Joel was a hero to Ellie and a monster to the Fireflies. Abby was a monster to Ellie and a hero to Lev. She asks a question we don’t want to answer: If someone killed your father to save a stranger, wouldn’t you pick up the club? The Legacy As we look toward the future (be it The Last of Us Part III or the HBO adaptation), Abby stands as a landmark character. She proved that video games can make you hate a character, live as them, and—perhaps—forgive them.
By: Critical Lens Gaming
That purpose is revealed in the game’s devastating prologue: her father was the surgeon Joel murdered to save Ellie at the end of the first game. violetta abby winters
What follows is a masterclass in forced empathy. We watch Abby pet a dog (Alice) that Ellie later kills. We see her banter with her friends (Manny, Owen, Mel) and develop a fear of heights. We learn she is loyal to a fault and carries the emotional weight of her father’s death like a stone in her chest. Joel was a hero to Ellie and a monster to the Fireflies
But if you finish her half of the game and still feel pure hatred, Naughty Dog would argue you have missed the point. In a world ravaged by a fungal apocalypse, there are no "good guys" or "villains." There are only people. The Legacy As we look toward the future
Violetta "Abby" Winters is not a villain. She is the ghost of consequences. And in the ruthless ecology of The Last of Us , she deserves to survive.