This whole game design thing is like paying dues.
After three Uncharted games, we know what Naughty Dog really wants to do is direct. Like Bioshock Infinite, The Last of Us is supported by a tremendous amount of creative insight, most of which is unconcerned with the craft of game design. But if you come to dread every encounter for dragging out the time it takes to get to the good parts, if you divvy up the time spent on the good parts and the time spent on the parts where you could have been playing a better game, what happens when you get a roughly ten to one ratio? Is a remarkable story buried under hours of non-remarkable game actually a good game? This conundrum sounds familiar. If you accept that the pedestrian stealth/shooter gameplay in The Last of Us is the least important part of the experience, despite the long hours struggling and restruggling with it, you might conclude that this is a remarkable game.
To be fair you’ll sometimes scooch dumpsters around. The Last of Us is the most emotionally resonant game you will ever play about plank, ladder, and pallet management.
