The Last of Us Part 1 [Remake]

This Naughty Dog title needs no introduction. Originally released in 2013 for PS3, it is widely considered one of the best video games of all time and many sing the same praises towards its sequel, whose review you can read here. It had a remastered version for PS4 the following year and now it also has a ‘remake’ for PS5, The Last of Us: Part 1, which we will analyze in this review to determine if it is really as “unnecessary” as many allege.

Before we start we have to make it clear that this is not a ‘remake’ or reimagining in the style of those of Final Fantasy VII o Resident Evil, that made narrative and structure changes with respect to the originals. This title is, in essence, the same one that we played almost 10 years ago. Practically all its improvements are found in its technical characteristics.

The Last of Us: Part 1 is a post-apocalyptic story in which society has been decimated by an epidemic of cordyceps, a mutated fungus that infects people and turns them into a kind of ‘zombie’. Humanity has lived on in closed and heavily militarized communities where many have to resort to crime to survive. One of them is Joel, a smuggler who is tasked with protecting a young teenage girl named Ellie.

When we played it for the first time in 2013, this title impressed us with its great graphic quality, emotional story and masterfully portrayed characters, but we found its combat and stealth moments to be tedious and unnecessary. By playing the improved version of 2022 we can say exactly the same

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There are no doubts about the technical quality of The Last of Us: Part 1, Well, this ‘remake’ has the most realistic and impressive graphics we’ve ever seen on a video game console. Some may say that “everything looks the same but with higher resolution”, but the truth is that there are notable improvements in the facial expressions of the characters, their animations, the lighting of the stages and effects such as fog and rain..

These are not the only improvements. It also takes advantage of unique PS5 features like 3D audio and DualSense control. The vibrations of the control make us “feel” from the raindrops that fall on Joel to the most brutal falls against the asphalt. There are also tweaks to the combat system that are close to what was seen in the sequel, but remain very similar to the original.

Yes, all of this is incredible, but are they really improvements that justify the existence of a ‘remake’? We consider not. The Last of Us: Part 1 It looks better than ever, but the overall experience is still the same as what we had on PS3 and PS4. This is the best way to experience this adventure, but its high price —more than $300,000 pesos in the PS Store for Colombia ($69.99 dollars) and even $419,900 in chain stores— makes it difficult to justify your purchase when the remastered version of the original game costs less than a third and is available in PS Plus Deluxe.

This is a real shame when we take a look at the fantastic accessibility options this title has. This ‘remake’ surpasses other titles in this respect, such as Saints Row and to his own The Last of Us: Part II. We can find all kinds of alternative controls, visual and auditory aids. There’s even a new difficulty option that makes beating battles easier than ever. Perfect for those who just want to enjoy the story, its characters and the setting. We applaud how committed Naughty Dog is to accessibility issues, but we’re sorry they’re only available for the most expensive version of the game.

There are other elements that make this ‘remake’ the definitive version of TLOU

. In addition to the excellent DLC Left Behind – which tells the story of Ellie before she met Joel – includes documentaries about the game’s development, the official podcast and director’s commentary. It sounds great, but we also have critics about it. It is incomprehensible that we cannot activate the comments and other options if we have not passed the game before. Additionally, some of these items are also available in the remastered version or can be found for free on official internet channels.

Leaving aside the technical improvements and novelties of the ‘remake’, The Last of Us: Part 1 it’s still a great game. It is true that its post-apocalyptic plot is quite familiar to lovers of stories like sons of men and the novel Road, by Cormac McCarthy, but its charm is in its fantastic characters and the relationship they have with the world. In fact we believe that those infected with cordyceps —despite how terrifying they are and how iconic they became—they are plenty in this story. In the past we’ve argued that the clashes in the game hurt the experience instead of making it more interesting.. There is nothing in this ‘remake’ that has made us change our minds.

In general, the combat, stealth, and exploration systems are too generic to be interesting. They use mechanics that were all too familiar in 2013 and that other games have used much better. They are not necessarily boring elements, but they can be tedious. It is the story and its characters that carry the full weight of the game. If it weren’t for the fact that we want to know what’s going to happen to Joel and Ellie and because the wonderful visual design of their scenarios draws us in, we’d have no reason to put up with what we consider to be gameplay flaws.

The music is also wonderful. The soundtrack composed by Gustavo Santaolalla has not lost any strength in these years.

As polished as this game looks, we encountered a fair amount of visual glitches. We even suffered a ‘bug’ that forced us to repeat a sequence near the beginning of the story. We have no doubt that Naughty Dog will quickly fix this via patches, but we think it’s worth mentioning.

With everything and its flaws, there is no doubt that The Last of Us: Part 1 is a very good game and this ‘remake’ makes its best qualities stand out. However, the experience remains essentially the same as always. Aside from its new accessibility features, we don’t feel a ‘remake’ is warranted, let alone one with such a high price tag.

Review made with a digital copy of The Last of Us: Part 1 para PlayStation 5 brindada por Sony Interactive Entertainment.