5 Things You Should Know About The Last of Us Part II

The Last of Us: Part II launches in a few short weeks and it's one of the most anticipated games of this generation. With the first game still heralded for its strong character design and emotionally charged narrative. This new adventure has a lot of new features and narrative elements players should be aware of before jumping in.

1. 25 Years of Surviving

The Last of Us Part II takes place 5 years after the first game, making it 25 years since the infection started. Ellie is 19 years old and is living within Jackson County, Wyoming with Joel's younger brother Tommy and their community. This is the first time Ellie has ever had a normal life, with an entire town of people working and developing actual lives.

This will be the first time we'll see Ellie living an actual life, free from the military and Fireflies. Like most things in Ellie's life, things take a turn for the worst. Now she's on a warpath to take down those who've wronged her.

2. More Stealth and Combat Options

Unlike Joel, Ellie is smaller and able to move around easier. This increased movement allows Ellie to leap across gaps at will, pass through cracks in the wall, and even use the tall grass to remain hidden. Using prone Ellie can evade and remain hidden using the tall grass or even underneath vehicles. She can also aim her weapons while prone with ease.

With these new tactics, Naughty Dog has improved the AI for The Last of Us Part II. The first game's AI was already good, with enemies flanking Joel's position, using suppressing fire, and even sneaking up on the player. Now, the enemy AI will look for Ellie extensively in areas such as the grass, underneath trucks, and even use dogs to track her scent. The enemies will also provide updates to one another similar to Metal Gear Solid: The Phantom Pain. 

As seen in the recent gameplay trailer enemies will also take countermeasures to Ellie's tactics. Such as when she uses a smoke bomb to disorientate a target only for another NPC to be lying in wait behind a piece of cover.

Ellie can also use her increased speed to dodge melee attacks. Unlike the original game where melee was simply linked to a single button command now, you'll have to dodge and counter when facing enemies. This makes sense as while Ellie is more agile and graceful than Joel she's nowhere as strong.

3. GRAPPLE HOOK

Ellie has some new tools in her arsenal. She can craft everything Joel could in the original game along with variations of arrows such as an explosive arrow. She can also use a grappling hook, similar to Nathan Drake from Uncharted 4: A Thief's End, to reach new areas.

4. Semi-Open World

Naughty Dog did confirm that the game will feature lots of optional areas instead of following the original game's linear level strict structure. Players can travel through this open area on horseback and find hidden supplies. These supplies are often guarded by human NPCs or in quarantine areas littered with infected. You'll have to decide whether the rewards are worth the risk. In addition, these optional areas will provide unique dialogue sometimes.

5. New Infected

It's been 25 years since the Cordyceps fungus jumped to humans. Since then we've seen Runners, Stalkers, Clickers, and Bloaters. The Last of Us: Part II will have new infected with 2 new stages confirmed so far. The first is Shamblers, they're basically Bloaters who act like spray gaseous acid when you get too close and explode when killed. They're just as durable as the Bloaters. The new sixth stage of infection has been confirmed by director Neil Druckmann but has not been seen yet.

The Last of Us: Part II launches this June 19th for PS4.

Adam Siddiqui,
Managing Editor, NoobFeed
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