The Last of Us

[Corporate Thug]

TBH for most people if they dont read gaming forums/sites the only way they know about stuff is going to the store. and id wager most people are like that

There is a million ads for this game on TV

 

[PenguinPower]

There is a million ads for this game on TV

I have yet to see one.

 

[Corporate Thug]

Finally got to play this sucker...about 1 hour in. Great game but so far have not had the feeling that I couldn't put it down. I played through the part with Robert (again about an hour or so).

 

[z1ggy]

TBH for most people if they dont read gaming forums/sites the only way they know about stuff is going to the store. and id wager most people are like that

Or commercials on TV.

 

[Anubis]

There is a million ads for this game on TV

really?
i dont watch TV so yea.

anyway I read tech and game sites and i had forgotten about the game. i actually only preordered it 2 days before it came out. if i had not see stuff about it duing E3 i would have missed it

 

[Topweasel]

who cares? it's not like that stops you from enjoying it, and we know that naughty dog isn't going to stop churning out master pieces.

you worry too much about what games other people like.

Even if Sony gives ND carte blanche to continue making games they want the way they want to, it sends a bad message to the rest of the Developers out there. If you want or need to sell 5-10 million copies don't do it this way. It's become harder and harder to great great stories and true drama filled cinematic experiences from AAA developers, because they have to target sales first and apparently games like this are to much for most of the community.

One reason...it was released right after the bombshells at e3. I know a ton of people who went and traded in their consoles for the new one(s). People are anticipating buying a new system and a few games in only a few months time.

It just got overshadowed by all that hoopla.

I can see that. I had a friend that pretty much only played uncharted games on his PS3. Loved the idea of TLoU. Saw all the great reviews. Knew I was getting the game. The weekend after I got it he sold his console to game stop for $150 to a PS4. He didn't want to lose that opportunity to get that kind of return on his console (which in retrospect I would have gladly paid him a 100 to swap his slim with my fat 40GB).

Now that I think about it. Had this game had an engine designed for the ps4 and been announced as a ps4 launch title, how many copies would have sold then?

200k. No matter how popular the world thinks the PS4 would be there would be dozens of issues holding it back. First would be that even with 100 million PS3's out there only 1% picked up the game. That could mean an even smaller attachment rate when lined up against a dozen games launching the same day. Outside the first week of sales most of these consoles will be Christmas presents, again limiting attachment rates in general. Third even if parents/girlfriends/siblings buy a cadre of games for this gift system, if you aren't in the know, then this would be an unlikely game to be gifted. 4th It will be two years and probably not till the console is under $300 before their is a 10 million console market. Sony would probably be overjoyed if they can ship 2-3 million consoles by year end.

Reasons like this are why Spielberg didn't allow his movies to be released in BD or HD-DVD until they hit certain benchmarks. Even though the public loves his movies and Jaws and Jurassic Park could have the the best sales for a catalog movie for the time but Spielberg wanted to make sure they could maximize on the value of his movies by waiting till they had a larger market.

 

[prism]

This game is the perfect example to lay to rest the debate on whether video games are work of arts or not.

James Franco in This is the End states that video games are works of art!

 

[McWatt]

Finally got to play this sucker...about 1 hour in. Great game but so far have not had the feeling that I couldn't put it down. I played through the part with Robert (again about an hour or so).

I think you won't develop a strong connection until somewhere in Pittsburgh.

 

[purbeast0]

Finally got to play this sucker...about 1 hour in. Great game but so far have not had the feeling that I couldn't put it down. I played through the part with Robert (again about an hour or so).

took me about 3 hours or so until i got the feeling that i didn't want to put it down. and that feeling has gotten stronger the further i have gotten into the game. definitely starts out a bit slow.

 

[exdeath]

Its ok, I count for two copies, maybe three. I was going to open my survival edition and keep the post pandemic box sealed but even the survival is worth almost double now. Might just buy a plain copy too since both are steel case.

See how much good developers get? Paying attention EA/Activision?

I did the same for Ni no Kuni. Also hard cover edition guides. These two games and all related paraphernalia are the pride and joy of my modern/current generation collection and will shortly be joined by Tales of Xillia.

 

[purbeast0]

Its ok, I count for two copies, maybe three. I was going to open my survival edition and keep the post pandemic box sealed but even the survival is worth almost double now. Might just buy a plain copy too since both are steel case.

See how much good developers get? Paying attention EA/Activision?

I did the same for Ni no Kuni. Also hard cover edition guides. These two games and all related paraphernalia are the pride and joy of my modern/current generation collection and will shortly be joined by Tales of Xillia.

except that ea/activision are raking in much more dough than naughty dog is

just because you don't like something doesn't mean everyone doesn't or shouldn't like it.

 

[exdeath]

just because you don't like something doesn't mean everyone doesn't or shouldn't like it.

This has been addressed ad infinitum. The masses determine profits and drive the direction of the industry for everyone else, and not in a good way.

How long can good studios like Naughty Dog hold out before caving in to "big business" or being bought out by a EA/Activision to exploit their IPs and wreck them into the ground?

Bean counters will want to know why The Last of Us only sold 1 mil and not 10+ mil like CoD.

 

[Anubis]

well seeing as they have been making games since the early 90s i doubt they will cave
just look at their list of games its pretty amazing TBH

 

[purbeast0]

This has been addressed ad infinitum. The masses determine profits and drive the direction of the industry for everyone else, and not in a good way.

How long can good studios like Naughty Dog hold out before caving in to "big business" or being bought out by a EA/Activision to exploit their IPs and wreck them into the ground?

Bean counters will want to know why The Last of Us only sold 1 mil and not 10+ mil like CoD.

a lot of it is cause the masses want lasting gameplay, and you get that with online play. that is why games last, not because they have an awesome single player mode. and that is why you have ND tacking on multiplayer to the last of us, when the majority of people know it totally doesn't belong in that game.

i know i won't go back and play the last of us once i finish it. not in the next 10 years or so most likely.

ive personally had more fun with single player games in the past 2 years or so than multiplayer. the only multiplayer games i really play are fighters, and i haven't really played them competively in the past year at all.

you need to just accept that the story driven single player games are more of a niche market now a days compared to the online multiplayer games. especially exclusives.

 

[Childs]

It sold over 1 million the first week, and was the best launch of any game this year. Bioshock Infinite, which released on 3 platforms, didnt launch as well. This will probably do Uncharted numbers, which is around 5M. Thats about the max for any PS3 exclusive game that isnt GTx.

And Naughty Dog is owned by Sony.

 

[exdeath]

I just want to see good games succeed. Problem is this game would be a whopping success already by standards 20 years ago, but today nothing looks good when people are bragging about numbers from stupid shit like Call of Duty and Angry Birds.

 

[lilrayray69]

Has Naughty Dog announced what they're working on next? Uncharted 4 maybe? I saw somewhere they split into 2 development teams, one did Uncharted 3 while the other did The Last of Us, and the Uncharted 3 team has been working on something else since they finished that.

I liked Uncharted 2 a lot, but couldn't get into the first one. The third was ok, but felt like a repeat of 2...2 was good because it was such a step up, but with 3 there wasn't really any difference and even the story was pretty similar.

I never played the Jak games, but I did play crash bandicoot back in the day and those were fun.

 

[cmdrdredd]

I've seen nothing so far from them.

 

[sze5003]

They are a company I want to see succeed because every game they brought out pretty much was really good. The last of us and uncharted are worth the full prices in my opinion.

I hope they work on uncharted 4 and maybe another section of the last of us. The tomb raider game that came out recently couple months back was very good too. If they took over that I would like to see what they come up with. But doubt that will happen. Square Enix is also a good company and I enjoyed hitman absolution a lot too.

 

[Anubis]

for anyone curious about the audio settings

f you want the explanation straight from Naughty Dog (edit: what Tap was referencing), here is one from Johnathan Lanier, a senior programmer at Naughty Dog, about the Audio Settings in Uncharted 2:



"What's the best audio setting to use? Last night I had it on LPCM 7.1 with the 'default' dynamic range. Think I should change the dynamic range?"



"Actually, the dynamic range menu option in U2 isn't *exactly* the same as a processor's DRC, but it is similar in many respects. You are correct that it's really all about how much difference exists between the loudest and softest sounds. In U2, the dynamic range game audio setting breaks down as follows.

Default: The game picks what it thinks is the most appropriate compression based on your output format. This will be 'Wide' if you have 'Stereo Headphones' selected, 'Normal' if any discrete multichannel output 5.1 or better is selected, or 'Narrow' if 'Stereo' or 'Dolby PLII' is selected. Note that 'Maximum' and 'Midnight' are not in this list; those have to be set explicitly.

Maximum: No dynamic range compression applied at all.

Wide: A small amount of dynamic range compression is applied; threshold for volume maximization is -4.0dB.

Normal: A medium amount of dynamic range compression is applied; threshold for volume maximization is -8.0dB.

Narrow: A large amount of dynamic range compression is applied; threshold for volume maximization is -10.0dB. This really squashes the dynamic range, but makes quiet sounds perceptible on poor fidelity systems. Like, your average TV set.

Midnight: A very large amount of dynamic range compression is applied; threshold for volume maximization is -16.0dB, and the volume is also scaled back quite a bit. The end result, is almost everything sounds the same volume. Also, the LFE channel is disabled in this mode. Meant for playing the game at very low volume levels late at night.

If you ask me, the amount of dynamic range you want is going to be based on more about whether or not you like what you hear. 'Maximum' is the way the game was mixed, with reference monitors. However, unless you are listening in a room that has very good acoustic treatment, the quiet bits might be a tad too quiet with all compression disabled. The default dynamic range will pick 'Normal' on any 5.1/7.1 setup, which should hopefully not sound too squashed. I'd be keen to hear feedback from audiophiles about what they think about the fidelity of these different modes.

I cringe when I see forum posts where people suggest setting the option to 'Midnight' to make anything louder. I'm quite sure they aren't aware they're ruining the fidelity (and losing their sub!) with that option. A true shame none of this information was printed in the instruction manual. Oh well...

And while I'm on the topic of U2 audio options, note that the center channel size defaults to 'small', and for good reason. It isn't just about having a full-range center, though if you don't, I CERTAINLY wouldn't pick 'large' unless you have good bass management. What it is really for is to manage whether or not FX pan across the center or not. Dialog always pans across center, but in movies, most FX generally don't. In games, since much of the action happens up front, even with full-range centers, putting all of the volume in one speaker for all the dialog *and* FX happening directly in front of you generally doesn't sound as good as spreading the power for the FX around to the front mains. It also can make the sound field feel a bit narrower. Movies don't generally spread FX across center for the same reason, so I don't see why games should. However, if you've got a 5.1/7.1 setup where all 3 front speakers are identical, and you like the way it sounds spreading the effects across center, then by all means go for it. The reason this option even exists, is because unlike a movie, the game mixes its dialog and effects on-the-fly, so there is no reason to force the user to have (or not have) 'phantom center' for FX

The normal setting will bring up some of the quieter bits, and add a bit of punch as well. The volume maximization we're using is technically a form of distortion, but if not abused it can make it 'rock' a bit more. I'm worried that we might have put too much dynamic range in on maximum. We just didn't want to sacrifice dynamic range for the sake of people with TVs that couldn't reproduce it, so by adding in the DR option we hoped to have our cake and eat it too. Uncharted 2 is the first PS3 game to use this technology, though I expect you'll be seeing more of it in the future. I'm not sure we dialed it in perfectly, but we tried. Mixing was done in a very short amount of time, unfortunately. If it rocks on normal, then by all means leave it there; the distortion applied is certainly no worse than that used by most modern music production (i.e. the 'loudness wars')."



"How does the PCM 5.1 option compare to DD5.1?"



"The LPCM options will always sound better than DD or DTS options, because the audio doesn't have to be transcoded into another compressed format. The game internally stores audio in a variety of compressed formats (**bleep**, MP3), decompresses it as sounds are synthesized and mixed, and then has to recompress the final result if DD or DTS is selected. If LPCM is selected, that last lossy recompresssion step doesn't have to happen.

If you don't have HDMI, LPCM output is limited to 2 channels over the optical output, so you're better off sticking with DTS and DD, in that order (DTS is less lossy than DD). In fact, if you leave the output format setting on 'default', the game will do this for you; the best mode possible is always selected automatically based on the audio settings you've enabled in the PS3 OS XMB.

Overriding the default is most useful when you are using an output format the game can't detect, such as headphones (uses a completely different panning algorithm) or stereo (default 2-channel output is Dolby PLII, which doesn't sound good when played on a device without a surround decoder, like a TV). Or if you just want to do A/B comparisons of the different modes. But if you do that, bear in mind you're not A/B'ng game audio assets or the codecs themselves; you're comparing the PS3's internal realtime compression modes for those formats (DD, DTS), which due to their realtime nature are never as optimal as content that is compressed offline."

 

[cmdrdredd]

One detail I thought this game may have but doesn't and very few games do. I think Max Payne and maybe GTA do? Is stepping in a pool of blood and making footprints. It might be grotesque or whatnot to want that but it is a neat little graphical detail.

 

[purbeast0]

man this game is so awesome! i played some more last night and got to the "Fall" part and stopped there. i don't think there has ever been a game that i've actually felt emotions for like this game. it's pretty crazy how a game can do that to you. i think a lot of it is how real the characters are portrayed to be. like the relation between ellie and joel you can see growing, and it just feels so natural and real. and the way that ellie acts just feels so real too, like something a little girl would do and a lot of the little things she says too. just so well done.

i also got pretty damn freaked the f out at a couple parts in the sewers. that whole part was really well done especially the bigger encounter part in the sewers. very well done and i felt flustered as hell trying to do it, but like in a good way not frustrating way.

and holy moly, the sound in this game is simply incredible. i feel every gunshot in my chest when i'm playing, i got my shit turned up LOUD!

 

[exdeath]

Yeah... This is what I demand from ALL games. Now you understand why I'm so hateful of most games today. The 16 bit RPGs where LOADED with that kind of character growth and emotional attachment that is sorely lacking in today's copy paste shooter world.

If one tenth of the games out there were anything like you are experiencing with The Last of Us, I'd be happy.

That is the heart and soul I miss in games today. And the sad part is that aspect that is most important to me doesn't even require a billion dollar budget or huge development investment

 

[purbeast0]

Yeah... This is what I demand from ALL games. Now you understand why I'm so hateful of most games today. The 16 bit RPGs where LOADED with that kind of character growth and emotional attachment that is sorely lacking in today's copy paste shooter world.

If one tenth of the games out there were anything like you are experiencing with The Last of Us, I'd be happy.

no, i don't, and i never will. it's very easy to skip games you don't want to play and ignore them.

i haven't played a shooter (other than gears3 and halo4 campaign mode) in like 3 years. it doesn't mean i can't find other games to play and enjoy, without hating them.

 

[Tweak155]

Yeah... This is what I demand from ALL games. Now you understand why I'm so hateful of most games today. The 16 bit RPGs where LOADED with that kind of character growth and emotional attachment that is sorely lacking in today's copy paste shooter world.

If one tenth of the games out there were anything like you are experiencing with The Last of Us, I'd be happy.

That is the heart and soul I miss in games today. And the sad part is that aspect that is most important to me doesn't even require a billion dollar budget or huge development investment

But then your post count would be cut in half