Few video games command as much hype these days asThe Last of Us 2. The first game’s impact was huge, and the continuation of Ellie’s tragic tale has players anxious with anticipation. Even the massivegameplay leaks have not dampenedLast of Us 2’s demand. Many players have either abstained from watching the leaks or have let the gameplay hype them up even further.
One of the reasons behind this is that if it is anything like its predecessor,The Last of Us 2will only be best experienced through play. The blend of tragic tale and visceral, nail-biting gameplay is best experienced in person. Fortunately, one player got the chance to share a few details about a level, but those details are not pleasant.
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Sam Machkoven, writer for Ars Technica, was given the chance to play a level inLast of Us 2. While he was forbidden from sharing several details, what he did share shed some light on gameplay mechanics. In addition to discovering a new way to cheese enemies with a bow and arrow, (and confirming that all of them do, in fact, have unique names), Machkoven had to figure out ways to sneak past the dogs introduced inLast of Us 2. The results were, to say the least, tragic.
See, the dogs ofLast of Us 2can track a player’s scent, which means players must be very careful about not sneaking too close. The best solution, at least for the level Machkoven got to play, was to shoot the dog’s owners with a silent weapon. This caused the dogs to whimper and whine in confusion as they cowered near their owners' corpse.Naughty Dog has said that players will not have to kill dogs, and this confirms it, but the alternative seems particularly heartless as well.
Of course, beingone of Naughty Dog’s more accessible games,Last of Us 2offers other options. Sadly the other most viable option in this scenario seems to be kill the dogs themselves. This is by far the worst option though, and not just because it involves killing a dog. If a dog goes down, its owner will scream its name in grief and bring other guards and dogs down on the player quickly.
Obviously neither option is particularly appealing, and it doesn’t look like players will have many others. With theimprovements to enemy AI inLast of Us 2, sneaking will become more difficult. In many cases, players will most likely just have to choose which way they want their heart to break.
The Last of Us 2is scheduled for launch on June 21, 2025 for the PlayStation 4.
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