a true story about about the last of us II dms & also about life

When friends play The Last of Us for the first time I ask them to DM me their thoughts. This is what happened when a friend did just that.

Spoiler warning: MAJOR The Last of Us II spoilers. DO NOT READ THIS if you still plan to play The Last of Us II or watch season two of the show and want to be surprised.

Special thanks to my friend Ashley for letting me turn our DMs into a kind of found poem. Italics are me, bold is her. Line breaks are mine, but no words were added; everything else is as it was in our DMs.

[Sends photo of her eyes peeking over a physical copy of The Last of Us Part 2 Remastered]
It is time
Eeeeeek!!!!!!!!!!!
I love that you have the hard copy [heart eyes, heart eyes]
I feel like I need one just for decoration [laughing face]
I’m a snob and need physical copies of stuff
It’s great decor!
[photo of game downloading] The world’s longest 4 minutes
Hahha I know right?!

Horse time!!!! This game is
so pretty

I played the guitar!!!!

Ahhh yayyy
Horse and guitar are so
delightful!!!!

And isn’t it?!?!

What’s the downside
of eating a clock?
it’s time consuming
Bahahhahhahaha

I pet a dog!!!

I’ve never had so much fun
throwing snowballs
at kids
RIGHT?!?!
This was when
I fell deeply in love
with part 2
Enchanted
YOU GET ME

So pretty! I survived
my first jumpscare
Ahh
yay
good job!!!

Omg it looks like real
snow!!

[Shares photo from game holding
a kid’s drawing
of a dog]
This kid draws
better than I do
Hahhahahaha
Same
Also dang
those gloves
look real
I’m gonna end up having to play
the whole thing again
I just know it
Sorry not sorry lol

[photo of dog framed
on wall]
Bahaha employee of the month! That was def
the bestest boy!!
Most deserving!!
Hahha so good
right?! I forgot
about that! [laughing face]

[photo of stuffed giraffe
on bookshelf]
A giraffe!!
Aawweeew [smiling welled eyes]

I’m running away and I keep running the wrong way ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Hahhahahahaha
Do you use navigation assistance?
That exists?!

Taking a snack break. My blood pressure is high
YES!! In the settings!
I can show you mine
if you need
just lemme know
And yes snack breaks are
ESSENTIAL

Oh my heart  [heart break]
What happened??
I knew Joel died but
Ommg 
she had to see
it happen?? [sobbing face]

I know right!!
I knew it was coming too but
STILL

These lyrics
she keeps writing
in her journal.
I hope
we get a song at some point [fingers crossed]
Yesss right?!

LOOK AT THIS HAND!!!!
[photo of hand in game]
WHAT?!?!
IT LOOKS SO REAL!

Also before I forget 
at some point 
about halfway thru
the game
when you’re looking 
in abandoned shops there will be
a music store. 
Go inside and 
explore 
that music store. 
Trust me

I played the guitar again!!!!!
Ahhhhhhhh wait you found
the music store?!
Yes!!
Eeeeekkkkk good job!!!!!
Isn’t that
magical?!?!
I have it on vinyl [laughing face and
heart eyes]It was amazing!!
I was singing
along

Shamblers?! What?? Dina is pregnant?! What?! Ok it’s bed time
[three side laughing faces]
These are the best messages 
of my life 
thank you for letting me
be 
a part of this

Overall how are you feeling
about
the story so far?

I LOVE IT SO MUCH!!! 
Idk how many times
I say 
“I love
this game” 
(we won’t count how many times
I scream though)

[photo of towels hanging]
thank you for seeing the towels I love the towels
it’s like such a reminder 
to me 
of what was lost 
and what they’re trying
to find again
Comfort
A hug
A home
To be wrapped
Normalcy whatever that means
Exactly!!

Btw i watched a floating shopping bag for wayyyy too long
Hahhahahaha 
no such thing
You get it
Thank you for understanding!!
Yes I am here
for you!!

I am playing through again now
w director commentary
lol
WHAT?! I will absolutely be doing that 
my next time through
Yasss I’m loving it!!!
They comment 
on all 
the cinematics!!

Things I need to say more in my life “I’m on a mother effing dinosaur!”
I’m obsessed with
this museum flashback
Hahaha yess!!
And yessss the museum part
is everything!!!
Tell me when you finish it!

Joel got her the cassette of a launch [welled eyes]
I am big fan of the hats on dinosaurs!
Hats?!
My brother got me a replica 
of the cassette 
for Christmas!!!
One of the best gifts 
of my life

Yes you could put hats on
the dinosaurs
What??!
I don’t remember that imma have to try it!
Please do
it’s adorable!!

Dina isn’t telling jesse
about the baby?! And stalkers?! Whistle people?!
oh the whistling 
Ughhh
it grates 
on my nervessss

Ok so many things to unpack. This is in 
no particular order
The flashback 
of Ellie getting the truth
from Joel.
Ouch 
but even before that, 
when she rewound
the tape that stated 
there were no other 
immune people. 

[heartbreak]

I feel like deep down
she always knew 
but finally getting the truth
after so many years
of lies.

Ellie telling jesse that Dina is 
pregnant. 
I have a theory 
but I want to be wrong.

Jesse and Ellie
splitting up.
I don’t like this
at all. 

Ellie is so mad at Abby
But
to save Tommy!

Going back to the hospital
in the flashback was
tough. 

The empty operating room
and remembering 
what happened but 
she didn’t know yet

Ok I have a capsized my boat and I need
to get into
an aquarium

The last sentence [side laughing face]
Yes yes to all of that you are IN the sauce 
good job!!!

Oh yeah in the Dino museum part, you can go
into the women’s bathroom
and make faces
in the mirror

Ok you are my hero
I cannot wait to play again
with this knowledge

Yessssss!!!! It was so much fun and I was wearing 
my Dr. Alan Grant hat too.
Eeek I need to find
these hats!!

I don’t want to play as Abby! 
don’t give me backstory
I hate her!
Abby’s dad is 
the surgeon?!

How much backstory have you gotten yet?
Her dad was the surgeon
that Joel
killed. 

She dated and prob still has feelings
for Owen 
who is the baby daddy to Mel.
That’s about it
I don’t appreciate the sympathy 
towards the bad guys.

Don’t make me
like them!

I don’t want to 
like them! 

What are you doing to me
Neil?!

It’s insane what they do with this story
Keep going
[heart eyes, wide grimace, purple heart]

I found it helpful
as I went to ask myself
“why
do I feel this way and what 
are the storytellers trying to say and what
does my reaction say about me”
I loved trying to decipher
the deeper themes 
through all these unique 
story moves
that are outside the
typical 
hero’s journey 
narrative
Yes!!

[sends gif of gray spotted seal]
Eeeeeeeek!!!!!
Yessssssss 
you 
get it!!!
[2 laughing faces and three heart eyes]

Abby’s journey/
change of heart 
with these scars 
seraphites. 
She is facing
her fear 
of heights for 
this kid!
Yesssss right?! [welled eyes, heart made with hand]

Ps I went to bed after finally beating
the rat king.
That was a bad choice
And WHAT WAS THAT THING?!

It was so bad. So very 
bad!!!
Right before bed?!?! [three sobbing faces]

Pps the only reason I know what it’s called bc I had
to google how 
to defeat it 
Lol
I chose 
poorly

I only knew bc a friend told me its name [two crying faces]
Which helped me know
What to google too
Also how far did you go 
after rat king??

Stopped there so
not very far

Congrats on beating him I hope you 
reward yourself
It’s a big accomplishment

Oooh I just remembered the story 
that I stopped at!

Mel telling Abby
that she isn’t invited
to Santa Barbara. 

Finding out officially that Lev is transgender
I kinda figured that from the
previous fights.

Picking out a shark toy
for Lev. 

Lev ran away

to get his mom
and that’s where

 I stopped. 

When I start again
I’ll chase after him

The shark toy!! [two welled eyes]
Also how did you handle 
part after 
you kill the rat king 
when another part of it 
surprise attacks you
in the crawl space?

I forgot 
about that part!
I was not
ok [laughing face]

I was so scared [two laughing faces]

There are so many
jump scares
in the game!

So 
many 
jump scares [sobbing face, laughing face, sobbing face, laughing face, sobbing face]

I’m probably not playing again 
until this weekend [sobbing face]
but I went thru
some photos I took 
of the game
and found this one.

It made me laugh 
bc you can tell 
boys lived here

Aaaaaahhhhhhhh this sniper

Good luck!!!!

Tommy!!! I know he’s ok later but
ommg I was shooting at him
So many emotions. I was in survival mode so
I wanted him dead but the “he”
was tommy
[sobbing face, sobbing face]

the hero of my story
is the villain in another
That’s so well done

Yesssss you get it right?!?!?
It’s such an incredible thematic impact 
they make. 
This reminder 
of the value 
of a life and how you feel about it changes
based on relationship 
and perspective 
AND where you are on a spectrum of survival

I shot the nurses at the end of part 1 bc
I thought I “had” to 
and was in that survival mode
and felt so terrible about it

And at the end of the day
was so floored
by how this game can thematically affect you
and REALLY make you think about 
what it means
to love and hate and 
survive and care
for other ppl

Exactly!!

Poor Lev! 
His mom 
and sister [sobbing face]

the island fire
was strangely beautiful

Ummm do they really expect me
to hunt 
Ellie?

I can’t
do this!

Yes the fire was 
soooo beautiful!!!
You can do it!!!
I believe
in you!!
It’s gonna be
ok!!

I finished it!

I’m now deep diving 
all the other BTS content

I struggled so hard 
having to sneak up 
on Ellie.
Probably the hardest thing 
I’ve ever done
in a video game.

JJ is adorable 
I love him.
The life they had
on their little farm looked
so perfect.

I was so mad
at Ellie
for leaving. 

Then the beach fight. 
OMG. Ok scratch my earlier comment,
THAT was the hardest thing I’ve ever
had to do
in a video game.

YES right?!?
To all 
of that lol
But def the beach scene and
having to fight Ellie
I was so frozen 
when I realized 
I was going to have to “hurt” Ellie
the first time
A friend
had to basically
tell me straight up 
to do it for me to even
Start [laughing face, laughing face]

Did you like the ending
when Abby finds out
there are more fireflies??

Frozen is def
the word! 
And yes
there are more fireflies!
I was so happy 
for her, like she could finally
go “home”

 Yes. And Owen
was right [sobbing face]

He was! And her journal
Entry
where she was writing to him, 
that pulled so hard 
on my heart 
strings

omg YES 
I forgot 
about that
omgggg
heart melting
heart on floor
happy thursday

lol happy Thursday!