The Last of Us 2 has arrived after a seven year wait and has been the subject of controversy. There seems to be at least something for everyone to be upset about in the game, but there are equally as many things to like about it. In spite of all this contention, TLOU 2 has sold over four million copies in its first week, an impressive milestone to be sure. Pushing aside how one feels about the game's story and characters, its presentation in the trailers is vastly different than what fans actually got. This has prompted many to discuss whether misleading trailers are okay or not.
For the record, MASSIVE SPOILERS for The Last of Us 2 are ahead. Fans wanting to experience the game's turns and twists for themselves should turn back now and come back after playing through it. With that out of the way, it's important to talk about the scene in question. In one of the trailers for The Last of Us 2, an older version of Joel appears to help Ellie on her quest for vengeance. This seemingly confirmed that he would play a major role in the story, something which many weren't sure about before. As it happened, that wasn't true at all.
The Last of Us 2 - You Think I'd Let You Do This On Your Own?
"You Think I'd Let You Do This On Your Own?" This one line created so much hype for The Last of Us 2. With Joel being the main character of the first game, fans were understandably excited to see him returning. Everyone knew that Ellie would be the main focus, but the thought of the two embarking on another adventure together was just too good to be true. Well, it turns out that it actually was too good be to true. The scene shown at the end of this trailer is in the actual game, but it doesn't feature Joel.
In the game, Jesse is the one that shows up, grabs Ellie, and covers her mouth. When asked the same question Ellie says in the trailer, he leans against the wall and gives the exact same response Joel did. Many gamers, already furious at the death of Joel in what they believe was an unfair manner, found this to be completely uncalled for. The complaint here is that Naughty Dog used this character to build hype for the game and get people excited, only to kill him off early in a frustrating way.
Misleading Movie Trailers
While this may be surprising to some, this kind of practice is not unheard of. In fact, one of the most popular movie franchises ever created, the Marvel Cinematic Universe, does something similar to this in almost every single one of its trailers. In the trailer for Thor: Ragnarok, the climactic battle between Thor and Hela shows Thor still having both of his eyes, despite him actually having lost one during this conflict. Most fans are okay with this sort of deception, as it doesn't drastically affect the story but preserves the integrity of that moment.
Likewise, both Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame have deceitful trailers as well. In the Infinity War trailer, the Hulk is seen running alongside the rest of the Avengers even though in the movie it was actually Bruce Banner in the Hulk Buster suit. Endgame's trailer shows several scenes that never actually made it into the movie, such as a buff version of Thor at the battle of Wakanda, or the switching of Captain America's suit in order to lead fans off the trail of the Time Heist plot line. Most would agree that these changes are minor enough to not be a problem. Trailers aren't meant to spoil the whole movie or game, so these are helpful.
Misleading Video Game Trailers
Video games are also no stranger to misleading trailers, although they tend to be misleading in different ways. Perhaps the most famous example of this is the trailer for Aliens: Colonial Marines, as fans watching this for the first time were unbelievably hyped for the game. It looked as though it would be the next big thing, with graphics unlike anything gamers had seen before with an immersive world and great gameplay. Of course, what fans actually got was nothing like that and is remembered as one of gaming's biggest disappointments.
On the other hand, game trailers are often misleading because they fail to deliver on overly ambitious promises. Most will probably remember the debacle that was No Man's Sky, a game which was hyped up immensely only to flop with equal vigor after fans realized it wasn't what was advertised. While both of these trailers are terrible for the way they misled fans into purchasing a game they otherwise never would have bought, Joel's The Last of Us 2 trailer is on a completely different level.
The Last of Us's 2 Deception
As was stated before, trailers should preserve the integrity of the story. No one wanted The Last of Us 2 to spoil itself in trailers before the game released, but it is clear that Naughty Dog intended to mislead the player in order to add surprise or shock value to the final product. The game's creative director, Neil Druckmann, even admits to misleading fans in the same interview during which he defended the death of Joel. Fans were shown a game in which they would be able to play with Joel and Ellie again and then given the exact opposite.
Perhaps this wouldn't be seen as so bad if there wasn't already so much controversy surrounding The Last of Us 2, but it definitely raises some questions about ethics in marketing and the responsibilities developers have to their consumers. It is not possible to give a definitive answer about whether or not it is okay to mislead in trailers as there are varying degrees of doing so, but hopefully this incident will help show the good and bad of such a tactic.
The Last of Us 2 is available now exclusively for PS4.