In the world of video games there are several rules that have found full application over time. A couple of these are of interest to us for this article: developers give their best towards the end of a console's life cycle; the Naughty Dog are among the best in the world videogame panorama. It is easy to imagine, therefore, how The Last of Us managed to obtain a myriad of accolades and why it is considered by many to be one of the best titles of the previous generation.
In a historical period in which the new consoles are still struggling to mesh and the re-editions seem to meet the favor of the public, this title could not be missing., especially since, according to Sony, many PlayStation 4 owners come from other platforms and therefore have not played the original version. Hence the decision to publish The Last of Us Remastered, to which Naughty Dog have dedicated over six months to give full justice to the world and history that revolve around the title, both in terms of aesthetics and offer. This re-edition has an attractive price on its side which has been tweaked down after player feedback, amounting to € 45, and includes all the patches and content produced to date: the Left Behind single player expansion, which we reviewed here, the eight additional multiplayer maps the "Abandoned Territories" DLC and the Realism bundle, the new difficulty level with the same name, the "Making of" of the game, the comments of the producers and the photo mode. Furthermore, all weapons or cosmetic modifications purchased on PlayStation 3 are also available in the PlayStation 4 version, at no additional cost.
We have analyzed in detail the PlayStation 4 edition of The Last of Us, the power of the next-gen
The days go by, the quality remains
To know what we think in detail of the original title and its gameplay, we invite you to read our dedicated review; in Remastered we played for several hours with the Survivor difficulty level, the maximum one before the last patch and which includes less resources, more difficult enemies and the absence of the Listening mode, which allowed you to "see" enemies even through walls thanks to the noise they made. One year later, The Last of Us hasn't aged a day, and remains for Naughty Dog a decisive step forward in terms of maturity, with an adult and uncompromising storytelling, flanked by a full-bodied, gory, engaging gameplay.
The ideal mix of cinema and video games, where the gameplay is not sacrificed, but blends perfectly with the interlude sequences, the dialogues of the protagonists and all the events that always keep the tension high. The game alternates stormy moments with others of exploration in breathtaking decadent scenarios, is endowed with a good longevity (which can even reach 15 hours the first time) and variety of settings, offers some truly touching moments and gives an ending that is anything but discounted. Left Behind instead tells a twist on Ellie's story, how she grew up and how she discovered she was so important; it does it in a wonderful way like the original title, and puts the gameplay component in the background which, although reduced, presents a summary of the original title with the small novelty of being able to exploit the infected to your advantage. Thanks to the latest DLC it is also possible to select the Realism mode, which additionally disables the interface that illustrates the type of weapon selected and the shots available, has even more tough enemies and offers resources reduced to the bone: in this configuration there is maximum satisfaction but also frustration in having to repeat the more difficult pieces, but perhaps it is also the one where The Last of Us expresses its maximum survival potential, within which every action must be considered in detail. In the PlayStation 4 version, pressing the touch pad has the function of the Select key and allows you to call up the menu for Joel's crafting and enhancement; aiming and shooting have been accommodated on the triggers of the DualShock 4, much better than the previous model, with the possibility in any case to associate them with L1 and R1. The noise of the flashlight turning on / off comes out of the speaker, as well as the audio recordings present in The Left Behind; the improved ergonomics of the PlayStation 4 pad gives a bit more skill in both single and multiplayer sessions. The experience we had with The Last of Us Remastered was ultimately the same great as the original title, with all the contents available, its sensational highs but also with some bass, headed by the "artificial stupidity" linked to Joel's supporting actors. In fact, where the protagonist controlled by us moves in an absolutely silent way so as not to be discovered by Clickers or Runners, the supporting actors emit sounds, run from one cover to another or enter the line of sight of the enemies ... who ignore them beautifully. In fact, all the stealth management seems to be concentrated only on the main protagonist, and if most of the time it does not bother because maybe the supporting actors are good behind you and engage in the fight only when you are discovered, sometimes this thing is annoyingly recognizable.
PlayStation 4 Trophies
The Last of Us Remastered offers a high amount of trophies to be unlocked from scratch, resulting from the sum of all the contents present. Platinum is earned after unlocking the main game's 23 trophies, identical to those of the original title. We then have 10 from Left Behind and 14 from the two multiplayer DLCs included (8 of these have been made easier) and 2 to finish the title in Realism and Realism + mode.
Remastered, Remastered everywhere!
We have reached the crucial element that could make those who have already played the original title tend to buy or not: the technical sector of The Last of Us Remastered. The PlayStation 3 version was equipped with excellent graphics in relation to the other titles available on the console, also and above all due to a sublime artistic system and an obsessive attention to detail; it suffered a little in terms of graphic cleanliness and frame rate stability, which dropped below 30 frames per second in the most graphically complex moments. The starting point of Remastered was precisely the resolution of these last two problems, and on PlayStation 4 the adventure of Joel and Ellie can boast of 1080p and 60 frames per second. But what is the result? A noticeable improvement even for an untrained eye: the definition of the settings is completely different from that of the PlayStation 3, and this is especially noticeable on the "articulated" elements such as foliage, shadows, and complex objects. When the image is still the difference is embarrassing, and even in motion the shimmering (distant elements that seem to move and flash) is very small compared to the original title, although present on some objects. The clearly superior fluidity is unsettling at first, but you quickly get used to it and then never go back: the control system responds better, the flow of the scenario is more enjoyable, in general the title is more pleasant to watch and play. . Many will wonder if 60 frames per second are fixed or not; based on our experience, 99% (95, 90? Hurray for the percentages!) of the time we could say yes: in some situations completely disconnected from the complexity of the scene, perhaps with the camera pointed downwards and on a hedge, we warned of stuttering, or micro-shots that seem more to be linked to some bug or problems with v-sync than anything else, perhaps solvable with a patch.
Analysis with more in-depth technical tools will confirm whether or not our hypothesis and the percentage of drops on the total, nothing in any case that will affect the global experience or mini the renewed fluidity of the title. To please the most demanding fans afraid of an update rate (in their way of saying) too much to have a cinematic experience, Naughty Dog has introduced an option to lock the frame rate to 30 frames per second; as a bonus due to the fact that by doing so some resources have been freed, the definition of the shadows is even higher than the already excellent ones of the "unlocked" title. From our point of view, the choice between these two configurations leans largely in favor of the latter: in a few sessions you get used to it and, as mentioned, the overall impact and the control system benefit from it. However, the enhancement work did not stop at 1080p and 60 frames per second: the uploads between intermission sequences and gameplay sections have been almost eliminated, the polygonal complexity of objects and characters in the distance (the so-called LOD) it is better and scales better when you get close; the resolution of the textures, quadrupled on paper and the main cause of the 50GB of installation, allows you to show off even more impressive details, to the point that some glimpses still manage to surprise even though they may have already been appreciated on PlayStation 3. The polygonal models of Joel, Ellie and the other supporting actors have undergone a refinement and an increase in detail, now it is possible to see new elements on the clothes and especially on the faces, and as you can see from the screenshots we made in first person, sometimes they are impressive. The cutscenes remain a notch above, but also because they have been equally refined: in some close-ups the detail of the characters is truly incredible. Accomplices different sections of exploration present to break the tension, not infrequently you are fascinated by the scenario and from the settings at sunset, in broad daylight or at night, made even softer by the higher definition and by the lighting system in the same way revised for the occasion: The Last of Us Remastered does justice to the artistic beauty of the original title, and the improvement is noticeable in almost all the graphic elements present on the screen.
The Naughty Dog have also indulged in the sound sector, in the menus it is in fact possible to see new options related to the type of stereo system used: the number of channels, the arrangement of the satellites, the dynamic range and the azimuth value are indicated, in very simple words the angular origin of the sound . Using the automatic configuration of our 7.1 Home Theater system we felt a higher quality of sound and effects than in The Last of Us, with the correct positioning, for example, of the rain beating on the machines near the protagonist or the voices of the characters, and less problems with sampling and clarity of the voice when peers speak in the distance. The dubbing is obviously the same valid as the original title - even if we would have liked Joel with a more raucous and full-bodied voice - the soundtrack remains the exceptional one of Gustavo Santaolalla, who has the only "defect" imposed to be an accompaniment rather than an unforgettable protagonist . We left the photo mode for last, which in reality for a good chunk of PlayStation owners represents an extremely pleasant bonus, after the excellent possibilities offered by the one present in inFAMOUS: Second Son. In The Last of Us Remastered it is activated by pressing the L3 button, and allows you to operate on parameters such as the positioning of the camera and the width of the view, the depth of field, the presence of a frame and a series of preset filters. Compared to the title of Sucker Punch there are a series of additional controls such as the vignette mode and the one to add grain in order to have a cinematic look; it is also possible to choose the intensity of application, even for the same filters, on a scale ranging from 1 to 100. We have not yet dabbled properly on this function, as it is available in the form of patches starting today, but we will not miss the chance to shower you with many beautiful artistic screenshots as done with inFAMOUS: Second Son, and maybe launch a contest within our PlayStation Zone section.
Comment
Resources4Gaming.com9.5
Readers (999+)9.4
Your voteThe technical work developed by Naughty Dog for The Last of Us Remastered, both graphic and sound, was excellent: the Californian house is confirmed as one of the best ever in being able to get the best out of a console hardware. We really can't think what it will be able to do, from this point of view, with Uncharted 4 and future titles whose development has started directly on the new Sony platform. According to the Japanese manufacturer, there are many PlayStation 4 owners who have never played The Last of Us; the latter will be lucky enough to play what remains an absolute pearl in the panorama of third-person adventures, in its richest version, more beautiful to look at and the result of an improvement that lasted six months; at a price significantly lower than the "classic" price for a video game. For those who have already played the original title ... the evaluation can only be extremely subjective, perhaps based on objective parameters such as a significantly improved technical sector and a wealth of content that may not have been tested in its entirety on PlayStation 3. Obviously it is easier to lean towards repurchase when the overall gaming quality is so high. The slightly lower rating than the original means that The Last of Us Remastered is on PlayStation 4 a starting point towards excellence, where it was arriving on the previous platform and one had more closed an eye on the defects of the artificial intelligence.
PRO
- Excellent technical improvement work
- The game remains great even after a year
- Large amount of content, including Left Behind and additional multiplayer maps
- Competitive price ...
- ... but an additional discount would have been appreciated for those who own the PlayStation 3 version
- Some artificial intelligence problems have not been solved
