‘The Last of Us 2’ angers PlayStation fans with dog-killing sequence as they complain about positive reviews
Earlier in April, the Naughty Dog PlayStation 4 video game ‘The Last of Us Part II’ became a matter of contention after a leak. Videos of important cutscenes, gameplay, and the game's main menu were posted online.
The post-apocalyptic video game is now out and reviews for the game have been largely positive. While many reviews have given it a perfect score, others did not find the game remarkable enough, noting that it was merely an upgraded, more polished version of the original.
Still, the internet is buzzing with opinions on the game, its 20-hour runtime, its grizzly violence, and what many have called its “pandering to the woke audience”. A Twitter user noted, “The Last of US 2 is the video game equivalent of an Oscar-bait film.” Another said, “I repeat: The Last of Us 2 is just a depression simulator.”
Did the spoilers ruin the game though? Many seemed to disagree. A Twitter user wrote, “I did not want a sequel to The Last of Us. I spoiled myself with the leaks to ruin the game. It almost worked. Then I played it. I thought I knew but I really didn’t. The Last of Us Part 2 chilled my blood cold.”
Many on Twitter were unhappy with the reviews of the game as well. A Twitter user responded to Forbes gaming journalist Paul Tassi and wrote, “Hi Paul, just read your Last of Us 2 review. How much did they pay you? You are a hack. I've been playing games for almost 40 years, and if you think that's the game of a generation you are seriously f****** out of touch with reality.”
Another wrote, “Now I haven't played Last of Us 2, but my hunch is that it doesn't have two planets locked in orbit with each other slowly siphoning sand back and forth in an endless loop, and unfortunately that means it simply can't be the game of the generation.”
Lastly, there was some controversy over the game’s violence, especially in terms of killing dogs. Andrew Webster, in his Verge review, wrote, “Over the game’s 20-hour runtime, I often found myself wanting to quit because the violence became unbearable. I didn’t want to bash that lunging dog with a hammer or slice at that defenseless woman with a knife.”
Many seemed to have taken an issue with the dog-killing. A Twitter user wrote, “Read that Last of Us 2 has a scene where you're forced to kill a dog with blunt force and then it forces you through a flashback of playing with that dog as a puppy and yeah, no, no I think I'm good, actually, naughty dog, I'm sure you made a very nice game, but I'm good.”
Several others seemed to express similar opinions. Talking about the guilt trip factor in the game, Polygon reviewer Maddy Myers wrote, “This is a story about characters who seem unable to learn or grow, and more specifically, unable to consider the humanity of the people they kill. If you already think violence isn’t the answer to many of the world’s problems, the repeated lesson that killing is bad makes the game almost maddening.”