10 Video Game Reveals That Stopped You DEAD

9. Abby’s Motivation – The Last Of Us Part II

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Sony Interactive Entertainment

The Last of Us Part II has a number of astonishing moments whose impact – even with the controversial leaks – couldn’t be fully anticipated due to their graphic nature and/or shifts to the storyline and characterizations.

Obviously, the brutal slaying of Joel by Abby and her crew during the initial hours are heartbreaking and visceral. Not only is it unforgivingly explicit and ruthless, but it also places Ellie on her tragic, vengeful path.

However, it’s the subsequent revelation of why Abby did what she did that was mind-blowing.

As shown in a flashback that illustrates what Abby was thinking when she committed the murder, the Firefly surgeon that Joel executed at the end of the first game was Abby’s father, Jerry, who had mixed feelings about what he was doing and seemed to be an all-around good person.

Suddenly, we must reevaluate all of the violence and hate that’s defined Ellie (since she’s essentially trying to kill Abby for the same reason Abby killed Joel). That moral ambiguity makes both characters simultaneously heroic and villainous while giving Joel’s inciting choice more tear-jerking complexity.

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Contributor

Hey there! Outside of WhatCulture, I'm a former editor at PopMatters and a contributor to Kerrang!, Consequence, PROG, Metal Injection, Loudwire, and more. I've written books about Jethro Tull, Opeth, and Dream Theater and I run a creative arts journal called The Bookends Review. Oh, and I live in Philadelphia and teach academic/creative writing courses at a few colleges/universities.