In an infected post-apocalyptic future, The Last of Us is notorious for not holding its punches when it comes to dramatic moments. Created by Naughty Dog, one of Sony's most prestigious companies, The series gives great value to their script and the stories they tell, no matter how dark it gets.

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There are many dreadful moments, in gameplay and in cinematics, and you can't get too attached to characters. Thus, in this hell created by the Cordyceps, you can experience moments as intense as Greek tragedies.

This list contains spoilers from The Last of Us series.

15 Part One's Prologue

Joel holding Sarah as she dies, in The Last of Us

You know you're in for a ride when the game can make you cry after 15 minutes of gameplay. Part One starts by introducing Joel and his daughter Sarah (and his brother Tommy shortly after) on the outbreak day.

While running away with his daughter, a soldier securing the town's perimeter shoots at both of them and is later killed by Tommy. However, the damage is done; Sarah doesn't survive the shots, and the game ends its prologue with a child dying in her father's arms. And that's just the beginning.

14 Tess's Death

Tess and Joel before her death in The Last Of Us

After the prologue, you meet Tess, a friend of Joel and the only person he demonstrates some intimacy towards. After hunting people who owe them money, they make a deal with the Fireflies to smuggle Ellie out of the city, starting the game's journey.

However, not only are the Fireflies dead when you arrive at the meeting point, but Tess was bitten along the way, showing the player that Ellie truly is immune by comparing the bites on Joel's closest friend, which was a real gut-punch. Tess stays behind to buy them time, and she dies without turning into an infected.

13 Henry And Sam

Henry and Sam from The Last of Us

During your journey, you meet Henry and his brother Sam. They have a similar relationship; the responsible adult and the child he protects. Henry even ditches you to save his brother, which Joel ends up understanding and forgiving.

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Sadly, despite how the characters bond, their tale ends tragically; Sam is bitten by an infected and attacks Ellie, forcing Henry to kill his brother. Devastated by his actions, Henry then kills himself. And thus, two great people were lost.

12 "You're Not My Daughter"

Joel and Ellie Fight in The Last of Us

During the first game, Joel has a personal journey of opening up to people again through Ellie, who reminds him of his daughter Sarah. When Ellie discovers that he intended to leave her, they have a falling out, where she admits only feeling safe with him. But Joel shuts her off, stating that she's not his daughter.

Although he changes his mind shortly after, that moment is gut-punching. Still, this moment also makes them open up with each other and makes Joel change his priorities.

11 Ellie Takes Care Of Joel

Ellie with her bow at David in The Last of Us

After Joel is seriously injured, we continue the story playing as Ellie, who proves herself quite capable. While this is a nice surprise, her gameplay sections are very intense due to her not being physically strong.

Playing as a child in a post-apocalyptic world truly is scary. Not just that, but having Joel near death, and doing whatever it takes to find him medicine before it's too late, begins a very dramatic chapter.

10 David

David from The Last of Us

There's no proper way to explain this guy without cursing. One of the worst people seen in the game, he does seem friendly at first but his obsession with Ellie makes him one of the biggest antagonists.

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He imprisons her, tries to make her ditch Joel, shows some strong creep vibes, threatens to eat her, and tries to kill her when she escapes. Ellie manages to kill him all by herself, showing how far she's come, but the encounter does leave her some serious psychological scars.

9 Joel Saves Ellie From The Fireflies

Joel lies to Ellie about what he's done in The Last of Us

Some games gives us hard choices, but this one is made by the character alone. To make a vaccine, Ellie needs to die, and Joel chooses her over the world.

The gameplay is extremely intense, where you fight countless Fireflies and even kill innocent doctors (this action will have consequences...). This moment is also intense in the narrative, for killing Marlene and even lying about it all to Ellie, who was actually willing to die to save the world, ending the game with a bittersweet victory.

8 Joel's Death

Joel's death scene in The Last of Us Part 2

You knew this was coming. Joel Miller, the man we grew to love in Part One, going from an isolated man to a person who could trust others and who also got a second chance at being a father, was brutally murdered by our antagonist/co-protagonist, Abby.

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And not only did he die, but it was brutal, being tortured to death and there was nothing he or we could do. The tipping point for Ellie to start her journey fueled with hatred and the birth of the monster she becomes in Part 2. As for us, we lost one of our favorite dads in video games.

7 Ellie Kills Nora

Ellie kills Nora at the hospital in The Last of Us Part 2

This is the moment we see the beast being unleashed. As Ellie begins her path to darkness, she finds and interrogates Nora about Abby. And by interrogate, we mean she beats Nora with a pipe.

Not only she does that, but the game waits for player input for the attacks, making you complicit with the scene. Here we see how far Ellie is willing to go with her revenge.

6 Ellie Kills Mel

Ellie kills Owen and Mel at the aquarium in The Last of Us Part 2

This is when Ellie finally realizes she's gone too far. During her revenge spree, she finds two of Abby's friends, Mel and Owen, tries and fails to interrogate them, and ends up killing them both.

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What sets these kills apart is the fact that after killing them, she notices Mel was pregnant. After taking an unborn baby's life, she takes a step back, not only for being too much but also for realizing she's putting her pregnant friend in danger with her revenge quest.

5 Ellie Pushes Joel Away

Ellie confronts Joel about the Fireflies in The Last of Us Part 2

During the game, we see Ellie learned about the Fireflies fight from Part One. She feels betrayed by Joel, and pushes him away for all the people he killed and for taking her life's meaning.

It's what caused their animosity shown at the beginning of the game, although they made it up in their last conversation, which is nice.

4 Rat King And The Hospital

Rat King boss fight in The Last of Us Part 2

During a trip to a hospital, Abby sees what happens to people infected for more than 20 years. Here we encounter the Rat King, a bunch of infected people stuck together by the fungi.

Not only is it an intense cutscene, but even in gameplay, being a chase scene and a boss fight, and having to fight a monster like this is just too stressful.

3 Wolves Vs Seraphites

Abby and Lev escaping the fight in The Last of Us Part 2

At one moment, you have to save Lev in the Seraphites base before the Wolves attack. The attack is brutal, with Yara and Isaac dying and escaping during shootouts and fire all around you, a full-blown war between both factions.

Some very brutal melee fights happen as well, showing how similar Abby's journey is to Joel's in the first game.

2 Abby Beats Ellie

Abby fights Ellie in the Last of Us Part 2

Teased earlier in the game, Abby and Ellie fight each other, and surprisingly, we control Abby in this fight. Ellie is a full-on monster, in a fight similar to David's from Part One, and we also have the intense moment of not wanting Ellie or Abby to die in the confrontation.

Abby ends up victorious and almost takes Ellie and Dina out, if not for Lev changing her mind.

1 Ellie Beats Abby

Ellie and Abby fight each other in The Last of Us Part 2

Round Two. Ellie's and Abby's journeys almost killed them, but revenge still drives Ellie. She succeeds at defeating Abby, and if not for what Joel taught her, she'd have killed Abby right here.

We finally arrive at her growth, when she realizes that, if Abby dies, a part of her will go with her. Despite holding back, Ellie still loses too much, and is now alone.

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