When The Last of Us 2 was released in 2020, gamers were expecting some more survival horror fun with Ellie and Joel in a dystopian world riddled with zombie-like enemies called the Infected. Instead, what gamers got was a title that continually subverted expectations and forced them to reconsider their perspectives on key characters. A lot of daring decisions were made in service of a narrative desperate to deliver an important message.
The Last of Us 2 is primarily concerned with revenge, hatred, and how violence breeds more violence. It also highlights how it is unwise to see the world as a good and evil binary because reality is far more complex than that. Some of these thematic concerns are conveyed through symbolism that, although subtle, is remarkably powerful.
The Heroes and Villains of Ellie's Collectibles
Collectibles in video games can be a hit-or-miss feature. Too many times, games cram in too many collectibles or require an incredible amount of effort from players with little to no rewards. Fortunately, the collectibles of The Last of Us 2 are well implemented. They are hidden a little off the beaten path, encouraging players to explore the densely detailed environments. Scavenging for collectibles often leads to resources or points of interest that players might have otherwise missed and, more importantly, they help to convey some of The Last of Us 2's main themes.
The game centers on Ellie and Abby, two women who believe they have scores to settle with each other. For the first half of the game, players take control of Ellie who, along with Dina, travel to Seattle to seek Abby and the Washington Liberation Front and exact revenge. Along the way, Ellie collects trading cards featuring fictional characters with superpowers. They can be organized into neat categories thanks to the labels on them. For instance, some, like Chessmaster, Oozer, and Laurent Foucault are labeled as villains, while Dr. Daniela Star and Candelabra are labeled as heroes.
Ellie's mission seems righteous at first, but when players are given insight into Abby's side of the story, things do not seem so black and white any longer. Although Abby kills someone who Ellie loves, in her pursuit of revenge, Ellie ends up killing innocent folks. Juxtaposed with a story that blurs the lines between right and wrong, the collectible trading cards become a lighthearted reminder that societies of neatly separated good people and bad people are only possible in the fictional world of superheroes and villains. In reality, people tend to have a good side as well as a dark shadow that must be tamed.
Abby's Collectibles Have a Wealth of Meaning
The Last of Us 2's Abby is initially presented as a stranger that betrays Joel's kindness and brutally murders him. It is hard to not resent her, and it is even harder to not root Ellie on as she hunts her down. However, about halfway through the game, there is a sudden shift in perspective, and players get to spend several hours with Abby. During this time, there is an opportunity to understand her motivations, and while one may not agree with her actions, it becomes much easier to empathize with her. Although players may have begun cheering for Ellie, after their adventure with Abby, it becomes obvious that while Ellie may be a hero to some, she is the villain in Abby's life.
During Abby's segment of the game, she collects coins. This serves as a light distraction from The Last of Us 2's seriousness, but it also acts as a symbol reminding players that there are two sides to every story. Abby and Ellie's lives are intertwined, and while they have both lived through the same events, they have walked away from them with wildly different perspectives. It is only when one sees things from both Abby and Ellie's points of view that the bigger picture becomes clearer.
Dogs: Friend or Foe?
The presence of dogs in The Last of Us 2 is conspicuously prominent, although this should perhaps be expected of a game from a studio called Naughty Dog. Abby Washington Liberation Front, which is shortened to WLF and pronounced as "wolves." The WLF roams around with vicious dogs, and when Ellie crosses paths with them, she must either kill the dogs or risk being sniffed out and mauled. Eliminating dogs makes things easier, but WLF members will react with shock and call out their furry friend by name when they find the dead body.
Within The Last Of Us 2, dogs demonstrate that a single being can contain both yin and yang, good and evil, and kindness and cruelty. This is seen most clearly with Alice, a dog belonging to the WLF. Alice is extremely friendly, and though the chances to play fetch with her are few, they are always fun. However, when there are Seraphites around, Alice suddenly becomes a vicious monster ready to rend any flesh she finds. Yara and Lev, who are Seraphites that end up befriending Abby, see the vicious side of Alice first. However, they learn that this is not the only side to Alice, and after Alice warms up to them, she demonstrates just how friendly she can be.
The dogs symbolize what many characters cannot see within each other - the presence of both good and bad. This is especially true of Ellie who grows resentful of Joel, failing to see his good side that exists despite his mistakes. She is also unable to see Abby as anything more than a villain and, consequently, she does not realize just how similar their stories are.
Missing Body Parts in The Last of Us 2
Although gruesome, a few characters lose body parts during The Last of Us 2's runtime. It is not merely for shock value, however, and meaning is conveyed through these missing body parts. Joel's brother Tommy is also seeking revenge following Joel's death. He arms himself with a sniper rifle, which he is frighteningly deadly with, and it does not take long before he crosses paths with the WLF and finds Abby and her friend Manny. Though Abby escapes, Tommy kills Manny with a headshot that flies through his eye.
Later, Abby confronts Ellie at the theater she is using as a hideout. Tommy tries to protect Ellie, but he winds up getting shot in the head by Abby, causing him to lose an eye. The product of this violence is nothing good, and the symbolism is clear - an eye for an eye is a mantra that only brings misery.
Ellie also loses some body parts, specifically two fingers which are bitten off during her final showdown with Abby. She loses her ring finger, which is significant, as it symbolizes her relationship with Dina that she destroyed by pursuing revenge. The loss of her fingers also leaves her unable to play the guitar any longer. In a way, this represents Ellie's final parting with Joel, as the guitar was her last connection to him. Those fingers are fragments of her past, and she must now, for better or for worse, move on without them.
Naughty Dog is a studio known for its meticulous attention to detail, which is readily apparent in the intricate environments and in-depth gameplay on display in The Last of Us 2. However, the game shines best with its narrative, and while it may not have resonated with all audiences, its use of symbols and subversion of expectations represents a significant leap forward for storytelling in gaming.
The Last of Us 2 is available on PS4.
