The Last of Us 2 is scheduled to arrive at the end of May and, assuming the coronavirus doesn't somehow delay it, it is poised to be one of the biggest games of the year. Naughty Dog has been hard at work on the title for a long time and fans of the original PS3 game are eager to get back into the franchise's brutal world and see what Ellie and Joel have been up to for the past five years.
The game's early teasers and trailers danced around Joel's role in the game as Naughty Dog promised that this adventure was shifting the spotlight to Ellie and her path of vengeance. The Last of Us has always been about the dynamic before the two protagonists though, so fans feel confident that Joel is still going to have a major role in The Last of Us 2 despite the possible misdirection from the game's marketing.
Although the game's trailers haven't touched on what has happened since the end credits rolled on original The Last of Us, gamers are still well aware of some major drama that needs to be resolved in the sequel. Before we dive into more details, consider this a final spoiler warning for the last scenes in the original The Last of Us. We will also speculate about what will happen in The Last of Us 2, but those are just theories and not spoilers.
At the end of the The Last of Us, Joel decides that saving Ellie's life is more important that potentially finding a cure to the airborne disease that has destroyed most of humanity. He murders his way through the Fireflies lab that the duo have been trying to reach since the game started and Ellie off of the surgery table before they can cut into her and figure out how her body is able to fight off the disease. The real unresolved issue comes when Joel neglects to tell Ellie any of this at the end of the game. After she recovers and wakes up, he tells her she knows the whole story and there's nothing else to it.
Players are well aware that Ellie isn't all that quick to trust and her relationship to Joel means the world to her. She trusts him like a father and it seems inevitable that she'll feel betrayed when the truth comes out. Not only did he take away her chance to save humanity, but he didn't even provide her with the truth and the option to make the decision for herself. The early trailers seem to suggest a rift between Joel and Ellie, so many fans are predicting that the truth must come out either between games or at some point early in the sequel.
Beyond that, it's also clear that Joel's particular brand of us or them vengeance may have had a negative impact on Ellie's well-being and ability to process grief. Some fans are arguing that Joel has been such a bad influence on Ellie that he may actually be presented as the villain in The Last of Us 2. That seems a bit extreme and hopefully this game will be more about a path to redemption for both characters after they have seen what's at the end of the dark path they're heading towards.
All of that said, this is the sort of tension and drama that make for the kind of amazing storytelling Naughty Dog has become known for mastering. The Last of Us 2 seems like it is going to be full of complicated relationships and a lot of moral grey areas. As Ellie grows up and becomes a young adult herself, players are going to see how much Joel continues to try and control her life versus leading by example and helping show her what it means to be a good person in such a dark and unpredictable world.
Although the game will clearly be driven by Ellie's path to revenge against the mysterious faction, hopefully the emotional drive of the game still revolves around her relationship with Joel. The first game largely focused on Joel growing as a person thanks to Ellie's positive influence on him, so this game has the chance to reverse that expectation in a number of interesting ways. Players could see Ellie grow as a person thanks to Joel's positive influence on her (if he finds a way to be more positive this time around) or we could see her go down a darker and darker path as she follows in the footsteps of the Joel who she learned from throughout the first installment in the franchise.
Regardless of how the relationship between Ellie and Joel shakes out, The Last of Us 2 seems like it is guaranteed to be a heartbreaking rollercoaster when it arrives in a few months. Expect a lot of tear-jerker moments and some serious heartache as we get ready to witness the world take even more away from Ellie and Joel than it already has.
Be sure to check back in the coming weeks and months for more The Last of Us 2 news, updates, and strategy guides. Until then, be careful out there.
The Last of Us 2 launches on May 29, exclusively for the PlayStation 4.