Full spoilers going forward for anyone who hasn't had a chance to play The Last of Us Part II yet. Abby has been divisive for fans of The Last of Us series, as it seems half of the fanbase empathizes with her as a character after learning that Joel murdered her father while the other half can't get over the fact that she brutally takes her revenge against Joel.
This list will highlight the important aspects of Abby and tell you everything you need to know about her as a character. From her origins to how her story ends when the credits finally roll, here are ten things that gamers should know about Abby.
10 Firefly Origins
Abby is directly connected to the Fireflies group that Joel and Ellie encounter in the final act of the first The Last of Us game. Abby's father is the head surgeon for the Fireflies and leads the endeavor to find and develop a cure so that mankind can survive the apocalypse they're facing.
Because of who her father is, Abby carries a little bit of high status within the group that lasts beyond the eventual collapse of the Fireflies and through the creation of the Washington Liberation Front or the WLF.
9 Joel Killed Her Father
The origins of Abby's character are directly tied to the events of The Last of Us when players control Joel and slaughter dozens of Fireflies to save Ellie. At the culmination of the bloodshed, Joel kills the doctor preparing to operate on Ellie, which is Abby's father.
Although Ellie was going to have to die for the Fireflies to be able to study her immunity and potentially develop a cure, this is something that she tells Joel she is fine with. Instead of honoring Ellie's wishes, Joel ignores them while simultaneously robbing mankind of potential salvation.
8 Turns Herself Into A Weapon
After her father is killed by Joel, Abby devotes her life to getting revenge against the man who took away the only family she had left. From weapons and hand-to-hand combat training to completely reshaping her body, Abby turns her body and mind into a weapon that will help her achieve the only thing she cares about in life: avenging her father.
Abby is a force to be reckoned in The Last of Us Part II and it's all due to her relentless pursuit of revenge.
7 Traumatized By Her Father's Murder
While Abby doesn't open up often or with many people on an emotional level, players are clued into Abby's mental state when given the opportunity to relive her past and the traumatic memories of her father's killing.
Similar to the PTSD that Ellie carries from Joel's death, Abby experiences the same thing until she's able to take her revenge. This connects Ellie and Abby as characters and is one of several elements that makes them fairly similar to each other.
6 She Has Acrophobia (Fear Of Heights)
As players discover when progressing through Abby's chapters in The Last of Us Part II, Abby has a pretty strong fear of heights that directly affects gameplay. When at a high enough altitude, Abby's vision/the camera will shift erratically if you look below you for too long.
This makes crossing certain gaps and makeshift bridges extra difficult and downright uncomfortable, as Abby's balance can be unreliable when her fear takes over. It's a small but well-used character detail that is able to elevate gameplay in certain chapters.
5 Strong Moral Code
Part of the reason some fans have gravitated towards Abby's character is her consistent doing of the right thing and standing up for the greater good. Although she sleeps with Owen when he's in a relationship with Mel, Abby rectifies her mistake by cutting her ties to Owen and pushing him to go to Santa Barbara with Mel.
At one point in Abby's story, she chooses to turn her back on the WLF in order to protect Lev and Yara who she develops strong bonds with even though they are Seraphites.
4 She Used To Be In Love
Back during their early days in the WLF, Abby and Owen dated each other and were close partners. Helping her cope with her father's death, as well as taking part in hunting down Joel, Abby and Owen forge deep feelings for each other and fall in love.
When they eventually break up, Abby and Owen's love for each other still remains and it creates tension between them and their friends. In a heartbreaking but mature decision, Abby buries her feelings for Owen to do the right thing and not stand in Mel's way of starting a family with him.
3 Becomes Lev's Family
After her life with the WLF collapses and all her friends are killed by Ellie, Abby pushes ahead and chooses to make the best of her current circumstances by becoming Lev's guardian and surrogate parent.
Lev and Abby go through a lot together, losing family and friends that they love, like Yara & Manny. This creates a close bond between them that reminds some fans of the relationship Joel and Ellie develop in the original The Last of Us.
2 Loses Her Heavy Build
Not long after making contact with an unconfirmed but probable group of Fireflies on Catalina Island, Abby and Lev are captured by a group called the Rattlers, who are known for abducting and enslaving people.
Put to work like an animal while starved, tortured, and beaten for weeks, Abby's muscular physical form withers away. She is still a capable fighter even in this weakened state, almost able to defeat Ellie in combat during the finale of the game.
1 She's Alive Because Ellie Lets Her Live
The first time these two fight each other, Abby comes out victorious and shows Ellie & Dina mercy thanks to Lev. At the end of the game however, Abby & Ellie go at it again and this time Ellie is the one who wins, in part due to both Abby's weakened state and Ellie's rage.
As she drowns Abby, Ellie has visions of Joel and remembers how she ultimately decided to forgive him for his betrayal. Unable to let go of her humanity, Ellie chooses to spare Abby and end the endless cycle of violence between them.