It's a mechanic that has been used in gaming for decades - a desirable item or an important machine is placed in a fairly secluded area and the player is dared to actually do something with it. In the days of Doom and Quake this often took the form of brand new weapons that would signal the onslaught of a host of enemies as soon as they are picked up, and LoU has a similar moment with the generator found in the hotel in Pittsburgh. Of course as soon as the generator whirs to life the player is attacked by infected, topped off by another Bloater that is blocking the most direct path between Joel and the elevator in a much more confined area than the gym battle. Fleet-footed players may be able to escape the scene unscathed, but those who are less fortunate will either end up being decimated by the horde or wasting all of their precious supplies in the battle. The moment is a pure adrenaline rush and, despite any savvy gamer knowing exactly what is coming, is still executed superbly.
Lee Price is a writer for 411mania.com and Starburst Magazine, which is published in the UK. He is currently working as a freelance writer. He hopes to one day fund his addiction to video games by writing about video games, and he maintains a sporadically updated blog at leesrandombulls*it.wordpress.com
