To improve is to change; to be perfect is to change often – Churchill’s words have never been more fitting than to be related to the current gaming industry. We have new, powerful hardware with a slew of remade and remastered games. It shows that some familiarity is key to the hearts of many, as long as improvements are noted. It’s been 9 years since The Last of Us released, and 8 years since the Remaster. We’ve endured much during that time – a global pandemic, a war, the end of a pandemic. We’ve seen just how quickly our lives can change and while it’s not to the degree of the world of The Last of Us, it’s perhaps not as unbelievable as we once thought.



The Last of Us Part I is billed as a “Remake”, and not a remaster – the key difference is that it’s not just the same game benefitting from more powerful hardware, it’s not just updated visuals or framerates. The Remake offers much more than that as it was built from scratch, but obviously with the same story and basic gameplay. New accessibility features, faster loading times, upgraded assets, more impressive visual aesthetics, more realism and of course the additional effects of haptic feedback on the PS5 DualSense controller and 3D audio. There’s a lot to appreciate here.

[Left Behind] does not shortchange on its emotive storytelling and context building as to what Ellie goes through before meeting with Joel.

One constant amongst the change is the storyline. Both The Last of Us and the DLC “Left Behind” remain the same in this regard. The main game takes place in the wonderfully distraught post pandemic world. There’s quiet and chaos everywhere as Joel escorts Ellie across the vast and desolate planes of the USA. While the main game takes us through the journey we all know and love, the DLC takes us to the time before Joel and Ellie meet, and while it’s a lot shorter, it does not shortchange on its emotive storytelling and context building as to what Ellie goes through before meeting with Joel.



The focus on the remake, however, is the added immersion. If ever there was a poster for the value of remakes, this must be it. It’s not just that the game looks better, as promised by the developers, everything just feels more real, more alive. There’s something to say about masochism being inherent in human nature, and philosophers can explain it better, but if ever there was an example as to beauty in despair it must be the want and need to revisit the opening sequence of The Last of Us and put oneself through that pain. Because it is painful, years later, knowing what to expect doesn’t make it less difficult, and playing through the sequence with the haptics, improved audio and realism of the world makes it impossible not to genuinely feel the emotional lump in the throat.

The powerful storytelling, character and relationship building has never been more complemented by its surroundings. From the desperation of the quarantine zone to the panic of the outskirts, balanced out by the pure calmness of Tommy’s farm. Or how about Bill’s booby-trapped town of loneliness, the hope-filled university visit or the panic-stricken escape of Ellie in the snow. No matter which part of this magnificent game you play, you will be wowed by its ability to draw a breath.

The focus on the remake, however, is the added immersion. If ever there was a poster for the value of remakes, this must be it.

It’s not just about the visuals that make the game worthy of the re-release, it’s also the way everything interacts with the players. The characters are more responsive to the surroundings, sure, but the surroundings are also more alive. I have never been overly fascinated with water mechanics, but for some reason I could not stop taking note of every puddle I visited, or the effect of rain pouring on the characters. Sure, it looks amazing, but there’s something about the “feel” of it all that just needs experiencing.



There’s also the improved AI mechanics which mean that the game plays quite differently to the original and the remaster. Enemies feel more organic, more instinctive, and less patterned, and this results in a more definitive approach to how you play the game. At times it feels a bit more difficult because there is less rinse/repeat, but this again just adds to the realism of the experience. Even the way your allies interact feels more measured – although there is still some room for improvement here as my main gripe with the game returns, even if at a lesser degree, and that is the AI enemies are sometimes oblivious to the occasional obvious movements of your allies when they move in and out of hiding spots. It’s not game-breaking but does have some effect on the overall immersion.

The gunplay feels tighter, the bow and arrow are amazing and even crafting and upgrading weapons feels a bit more distinguished.

The Last of Us Part I isn’t new. There are no surprises in terms of the storyline if you have played it before. The remake does bring in a new generation of gamers who maybe never experienced its audacious brilliance and does so with what is undoubtedly (and obviously) the best version of the game to date. The 3D audio is a joy to behold, especially when visiting some of the special moments in the game whether it be that Giraffe moment, or just hearing birds fluttering away as you enjoy one of the quieter moments between Joel and Ellie. The haptic feedback in the controls never gets old and makes all the smaller aspects of the game feel larger. The gunplay feels tighter, the bow and arrow are amazing and even crafting and upgrading weapons feels a bit more distinguished. It’s more of a given with the PS5’s SSD but the quick loading times when starting up the game and between deaths also takes away the more tedious aspects of the initial game.



The Last of Us Part I has nothing to hide. It’s not pretending to be anything other than an even more incredible version of a special game. I cannot believe it’s been 8 years since I last played it, but at the same time everything felt so fresh, every emotion, every destroyed building, and every panicked moment experienced on this wild ride into what ultimately ends up in ambiguity. I still hate and love the opening. I still hate and love the ending. I hate and love everything Naughty Dog and its developers make me feel through this game. I still love every second of it. It goes without saying that if you have not played The Last of Us before, well there should be no question about whether you should pick this up. And if you have played it before, don’t hesitate to put yourself through it again – we should all aim for perfection, or at the very least… change.



*PS5 Review code provided by PlayStation