Ellie is back and fiercer than ever in the highly anticipated sequel The Last of Us 2. What is she up to in the upcoming game?

When The Last of Us hit the PlayStation 3 in 2013, it was received with immediate commercial and critical acclaim. Crash Bandicoot and Uncharted developer Naughty Dog took on a much darker tone with this hard M-rated game, and the gaming landscape hasn’t been the same since.

With news about The Last of Us 2 expected to hit during E3 2019, we’re at the calm before the storm. It’s likely that we’ll see some pretty intense and exciting developments of the zombie survival shooter, making what little we know now seem like only the tip of the iceberg.

We all are in a place of heightened anticipation, seeing as the last official media we saw about the sequel was in a car burning “yule log” video released around the holidays.

While this video gave us a good taste of how the power of the PS4 would be pushed even further in The Last of Us 2, there weren’t any story elements to go off of in it.

What’s Ellie up to in part two of this zombie drama series? And more importantly, where’s Joel? She looks battered and angry, but there are moments of happiness shining through the wreckage and carnage of Ellie’s post-apocalyptic world.

Tell the truth, protect the ones you love at all costs, and never forget your past, because once The Last of Us 2 hits, there’s no going back. Here are the most exciting things about the story, gameplay, and game’s presentation in part two of Ellie’s journey.

‘The Last of Us 2’ plot, gameplay, presentation

Even more Ellie

Ellie is a chilling heroine, and one that has paved the landscape for many young warriors in other apocalypse/zombie titles since. There has never been a character in the video game industry that has matched the level of threat, power, and smarts at such a young age as our Ellie.

Joel marked a pretty standard introduction into any given apocalypse story: a white male lead with big muscles, a sad past, and lots, LOTS of guns. Ellie, however, broke the mold, as she was born during the apocalypse. Having never seen any other world outside of this one, she’s left with little glances of a past existence that for many was once standard.

Ellie brings a very visceral feeling out of players. She’s tough, but her unique immunity to the Infected bites makes her a hot commodity in The Last of Us world. Still, she refuses to be just another scientific lab rat, and takes matters into her own hands when it comes to her and Joel’s survival.

We need more Ellies in gaming. She’s interesting, fun to play as, and never lets the player down. When you need someone to cover your six, or even a reason to keep going, she’s there to provide a reprieve from the darkness that the Infected virus has brought upon us.

Work smarter, not harder

As Ellie was only 14-years-old in the first game, there were a lot of things she couldn’t quite do yet. However, for what she lacked in brute strength, weight, and height she made up for in craftiness and tenacity.

I often reflect on the power of Charlize Theron’s performance in Atomic Blonde as a launching point for how lethal and terrifying an assassin can be. See, even when taking down foes much larger and stronger than herself, Theron’s character works harder and faster than her opponents, and always comes out the victor.

The same can be said about Ellie. She faces some scary situations in David’s camp, but with her resourcefulness and smarts, is able to take down the cannibal camp before they are able to bring further harm upon our heroine.

There are bound to be many more instances like the cannibal camp in The Last of Us 2, and no, I am not emotionally ready for that. It will be great to see Ellie come out the other side still intact, but the getting there is going to be stressful. I believe in Ellie, but ho boy, is this going to be quite the struggle for survival.

Damn, that’s a pretty picture

The aforementioned car burning yule log video was only a taste of what we’ve seen out of The Last of Us 2. The first game pushed the boundaries of how the innards of the PlayStation 3 could perform. From what we’ve seen, the PlayStation 4 is in for quite the workout in the sequel.

Naughty Dog prides themselves on pioneering amazing presentations in their games on consoles where said limits have not yet been tested. Even as far back as the PlayStation’s Crash Bandicoot, their work has always been top-tier when it comes to graphics and sound design.

Their latest major project in Uncharted: The Lost Legacy was breathtaking. It had the best looking mud and explosion physics that I have ever seen, with the forest foliage and character models continuing to hold up the high standards of the legendary studio.

The Last of Us 2 will make us feel like we’re walking inside of a portrait. It’s a nearly photorealistic game, and just looking at gameplay of it gives me chills. The day I get my hands on this title will be a day I will never forget.

‘The Last of Us 2’ release date

While the release date for The Last of Us 2 is rumored to be pushed back to 2020, rest assured that this delay is being done for good reason. It takes a while to create a masterpiece, especially if the first in said series was lightning in a bottle. I have no doubt in my mind that Naughty Dog will delivery when it comes to everything Ellie in her sequel story.