The Last Of Us - Part II Remastered: No Return
No Return, a roguelike survival mode, injects a new way to play & experience the world of The Last Of Us. However, this new game mode simply doesn't align with what makes The Last Of Us one of our most beloved games of all time.
When The Last Of Us - Part II Remastered was announced I couldn't help but feel that we didn't need a from the ground up remake of a game that only released 4 years ago in 2020. Upon booting up the new version my thoughts were confirmed. While there are some minor visual upgrades the difference is far from striking. Where The Last Of Us - Part II Remastered veers from the original most is with the addition of new content, particularly with the new game mode No Return.
In No Return, players are dropped into a series of randomly generated encounters with the various enemy types of the game. With only one life per outing, players have to complete a series of challenges. These challenges range from, surviving waves of enemies to enduring a never-ending horde for a set period, protecting an ally or even capturing an enemy-protected safe. After completing five encounters you face a boss but die at any point & you must begin again.
Although this mode could be addictive if you're an arcade-style, top score-chasing player for me the disconnect between No Return & what made The Last Of Us so special was far too grand.
For me, The Last Of Us was never about the combat. Whenever I encountered combat in either The Last Of Us or The Last Of Us Part II my first thought was always stealth. I would enter into these situations thinking, how can I progress through this as silently as possible? While this is a strategy that can be employed in some of the No Return scenarios it wasn't far too often not. In particular, in the horde survival modes, you'll often find yourself running & gunning, tossing bombs or Molotov cocktails all willy-nilly etc.
Obviously, this is a very personal preference. So I can certainly see the addictive potential No Return could have for other players but for me, this simply isn't The Last Of Us.
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