rionaleonhart | I Don't Want To Meet The Kid Who Draws Mouths Like That.

More of The Last of Us, Part II! I'm a bit past the 'shooting targets with a toy bow' challenge.

Specifically, I'm just setting out for the hospital in Abby's day two, but I didn't want to say outside the cut that I was going to the hospital because there are a number of earlier hospital visits in this game, and I didn't want to risk someone going 'oh, the hospital, I'm past that' and clicking!

I'm generally fairly dubious about the game going 'SURPRISE, KILLING PEOPLE IS WRONG, WEREN'T EXPECTING THAT, WERE YOU' - we know, I promise! - but seeing all those body bags was still a striking moment.

I am really, really hoping this game doesn't end up making me kill Ellie while playing as Abby. I don't think I could do it. Ellie is the villain of Abby's story; I get that. Just don't make me kill her.

I'm still sad about Jesse. He was my favourite of the new characters! And it was so sudden! This has hit me considerably harder than Joel's death did.

I still have no particular attachment to Abby, or indeed Owen, but I will grudgingly admit that this aquarium flashback-within-a-flashback is pretty cute. I like that they had no idea this sort of place ever existed. It's like one of those zoo things, but for fish!

wow, I guess that seal was really hot

I'll be honest: I'm a little pissed off that this game didn't include the beautiful Ellie/Dina trailer dance scene but did include the 'pointless hideous violence' Abby trailer scene.

There are some really tough encounters as Abby, so I've found I'll often try to find the way out of an area and escape without defeating all the enemies. As Ellie, meanwhile, I tended to clear out all the enemies, then look around for a way to progress. So, in a way, I've accidentally created a distinction between their characters through the different ways I play them. Abby kills as necessary. Ellie kills everyone, out of caution, to make an area safe.

It sort of makes sense that Abby would be more conservative with her murders; she killed Joel but spared Ellie and Tommy, after all. But my heart still very much lies with Ellie, no matter how murderous she might be.

I still can't believe the game brought Ellie's story to a terrible cliffhanger and then launched into HOURS AND HOURS OF FLASHBACK. When Abby confronted Ellie in the theatre and it first cut back to Abby with her father, I'd assumed there couldn't be more than three hours left in the game! SURPRISE.

I wonder if I'd be warming to Abby more if this perspective shift had come before she killed Jesse and held Ellie at gunpoint. As it is, I'm spending the entire time going 'yes, I realise you've been through a rough time and your actions make sense from your perspective, but I'm slightly distracted by the constant question of whether you're about to kill one of my favourite characters of all time.'

I imagine there'd still be an aspect of 'why am I not playing as my girl Ellie, boooooo', no matter when this sequence had come. The risk of trading screentime with one of my all-time favourite characters!

I've been going 'is there any possible way Ellie could get out of that cliffhanger alive?' and I've just remembered that Dina's still in the theatre, so maybe there's a chance? I don't know if there's much room for hope here, but maybe there's a chance. Please save me, Dina.

I'm not expecting a happy ending. I just need Ellie to survive.

(Of course, if you already know the resolution of that cliffhanger, please don't tell me!)

This game's longer than I expected! I'm enjoying it, don't get me wrong, but it's still driving me up the wall that I can't post this 'Ellie and Jesse try to maintain their friendship while they're both in a relationship with Dina' fic until I've finished.

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but I didn't want to say outside the cut that I was going to the hospital because there are a number of earlier hospital visits in this game, and I didn't want to risk someone going 'oh, the hospital, I'm past that' and clicking!

I'VE BEEN THE SAME WAY WITH MY POSTS! Like I don't want to say "I'm en route to the hospital AS ABBY" because also a spoiler D: so difficult!

I do find it interesting which deaths hit people harder than others in this game. I see a lot of people very attached to Joel and still not over his death halfway through the game. Meanwhile, I had my OH FUCK D: moment when Jesse died... and then promptly forgot about him ten minutes into Abby's playthrough. Not that it's bad to have more feels over his death! I'm just intrigued by who is more D: D: D: over certain aspects of the game and how what impacts people differently. It's really great!

What I also enjoy about Abby's playthrough is that her weapons are different from Ellie's too. How she's gone about killing is way different from Ellie - she's more military-esque trained while Ellie has done what she needs to do for survival.

My boyfriend and I also talked about if the game would be "better" if it started from Abby's playthrough and then when you get to the theater and see Ellie, THEN it cuts and flashbacks to all the Ellie stuff. I think a lot of it comes down to marketing; it'd be REALLY hard to sell people on The Last of Us Part II if you're introduced to characters and a story that is NOT Ellie and Joel.

Glad you're still enjoying the game!!

I saw your most recent reaction post go by on my reading page before I reached the Abby section, and there was a bit of a '?? why would we be going to the hospital again?' moment; I appreciate that you kept the 'AS ABBY' aspect quiet!

(I've now checked out that post, although I didn't read the entire thing because I think you might be a bit further on the route to the hospital than me, and I'm glad you commented on the HORRIFYING CHILD'S DRAWING that inspired the title of this entry.)

I'd have been deeply unhappy about Jesse's death at any point, but I think it hit me particularly hard because I'd spent much of the previous day working on this fic. Thinking about him and his friendship with Ellie, trying to get inside his head. It made it a lot worse when that head received a bullet.

What I also enjoy about Abby's playthrough is that her weapons are different from Ellie's too. How she's gone about killing is way different from Ellie - she's more military-esque trained while Ellie has done what she needs to do for survival.

Yes! I appreciate that the characters feel different to play; it wouldn't seem right if they just played like reskins of each other. It's pretty cool that they've included details like Abby having higher health and steadier aim than Ellie, even if I hate what that steady aim means for Jesse.

My boyfriend and I also talked about if the game would be "better" if it started from Abby's playthrough and then when you get to the theater and see Ellie, THEN it cuts and flashbacks to all the Ellie stuff.

This is really interesting to think about. It would definitely be a hell of a revelation to play the game, get to know these new characters, then realise they're being killed off one by one by a character you already know and love.

I literally spent five minutes trying to figure out how to be like "this is how far I am into the game, but also no spoilers in that description" so I'm glad it didn't spoil anything!

ALSO HOLY FUCK THAT DRAWING IS THE BIGGEST NIGHTMARE FUEL FODDER IN THE WHOLE GAME THANKS I HATE IT D: D: D:

I can definitely see that, especially when you're working on a fic - and I can tell you're super excited about it! At least with fanfics, we can choose to ignore canon as we please, but that doesn't ease the sting from the reality that is canon D:

I remember my first reaction when I opened the menu as Abby and finding out ALL THE PROGRESS I MADE AS ELLIE IS JUST GONE NOW was scream into a pillow. HOW RUDE!!! But it all worked out in the end :D

Really loving your posts as you play, so many thanks for sharing all your thoughts 🥰

I'm glad you're enjoying my posts; I'm really enjoying yours, and your comments! It's been great to play this more or less alongside you. A lot of people tore straight through the entire thing, and of course there's nothing wrong with that, but it means I can't check out anything they have to say until I've finished; it's been good to have you around for discussion!

I'm still sad about Jesse. He was my favourite of the new characters! And it was so sudden! This has hit me considerably harder than Joel's death did.

Right? I felt like I saw Joel's death coming longer than I did Jesse's...

So, in a way, I've accidentally created a distinction between their characters through the different ways I play them. Abby kills as necessary. Ellie kills everyone, out of caution, to make an area safe.

I love this?

I wonder if I'd be warming to Abby more if this perspective shift had come before she killed Jesse and held Ellie at gunpoint. As it is, I'm spending the entire time going 'yes, I realise you've been through a rough time and your actions make sense from your perspective, but I'm slightly distracted by the constant question of whether you're about to kill one of my favourite characters of all time.'

Yes (^_^;) I really felt that it would have been more effective if they'd told the story in a different order.

it's still driving me up the wall that I can't post this 'Ellie and Jesse try to maintain their friendship while they're both in a relationship with Dina' fic until I've finished.

Damn, me too!

I really felt that it would have been more effective if they'd told the story in a different order.

Now that I've unlocked the chapter select, I could theoretically replay the game in chronological order at some point, or as close to chronological order as possible: the flashbacks, the opening, then Seattle, alternating between Ellie and Abby. I don't know if I actually have the patience to attempt it, but it could be an interesting exercise.

I don't know if I actually have the patience to attempt it, but it could be an interesting exercise.

It's a lot, for sure! (^_^;)

Extremely late comment but:

I, too, was deeply saddened by the loss of Jesse! But I think I was equally upset by Mel's murder as it happened, even before we spent any time with her in the Abby section, so that entire stretch of story was just bleak.

This game is pretty unforgiving with how dark it is, I'm finding; there's an unrelenting sourness to it that makes it hard for me to play if I'm not in the right mood. It's also a delight in other ways, though - like making me kill all these dogs, showing me Maybe Alice's dog bed and bowl right after I stabbed her to death, and then letting me play catch with Bear. I love dogs so this is a microcosm of the whole emotional rollercoaster that this game has been.

That said, I'm warming to Abby very quickly. I don't know if this is the story I want for these characters, but I am enjoying spending time with them, if that makes sense.

Extremely late comments are very welcome!

One of the few dogs I managed to spare was called Bear, and then I killed a dog in a later sequence and heard 'Bear!'; maybe Bear was brought on both operations, but I choose to believe that they were two different dogs and the Bear I played fetch with is fine.

I'm glad to hear you're warming to Abby! It took me a while, but I definitely got there, and I think the story's a lot stronger if you care about her.

I Don't Want To Meet The Kid Who Draws Mouths Like That.

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