10 Most Influential Creators In Modern Video Games

Watching the trailer for the Last Of Us: Part 2, you'd be forgiven for mistaking it for a big-budget blockbuster. It was visually astounding, sure, but there's more to this cinematic comparison than looks alone. In truth, the game's director, Neil Druckmann, has been blurring the lines between cinema and gaming for several years now.

Since arriving on the scene, Druckmann's been a huge advocate for video games becoming a progressive storytelling medium. He writes real drama, sculpts emotional moments and, through the help of motion-capture, designs characters more authentic than simple AI. From the moment Druckmann dropped The Last Of Us, the world knew his talents were something extraordinarily special.

The gameplay was astonishingly cinematic and its two protagonists refreshingly real, their shady morals and rich backstories featuring prominently in the gritty story. It easily surpassed the one-dimensional campaigns found within most third-person action games.

Years after the game's initial release, the tropes that made it such a roaring success can be found in a plethora of titles, Horizon: Zero Dawn and the unreleased God Of War 4 to name a couple. With The Last Of Us: Part 2 on the horizon, it won't be long before the director unloads another heartwrenching tale primed to make even the toughest of the tough succumb to tears.