Mindmap
Notable rule from The Last of Us
The rule I have decided to discuss concerns the Clickers, also known as the 3rd stage of infection, present in The Last of Us, The Last of Us: Left Behind and The Last of Us Part II. The rule is simple: if you try to punch a Clicker empty-handed, you die. Even so, beginner players fail to realise this and will often run head-first at them, despite the game advising against that.
In order to explain this rule better, I will provide you brief information about the 3rd stage of infection. Clickers are deadlier than the other stages, but their weakness is the fact that they are blind, as at this point, the fungus grows out of their skulls, especially the eye sockets . They depend on echo-location to navigate and sense prey, producing clicking and screeching noises, hence their name. They have enhanced strenght and will kill the player if engaged without weapons.
Punching a Clicker is ineffective, as proved above. That does not mean they are invincible. If the player is careful near them, they will discover other ways of killing them. Sneaking around them is my favourite method, either using a brick or a bottle to distract them, or, if possible, just avoiding them. The player is also able to use melee attacks, but only if they have melee weapons such as Molotov cocktails, a crowbar, a bat or shivs and even bricks. The last method is using guns. Depending on the gun used, the player has more or less chances in successfully killing them.
Below I have attached a youtube video showcasing the methods I’ve talked about, and even a death scene, as the player got too close to a Clicker and was unable to kill it.
One thing I would add to this rule would be allowing players to kill a Clicker with a bottle, instead of just stunning them, if timed correctly, and if not, just stun them as usual.
First draft essay
The Last of Us, released in 2013 for PS3 and re-released as The Last of Us Remastered for PS4 a year later, is a PlayStation exclusive hit game developed by Naughty Dog. The Last of Us is a story-focused, third-person perspective game, set in a post-apocalyptic world. Players use firearms or improvised melee weapons to fight, or can take a stealthy approach and take out the enemies, hostile humans or infected, one-by-one.
”In a hostile, post-pandemic world, Joel and Ellie are brought together by desperate circumstances, and must rely on each other to survive brutal journey across what remains of the USA.”
(PlayStation store)
Although the game is focused on the single-player story, it also offers three online multiplayer campaigns focused around single-player settings: Supply Raid, Survivors and Interrogation. There are two factions available: Fireflies, the militia group present throughout the game, and Hunters, a group of hostile survivors.
The main playable character is Joel Miller, accompanied by teenage girl Ellie, who can be played as for a small section of the first game, the entirety of the DLC The Last of Us: Left Behind and throughout half of the second instalment of the franchise, The Last of Us: Part II . However, Ellie is A.I. controlled throughout the majority of the first game, helping the player stun enemies or occasionally giving hints. Another briefly controlled character is Sarah, Joel’s daughter, who makes an appearance during the opening scene of the first instalment.
“The locations featured throughout The Last of Us are beautifully rendered, rich in detail but at the same time they are also harsh, foreboding places, ravaged by chaos, with nature in the process of reclaiming urban environments.”
(David Bierton, Tech Analysis: The Last of Us)
The growing father-daughter relationship between the two protagonists as they travel through dangerous situations across America makes a solid narrative device, players being able to see them evolve from not being able to get along, with Joel’s cynicism against Ellie’s naive enthusiasm and determination, to slowly starting to co-operate and care for each other.
Naughty Dog is known for making pleasant story-focused games, the seeds they planted in the previous Uncharted games being clearly present, although one downside is that due to the slower approach of the story, the explore-fight-cutscene cycle will start to feel a bit underwhelming, even forced, and too easy to guess as the player makes progress. What makes it worth it to go through the cycle is the beautiful story it presents. The terrible news the player hears at the end of the game makes them do unspeakable things, at this point being extremely attached to the characters.
The game carries over high production values present in Nathan’s Drake adventures. The environments are varied and deeply detailed, with multiple abandoned towns or settlements which plants have taken over, but also with large portions of the game taking place in open areas such as fields or forests and some occasional sewers and labs. The character models are highly detailed and well animated for a PS3 game, pushing the limits of the console. The image quality is good, running at 720p and 30fps. They look pleasant to the eye, although they tend to blur at certain angles or during cutscenes, therefore the high level of details put into the game is occasionally let down by low-resolution textures or visual effects. The Last of Us Remastered brings the PS4 version of the game better graphics, with most of the visual errors fixed.
One thing this game does really well is having a good companion A.I.. Ellie feels like she’s actually helpful, contrary to most companion A. I.s at the time. She help the player by throwing bricks or bottles at the enemies if the player is struggling with fighting them, by giving hints when puzzles might feel a bit too overwhelming or by finding some collectible items the player might have missed. Tess is another A.I.-controlled character that helps the player for a short period of time. She is a bit more advanced than Ellie, as she can shoot other enemies.
As for gameplay, it feels very fluid and diverse, although it can feel annoying and frustrating at times, especially when the game suggests you select a different level of difficulty quite frequently when you die. The player is given numerous options when it comes to fighting style, ranging from hand-to-hand to ranged guns, from sneaking around enemies to running guns blazing, although very difficult towards the end of the game, as the player starts running out of supplies, especially ammo and parts used to upgrade the weapons. Even so, the combat system can feel mediocre at times, especially if players don’t save up their ammo. Beginner players will feel tempted to waste their bullets on all types of enemies, only to get stuck when they reach boss fights. The only thing that will help them progress the narrative will be to change the difficulty level to ”easy” in order to get more bullets and fight weaker enemies, which can make it slightly more difficult to finish the game, unless the player changes their combat style.
When it comes to interactivity, the main, single-player storyline is completely emerging the players in the world of this game. Players can slightly interact with the non-playable characters, other than when fighting them, being able to high-five Ellie twice or thrice after completing certain puzzles. They can also unlock bonus dialogues with certain characters, but the main focus on interactivity is directed towards interacting with the environment, players being able to explore a good amount of the map, and even pet a giraffe. That being said, interactivity in this game is very diverse and will leave the players pleasantly surprised.
In conclusion, The Last of Us is a good game, with a couple of tech and gameplay issues, but still offering the players an immersive experience.
Second draft essay
The Last of Us, released in 2013 for PS3 and re-released as The Last of Us Remastered for PS4 a year later, is a PlayStation exclusive hit game developed by Naughty Dog. The Last of Us is a story-focused, third-person perspective game, set in a post-apocalyptic world. Players use firearms or improvised melee weapons to fight, or can take a stealthy approach and take out the enemies, both hostile humans or infected, zombie-like creatures, one-by-one.
The game is described as follows on the PlayStation Store’s website: ”In a hostile, post-pandemic world, Joel and Ellie are brought together by desperate circumstances, and must rely on each other to survive brutal journey across what remains of the USA.”
Although the game is focused on the single-player story, it also offers three online multiplayer campaigns focused around single-player settings: Supply Raid, Survivors and Interrogation. There are two factions available: Fireflies, the militia group present throughout the game, and Hunters, a group of hostile survivors.
The main playable character is Joel Miller, but the player can also control Ellie and Sarah during small sections of the game. As a Naughty Dog trademark feature, the protagonist is almost always accompanied by A.I. characters meant to help in difficult situations, Ellie being the most advanced videogame A.I. at the time. She helps the player by throwing bricks or bottles at some enemies, giving hints when puzzles might feel a bit too overwhelming or even finding some collectible items the player might have missed. As the story progresses, Ellie also becomes able to shoot enemies. Tess is another A.I.-controlled character that helps the player for a short period of time.
As stated by David Bierton in ”Tech Analysis: The Last of Us”, the locations featured in the game are of exceptional quality, very detailed, representing both beautiful places in witch the player can take their time to enjoy the view and harsh places, ravaged by chaos, showing nature in the process of reclaiming the urban environments.
The growing father-daughter relationship between the two protagonists as they travel through dangerous situations across America makes a solid narrative device, players being able to see them evolve from not being able to get along, with Joel’s cynicism against Ellie’s naive enthusiasm and determination, to slowly starting to co-operate and care for each other.
Naughty Dog is known for making pleasant story-focused games, the seeds they planted in the previous Uncharted games being clearly present, although one downside is that due to the slower approach of the story, the explore-fight-cutscene cycle will start to feel a bit underwhelming, even forced, and too easy to guess as the player makes progress. What makes it worth it to go through the cycle is the beautiful, heart-breaking story it presents, making it very difficult not to grow attached to its characters.
The game carries over high production values present in Nathan’s Drake adventures. The environments are varied and deeply detailed, with multiple abandoned towns or settlements which plants have taken over, but also with large portions of the game taking place in open areas such as fields or forests and some occasional sewers and labs. The character models are highly detailed and well animated for a PS3 game, pushing the limits of the console. The image quality is good, running at 720p and 30fps. They look pleasant to the eye, although they tend to blur at certain angles or during cutscenes, therefore the high level of details put into the game is occasionally let down by low-resolution textures or visual effects. The Last of Us Remastered brings the PS4 version of the game better graphics, with most of the visual errors fixed.
As for gameplay, it feels very fluid and diverse, although it can get annoying at times, especially when the game suggests you select a different level of difficulty quite frequently when you die. The player is given numerous options when it comes to fighting style, ranging from hand-to-hand to ranged guns, from sneaking around enemies to running guns blazing, although very difficult towards the end of the game, as the player starts running out of supplies, especially ammo and parts used to upgrade the weapons. Even so, the combat system can feel mediocre at times, especially if players don’t save up their ammo. Beginner players will feel tempted to waste their bullets on all types of enemies, only to get stuck when they reach boss fights. The only thing that will help them progress the narrative will be to change the difficulty level to ”easy” in order to get more bullets and fight weaker enemies, which can make it slightly more difficult to finish the game, unless the player changes their combat style. The preferred fighting style seems to be stealth, not only because it helps saving up ammo for when it’s truly necessarily to use it, but also for the satisfaction the player gets after stealthily killing entire rooms of enemies. As stated in an IGN review, it is very disappointing when the player blows their cover by accident, so much so when one of the A. I. companions walks in front of the enemies or even fires at them, which sadly no one can control.
One special mechanic this game is known for is Joel’s listening skill. Holding down R2 while crouching lets Joel listen to his surroundings, thus locating where the enemies are. This mechanic caused mixed reactions among the game community, as some believe it’s a bit cheap and decide to ignore it completely, while others find it very handy and use it religiously.
Another brilliant mechanic is the ability to craft, which happens in real-time. In order toc raft, the player will have to gather the right materials and items, which can prove difficult depending on the difficulty they’re playing, or how much time they spend exploring and collecting resources. Item scarcity, a dominant issue in the world of The Last of Us, means everything found is precious in its own way, especially bullets. Crafting choices often have consequences, most items being used for making different weapons or health kits.
When it comes to interactivity, the main, single-player storyline is completely emerging the players in the world of this game. Players can slightly interact with the non-playable characters, other than when fighting them, being able to high-five Ellie twice or thrice after completing certain puzzles. They can also unlock bonus dialogues with certain characters, but the main focus on interactivity is directed towards interacting with the environment, players being able to explore a good amount of the map, and even pet a giraffe. That being said, interactivity in this game is very diverse and will leave the players pleasantly surprised.
In conclusion, The Last of Us is a good game, with a couple of tech and gameplay issues, but still offering the players an immersive experience.
Angry birds 1 diagram
Final essay
The Last of Us, released in 2013 for PS3 and re-released as The Last of Us Remastered for PS4 a year later, is a PlayStation exclusive hit game developed by Naughty Dog. The Last of Us is a story-focused, third-person perspective game, set in a post-apocalyptic world. Players use firearms or improvised melee weapons to fight, or can take a stealthy approach and take out the enemies, both hostile humans or infected, zombie-like creatures, one-by-one.
”In a hostile, post-pandemic world, Joel and Ellie are brought together by desperate circumstances, and must rely on each other to survive brutal journey across what remains of the USA.”
(PlayStation store, 2014)
Although the game is focused on the single-player story, it also offers three online multiplayer campaigns focused around single-player settings: Supply Raid, Survivors and Interrogation. There are two factions available: Fireflies, the militia group present throughout the game, and Hunters, a group of hostile survivors.
The main playable character of the storyline is Joel Miller, Sarah and Ellie can also be controlled throughout small sections of the game, the latter even more so in the Left Behind DLC. As a Naughty Dog trademark feature, the protagonist is almost always accompanied by A.I. characters meant to help in difficult situations, Ellie being the most advanced videogame A.I. of that time. She helps the player by throwing bricks or bottles at some enemies, giving hints when puzzles might feel a bit too overwhelming or even finding some collectible items that might have been missed amid a heated fight. As the story progresses, Ellie also becomes able to shoot enemies. Tess is another A.I.-controlled character that helps the player for a short period of time.
“The locations featured throughout The Last of Us are beautifully rendered, rich in detail but at the same time they are also harsh, foreboding places, ravaged by chaos, with nature in the process of reclaiming urban environments.”
(Bierton, 2013)
The growing father-daughter relationship between the two protagonists as they travel through dangerous situations across America makes a solid narrative device, players being able to see them evolve from not being able to get along, with Joel’s cynicism against Ellie’s naive enthusiasm and determination, to slowly starting to co-operate and deeply care for each other.
Joel and Ellie are anti-heroes, doing anything to survive, even if that means killing other survivors. The last part of the game shows this very well, as we see Joel killing medics supposed to create a vaccine just to save Ellie because he sees her as his second chance at being a father. The story is so emerging that the player doesn't see this as something wrong, but as something that needs to be done in order to save a character from evil people.
Naughty Dog is known for making pleasant story-focused games, the seeds they planted in the previous Uncharted games being clearly present, although one downside is that due to the slower approach of the story, the explore-fight-cutscene cycle will start to feel a bit underwhelming, even forced, and too easy to guess as the player makes progress. What makes it worth it to go through the cycle is the beautiful, heart-breaking story it presents, making it very difficult not to grow attached to its characters. This game is not for those who lack patience, as the combat and levels need to be carefully thought through before deciding on the best approach.
The game carries over high production values present in Nathan’s Drake adventures. The environments are varied and deeply detailed, with multiple abandoned towns or settlements which plants have taken over, but also with large portions of the game taking place in open areas such as fields or forests and some occasional closed environments such as sewers and labs. The character models are highly detailed and well animated for a PS3 game, pushing the limits of the console. The image quality is good, running at 720p and 30fps. They look pleasant to the eye in-game, but they tend to blur at certain angles or during cutscenes, therefore the high level of details put into the game is occasionally let down by low-resolution textures or visual effects. The Last of Us Remastered brings the PS4 version of the game better graphics, with most of the visual errors fixed.
As for gameplay, it feels very fluid and diverse, although it can get annoying at times, especially when the game suggests you select a different level of difficulty quite frequently when the player dies. The Last of Us offers numerous options when it comes to fighting style, ranging from hand-to-hand to ranged guns, from sneaking around enemies to running guns blazing, although very difficult towards the end of the game, as the player starts running out of supplies, especially ammo and parts used to upgrade the weapons. Even so, the combat system can feel mediocre at times, especially if players don’t save up their ammo. Beginner players will feel tempted to waste their bullets on all types of enemies, only to get stuck when they reach boss fights. The only thing that will help them progress the narrative will be to change the difficulty level to ”easy” in order to get more bullets and fight weaker enemies, which can make it slightly more difficult to finish the game, unless the player changes their combat style. The preferred fighting style seems to be stealth, not only because it helps saving up ammo for when it’s truly necessarily to use it, but also for the satisfaction the player gets after stealthily killing entire rooms of enemies.
“It is very disappointing when the player blows their cover by accident, so much so when one of the A. I. companions walks in front of the enemies or even fires at them, which sadly no one can control.“
(Moriarty, 2020)
One special mechanic this game is known for is Joel’s listening skill. Holding down R2 while crouching lets Joel listen to his surroundings, thus locating where the enemies are. This mechanic caused mixed reactions among the game community, as some considering it a video game clique and deciding to ignore it completely, while others find it very handy and use it religiously.
Another brilliant mechanic is the ability to craft, which happens in real-time. In order to craft, the player will have to gather the right materials and items, which can prove challenging, depending on the difficulty they’re playing, or how much time they spend exploring and collecting resources. Item scarcity, a dominant issue in the world of The Last of Us, means everything found is precious in its own way, especially bullets. Crafting choices often have consequences, most items being common ground in making melee weapons, different types of bombs and healing items.
When it comes to interactivity, the main, single-player storyline is completely emerging the players in the world of this game. Players can slightly interact with the non-playable characters, other than when fighting them, being able to high-five Ellie twice or thrice after completing certain puzzles. They can also unlock bonus dialogues with certain characters, but the main focus on interactivity is directed towards interacting with the environment, players being able to explore a good amount of the map, and even pet a giraffe. That being said, interactivity in this game is very diverse and will leave the players pleasantly surprised.
Concluding, The Last of Us is a good game, with a couple of tech and gameplay issues, but offering strong-willed players an immersive experience that makes all the hassle worth it.
Citing list:
PlayStation store (2014), Available at: https://store.playstation.com/en-gb/product/EP9000-CUSA00557_00-THELASTOFUS00000 (Accessed: 17th December 2020)
Bierton, D. (2013) Tech Analysis: The Last of Us * Eurogamer. Avaliable at: https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-the-last-of-us-tech-analysis (Accessed: 20th December 2020)
Moriarty C. (2020), The Last of Us Review *IGN , available at: https://www.ign.com/articles/2013/06/05/the-last-of-us-review (Accessed: 20th December 2020)
Vision document
Operation: D.R.E.A.M (Direct Reconnaissance Encounter Against Mishap) is a sci-fi/fantasy, 3rd person game of short lenght, roughly about 9-10 hours, featuring a single-player narrative, targeted to a broad audience, ages between 14 to mid 30s and is suitable for all genders. Firstly, the game will be released for computers, with the possibility to be released for PlayStation, XBox and Nintendo later on.
Aided by an infamous thief, you must find the key to saving the world from its end. You play as a special android build for the sole purpose of shielding a human child’s brain, without which the world is doomed. Travel across the universe in search of an ancient artifact left behind mysterious people. Explore who you are, your past, your hopes and dreams for the future.
This game is focused on HOPe, an android created to bring salvation to a planet on the edge of destruction. The story starts in year 3044, on a distant dystopian planet, when a little girl has terrible dreams of doomsday, the end of the world, a slow process of unfortunate things that spawns over months, maybe years, until the planet is ultimately destroyed in an explosion. She sees a strange artifact in her dreams, which whispers its location in ciphered coordinates. The girl believes it’s the key to save the planet, although nothing seems wrong just yet. She told her parents about her dreams and they didn’t believe her at first, but as the events she dreamt about slowly become reality, they seek professional help. As scientists studied her and her visions and as her health got worse and worse, they decided to create an android meant to keep the girl’s brain alive, as it is very important in saving the planet, and send her on a mission to find all the means necessary to save them.
As HOPe journeys through numerous galaxies, she starts to learn more about herself, how she came to life and how to cope with her newly found feelings, as long as forming her own opinions about humankind, and especially, those who brought her to life. This part of the game has a similar approach like Detroit: Become Human, but without the "trying to earn your rights as an android" vibes.
The game presents various unique environments and characters, an abridged, but rattling good story nevertheless, with immersive gameplay and mechanics. Movement and graphics are similar to Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order. HOPe has a journal much like Nathan Drake's, where she notes and doodles personal notes regarding multiple situations and discoveries. The game UI and inventory system will be similar to Destiny 2's. The puzzles are much like a combination of Uncharted 4: A Thief's End, The Last Guardian and Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Oder.
The player will have to solve puzzles ranging from easy to complex, but not unsolvable. Although not focused on survival, but puzzle-solving and exploration, there are 5 weapons to use. In certain areas, the player will be attacked by enemies or will have to destroy objects in order to complete the level. There is also a "flashback" section where HOPe re-experiences what the child went through and the player gets a better grasp of the story. This is a turning point of the game. From that point on, the player's choices will start affecting the gameplay.
When it comes to approaching enemies, depending on the type and the player’s choices, it is possible to either befriend them, or eliminate them. The ending will also vary, based on previously made choices. Enemies vary from planet to planet, they can be either local creatures, humans or aliens. Much like in Undertale, the game will progress differently depending on the player's choices, like pacifist, neutral or genocide. The last section of the game consists of a last-minute escape scene. If the player spares the enemies, they will get the ”true” ending, being able to retrieve the artifact, escape the planet and complete their mission. Otherwise, if the player kills all the enemies, they won’t be able to escape and will be blown to bits in the explosion, therefore the mission has failed. In that case, HOPe will be the only one to survive the explosion, will be retrieved by the scientists that created her and shut down. The world will have lost hope and it will soon have been destroyed. The more you play the game, the more HOPe will remember your past run, sometimes noting out-loud that certain situations feel similar, sometimes also breaking the 4th wall.
Citing list:
Destiny 2 (2017), Available at: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1085660/Destiny_2/ (Accessed: 27th of January 2021)
Detroit: Become Human (2018), Available at: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1222140/Detroit_Become_Human/ (Accessed: 27th of January 2021)
Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order (2019), Available at: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1172380/STAR_WARS_Jedi_Fallen_Order/ (Accessed 27th of January 2021)
The Last Guardian (2016), Available at: https://store.playstation.com/en-gb/product/EP9000-CUSA03745_00-LASTGUARDIANEU00 (Accessed: 27th of January 2021)
Uncharted 4: A Thief's End (2016), Available at: https://store.playstation.com/en-us/product/UP9000-CUSA00341_00-UNCHARTED0000000 (Accessed: 27th of January 2021)
Undertale (2015), Available at: https://store.steampowered.com/app/391540/Undertale/ (Accessed: 27th of January 2021)
Fallout Brotherhood of Steel 2 GDD analysis
For our last assignment this semester, we’ve been given a couple of GDDs from which to choose one to analyse. My choice is the Fallout Brotherhood of Steel 2 GDD.
The Fallout Brotherhood of Steel sequel was supposed to release in 2004, for PlayStation 2, but was cancelled. Down below, judging on how the document presents itself, I will explain the reasons why I think the game never made it.
As a huge Fallout fan myself, I’ve never heard of this game and was beyond excited to read the document and get a glimpse of a game we could’ve played. The GDD is detailed, the text being accompanied by a lot of concept art and designs meant to give people a taste of what the game would’ve been about. It’s clear that the developers put a lot of thought into it, as the world building remains the trademark of the Fallout franchise even in this cancelled game. The players are promised multiple new weapons, 4 playable characters, each equipped with unique stats and abilities, both single-player and 2-player gaming modes, and what was meant to be a grippling, action-packed narrative, as well as brand new enemies, far uglier and more dangerous than ever. After all, “war never changes” in the world of Fallout.
However, upon a closer look, the design document is noticeably flawed. For starters, it is full of spelling or grammar errors, two of the most noticeable ones being “Laura Croft”, when one of the characters’ clothing style was presented, and “depending on the his reputation”, when talking about the quest in relation to the player’s reputation system.
On top of that, there are multiple sentences that are very difficult to understand upon the first time reading. I stumbled upon many sentences I had to re-read a couple of times in order to get the ideas they were trying to transmit, or just ideas being overall poorly explained.
Another let-down present in this GDD is the way the characters, especially the female characters, are portrayed. They felt shallow, with not so many quality traits besides their trauma and “hot” appearance.
Overall, having in mind everything as presented, it is impossible to make a good game from the GDD.
Concluding, although the GDD seems well-made in the beginning, the more you delve into it, the more flaws you find. The document isn’t easily readable, readability being one of the main aspects that makes a GDD a good document. The document presents the game well, although not in a good way, as both the game idea and the design document feel like a ride downhill. It is not done in a professional manner, as I’ve already explained by pointing our spelling errors, grammar errors, as well as the presence of expressions such as “stuff like that”, “that thing”, instead of trying to explain the ideas better.