That's probably the better way, I tend to lean to my example above, but it sometimes feels like cheating.
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Prediction: The Last of Us Part 2 Will Underwhelm
- Thread starter mindsale
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I think those points are insignificant compared to ND's pedigree, knowledge of the hardware, care and time they have put in this project, etc. etc. We will have a really good video game in the worst case scenario.
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Please quantify "passion" and "care" for me. I don't begrudge you your optimism but to say something is an 8/10 before release due to its pedigree is to forget Dead Space 3 or Mass Effect Andromeda or any other of the countless titles that should have been good "just because."
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Honestly I think anyone expecting it to be as good as, or even on Par with TLOU/UC2 is setting themselves up for disappointment. Aside from like Rockstar and Nintendo everyone has been making worse games this gen.
Theres obviously a possibility that this game turns out to be just average, but the quality of ND's previous works is a solid reason to expect this one to be great too. It is just that there are more reasons to think in a positive outcome than in a negative one
So then what are reasonable expectations for a sequel to one of the most acclaimed games of all time?
I don't see why it shouldn't. It has the same author and Druckmann once said there will only be a part two if he comes up with something he find worth telling. Naughty Dog as a whole team is oh-so talented in so many aspects, from detailed and intricate level design to animations, sound and visual effects, and character interaction and (environmental) storytelling.
Well, Marlene is just a character so her opinion is exactly that only and with that completely diegetic. It doesn't matter on a larger scale what she thinks and says about female survivors because she's not established as a meta-character or a non-diegetic, omniscient narrator setting the rules of the game's world. The sparse female representation is up for interpretation. One reason could be that Marlene's right. I could also argue, though, that we only seen a not closer described scavenger faction (or small groups of such) and the fireflies; they could be many more well-organized and huge scale factions or smaller splinter factions we just haven't encountered yet, either because Joel and Ellie could avoid them or those episodes, maybe small skirmishes, were left out (like the intermezzo we've gotten and that was later added in with the Left Behind DLC).
I think they could have left it alone after the first game and the extra story DLC they did. It seemed self contained. I think the next game will be very high quality, I think production values will be through the roof, and it will improve on the first one in every way. My reservation is that a big part of what elevated the game was the world it revealed and the story it told. Will the second game have the same impact, as we've seen this before? Will expanding the universe they created dilute it? We'll see.
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This is the saddest truth. What I wouldn't give to erase any memory of the first game and replay it.
Cycle of revenge and in the process Ellie will kill Joel. The End. I don't think will be at the same level with first TLOU.
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This is where I'm at. I'd rather be an optimist and be wrong than the opposite, but I doubt it will be anywhere near a disappointment or underwhelming.
I can see it underwhelming me, as I'm not a big fan of the first game. No chance whatsoever that it doesn't review and sell extremely well though. I think I'll enjoy it more than the first game though, since I know what I'm getting into I can enjoy it for what it is rather than what it isn't.
I'm usually one to keep my expectations in check, but Naughty Dog have established such an incredible track record over the past 2 generations, it seems pointless to be guessing the next 'disappointing' game from them.
UC4 tells me they're going to knock it out of the park.
This board keeps talking about fatalism but UC4 has some of the best scenework they've ever done, the way they handled the relationship between Elena and Drake is why I expect them to knock it out of the park. It was great watching the series close, how they handled those characters ended on a high note. I think it's due to how well everything is performed, there's an authenticity there that I think they'll find again with Ellie and the other characters.
I don't think Drakes mom being a brilliant historian has robbed him of anything. He's still lived with Sam having what was probably a pretty rough life as a criminal. And he still found those ancient cities. There's just an emotional connection to them due to his mothers work. So I'm not as hard on the fatalism stuff, especially when I think everything around that just works.
Rafe and Nadine were fun villains as well. So I expect some good stuff from villains in this one, much like David.
Iono OP. I think all the good from TLOU and UC4 will make it into TLOU2, and there was plenty of good. I don't doubt them, ND seems like a safe bet these days.
This board keeps talking about fatalism but UC4 has some of the best scenework they've ever done, the way they handled the relationship between Elena and Drake is why I expect them to knock it out of the park. It was great watching the series close, how they handled those characters ended on a high note. I think it's due to how well everything is performed, there's an authenticity there that I think they'll find again with Ellie and the other characters.
I don't think Drakes mom being a brilliant historian has robbed him of anything. He's still lived with Sam having what was probably a pretty rough life as a criminal. And he still found those ancient cities. There's just an emotional connection to them due to his mothers work. So I'm not as hard on the fatalism stuff, especially when I think everything around that just works.
Rafe and Nadine were fun villains as well. So I expect some good stuff from villains in this one, much like David.
Iono OP. I think all the good from TLOU and UC4 will make it into TLOU2, and there was plenty of good. I don't doubt them, ND seems like a safe bet these days.
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I liked Rafe but his driving motivation was... mythologizing Nate and his envy thereof. It was a little masturbatory.
This is almost thread whining...but lol 😂 my thoughts as well. Wait for the game to drop goodness...
Lol that's just the petty little rich boy he was. And it was fun.
The performance in scenes is what makes him great, especially how quick he'd turn from smartass prick to unhinged psycho.
But yeah Drakes a legend in this world, and he's done more than Rafe in two lifetimes. Rafe only has himself to blame for his overcompensation to prove himself, and his wreckless envy.
I loved LL myself, tbh. Didntncare much for 4 though
Uncharted 2 is the only great UC game
I am one of those who thinks the first game didn't need a sequel,the final was perfect,so I don't expect the sequel to be better or had a bigger impact on me,but even if Part 2 turns out not better than Part 1,this don't this make it underwhelm,the first game is considered by many the game of the last generation,GOAT for a lot of fans,so the bar is already too high,underwhelm would be if Part 2 literally suck,which I doubt,and all the interviews with Neil,the developers and actors,I can see all the passion they have for these characters and world,if they think they had a great story and especial to tell to make this sequel happen,I trust them,I am expecting a game GOTG contender here,I think Part 2 has potential to be the best game of this gen as the first was.
After Uncharted 4, I refuse to believe Naughty Dog can disappoint twice in a row. I feel like TLOU2 will make up for UC4's shortcomings.
I actually believe it will be better than the original in every way, but enjoy less universal acclaim, much like RDRII.
I would say yes, but not over the points you pointed.
First, The Last of Us was a "surprise" for lots of people, not because of the post-apocalyptic scenario, but treating the human relationships trying to survive on that world. On The Last of Us 2, there will be consequences regarding the stuff that happened on the first and on what isn't showed between the first and the second one and that can really disappoint people mostly because it opens too much doors for retcons and no one in any media was able to make a good retcon without hurting a brand.
The second point: People put too much questions over morality in the series, regarding Joel acts on the first game. If that in some way reflects over the story, then people will not being satisfied with the aftermath of both games. I just hope that Naughty Dog won't go on "Full Disney" and decides to kill Joel alledging "pursue a deep meaning over his acts" and "challenging the common sense of the fans" with it.
Third: It's a Post-PS2 Sony game. It will be really beautiful, it will put some concepts over the table which people will consider the "game of their lives" for a month or so, it will near to almost none to zero replayability, will be ported for the next generation, it will sell enough for having a third game, but it will be be accompanied by a shallow feeling for the next years.
First, The Last of Us was a "surprise" for lots of people, not because of the post-apocalyptic scenario, but treating the human relationships trying to survive on that world. On The Last of Us 2, there will be consequences regarding the stuff that happened on the first and on what isn't showed between the first and the second one and that can really disappoint people mostly because it opens too much doors for retcons and no one in any media was able to make a good retcon without hurting a brand.
The second point: People put too much questions over morality in the series, regarding Joel acts on the first game. If that in some way reflects over the story, then people will not being satisfied with the aftermath of both games. I just hope that Naughty Dog won't go on "Full Disney" and decides to kill Joel alledging "pursue a deep meaning over his acts" and "challenging the common sense of the fans" with it.
Third: It's a Post-PS2 Sony game. It will be really beautiful, it will put some concepts over the table which people will consider the "game of their lives" for a month or so, it will near to almost none to zero replayability, will be ported for the next generation, it will sell enough for having a third game, but it will be be accompanied by a shallow feeling for the next years.
Obviously, you stir the pot here by suggesting it but you are far from the only one who has thought this... And this isn't some "The Last of Us sucks" crowd coming out of the woodworks. I liked TLOU1, hell, I loved it! But precisely, the signs are all there.
Before announcement: "We don't need TLOU2! It's not the right thing to do." <- We said this, and most did.
Not long into production: Bruce Straley leaves after long period of burnout vacation.
Neil Druckmann hires a Westworld writer to get the script hashed out. (I thought Westworld was a farce of a "deep" show)
Delayed several times, several tweets from Druckmann himself suggesting work is excruciating right now, and a worriesome tone, and an open fear about underdelivering.
He thanked Shawn Layden for helping out with getting Crash Bandicoot to run in Uncharted 4. I think Shawn Layden was tight with these guys, and he was also described as a "visionary". He appeared at E3 giving special attention to the orchestrated music. The man screamed "The Artistic Era of Sony" which was founded by The Last of Us, and continued into PS4's exclusive lineup in tone, aesthetic, likeness, branding etc. It hasn't been that long since Shawn Layden was replaced.
I think all the recent shakeups at Sony have had a detrimental impact on the progress of the game. Couple it with the signs of creative struggling elsewhere, from Neil not passionately crafting the bulk of the writing all by himself, not having his wingman Bruce take care of all the technical hurdles of his vision, and a long arudous crunch-cycle that isn't even hitting the deadlines they were supposed to. And for me personally, a lack of vision from the released trailers, and lack of intrigue from the story pitch so far. I know Ellie wants revenge, I know the pitch is about "Hate", the question is what form, and will it really be as basic as the initial trailer suggests or are they actually making a sophisticated subversion of expectations? I only expect the latter because I know the former will be too cliché. There's no guarantee that is the case.
Look I'm making conjecure, but there's a lot of things that have went on that, from my outsider's POV, add up to something potentially bad. I have no doubt the game will be good. The question is, will it live up to what the first one was?
Before announcement: "We don't need TLOU2! It's not the right thing to do." <- We said this, and most did.
Not long into production: Bruce Straley leaves after long period of burnout vacation.
Neil Druckmann hires a Westworld writer to get the script hashed out. (I thought Westworld was a farce of a "deep" show)
Delayed several times, several tweets from Druckmann himself suggesting work is excruciating right now, and a worriesome tone, and an open fear about underdelivering.
He thanked Shawn Layden for helping out with getting Crash Bandicoot to run in Uncharted 4. I think Shawn Layden was tight with these guys, and he was also described as a "visionary". He appeared at E3 giving special attention to the orchestrated music. The man screamed "The Artistic Era of Sony" which was founded by The Last of Us, and continued into PS4's exclusive lineup in tone, aesthetic, likeness, branding etc. It hasn't been that long since Shawn Layden was replaced.
I think all the recent shakeups at Sony have had a detrimental impact on the progress of the game. Couple it with the signs of creative struggling elsewhere, from Neil not passionately crafting the bulk of the writing all by himself, not having his wingman Bruce take care of all the technical hurdles of his vision, and a long arudous crunch-cycle that isn't even hitting the deadlines they were supposed to. And for me personally, a lack of vision from the released trailers, and lack of intrigue from the story pitch so far. I know Ellie wants revenge, I know the pitch is about "Hate", the question is what form, and will it really be as basic as the initial trailer suggests or are they actually making a sophisticated subversion of expectations? I only expect the latter because I know the former will be too cliché. There's no guarantee that is the case.
Look I'm making conjecure, but there's a lot of things that have went on that, from my outsider's POV, add up to something potentially bad. I have no doubt the game will be good. The question is, will it live up to what the first one was?
In TLOU2 you will be able to go prone, hide under vehicles and in tall grass, also go inbetween bookcases and stuff, should add even more dynamism to the combat.
Fear of under-delivering? Are you talking about Neil's sarcastic "No pressure" tweets? ND have been really confident about what they're crafting with PII. This is a great example of it
That was the second tweet I saw in that vein, and he used a grimace emoji and not something else. His tone of voice of that tweet was surely saying "Man, I hope we can do this" and he also tweeted that Bruce should come help them finish it. I don't think it's out of control or anything but I think he's genuinely worried if it all comes together to the quality fans expect.
It'll whelm just fine so long as you don't overhype it like some people. Honestly, what more do people expect aside from them pushing the boundaries of cinematics and animation?
Frankly, maybe I deserve it from a brand specialist verified manager,
but I fucking hate snideful posts like these. But oh well, I suppose I was so out there that I didn't need an explanation, it's just "This guy is an idiot, look over here guys, lmfao!"
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