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I’m not even sure I want more of The Last of Us

3K View2023-04-04

In recent weeks, The Last of Us has been the fire gathering us around the hearth. With recent comments from showrunner Neil Druckman teasing the second season of the HBO television adaptation, the release of The Last of Us Part I on PC (in spite of some technical issues), and rumors about a third game, we’ve got more fans than ever joining the fray and adding their opinions on the series. Workplace conversations have once again included debates over whether Joel did the right thing, except now even non-gamers can weigh in.

But with all this chatter going on, is anyone else feeling some Last of Us fatigue? Maybe we should all take a break. Instead of talking more about The Last of Us, how about we step away and let the main series breathe momentarily?

To be clear, I love The Last of Us. It’s probably my favorite game of the decade it came out during. But even as someone who adores these games, I don’t think it’s odd to suggest maybe giving things a rest. Within the past year, we’ve seen a PlayStation 5 remaster, an HBO series, a PC port, a season two announcement, and even a board game. At what point does it all become too much? At what point is the magic of this series spread too thin?

Maybe a break doesn’t mean a full stop to the series but just switching up the formula. I would certainly like to move beyond the familiar characters and narrative structure that’s been rehashed in so many different forms over the past years.

I’ve got a working theory about franchise exhaustion, and all you have to do to see both sides of it is look at Disney. Disney stopped producing cinematic releases of Star Wars films to focus on other characters and plots within the universe. Shows like The Mandalorian and Andor have reinvigorated the fan base with a new sense of creativity around the Star Wars property. Meanwhile, the Marvel Cinematic Universe continues pumping out several movies and streaming shows a year, and fans and critics alike seem more and more burnt out by what they’re offering.

Instead of cramming more of the same down our throats, how about we change the focus? I want to concentrate on other elements in this beautiful universe, expand the story’s worldview, and breathe new life into the franchise.

Every die-hard The Last of Us fan wants to see a third game someday, but if it were announced right now, I would just be tired of more Ellie and company. Wouldn’t it be cool to see some stories about how FEDRA (the game’s Federal Disaster Response Agency) responded to the outbreak? Or how about witnessing a Cordyceps outbreak in a different location or country? Or hell, even the Rat King, that grotesque abomination made up of all type of infected. Yes… I want a show about the Rat King

My point is that stepping away doesn’t necessarily mean giving up on the series for good, or even for long. It could just mean breathing new life into things so that when that third game finally happens, we’re all actually excited to get back to Ellie’s story. The Last of Us is a great series, but as the old sentiment reflects, there is such a thing as too much of a good thing. I may be alone on this one, but I’ve got to step away until we see something fresh.

💬 Are you tired of The Last of Us? Leave a comment below and share your opinion.

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