Updated October 14, 2020 5.6K votes 1.2K voters 117.6K views
The Last of Us is simply one of the finest video game experiences ever crafted, giving rise to insane fan theories, cosplays, and fan art. When it was released in 2013, Naughty Dog's post-apocalyptic masterpiece captured the hearts of every gamer who played it. But what video games do you play after you finish The Last of Us? It's a tough act to follow, to be sure, but there are several survival horror games that have similar qualities as Joel and Ellie's (voiced by Troy Baker and Ashley Johnson, respectively) dystopian road trip.
You may have loved The Last of Us' emphasis on character writing, excellent acting, great stealth mechanics, and desperate gunplay. Well, lucky for you, there are many experiences with the same engaging elements, whether it be from Naughty Dog, Bioware, Telltale, Capcom, or a host of other beloved companies that have turned out classic games. So, if you're looking to fill in the hole in your heart with great games similar to The Last of Us, check out the list below!
Naughty Dog is one of the top developers in the business when it comes to narrative, which comes full force in The Last of Us. Luckily, the same team was behind Nathan Drake's swan song, Uncharted 4: A Thieves' End. It's from the same developer, so expect the same smooth gameplay and focus on character. Also, you have Troy Baker as Nathan Drake's brother. The whole thing is basically The Last Of Us meets Raiders of the Lost Ark.
The Walking Dead's Season 1 tells a remarkably similar story to The Last of Us, but that doesn't mean it should be considered a rip-off by any means. Based off the popular Walking Dead comics (not the show), you play as Lee, a man convicted of murder who most protect a girl during the zombie apocalypse.
If that sounds too familiar, don't worry. There are plenty of amazing twists and turns in the story as you play through its five-episode season. It's an experience that's similar, but also completely different, from The Last of Us.
Still considered by many to be the best Uncharted game, Uncharted 2 was when The Last Of Us writer's Neil Druckmann was really starting to have a commanding creative influence on Naughty Dog's games. Following Nathan Drake as he searches for the lost city of Shambhala, Uncharted 2 features the introduction of a fan-favorite character named Chloe.
It also has some amazing set pieces, from a train sequence in the Himalayas to a collapsing building in Nepal. The character stories and dialogue have also made the game a classic that's very near and dear to many gamers' hearts.
When Crystal Dynamics decided to reboot the adventures of Lara Croft, they definitely took inspiration from Naughty Dog. Lara's new adventure is gritty, dangerous, and full of personal stakes. There's no sunglasses or shorts here - only a desperate need for survival at any cost. Sound familiar?
Leave it to the Russians to take a depressing troupe and make it even more dour. The Metro series takes place is a post-apocalyptic world where the surface has been irradiated to the point where it is uninhabitable. So, everyone is living in the subways, trying to avoid mutants who are looking to eat them alive.
One of the coolest parts of the world is that fact that they use bullets as currency, which means you have to consider the worth of every shot before you take it.
A sleeper hit that originally debuted on XBLA, State of Decay is an open world zombie survival simulator. So, if you ever want some Zombie Survival Guide mixed in with your The Last of Us, then this is the game for you. You can build outposts, fortify them against the zombie hordes , build up your resources, and go out on missions to save other survivors.
You even have to management your relationships with other characters and trade with them, which really hammers home the survival and community aspects of the game.
