The Last of Us or God of War, which game is better at storytelling?

[Deleted member 58846]

While Sony has always championed storytelling in video games, their two titles that exemplify this more than any other are arguably The Last of Us and God of War, which are both among the best the medium has to offer, and which both set standards for other games to follow.

Which one of these do you think did it better?

For me, as much as I appreciate the nuanced characterization that God of War offers for Kratos, this is an easy one to hand to The Last of Us; The Last of Us not only offers similarly nuanced characterization, it does it for double the number of characters, while also having a far more compelling narrative, and far stronger themes across the board, which it also reflects well within said characters. God of War is really good at its story and storytelling, mind you, but, for example, no single scene from that game stands out to me as much as the giraffes scene in TLOU, or Joel finding a traumatized Ellie in the burning restaurant.

But what do you think? Which game does it better, and why?

 

[Vimto]

God of War is so much better its not even a competition. The world of tlou is so generic compared to GoW, and the story is very bland as well.

GoW had a much richer world, and the story was intriguing and pulled off fantastically with the no cut camera

 

[DFG]

God of War has the baggage of past games and anyone new would be lost at some information reveal. TLOU is a standalone and first in its series, but also tells its story far better than GOW does. Just look at how many threads past few years was about TLOU ending

 

[SoundCheck]

I hate Tlou, but God of War only happened because of Tlou.

 

[Deleted member 47700]

The Last of Us easily, can't say God of War moved me much at all. Just didn't buy the whole Kratos sad dad thing at all, part of a whole game that felt like trying to gild the lily imo, just complete form over function.

 

[chandoog]

As much as I love God of War, I have to give this to The Last of Us.

 

[PspLikeANut]

GOW , I like the freedom you are given to explore/ discover, and complete side stuff at any point of the game . All those aspects complemented the story so well. I prefer stories about redemption and second chances.

 

[Deleted member 14080]

Why not both?

if I have to chose.... GoW was excellent, but TLOU wins.

 

[Yuntu]

I got drawn into God of War waaaay more than The Last of Us. Which is weird because I am not a father or have anything in common with Kratos or BOI. But I do think TLoU has better writing qualities, or rather expands it beyond the two main protagonists on the same quality level. If God of War had more Mimirs this opinion of mine would be different.

But given God of War actually drew me into its world unlike TLoU I would still give the better storytelling (which is obviously more than just the writing) to GoW on a personal level. Just had the stronger and more emotional connection with me despite me never really liking GoW before this.

 

[Nameless]

TLOU's story moved me, I felt connected to the characters. GOW was a dumb action movies with a bunch of "crazy" twists.

 

[Kalentan]

Man I love the story of God of War so much... But man... If I had to pick I'd go with The Last of Us.

 

[TheIdiot]

Last of Us by far. It's played a role in defining what players want out of storytelling in video games for this generation and likely the next to come. The writing/characterization is at the level of a tv series/movie, and there's little expository dialogue.

God of War has a lot of lore written in Atreus' diary, most just a very brief and introductory retelling of Norse mythology. The story itself involves many elements that a lot of the audience won't really connect with.

Also as a personal gripe, the disconnect between Atreus' vernacular and everyone else's is really jarring. The American 21st century dialect just feels off. When he sighs and says "Fine" it sounds like Kratos is sending him to his room.

 

[Lotus]

Loved both, but TLOU takes this

 

[Lant_War]

The Last of Us is quite clearly an older game in this regard. It's fine, just nothing special nowadays.

 

[Marble]

God of War is so much better its not even a competition. The world of tlou is so generic compared to GoW, and the story is very bland as well.

GoW had a much richer world, and the story was intriguing and pulled off fantastically with the no cut camera

Click to shrink...

It's about storytelling, not world nor setting nor the way the camera works. TLoU is superior and seeing the poll, most other people also disagree with you.

 

[Bundy]

Love God of War. But TLOU is the game of the generation. TLOU did it better.

 

[Servbot24]

God of War has the baggage of past games and anyone new would be lost at some information reveal. TLOU is a standalone and first in its series, but also tells its story far better than GOW does. Just look at how many threads past few years was about TLOU ending

Click to shrink...

Even though I voted TLOU, I think GOW turns that baggage into the primary positive for the story, making it one of the central themes. Audiences don't need to have all that information in order to understand those implications in the story.

Knowing all the prior plot points before getting into a series is highly overrated imo. Your imagination will quickly fill those in based on setting in the current entry.

 

[Deleted member 58846]

Love God of War. But TLOU is the game of the generation. TLOU did it better.

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They're in different generations :P

 

[dancingphlower]

I prefer God of War as a game but the characters and performances in Last of Us were just so damn good, even when the gameplay was mostly just serviceable.

 

[Linus815]

I didn't find GOW's world to be belivable in the slightest. The scope and scale felt too small for the story the game was trying to tell, and I also am not a fan of how the last few hours were focused on essentially setting up a sequel.

TLOU's storytelling is close to perfection, it's a relatively simple story but the gameplay and cutscenes, dialogue, quiet moments, world building all flow together in such a brilliant way that no other game have actually matched it yet. And it's a complete story too, despite a sequel coming.

 

[____]

I can't say which was better per se since TLOU was so long ago and I have a shitty memory, but I remember enjoying GOW more story-wise. While I'm huge on Sony first-party, I'm not a big TLOU fan.

 

[Bundy]

They're in different generations :P

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TLOU Remastered is saving me here :P
But yeah, I meant game of the decade ;)

 

[AuthenticM]

The storytelling in The Last of Us is on a level completely above anything else in the industry.

 

[Klaw]

The Last of Us by a large margin for me. God of War suffers from the "open world" and has a bad pace as a result.

 

[Vimto]

It's about storytelling, not world nor setting nor the way the camera works.

Click to shrink...

So you think world setting is not a part of the story? Or the no cut camera don't affect the way the story told?

lol please

TLoU is superior and seeing the poll, most other people also disagree with you.

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So? Most people have bad taste I don't mind lol

 

[TheSpaceBetween]

See avatar. The beginning of TLOU was completely predictable. Joel is less dimensional than Kratos in GOW 2 and 3 (though Baker gave a great performance). I did like the ending though, but they kinda ruined it by making a sequel.

 

[Funky_Monkey]

I loved both, but I think the story of Last of Us is better (or to be more accurate is more developed). I cared a lot more about the supporting cast in the Last of Us (including the enemy characters), whilst I really only wanted to know about Kratos and Atreus in God of War. However I had a lot more fun exploring the history of the God of War world.

 

[trappedinsap]

For me, it's easily The Last of Us. I was engrossed with every single detail. God of War was good, but I didn't get into the story nearly as much as The Last of Us.

 

[Deleted member 49535]

The Last of Us by a mile.

 

[PatMan]

Tlou was way too contrived for my tastes so Gow.

 

[Big G]

The Last of Us is much better. God of War was enjoyable up to a point, but it really spun its wheels during the second half of the game. TLoU was much more complete and well-told over its entirety.

 

[N.47H.4N]

I love both,but The Last of Us is the best for sure.

 

[Mauricio_Magus]

God of War by a lot imo.

 

[salary0n]

I mean, I love God of War but The Last of Us storytelling is just so good.

 

[WillySJ3]

TLOU of course, and it's not even close.

 

[Chivalry]

Tlou, no doubt. Actual drama, real stakes, way better pacing.

 

[Blade Wolf]

I like the GOW storytelling better. Especially the subtle set up and the satisfying pay off near the end.

 

[Deleted member 16876]

Gotta go with GOW.

The Last of us story was meh. I never felt the connection people kept telling me about and thought it was just a well acted story that was done countless times before.

 

[Odeko]

Not really a fan of either, I prefer more minimalist storytelling in my games

If we're comparing Sony exclusives, where's the Bloodborne or Shadow of the Colossus options :^P

 

[Deleted member 8561]

TLoU and GoW do things different in terms of story telling, but if we're talking "storytelling" in respect to seeing bonds form between the two main characters, GoW wins outright in respect of having more focus on that aspect and some slower times during travels to expand it more outside of key moments in cutscenes.

TLoU overall has the better narrative and story in terms of characters though.

 

[Phendrana]

It's easily The Last of Us for me. I basically have no complaints with that story. I love Joel & Ellie, I love the world, and I love the ending.

God of War on the other hand felt very rushed in parts. Especially some aspects of Atreus' arc.

Spoiler

As an example - it makes total sense that a young kid would let the knowledge of his godhood go to his head, and I found most of the scenes showing his decline to be really well done. The problem is that it's resolved WAY too quickly, and feels kind of cheap/pointless as a result. Atreus goes from literally putting an arrow in Kratos in one scene to being back to his old self in the next. It's the only stain on an otherwise great character arc imo.

It's still a great game with a great story, but it's not as well done as The Last of Us imo.

 

[Triggerhappytel]

Both games are really good with really strong narratives, but I think TLoU was slightly stronger overall. Ellie really elevates this one for me, and I think Ashley Johnson did an incredible job with her. That being said, Mimir and Kratos is a pairing which gives me life!

 

[Andromeda]

TLOU has better story. God Of War has better everything else.

 

[Nakenorm]

Joel is less dimensional than Kratos in GOW 2 and 3 (though Baker gave a great performance). I did like the ending though, but they kinda ruined it by making a sequel.

Click to shrink...

...Kratos was not even in the same league as Joel until the last game. And I'd say it's pretty early to say if they ruined the ending or not. Depends on how they tackle it with part II.

 

[Cloud-Strife]

It's even for me so no vote this time.

 

[Dr Pears]

Love both games.

But giving God of War the edge for completely proving me wrong with the change of mythology.

When the game was first announced and confirmed to be a direct sequel, I thought theres no way that they could change mythologies without being cringy (Kratos is out of Greek gods so he out to kill Thor lol) or feeling forced. But after playing it, I really feel that the narrative is stronger precisely because of the players' knowledge of Kratos' dark past.

 

[Kamaros]

i am very conflicted. both show a flawed father and son/daughter relationship with absent mothers trying to survive in a hostile world.

i felt the rush in some parts in GOW and this does not happen in TLOU, the game which has the best pacing in gaming history for me. in both games dialogue are very well written and acted and you feel each's characters motivations and fears, they all feel like real people. the new Kratos for me is the best written game character ever even above Joel (i'm expecting TLOU2 will change this).

i would go with GOW having the better plot (it's cleary a part 1 alas TLOU a closed circle) but TLOU has better storytelling. i don't even need to talk about that ending.

imo we are talking of the two best writers in the biz right now.

in the end i voted for GOW before writing the post LOL

 

[Couscous]

The story of God of War feels like a worse version of the story in The Last of Us.

 

[Kamaros]

The story of God of War feels like a worse version of the story in The Last of Us.

Click to shrink...

i find this very misleading... can you elaborate? :)

 

[3bada]

If TLoU was a 10, GoW is a 9.9. Both are excellent.