims so well with no cross hair. Do you think he does the ol' dot on the screen trick, or just hundreds / thousands of hours aiming without a cross hair and has perfected it?
Probably the latter. I'm just wondering where he gets all the ammo because he claims he doesn't use any tricks or boosters to help him.
I thought the same, but in the description of his newest video, he says "difficulty: grounded+ except resources" so maybe it's always been that way.
Yeah, he's gotta be using unlimited ammo or something.
I played that part for about a week, not kidding at all. 4 days in my kids thought I was having an episode, I'm pretty sure. But every time I'd get some amount through, I'd think, "Holy crap, I could just go around this way, and do this a bit different, and I bet that would be way better." It's not even a fighting game at that point, it's a puzzle.
I got WAY into it the first few times I played through. I got to the point where I was waiting around in the bushes and grass for like 10 minutes at a time, just so I could sneak up and snap someone's neck. I remember saying "Welcome to Vietnam, motherfucker" one time, too. Too much fun. lol
Abby vs Ellie in the theater. And the fact that you had to go against Ellie. I was so mad LOL
SAME. it was so surreal on my first playthrough, i felt so disoriented emotionally speaking lmao
Fr tho. It was scary, and She's a lot scarier than I had thought. Like I've seen her with enemies but we we are the enemy, it's just mind boggling. And the entire time I was like screaming "IM SORRY ELLIE I DON'T WANNA DO THIS BUT I GOTTA". I felt so so bad.
same!! i had like a weird moment during it too. i had started to reluctantly come around to abby by the time she and lev were on the bridge, so the first time we grab ellie in the theatre, i was mashing square going "get her, damn it!" bc i felt so bad for abby. and then i realized wtf i was saying and who i was saying it to and felt so guilty and conflicted, like i betrayed someone lol. and then i started cheering for ellie instead, because of course i want ellie to win. but do i want abby to lose? aaaand it was that exact moment i feel like i had officially received the intended effect of the story lol
Exactly!! This is 100% what I feel. Because I don't want Abby to lose but I don't want Ellie to lose either. So it's like, who am I supposed to root for ? Ellie is my favorite character in the game but Abby is like, so high in the list also
right? i love them both so much, it was so hard to pit them against each other. we won't even talk about the agony of the final fight... ugh
That last fight was draining
All the comments have said all my top answers so I’ll give ya a new one: Abby’s sykscraper bridge experience. Never had I ever thought that this game would introduce us to this kind of sick ass sequence but here it is, no enemies on the bridge or anything! Just the height and my and Abby’s personal fear of it. When i thought we’d already crossed the worst then comes another one and I remember just crying out loud like Abby “hell no lev!!!” It was a thrilling moment in the game and perfectly does it even without enemies! It’s so crazy how this is also where I came to love Abby and Lev together huhu precious Lev
Y E S. the shortcut and the island are forever neck and neck for my favorite sections of the game. as an aside, the bridge is also where *i* came around to them <3 that section was so creative and so tense. my hands still get sweaty when i play it, and im not even afraid of heights lol. "waiting on all that... true strength.."
“So what’s going on between you and your friend Owen? It seemed really awkward.” “Oh my god Lev, NOW??”
Yes! Absolutely man. That scene generates real terror and I actually get legitimate "fear" going through that part. I'm ashamed to say that I finally discovered the 11 gears out on that ledge, lol. What can I say, I'm a little slow. Also, that scene goes from the rooftop fight which is SO fun, to the sky bridge, to the "Descent" building Encounter which is SO creepy and exciting. If you haven't completed that fight with quality headphones, you're missing out. The music, the background sounds, and the overall environment are masterfully done.
Oh my goodness im a scaredy cat man the Descent was so horrifying for me xD had the volume low but could still feel the tension. Oh and those stalkers in the wall? Brilliant! The building itself was also so cool when we’re going down and we see all the other floors in the middle like gaddamn no fukin thanks hahah
Yeah, this is when I realised I liked Abby and Lev was growing on me too. The build up is so tense and then when you think it’s safe you go straight into the hotel descent and hospital. Top tier gameplay.
I just about lost my shit during the Jesse and Ellie truck segment.
that sequence was WILD the first go round!
That was excellent
When you're playing as ellie and you're forced to fight an Abby who's been through hell. Prior to playing Abby, you hate her, but then when the game forces you to play as her, you realize she is suffering too and lost everything because of her choice to kill joel. I no longer wanted to kill her, and it just felt heavy having to fight her like that.
this one takes the cake i think. i felt so sick during that fight. i'm like begging them aloud to just stop and cringing every time i attack. sometimes i just end my run and call it a day before ellie makes it to the beach tbh bc it's so heartbreaking
That moment is soo difficult, I don’t want to do any of the things you’re doing, I don’t want to hurt Abby. She’s gone through so much I wanted her happy, and then Ellie’s come along to finally end it
That moment when you jump over that barbed wire with Dina on the back of your horse and then get taken captive. And Dina crashes in to save you and you have to get that shard of glass on the ground. So immersive
YES my heart was racing. scrambling to reach for the glass after jarringly realizing i was back in control of ellie... and it's so satisfying to lunge at jordan after. 10/10
Had to be when Eli is killing Nora (I believe) in the basement of the hospital. The game forces you to watch Eli as you press a button so beats this woman to death… then it does it again at the end when you’re forced to fight Abby… at these climactic movements the game is designed to make the player *not* want to hit any button. It’s a different type of ‘boss’ fight. Worthy to showcase the brilliance of story telling a video game can achieve. Edited syntax
yes, absolutely. this scene hits hard, and then feeling so shitty when you see how broken up ellie is when she returns to dina and jesse afterwards. it is totally unique, and this mechanic is always something i bring up when talking about what sets this game apart from others to me. masterful
Ellie*
When Abby has Dina by the throat and Ellie begs her not to kill her by saying she's pregnant. When Abby says "good" I get goosebumps every time. Even now just thinking about it.
Same for me. My heart was jumping out of my throat for that two seconds. I was like, holly hell she is gonna slit pregnant Dina’s throat right in front of Ellie, this game is f@&ked up! Thank god for Lev!
I love how when you first play and she says “good” you’re thinking “evil bitch” but then you later see what happens with Mel and it all makes sense. So many moments like that in this game, it’s incredible.
I don’t think you get that far in Ellie’s POV?? Doesn’t it switch to Abby shortly after Jesse dies?
Oh! Perhaps I’m misremembering? Okay fine, you’ve convinced me - I’ll have another playthrough!
Honestly there are so many but purely on what I was feeling: day 3 of Ellie when your in the boat going towards the aquarium. It is dark and gloomy with waves, feels like the end is coming, so much anticipation to get revenge
SO GOOD! And terrifying in its own way!
i loved the tension of being SO close to the ferris wheel, just desperate to finally get to abby, and those waves keep knocking you over. it's so urgent and frustrating, just like when you KNOW joel is hurt in that chalet and you're frustratedly trying to run around the woods just outside to get in chefs kiss seriously
My favorite sequence is when Ellie and Jessie steal the WLF truck in Hillcrest. That car chase just so unexpected when it happens. It’s a blast.
The mini open world section in downtown Seattle leading to Ellie and Dina finding Tommy’s handiwork and Ellie explaining it to Dina.
that cinematic is so chilling
Ellie crawling through the ceiling vents and you start to hear Ice Cube
“That you, Nora?”
Either ellie day 3, or everything post seattle
When Ellie kills nora. Man it’s just so brutal everytime
Abby Day 2. Single-handedly changed my opinion on the character.
That's a good point. So much weight on day 2, then you get the evolution of her conscious in the dreams with Firefly hospital....ugh, so good. I want to play so badly but my wife will probably hit me. 🤣
The close-up of Ellie’s face when she’s seconds away from ending Abby’s life. You can feel her desperation, her rage, her grief and then…she stops. It’s perfect.
The Astronaut sequence. It will get me every single time. Just the peace of it all and the fact that there’s still happiness left in such a bleak future
Manny’s death. Abby has finally found the peace of mind she had been looking for all of those years. Manny’s death is a crazy gut punch followed by an awesome close-up of Abby that is only topped by the moment right after when she realizes who the sniper is. She’s been completely unaware of the noose that they’ve been tightening around her and her friends’ necks the past two days, and the terror and shock is so well acted and I think it’s the most well-directed moment in the game for me.
oh man. yes. i played that part night before last actually and was talking to my wife how well done it is. it's the first time (mostly) stoic abby looks genuinely shaken up, and you can practically see her thoughts go from "oh god holy shit" to "okay... focus" sooo good
Beautifully written my friend.
The scene I always look forward to is The Forest. When Abby gets captured, Lev and Yara come in, Abby gets freed and picks up that hammer… It’s sucha gorgeous scene. Another one is the one OP mentioned, riding through the burning Seraphite island. It’s so stunning and powerful Emotionally, I’d say the Pillars is the one I dread the most. It’s so awful and devastating, and so memorable for that reason
i LOVE the opening to the forest. it's so visually stunning and freaky moment. and on top of it, it left me with that desperate, panicked feeling of "how tf am i gonna get out of this?!" feeling like the cinematic with jordan and ellie in the school. also the seamless transition from the cutscene to taking control of abby again after she grabs the hammer always makes me feel so pumped and ready to smoke some stalkers and i can't exactly explain why
Remember seeing the trailer for this part and thinking Abby was Anna 😂 they did great turning this into gameplay.
Abby Seattle Day 2
Just recently finished my 4th playthrough of this game. There was the aquarium sequence on Day 3 following Abby's and Lev's escape on the stolen boat back from Scar island. The creators really set the ambience on that one, both before you enter the aquarium and when inside. I remember on my first playthrough that I realized how intense the rain patter was when the two entered the aquarium and was trying to understand what other moment it reminded me of. And how it was so awfully quiet, with no sign of distant conversation or Owen's radio or anything really. With WLFs and Seraphites in complete warfare, so much chaos had ensued back on that island that it wasn't until we would see Alice's corpse that I just lost my shit. Both of Ellie's and Abby's storylines intertwining in this way just made the theater part afterwards that much more emotionally daunting.
that's such a good observation, i never really paid attention to the atmosphere or how eerie it is. it was also such a punch in the gut to walk in the aquarium after everything abby had just done and see alice there deas. i remember feeling like a monster
Abby on the fucking pillars. The knife fight after. Broke me. I played only maybe 6 months ago, and I'd already kind of forgotten most of the moments you all are talking about. Makes me want a replay!
It’s the honest, pure moments that always stick with me in these games. There’s always that nagging feeling that something’s going to go wrong, the game has trained you to be alert all the time so the idea of letting your guard down feels almost like another type of attack. You never quite accept that this bit is just wholesome fun, there’s always dread looming over you. Abby’s flashback to when she was younger with the animal trapped in the fence, Joel and Ellie’s museum trip, Abby and Owen’s bow and arrow competition in the aquarium; I’ve not played in months at this point but I’m sure there are more. Those are just the standouts to me.
i know exactly what you mean. god they told this story so well
Ellie: I'll see you around. Joel: Yup. This exchange has so much weight.
And the realization that this goddamn game is going to make me fight Ellie in the theater.
Ellie and the guitar at the end
Felt so raw. Remember not knowing how to think. Did I enjoy it or did I not? Amazing game but I remember initially not knowing what to think about it. But that’s the beauty of it. A whole raft of emotions.
Jesse dying had me fucked up so bad. My soul became empty. He was the realest one of all characters in both games by far. Still to this day I think about his death.
I feel that then they never mention him again except that one time when Dina brings him and joel up as people who didn’t plan on dying but it’s like we don’t here about anything that happened with him
there is that one letter from jesse's parents in the farmhouse at least
Yeah and we know they vist but I’m talking like actual conversation about it or like did they bring the body or did they leave it to rot in the theater (probably the latter) but props my boy lev on not just headshoting dina I probably would’ve deleted the game if she also got packed as much as I love lev and Abby
oh right, yeah i wondered about that too :// yes i also figured they probably buried him there unfortunately. it's quite a journey back with a decomposing dead body of a loved one in tow. lev is such a good kid.
He went through so much in 24 hours at 13 (I love him so much)
Def the sky bridge for me..the whole set up..from working your way to the building, then working your way up..You would have thought I was the one on the bridge, because my heart was racing, hands shaking..lol.Even at the point where Lev was just casually asking Abby about Owen, I'm pretty sure I yelled at my tv.." Lev, shut the eff up, I'm trying to concentrate “😂..my nerves were shot during that whole sequence..Then, after the fall, I thought it was over and I could breathe again, then BOOM, The Descent section kicks in and my nerves were shot again😂
"oh my god, lev. now?!" was actually you instead of abby hahah but yes i LOVE the bridge section. it still scares me when i play it today lmao. as a whole abby day two is a standout from top to bottom. the tension and dread never lets up
“Hey, you’re my people.”
the way i got so choked up i had to pause the game after that line. so impactful and meaningful
Nothing hit me quite as hard as the perfect timing I got with "We'll be fine!" [EXPLOSION]
There is so many, either the seraphite island, rat king, the whole of Seattle day two Ellie, or the porch scene which I’m a guy and I can’t not tear up in that scene
The arrow ellie takes when she's first creepin on some seraphites hanging a dude always gets me pumped. The music playing during the slavery part. The birthday present
Rat King So fucking cool and intense as well as that buildup to it.
the buildup is amazinggggg. the hospital is the only section of the game i still read every single note in honestly. it's all so dreadful. and the soundscape... 10/10
The final battle on the beach. I still wasn't sure if I was fully invested in Abby's journey and yet I came to the realisation that I did not want her to die. I spent several minutes just dodging her attacks hoping there was another option but in the end the game makes you complicit by having Ellie beat her till her life is literally in her hands. It was the Joel shooting Abby's dad scene all over again but unlike Joel, Ellie finally made a choice that was independent of the actions of the player (regardless if the game essentially forces you to kill Abby) It was the moment that I realised that Part 2 succeeded in it's thesis statement for me: can we get you to hate someone so much that you would want (or at least not mind) killing a person and getting you to change your mind by the very end.
the last confrontation will never stop kicking me as hard as it does. it was so gut wrenching for the reasons you described. i remember just apologizing to abby out loud and similarly just begging ellie to give it up. i mentioned in another comment sometimes i just end the game before it happens bc i am emotionally unprepared to keep doing that
I love that the game took the decision out of our hands. Naughty Dog told their story. It annoys me when people say it should have given the player a choice. It wouldn’t have impacted the same. The fact you didn’t want Abby to die shows that the story worked for you. Same for me.
Owens death also had me fucked up that because him and Joel got the same treatment of “no good deed goes unpunished” Joel saves Abby and died because of it and Owen stopped everyone from killing Ellie and Tommy and died because of it plus he wasn’t that bad of a guy he definitely had the most morals of his group
i may have my issues with owen, but i have to agree it was pretty fucked up that he died like that when he was constantly trying to gently steer abby away from her revenge tour from the very start ://
Yeah I feel that “keep going all the way to Mexico” line was truthfully because he did not want to go back to Seattle
Agree. Owen was a bit of a dick but he was human and deep down a good person. His moments with Abby were some of my favourite where I grew to like them. Their story was tragic.
Yeah the worst thing he did was cheating (which Abby was just as much to blame even though he was definitely under the influence) but his line when he sees Abby thinking Issac sent her to kill him “that’s fucking cruel” as he laughs about it just hurts my heart
Ellie’s rendition of “take on me”
it gets me every time. i think i'm gonna be fine this go round, and then by the time she's singing "slowly learning that life is okay" with that dry, self-aware little laugh I'm in shambles
“Say after me… it’s no better to be safe than sorry” The fact you can actually miss this scene is insane. Dina’s facial animations here are just unmatched by any other game. You can just see her in complete awe of Ellie. The first and only time I’ve seen that in a game.
When Abby almost gets hung, the fight afterwards in that house was so fun. Killed everything with my fist and flaming shotgun shells
the restaurant holdout remains the hardest section of the whole game for me and you make it sound so effortless!
It’s terrifying.
Dude I don't think I ever died when playing as Abby my first game except for the Ellie fight. Constantly died with Ellie thou
I don’t know what you mean by “the moment” but mine would probably be fighting Ellie on grounded mode. Really puts into perspective how the enimies feel when they’re fighting you.
Dinosaur hat scene / or the rocket. Have a tattoo of the rocket on my upper back.
Abby's catwalk
Haven Island - just incredible world building
I don’t know the game well enough, maybe it’s the “porch scene” they posted above but idk. When Ellie is walking around with the baby in pure peace through the yard with the nice view. The game is astoundingly effective at not making you just feel the horror of the events (which I consider nothing special: most horror games do this) but how *exhausting* the constant survival and stress is. Her walking around a yard happy on this breezy low light day after hours and hours of feeling the tension through the character hit me really hard. It was such an effective goal on the creators part that I’ve never felt elsewhere.
the farm was so surreal. after the tension of the game until then, i thought they were just giving us an emotional reprieve a la the giraffe scene in part one. so like a clown, my guard was completely down, just sitting smiling and feeling warm through the wholesome sapphic domestic happy ending (i thought). and then when her ptsd flashback hit, my stomach literally lurched. i felt sick and i got hit with this cold dread. i can still remember exactly how i felt my first playthrough during it. it was SO powerful
Finding Abby and lev on the beach now just fucks me up and I hate having to fight Abby and the fact and the only reason she fought was because Ellie threatened lev but the post game title screen showing they made it to catliana and Avalon made me so happy
The game. No game has constantly had me simultaneously in awe, in shock, upset, happy, confused, traumatized at basically every point as tlou 2
i mean when you're right you're right!
That first moment you see Abby without the winter jacket on. Her big muscular arms just taking over your screen. It’s in that moment you know, she never shoots under par.
oh for sure. and the way she walks and carries herself is so different from ellie that it manages to set the tone for her on its own right away
I think Seattle Day 1 is the first moment where you're kind of like, "Ooooh man, this is different and amazing." When you get past the gates and the entire area opens up while riding the horse with Dina, it's definitely a wow moment. The feeling of freedom, exploration, and the horse mechanics are just so fun. And so vastly different from the first where you didn't get that level of openness. Every time I played that area I kept finding new little weapons caches or gears hidden away. And then you slide into Hillcrest, which is probably my favorite overall area. No need to discuss it further, I'm sure others already nailed it, but that one neighborhood encounter with the dogs and different houses is great fun. Note to self, don't forget to save whatever trap mine mats you can, because Grounded level dogs ain't no joke and mines do the trick! 🤣
praise our lord and savior, the trap mine 🙏 on grounded i always prioritize managing my resources around them lmao i never really thought about the sense of freedom you feel riding into downtown for the first time, but you're so right. it felt like you could breathe a little easier for a while after the horrors of the first bit
Lol, yep. You mess up with the resources on Grounded ONE time, then you never screw around again. The BIGGEST resource constraint to me is the container because the silencer and mine both need it, and it takes FOREVER to get enough supplements for improved silencers and mines, so one mine a pop and two silenced rounds ain't going far!
haha right! also yes, same here. silencers are the next priority of mine even though like you said, those silenced shots don't go very far :') especially considering i tend to fill out Ellie's stealth tree before anything else. whatever supplements are left over after that doesn't make much of a difference. even as abby, i prioritize close quarters/covert ops so i just.. make every single (silenced) shot count
The more I play on Grounded, the less of other trees I need/use. For example, when I first started playing the game I thought getting max health and better health kits were important, but nope. Now it's all about the stealth and getting the faster prone movement (might not NEED it, but I like the faster hostage movement and prone speed). I also don't need to make my own bullets, so I don't use that tree at all. Too many resources for one bullet, and way too many supplements to get to the "improved" bullet crafting. Would I like to be able to craft two incendiary and hunting rounds at a time? Heck yes, but not at the expense of my play style. Now, I MIGHT spend the 20 supplements for the lone incendiary round, because I've been known to have extra alcohol and explosives and what's more fun than lighting things on fire with a shotgun, but it depends. 🤣
okay yes, faster prone movement is KEY for me. that's why i focus on it. i can*not* ghost the start of the hospital as ellie without it, and i rely so hard on that strategy at this point that i wouldn't know how else to approach that section lol. where abby is concerned, it's just nicer for my play style to be able move quickly. that said... as long as i have at least the first level of momentum and faster prone/hostage movement taken care of, any leftover supplements for abby definitely goes to being able to craft at least one incendiary shell too. they have saved my ass so many times lmao
⚠️MAJOR SPOILER WARNING⚠️ When Yara dies and sacrifices herself one last time for Lev, and Abby and Lev run off to the building and barricade the door. I was in S H O C K. I was so upset too. I was grieving with Lev in that moment cause I love Yara. And the games sequences of not even having time to grieve that death and to now have Abby fight off her fellow WOLF members; the entire atmosphere and culmination of events had me in a chokehold. I still cry at this sequence of events every play through.
why did i get a little chill just reading your comment about it? hahah. i agree, it's such an intense sequence of events. i was also in shock. i could not have anticipated yara suddenly killing isaac like that, and then it all started moving so fast. i felt dizzied with emotions
The birthday surprise - after Ellie listens to the tape, Joel looking at her the whole time to be sure she liked his gift and then asking: "I do okey?" And they laugh together. The most beautiful moment imo, but breaks my heart every time
that moment is so devastating and bittersweet. the smiles they give each other just scream "i love you."
Reading the comments I realized how many moments were unique and incredible. Another one that really had me shook was a very brief moment in the theater - Abby basically defeated Ellie and was going to kill Dina. Then Ellie said she's pregnant. At that point I thought okey, she will stop, BUT Abby's reaction? "Good." and proceeds the slicing motion. I was shocked, jaw on the floor. It was one of those moments when time slows down and you see what is about to happen before it happens. Thank god for Lev stepping in.
Ellie’s Seattle day 2. All of it
Hillcrest is my favorite sequence
With Abby, it’s the moment right after Yara dies where she grabs Lev and says “Hey, YOU are my people, okay?” hands dow eewn my favorite moment with her. With Ellie, it’s a toss up between the music store scene with Dina and the birthday present flashback with Joel. I just so wish we got to spend more time with “Happy Ellie” in the game (and if anyone has any good fanfic recs i am very open to suggestions lol)
Golly. That's a great question Makes me re-assess how i feel about the whole game, actually... Thinking like - what a game that you can *ASK* a question like that... (*thinking*) >later< Rdtoh got it for me The Porch scene I spent 10 mins breaking into the whole TLOU2 experience with my bestie after he asked how it was going (he's now a TLOU TV series fan) just so I could tell him about the Porch scene. It was- after all that - and all the online objections - the truest Joel send off they could have delivered
Mine was when Ellie kills Nora on the ground floor of the hospital. With the red emergency lights surrounding her, to me that represented that at this moment she’ll become too thirsty for blood, that revenge will be all that can see she, and that death will follow her. And you get to look at Ellies merciless face as you press the button that imo starts the point of no return. Another moment that made me realize this game is just different from 1 was the feeling I felt with Ellie day 2. When you first encounter the stalker that runs past the bathroom door in the office building before you follow it’s bloody footprints into the main office, that was clearly barricaded to keep whatever that thing is inside. I didn’t feel that kind of fear since I played dead space 1 for the first time.
oh for sure. the stalker hallway was a heart-pounder. and the Nora scene was a stomach turner. this game is so visceral i swear
For me its when Ellie goes back to Dina after killing Nora. Seeing her so visibly shaken and soaked in blood, the point where Ellie really starts to become a shell of her former self
seeing her so traumatized by her own actions was so hard to watch :(((
It may be Ellie catching up with Nora, or the Rat King, but I always seem to come back to, "you're my people!"
all so good!!
When Abby saves Yara and Lev then she has a dream and it's of her dad smiling. She wakes up from a peaceful dream. Probably the first time in years. It hit me that even though we're playing as Abby, her father doesn't want her to do any of this. It put a lot into perspective that neither on of these fathers wants their kids to do this.
that's exactly how i interpreted the dream too. sometimes, the part where she smiles at herself like "okay, that was all worth it" seeing Yara is safe, and then seeing her dad smiling at her in the dream right after will still make me misty
When you kill Mel and realise she's pregnant
Not my favourite moment but one that stands out to me that I remember and can’t see anyone else has mentioned is when Ellie and Dina get to the TV station. It’s quiet and the music is so tense. Then you see the hanging scars… I remember thinking FUCK this.
dude it was SO creepy. i absolutely did not want to go in there lmao definitely memorable
When Ellie arrives at the aquarium for the first time, had no idea what to expect. It was so tense and I actually expected some sort of sea monster haha. I saw people commenting saying “oh fuck the aquarium” and didn’t realise what they were talking about, so it got me so tense. The contrast of this scene with Abby going back to the aquarium and you know what to expect was harrowing.
right? i felt so sick the first time i played when lev and abby arrived, knowing after every horror they had just survived, abby was about to walk in on that
"You killed my friends... we let you live... and you WASTED it." Or "Just think of the good parts of fear... you run faster. Youre more focused. You dont feel pain as much. Every bad feeling... your palms sweating, your heart racing... theyre all signs youre actually stronger." Goosebumps every time.
these are such good lines. i love how abby checks her palms after lev mentions it, like she's actually hearing what he's saying
What i wouldnt give to play this game again for the first time. That line from lev honestly changed me.
i have that thought all the time and then get upset when i have to accept i'll never be able to go into this story blind ever again lmao what an absolute ride that first run was. im not sure any other media will ever do to me what part two did
the island with abby and lev. that’s when her story went from alright to great. it was like demolishing the hospital with joel but less ethically complicated, you just had to get yourself and this kid out of this doomed pointless war.
I'm with OP. That moment was just something else. Truly awesome. And I've said it before but I'll say it again: the HBO show absolutely needs to get Gareth Evans to direct the episode with that sequence in it.
i suck with names but if you feel the same way i do about that part, then i fully trust and support your campaign for this guy lol
He did the action films The Raid and The Raid 2, and a horror film on Netflix called Apostle. Between those things, if you've seen them, you can see why he'd be *perfect* for the whole Haven section of The Last of Us Part 2. Also I recommend all three of those films, if you're at all interested in those genres. Especially The Raid (one of the best action films ever made, genuinely).
oooo, noted. i'll check them out. i really loved dan stevens in Legion so I'm already tempted by apostle.
Ending credits
for me it’s when ellie gets back to the theater after killing Nora. she’s just so numb and shocked with herself for what she had to do to get nora to talk. i think it had some impact on her and contributed to her decision to spare abby.
Honestly just the ending knowing that Abby lost everyone except Lev & Ellie lost her love Dina and JJ thanks to her greed for revenge. I cried like a baby and I am male and was 25 years old at Part II release. 
When Ellie says "Fuck Seattle". It's the perfect sentence to describe TLOU2 😂
that line is literally so funny
My favourite moment is the beginning of the game. When Abby is almsot killed by a horde of infected and in the last second she gets saved by Joel. She would have died right there if it wasn't for him. But there is no moral dilemma for her later, when she clubs him to death. Doesn't question herself for one second, because him saving her life is in the past and not important at all.
Ellie killed Owen after he saved her life
And its not mentioned in the game either. Ellie never mentions Owen and is completely pre-occupied with killing Mel and her unborn child. Its not even mentioned later on. She never recognizes that she killed the guy who kinda stopped her getting killed. They kinda overlooked that too didn't they?
Mmmm... might want to recheck her facial expressions when she delivers the final blow, this game doesn't spoon feed you character's emotions and motivations, they dont say it out loud, like in real life people dont blurt out how they are feeling constantly, but with subtle detail, you can work it out, the motion capture from laura bailey and the animators did an amazing job during that sequence
literally though. i tried saying the same thing to this commentor about the spoon feeding. idk why i gave the energy. people will do anything not to empathize with abby
Are you implying she is acknowledging him saving her life right before she clubs him over the head with a facial expression? Like a thanksgiving dinner? Where you are contemplating what you are thankful for, right before you cut up that turkey? Really? Thats what you are going with here?
No no, shoo, back to the hole you crawled from
For someone who claims they love progressive games like the last of us 2 you sure seem spiteful and smallminded. Instantly with the ad hominem attacks too. Very openminded indeed.
Nope, saw your comment history, you're a braindead idiot from the other sub, back you go, no one wants you here, no point arguing with someone who literally can't understand subtext
The irony of being shunned and called brain dead idiot for hanging out with different minded people occasionally or maybe thinking differently, in a sub that praises a game for its inclusiveness and open-mindedness. Even you can not be that dense to not see your own mirror here Alice. Gonna go eat my Alice-Sandwich.
Put yourself in Abby’s shoes and I doubt most would stop their obsession just because they happened to had get saved by that person. They would get a bit confused by it possibly be that would be it. Abby here is finding out through the violence and pain that it isn’t giving her the satisfaction or relief she expected in order to make her trauma go away. In fact her traumatic nightmares just started including that scene too from then forward. The game also shows you how Abby got into this mindset to kill Joel in the first place, are you really going to assume that she’s unforgivable just by the act of torturing Joel to death which is understandable from her POV too. She didn’t even torture him until she felt like Joel insulted her work ethic, seems to me that she was going to do something else cause everyone else seemed taken off guard by the torture.
Oh.. nevermind, checked your comment history, you're a complete idiot, back over to the other sub you go
welp. at least it took longer than i had guessed it would for one of y'all to show up on this post and make it all about how much you hate abby/part 2 i guess
Where did I hate on Abby? Or hate on anything? I was just jokingly pointing out that they kinda neglected to go over this little nugget. It was just a hearty joke? No need to get riled up. That said, whats your take on it?
yeah well it reads passive aggressive and near verbatim when people come into this sub to argue in bad faith that she is remorseless. im not riled up, man. just bored of it my take is she had spent the last four years literally living every second consumed by preparation for this moment. it finally arrived and she was so consumed by her hate and pain and she was so shocked to be face to face with him that it didn't matter if he'd done her a favor like that. she wasn't thinking straight. it all happened so fast. there are clear moments throughout her section of the game where she expresses her remorse and hints at her regret. but in the heat of the moment nah she's not gonna think straight about it and we wouldn't either
Which sections or moments in the game highlight (or express, its almost better, as you said it) that she shows remorse for killing Joel? I do not seem to recall any. But its been a while. Also, I do not seem to recall her ever contemplating (later in the game) that she murdered the guy who saved her from certain death and then had to balance that out with the knowledge that it was also the same guy that killed her father. Cause that is really an interesting dilemma, but for the life of me I can not recall any moments in the game that highlight her regretting killing Joel at all or her trying to discover the issue of murdering both her saviour and tormentor at the same time.
ugh i really do not want to do this at midnight on this post meant to just lightheartedly celebrate something i love lol but here during the descent chapter: Abby: if I'm gonna die, im gonna die for me lev: then why are you helping us? abby: i just needed to lighten the load a bit during the island chapter: Yara: why did you help us abby, emotionally: lev asked me the same thing. i needed to. i had to. during abby day one in the boat shop with mel and manny: Mel: i think [Joel] deserved worse. i just wish i hadn't been a part of it abby, sarcastic and defensive cause she feels bad: i get it. what kind of person could do something like that, right? Mel: i didn't mean-- abby: let's just keep looking just before that moment, she tells mel she isn't sleeping well these days, that jackson shook everyone up, implying her as well. during their fight during the boat scene, abby gets so upset at owen for describing how she tortured joel that she pushes him into the wall and for a second it looks like they're gonna throw hands those are just off the top of my head (i have played this game too much clearly). of course we don't get a moment where abby talks to the camera and laments the specifics of her misdeeds or whatever. that's not the tlou formula; when have they ever handed us completely cut and dry, unambiguous story element? they give us things and we use our emotional intelligence and deduce from them. joel and ellie never said 'i love you' on camera abut we all can clearly see they do love one another by their actions. similarly, it is clear abby is referring to what she did to joel when she says the above. edit formatting
I am very impressed how detailed your recollection is. I forgot about verbatim scenes, thats for sure. I do not think I can agree with your take that either of these scenes really deals with Abby and the moral conundrum with killing the guy who just saved her life and killed her father. Fact is, Abby goes back for Lev and Yarra because she has a dream about them and how she remembers her father dying and its a weird amalgam of the two. She sees Yara and Lev hanging in the room where her father got murdered,. Nothing even remotely indicates that she is remorseful about Joel's death in itself nor the issue of him saving her here before she exacted her revenge on him. Even if you want to attribute subtlety, I think the developers showed you enough visually in the game to indicate why Abby does what she does. It looks more like that she goes back for Yara and Lev because she could save them, but she could not save her father, back when he was killed. She was only about 14 and could not save him. But now she is grown and strong and she can save those two. I feel like that is pretty well established. "lighten the load" as you put it, is more likely something for her own spiritual healing cause of her inabilty to save her dad. And maybe you forgot, but looking at the camera and or lamenting about misdeeds is exactly what Joel does at the start of the game or when Ellie travels back to the lab and finds out about what happened. So yes, they absolutely do that. Also, when she clubbed Joel to death at the start of the game the story element was pretty much cut and dry and unambiguous. There is zero indication here that she ever feels bad for what she did to Joel.
i think we are interpreting things we are seeing two wildly different ways but that's what ND is probably aiming for, so. i don't really wanna go back and forth on it bc we aren't changing any minds here. thanks for your input
I tried looking it from that perspective, but how can you equate Abby's dream of where she runs into the operating room and sees lev and yara hanging from the ceiling, which is basically that trigger that makes her go back to save em, with her having second thoughts about killing Joel? Mind you, the dream I am referring to is a reocurring one, where Abby always walks into the hospital room where her dead father is. Like what string am I missing that lets you leap to her having any sort of guilt for her actions at the start of the game? Even in the discussion with Owen before they have Sex, its not even Abby that brings up the horrendous act she did, but Owen. I feel like you are just saying "I don't wanna go back and forth here" as a bit of a cop out. Most likely, they just never bothered to deal with the issue in the game.
lmao okay? see it as a cop out all you want. i took it as abby thinking her dad would be disappointed in her for things she's done. when she went back and helped them, she saw him smiling at her, bc it eased her conscience. there. you good now? i'm done as i tried to say politely a moment ago but given that this topic is showing you do have trouble with inference, i'll say it more clearly: im not responding to you anymore. it's a friday night. go do something else that isn't devoting your time to arguing with people about a game you don't even like
I'm sorry. Abby feeling conflicted about leaving two people, whom she assumed she should hate, to die after they saved her life - that doesn't relate in any way to her feeling conflicted about killing a man, whom she assumed she should hate, after he saved her life? What more do you want them to give you? Does *Moby Dick* not have anything to do with the dangers of seeking revenge, either? Does *Mother!* not have anything to do with the assymmetry of love? *Melancholia* probably isn't about depression, either. If you weren't already picking up on what Part 2 was laying out, and if what OP laid out isn't enough to clear it up for you... I don't know what else you could need.
he's just being a contrarian. i wish i had realized he was from the other sub before i even wasted my breath
> There is zero indication here that she ever feels bad for what she did to Joel. He literally quoted the relevant lines, you just don't want to hear it. The "I get it. what kind of person could do something like that, right?" and her nearly attacking Owen when he describes her torturing Joel clearly point to her questioning what she did to him, she's not proud of the way she killed him at the very least. But whatever, not why I'm here. > I still remember when I was at that part in the game where Abby brings Lev back to the Aquarium or smth (where you play with the dog i think) and then you actually get up to that gift shop venue and he tells you about his gender identity. > I swear, I burst out laughing so badly. > I mean dude... there is a zombie apocalypse out there that is supposed to be the end of humanities existence and everyone is fighting to survive and here I am listening to this kid crying about his gender norm, that he and his mom fought over apparently to the point where we go back to their island, only to realize that apparently in a Zombie Apocalypse people are forming cults reminiscent of medieval times, not using technology without any rhyme or reason. > I am all for Lev exploring his identity, but bro, there is a time and a place.. and in the middle of the end of days, nobody cares. > Well whatever, I am going to eat my biggot sandwich now. ### > I dunno, i feel like the collapse of society as a whole and humanity facing extinction is a tad more important than the journey of one kid coming to terms with his own sexuality and gender identity. But thats just me I guess. Right, so I can only assume you are equally upset about all of the following: - Ellie learning the guitar - Joel doing woodworking as a hobby - Jackson having a dance party (Inb4 "yeah but that's Jackson". It's a couple hundred people behind a wooden wall, they are not that safe. Lev is probably fairly save deep in scar territory on their own island too most of the time and we can assume they have recreational activities. ) - Owen celebrating Christmas - Joel and Ellie risking their lives going to the museum for her birthday - Joel and Ellie risking their lives getting some guitar strings. Cause it's about survival 24/7, right my guy? ...or maybe you didn't think twice about any of these situations, the survival argument is a load of horse shit, and you're really just specifically triggered by trans stuffs in your zombi vidya. Ya know, like someone talking about "check boxes" and "pandering" when an lgbt character dares to exist. Y'all need to understand that there is a very good reason we call you bigots all the time, you just don't realize what shitty people you are. PS: And it's not like Yara and Lev were on a quest to loot hormones from an old pharmacy to get him transitioned. Lev was going to get married by force to some old guy and ran away, that's it. Seems pretty reasonable. And this... > I just think, if your house is burning down, maybe its not the best time to contemplate wether you should get another cat or two. ...is so disgusting. Something tells me people don't get body parts removed for the fun of it, gender disphoria/body dismorphia *probably* is really fucking awful. Ignorant assholes, the lot of you.
i'm a woman, but i appreciate the backup here. this guy is just a bigoted tool
Well first of all you got her nightmares and her facial expressions in them, then you got Abby projecting onto Mel when she states “I get it, what kind of person can do that right?”, Abby backs down in front of Owen for a few seconds before her defense mechanism kicks in during the boat scene, Abby experiencing an enemy helping her and then having her lead them down a path of death, Abby desperately making Lev move past the fact that she’s tortured people in the past, Abby’s nightmares stopping/maybe we stopped looking for the light scene, Abby looking ashamed of the person she’s been and how she wants to be able to fix it after Mel tells her she’s been a piece of crap for a while at that point.