I suffer with you here, as I mostly play to enjoy a story interactively. That makes gaming a really frustrating experience, as players in general seem to value action and farming over a good story... there are, of course, exceptions to this though: one of my all-time favourites is The Last Of Us 1 (haven’t bought the new one yet), which had incredible writing. Another was Witcher 3, maybe not for the main story line but all the detailed stories hidden in the woods of the game.
Then there’s God Of War, A Plague Tale: Innocence, Red Dead Redemption 2, and Unravel, all of which I can heavily recommend.
Different person, I think Last of Us 2 really stretches the medium and that is commendable. But the overarching themes are not satisfying.
I think people forgot that Last of Us 1 wasn't a satisfying ending either, aside from being able to empathize with why people did what they did.
In that light, Last of Us 2 really doubles down on making you feel dissatisfied, and I like that such a possibility mirrors real life: irrational, striving for redemption, but not necessarily getting it.
I hate that I had/choose to experience this in someone else's shoes. I love that they choose to portray it. The feeling is almost analogous to watching The Road if it ended with the adult's perspective, or how Children of Men kept me entertained, on the edge of my seat and able to admire the technical prowess of the intense long scenes with no camera cuts, but not sure if the resolution was a resolution at all. And how that's life.
I found the real world reaction to be perplexing and also ignorable.
I found the story of the game to be very nihilistic, and that just doesn't make for something that feels good, but portraying that took real effort which I can appreciate.
My litmus test is asking myself "If this game had a different name and wasn't part of a franchise I liked, would I appreciate it" and the answer is yes, a resounding yes.
