The highlight of the Sony Conference during E3 was undoubtedly The Last of Us 2. It had everything, Ellie all grown up, romance, fairy lights, dancing and bloody gore that made us flinch whenever we saw a spray of blood or heard the sound of something heavy hitting flesh. Sure it was just the Last of Us 2 enemies being smacked around, but we almost felt sorry for them with how realistic it all looked.
Though we shouldn’t be too sympathetic, as these enemies are a lot smarter this time around than in the previous Last of Us game. During E3 this year, there was a panel discussion where Naughty Dog’s developers revealed more about the big changes concerning the enemies that players will be up against. One of the biggest changes is that the enemy AI is smarter and faster this time around, especially when it comes to communication with other enemy NPCs. For example, if a body is found the effect will be that the enemy NPC will signal that to others, usually through whistling.
While that may not seem groundbreaking as there are a few games that have that mechanic too, another change is enemies becoming increasingly aware of Ellie’s location, thus groups will form different plans depending on the information they are given through one another. For example, if Ellie is seen hiding behind a crate, there is a possibility the enemy will split up and try to gang up on her.
Enemy AI has had to be improved to match up with Ellie, as unlike in the first game she’s now able to crawl and jump so that she can hide in much more creative places than she could before. Of course, this means that enemies are smarter too and can pull Ellie away from cover and from under vehicles too. One thing’s for certain, the game is sounding a lot more challenging than its predecessor.
To check out the Last of Us 2 panel for yourself, look at the video below.
