One of the things that made "The Last of Us" special was it's uncanny ability to blend story-telling and game-play together so seamlessly in a captivating environment. "The Last of Us" accomplishes this through it's combat and live time crafting system which solidify the intensity and depth of the game. These same elements are still present in the "Left Behind" DLC, but just presented in a slightly different way. And to be clear there is very little combat. Most of the interactions taking place are between the main characters, Ellie & Riley (who's actresses give tremendous performances), is in the form of conversations and the form of social activities like water gun fights or riding mall attractions. Even though this may not sound appealing, the way it is executed makes it something extremely special. The interactions done through the game-play enhance the player's emotional involvement in the main characters' relationship in a way only the developers at Naughty Dog could have ever imagined and executed with such brilliance. In the end "Left Behind" is a fantastic add-on to "The Last of Us" since it brings a lot to the table: Great game-play, amazing performances, and an amazing story that truly changes the way the player perceives the entire canon of the franchise. The only thing that may be the downside to some is that it's not combat focused and is only 3 to 5 hours long depending on how you play it for the price of $15 dollars right now. If so then wait, but it is still worth experiencing since it enhances the overall experience of "The Last of Us".
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thekeymusicthepeople24 February 2014
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85122227 August 2016Greetings from Lithuania.
"The Last of Us: Left Behind" (2014) is an excellent DLC to masterpiece "The Last of Us". It is a prequel and it also shows once part that wasn't included in the main game.
"Left Behind" is a very involving if a bit short (because you can't get enough of "The Last of Us" universe!) story that has action, humour and some chilly parts as well. I loved playing as Ellie as well as i loved Riley Abel character - would love to see them both growing up (and probably staying up together).
Overall, if you loved the main game, you will definitely will enjoy this short story. I finished it in a couple of hours, but i'm pretty sure i will come back to it one day. -
mrxelement14 February 2014Ever-since I've finished The Last of Us story it was indeed one of the best games of 2013 because of its wise story-line and the characters felt realistic.I wanted more and more of The Last of Us and quite frankly this DLC manages to set very dark and very light tones. Playing as Ellie seems to be appropriate since her character manages to be one kick-ass teenage girl. We also get to explore her little journey with her best friend Riley. I don't really want to say much because this DLC needs to be played without giving out any spoilers. Though the game-play is still refreshing as always and now it gave it a more horror feel to it. And the graphics look very impressive as always. This is a good DLC to have if you're a fan of The Last of Us.
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Moviememmer25 October 2019Pros:
- Great story and characters
- Some interesting additions
Cons:- Short game
Verdict: Great insight into events we've heard but haven't seen in the Last of Us with an emotional story and great characters, thou is pretty short
8/10 -
jonruff10815 February 2014Going into the Last of Us: Left Behind, I wasn't sure what to expect. If you read my review for the Last of Us, you'll know that I LOVED it. Anyway, this short (2-3 hours) DLC manages to bring the same level of intensity and emotion that the full game did. Furthermore, it also brought much more "lightheartedness" (is that a word?). I don't want to spoil anything because the less you know the better; just know that it brings back the excellent story telling and gameplay that the full game brought. Ellie's character really grows here in ways it never did in the full game and I felt more emotionally attached to her then ever before. If you can, try to play this in one sitting. I think you will benefit greatly from it. One last thing, I'm not sure if my eyes were playing tricks on me, but I'm 90% sure that the graphics were better than the full game, if you can even imagine that...
Also, for all of you worried that continuity will be broken because Ellie has to kill enemies, don't worry. The writers did an excellent job with this...
9.5/10 -
colorthekid6 February 2019How is this DLC better than 99% of the games the came out in 2014?
Naughty Dog/10 -
sultan-diadem25 January 2022A very good story content expansion to The Last of Us, story arc. Although short, but it still adds emotional punches to Ellie's journey. If you are a fan of the original title then you should definitely play this.
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saveliydalmatov3 January 2024I passed the DLS "The Last of us: Left behind"
It's gorgeous, even though it's only about 4-5 hours(s) of passage. The atmosphere and gameplay are preserved, the story is interesting. There are comical moments, so there are strong ones, even sad ones.
2 storylines with one character: during the main game and before its events - not tedious and addictive.
Of course it's worth going through. And if you have a remaster, then this add-on comes with the game, which is beneficial.
I give a rating of 10/10 in comparison with other DLS, since I consider this DLS, if not the best, then one of the best. -
schroederagustavo17 December 2019Man, this is a short expansion but has everything I want from a Last of Us DLC. I played it in hard and the experience was perfect. Survival, horror and emotional cinematic elements all perfectly blended into one.
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matsouwehand16 April 2022Just like last of us main story this is a masterpiece. The story is great!, again. I loved how they switched from flashbacks to realilty. Perfect ending and perfect story to know more about the whole story. Loved to play it. Not too long not too short it's great.
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Maybe saying this DLC is light is an exaggeration, as it has some pretty heavy parts. However, Riley and Ellie's relationship is a very sweet thing to watch. It really is amazing how they managed to make us care about a character that was introduced in such a short time in this DLC. All other technical aspects are basically the same as the standard game, because this here is just an expansion to and not a new game. However, some things here are a little improved and that pleases me a lot. It really is surreal how The Last of Us is a game with such a rich universe and they manage to take advantage of it in a spectacular way. The way they work Ellie's two moments and show how she learned from the past is one of the most amazing things that were done in this dlc. There are no words to describe how magnificent all the details of this work are. For sure The Last of Us is not only one of the best games in history, but also one of the best dlc's of all time. Congratulations, Naughty Dog.
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Metacritic 8.8 User 4.9 IMDB 8.9
Average 7.5
Genre Action Drama Horror
/ Prequel to The Last of Us / Also, this is an award-winning DLC / It is a DLC / Along with showing us how Ellie & Riley got infected, this DLC also fixes the continuity of how Ellie took care of Joel when he was impaled by rebar during the Fall section of the main game.
No reaction to tracks from Ellie early in the game?
Ellie's voice reactions don't always match the body's reactions.
The water fight is quite exciting.
Some stats from my playthrough: Joel 0-1 Ellie 0-1 Riley 0-1 Bandits 1-0 Infected 0-1 Death 1 out of 2 times 4/1-24: Kicked in the head by a bandit. -
If you haven't read my review of The Last Of Us, you should go and read that to get my thoughts on the core gameplay of the game, as it's basically more of that for this expansion and my thoughts haven't changed.
Left Behind is mostly about a night in the life of Ellie before the events of the main game, and that part is absolutely fantastic. However, there's another part of it that seems largely pointless, and like it's only there so that it can still be an action game while the story they really wanted to tell wasn't putting off the entire big hardcore hunter trucker men demographic. The "action" part of the expansion does have the stealth gameplay that was so good in the main game, and it's more tense than ever with the lack of resources you're burdened with compared to the main game.
HOWEVER, it takes place during a gap between two seasons in the main game, and nothing that couldn't be easily assumed to have happened during that gap happens in the expansion, so story-wise it feels like an absolute dud.
What you really want to play this expansion for, and what makes it worth it, is the flashback scene. I wouldn't want to spoil what it's about, but the new character introduced feels so real and just as fleshed out as anyone from the entire main game, and all in under two hours or so. It also (straight white male comment incoming) has one of the most believable and honest female friendships ever seen in a video game.
To this straight, white, male, only-had-one-girlfriend-in-his-life anyway.
This entire part is completely devoid of any combat, but the dialogue, and the stupid funny stuff the characters get up to really make it worth it. It's more than worth playing if you have the remaster, and hell, even if you have to buy it separately on PS3, it's still more than worth it. I just can't help but wish it wasn't always being interrupted by the other half of the expansion, that just feels like it's there because the main game was a stealth/action game, so this needs to have stealth and action as well. It really, really doesn't. The flashback parts are most certainly good enough on their own, and if they had more faith in their ability to carry the whole expansion, this could easily have been almost perfect. -
JDR_200114 June 2023Last of Us: Left Behind was one of the best DLCs out there. I loved how they were able to explore Ellie's backstory it made her even more of a tragic character. That is one thing the game series is perfect at their characters. Switching between the past and present is done very smoothly and gives you enough to do on both parts of the game. The mini games in the DLC are simple and fun it makes you forget about the grim world that the developers created. This really added more depth to the story which was great. Overall it was a great addition to the Last of Us franchise and it will keep you engaged through the whole game.