Is The Last of Us Part 1 a disappointment? Problems and potential of a luxury “cash grab”

The Last of Us Part 1 has started to show itself in a substantial way, through videos and images leaked online and thus giving us a more precise idea of ​​what this new production of Naughty Dog for PS5 is. The reactions were not all positive, on the contrary: the critical voice of those who see this title as a mere “cash grab”, or a ‘“money-grabbing” commercial operation easy done with little effort, even if when it comes to games with such a high technical level you should always measure your words well. That it is still another game at the top of videogame development technology, as often happens with Naughty Dog titles, seems rather indisputable, however some doubts are justified by what has emerged so far from the leaks of videos and images published in these days, since some things seem to contradict what the developers themselves reported on the work done since the original chapter.

First of all, we must always keep in mind that the version shown on the net is probably not the definitive one, therefore it is impossible to still issue a clear judgment on the characteristics of The Last of Us Part 1, but there is no doubt that what we have seen so far leads us to see it as a kind of very in-depth remastering, rather than a real one Remake rebuilt from scratch. Although the 3D models and environments are still much richer and more detailed, the leaked scenes show practically the same animations, similar routines regarding artificial intelligence and in general the same gameplay elements, therefore without those evolutions that instead characterize the combat system and game features of The Last of Us 2, which many thought would instead be included in this The Last of Us Part 1, to make it a real evolution of the first chapter.

This has sparked a wave of controversy that has invested social networks and discussion forums, essentially always focused on the same topic: being essentially an enriched remastered, plus proof of the multiplayer “Factions” which was an integral part of the original chapter, in many not considering the title “worthy” of price of 80 euros requested by Sony, also considering that this is the third time that the game is proposed on the market, after the original for PS3 and the Remastered release on PS4, which still performs very well even on PS5.

It is a discourse already addressed in the past, but in this case it is based on some elements that seem to derive objectively from the testimonies leaked online, namely the actual correspondence of the gameplay to the original, which makes the argument of the alleged evolution applied to the real game.

It then remains to be seen whether the protests will be followed by actual stances by users: it is very likely that The Last of Us: Part 1 is still destined for excellent sales, as often happens to Sony first party productions and in particular to those of Naughty Dog. On the other hand, the choice of letting it go out near the launch of the TV series on HBO it is a strategic shot of considerable importance, moreover the game is still perfectly enjoyable by all those who have not played the original version, and arriving directly on PS5 it also has the attractiveness of the game developed for the next gen console in question. On the other hand, it remains one of the best games on the PlayStation platform ever, so the attraction is certainly not lacking: in case it can make us discuss the fact that you have used a large part of Naughty Dog for a project of this kind rather than in a completely new game. , an argument that had already been raised by a report by Jason Scheier on the tendency of Sony PlayStation to focus exclusively on blockbusters.

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