The Last of Us was released for the PlayStation 3 in June 2013 to acclaim for its narrative, gameplay, visuals, sound design, score, characterization, depiction of violence, and portrayal of female characters.

Naughty Dog released several downloadable content additions; The Last of Us: Left Behind adds a single-player campaign following Ellie and her best friend, Riley.

The player can use firearms, improvised weapons, hand-to-hand combat, and stealth to defend against hostile humans and cannibalistic creatures infected by a mutated strain of the Cordyceps fungus.

The player is able to scavenge limited-use melee weapons, such as pipes and baseball bats, and throw bottles and bricks to distract, stun, or attack enemies.

"Listen Mode" allows the player to locate enemies through a heightened sense of hearing and spatial awareness, indicated as outlines visible through walls and objects.

[9] The player can solve simple puzzles, such as using floating pallets to move Ellie, who is unable to swim, across bodies of water and using ladders or dumpsters to reach higher areas.

[11] The online multiplayer mode, called Factions, allows up to eight players to engage in competitive gameplay in rearranged versions of multiple single-player settings.

In the suburbs of Austin, Texas, Joel (Troy Baker) flees the chaos with his brother, Tommy (Jeffrey Pierce), and daughter, Sarah (Hana Hayes).

Its leader Marlene (Merle Dandridge) promises to double their cache in return for smuggling a teenage girl, Ellie (Ashley Johnson), to Fireflies hiding in the Massachusetts State House.

In the fall, Joel and Ellie find Tommy in Jackson, Wyoming, where he has assembled a fortified settlement near a hydroelectric dam with his wife, Maria (Ashley Scott).

On their way back to Tommy, when Ellie wakes up, Joel lies and tells her that the Fireflies had found other immune people but were unable to create a cure and have stopped trying.

[19] While at university, Druckmann had an idea to merge the gameplay of Ico (2001) in a story set during a zombie apocalypse, like that of George A. Romero's Night of the Living Dead (1968), with a lead character similar to John Hartigan from Sin City (1991–2000).

[21] Druckmann views The Last of Us as a coming-of-age story, in which Ellie adapts to survival after spending time with Joel, as well as an exploration of how willing a father is to save his child.

[35] The art department took various pieces of work as inspiration, such as Robert Polidori's photographs following Hurricane Katrina, which were used as a reference point when designing the flooded areas of Pittsburgh.

[b] Remastered uses the DualShock 4's touchpad to navigate inventory items, and the light bar signals health, scaling from green to orange and red when taking damage.

[66] Remastered features improved graphics and rendering upgrades, including increased draw distance, a higher frame rate, and advanced audio options.

[75] Reactions to the remake's announcement were mixed, with some journalists and players considering it unnecessary due to the age of the original and the existence of Remastered,[76][77] as well as questioning its US$70 price point.

Colin Moriarty of IGN called The Last of Us "a masterpiece" and "PlayStation 3's best exclusive",[89] and Edge considered it "the most riveting, emotionally resonant story-driven epic" of the console generation.

[85] Oli Welsh of Eurogamer wrote that it is "a beacon of hope" for the survival horror genre;[86] Andy Kelly of Computer and Video Games declared it "Naughty Dog's finest moment".

[89] PlayStation Official Magazine's David Meikleham wrote that the pacing contributed to the improvement of the story, stating that there is "a real sense of time elapsed and journey traveled along every step of the way",[91] and Destructoid's James Stephanie Sterling lauded the game's suspenseful moments.

[94] Philip Kollar of Polygon felt that Ellie was believable, making it easier to develop a connection to her, and that the relationship between the characters was assisted by the game's optional conversations.

[88] Polygon's Kollar also felt that the combat was unfair, especially when fighting the infected, and noted some inconsistencies in the game's artificial intelligence that "shatters the atmosphere" of the characters.

[88] Kelly of Computer and Video Games found that the environmental audio positively impacted gameplay, and that Gustavo Santaolalla's score was "sparse and delicate".

[1] USgamer's Anthony John Agnello wrote that the game consistently reinforces the negativity associated with violence, intentionally making players feel uncomfortable while in violent combat.

Jason Killingsworth of Edge praised its lack of sexualized female characters, writing that it "offers a refreshing antidote to the sexism and regressive gender attitudes of most blockbuster videogames".

[116] Critics praised the improved graphics,[112][113][117] technical enhancements,[111][114][118] controls adjustments,[112][119] the inclusion of Left Behind,[112][120][121] and the addition of Photo Mode[112][122] and audio commentary.

[92][122][123] Polygon's Kollar compared it to a director's cut home media release,[92] and The Escapist's Sterling called it "the definitive version of the game".

[154] Naughty Dog won Studio of the Year and Best Developer from The Daily Telegraph,[137] Edge,[155] the Golden Joystick Awards,[156] Hardcore Gamer,[157] and the 2013 Spike VGX.

[189] The game also topped the charts in the United States,[190] France,[191] Ireland,[192] Italy,[193] the Netherlands,[194] Sweden,[195] Finland,[195] Norway,[195] Denmark,[195] Spain,[196] and Japan.

[205] Several critics recognized it as a landmark title for the industry, citing its blending of a nuanced narrative and effective gameplay;[206][207][208] the developers of God of War (2018) and A Plague Tale: Innocence (2019) named it an inspiration for its focus on characters.