The most immersive media experience I've ever had

(And I don't recommend it)

Hi readers,

I usually write about something that I want everyone else to experience. If I really love something (book, movie, TV show, comedian), I will beg you to check it out. I will shout its virtues from the cyber rooftops:

“Please read A Gentleman in Moscow!”

“You’ve gotta watch Ted Lasso!”

“Have you seen Hunt for the Wilderpeople or Sing Street? They are great!”

“Nate Bargatze is so funny, you have to watch his comedy specials!”

“The Orphanage is a great horror film that I’m sure you’ll love!”

I want others to feel what I’ve felt and love what I’ve loved. If you and I adore the same thing, it feels like we’ve come close to a shared experience. And if you don’t love it, then I can calibrate how our tastes differ.

Well folks, today I’m going to do something a little different and try and discourage you from experiencing something. I’m here to beg you: Please never do this thing.

I’m asking you not to ever play the videogame The Last of Us Part 2.

It’s not the story

If I were to list the reasons I don’t want you to come within 3,700 miles of this game, it wouldn’t be because of the story. The complete story of The Last of Us as told in parts 1 & 2 is excellent. In Part 1, civilization collapses due to a fungal outbreak called cordyceps that infects humans and turns them into mindless zombie-like killers. The survivors divide into factions to fight over resources and defend themselves against the infected.

A smuggler named Joel and a girl named Ellie must travel across the country in search of a cure that could save the world. Together they face life threatening danger at every turn and are forced to do horrible things to survive. They learn to trust each other and their harrowing experiences forge a bond stronger than blood.

Ellie and Joel on the road

Part 2 continues the story and deals head on with consequences from Part 1. Joel leaves behind a trail of destruction in the first game. Some of the people he wronged come looking for him and force Ellie to defend her father figure. There are multiple flashbacks and cut scenes that illustrate how important these two characters are to each other and how the people that mean the most to you can end up hurting you the most.

I’m telling you, had this story been a book, it would have been a best seller. There are real stakes, real consequences, and moral quandaries.

It’s not the characters

The characters are not the problem either. Ellie and Joel’s relationship is full of what might have beens. I could imagine how happy they would be if only the world weren’t a post-apocalyptic hellscape. They share beautiful moments of caring and sacrifice as they struggle to maintain their final shreds of humanity. They’d go to the ends of the earth for each other.

There are side characters who I hated one moment and loved the next. And others who I loved one moment and wanted to throw off a building the next (the game lets you do that, by the way).

It’s not the tension

With how much I cared about the characters and wanted them to succeed, I got really anxious when they were in peril. And not just physical peril where I worried about them dying, but the emotional peril as a result of their choices.

It’s not the design

This game is beautiful to look at. There are moments where I set down the controller and simply looked at the gorgeous artwork. Hundreds of artists poured their creative hearts into the details of this game. The environments are rich and lush.

Source

Not as pretty as the real thing, but pretty dang good.

Then why am I discouraging you from experiencing this game?

All of the above combine to make this game the most immersive media experience I’ve ever had and that’s the problem: The game forces you to feel too much.

The emotional weight of the story was nearly unbearable. I have purposefully avoided spoilers and been vague with details, but the things that happened in this story were too heavy for my psyche.

We all get invested in book characters and movie characters, but being forced to play as a character can be cruel. I’ve begged book or movie characters not to do something (Jeremy and Jemima: Do NOT get into the child catcher’s cage!), but I’ve never experienced the sensation of being forced to push the button that makes a beloved character do something you don’t want them to do. It sucks.

And yes, the environments are gorgeous, but there came a moment when I didn’t want to linger more than I had to. I was so emotionally exhausted by the things I had to do that I sprinted through the last few levels trying to avoid killing and dying.

I never want to experience the sense of dread, anxiety, and heart-pounding fear in the real world that I felt during this game. Nor do I wish it on others. Playing a video game is like seeing a lion on safari: A little scary and not fully authentic, but do you really want the bona fide experience of encountering a lion in the wild? Knowing that I’m capable of intense emotions is good enough for me.

Thanks for reading and thanks for never playing this game.

Kyle

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End note: Part 1 has already been adapted into an HBO limited series and my friend Justin wrote about it last year. Part 2 is currently in production and I have no idea how they’re going to pull it off, but I’m anxious to see it.