The Last of Us: The Latest Video Game Adaptation Creates Massive Response

The latest version of the popular video game ‘The Last of Us’ has caused a stir in the video game world and garnered immense popularity after the release of the HBO Originals adaptation of the game with the same name. This post-apocalyptic video game created and distributed by Naughty Dog and Sony had its latest version released in September 2022 on PlayStation and is set to re-debut again in March 2023 following the success of the HBO series.

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Plot

The original game, released in 2013 by Naughty Dog, garnered interest from players for its unique plot, intense action sequence, high-quality graphics, and emotional upheavals of the game characters. The story is set in a world infected by a life-threatening fungus, Cordyceps, which has caused a global pandemic and a zombie infestation as it turns its victims into mindless zombies.

In this deadly situation, a smuggler is tasked with saving a young girl from imprisonment as she is the sole hope for humanity to create an antidote to save themselves from the mutant fungus.

It shows a poignant bond between the smuggler, Joel, and the young girl, Ellie, which develops over the span of time and leads Joel to refuse to hand Ellie over to the Fireflies, who would kill her to create the antidote. The game captures Joel’s struggle to save Ellie from death since she reminds him of his dead daughter, Sarah.

The sequels of Last of Us document events before the beginning of the game, like Ellie's life with her friend Riley in Last of Us: Left Behind, while Last of Us: Part II follows their lives four years after the events of the main game.

Reception

The franchise is both a fan favorite and critically acclaimed and has managed to bag 320 or more Game of the Year awards. The 2013 or original edition of the game places it in the list of the Greatest Video Games made in the world. It is one of the best-selling games on PlayStation and has a record of 37 million sales across the world. As of June 2022, The Last of Us: Part II has earned a revenue of $10 million worldwide.

HBO Adaptation and Rise in Fame

The game’s recent outburst in fame has a major reason—the HBO Originals adaptation created by Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann, starring Pedro Pascal as Joel and Bella Ramsey as Ellie. The series' plot is not too distant from that of the video game and remains faithful to the original theme of the game.

The usually critical gamers and fans of the original were impressed with the rendition and referred to it as a series with the best Video Game adaptation. The first episode of the series was released on January 15th, 2023, and is set to end on March 13th, 2023.

HBO Originals’ extensive reach as a platform and the involvement of Craig Mazin, creator of one of the most critically acclaimed series, Chernobyl, in series had led to enthusiasm among viewers. The well-knit grim plot with the realistic, pandemic-related setting and the tragic loss of human lives portrayed through the series captured the attention of viewers and respawned interest in the original game while introducing the game to a larger range of audience.

The HBO adaptation also made gamers rethink the freshness of the game, from the expression of emotions uncommon to video games that set it apart from games with mindless violence to invoking empathy through the portrayal of deaths, including that of the main character of the game, Ellie.