The story behind The Last of Us Part II’s staggeringly realistic in-game character facial animation

An exclusive look at the tech and multi-team collaboration that shaped Naughty Dog’s latest adventure.

[SullysCigar]

I always appreciate seeing a leap in facial animations. Haven't had many since LA Noire (which, in hindsight, was actually freaky/scary but still impressive), so I loved seeing the progress TLOU2 showed in that department.

[VerminSC]

What blows my mind is that during gameplay dialog The characters react to what is said not just cutscenes. If Dina tells a joke, Ellie smiles. If Ellie makes a comment about joel she looks heartbroken.

[_SilverHawk_]

Tlou2 is technologically the best game ever made with very high production value and I hope a lot more games are like it.

[SullysCigar]

Lots of downvotes, but no clarification as to why...no suggestions of games that counter our thoughts...?

Salt.

[VerminSC]

Guarantee the downvotes are people who hate the narrative. Even though we aren’t talking about the plot... people are ridiculous.

[TheKingKratos]

Just trolls who didn't even play the game.. don't give them a thought

[Imalwaysright]

SullysCigar

Since you asked...I completely agree that TloU 2 set a benchmark for facial animations and we didn't see a huge leap in animations since LA Noire... however I disagree when you say that its facial animations were freaky. I also disagree with what @ _SilverHawk_ said because of two reasons: RDR2 and especially Microsoft's Flight Simulator 2020 wich to me did the same exact thing Crysis did in 2007: set a tech benchmark that is on a completely different level than anything I've seen before it.

[Imalwaysright]

The game is rendering the whole world and does it with a level of accuracy that is mindboggling https://www.youtube.com/wat...

It's literally the rendering of a character model vs the rendering of the whole world so if you ask me wich is tecnically more impressive then it isn't even a contest no matter how great the character model is.

[SullysCigar]

Lmao trust you!🤦‍♂️

[Imalwaysright]

I didn't ask you to trust me. You asked for the games that countered your thoughts and the thoughts of those that had replied to you and I did with RDR 2 wich is an open world game that graphically rivals the best looking linear games and has a level of interactivity and physics system that puts TloU 2 to shame and Flight simulator 2020 wich is the most realistic game made to date and as if that wasn't enough, it's rendering the whole bloody world. Here's my counter. What happened? I thougt you wanted to discuss but instead you gave me a pathetic reply.

[Bathyj]

This game is unparalleled in facial animation. So much thought and emotion can be conveyed just from the curl of a lip or the raise of an eyebrow. Nothing else is coming close to touching this.

[TheKingKratos]

Well i can't think if any game that rekked me and made me can't stop thinking about even after months in recent years other than God of war

And damn it the gameplay is deep and too good with the best AI in a game

It share my GOTG with God Of War

[Atticus_finch]

My personal GOTG.
I can't wait for that MP to drop on PS5.

[TheKingKratos]

Same

[Bathyj]

If MP drop for this and tsushima and for PS5, there's your system sellers right there

[Atticus_finch]

Yessir!
Sony is going HAM.
PS fans are going to be fighting xbox fans to get a PS5 on release date.

[isarai]

Seriously! When i first choked someone out, i was stunned at the facial animations going on with the characters. You just don't see facial animations of that quality unless its a cinematic/cutscene, it's one of the many things that made this game feel like i was playing a next gen game early.

[The_Sage]

Amazing game. It's hard to believe they were able to pull it off on PS4. It looks next gen.

[Gamerking82]

I really enjoyed the game just need too collect all the items now for the plat. But taking a rest from it for now , I really hope they ad in a patch to turn off the film grain though as it is distracting and annoying on a 70 inch tv.

[STARS]

They did add in the option, I turned it off and man the game looks even cleaner now. It's in the Option Settings, Display.

[Gamerking82]

Nice thanks for letting me know . It will make the world of difference too me . I get it supposed to give it that movie feeling , but I actually thought my tv was broken for a while as it’s really noticeable on a big screen .

[olorin818]

Truly on another level. Almost matched the ME: Andromeda level of facial animation.

[Snookies12]

You... You were drunk when you wrote this, right?

[SullysCigar]

I dunno about drunk when he wrote it, but he was definitely trolling lol

[SullysCigar]

Other people clearly forgot how hilariously awful facial animations in ME: Andromeda were - they were monstrous and glitchy as hell lol

[The_Sage]

What's the matter olirin?.. Still have a chapped ass because HALO looks so awful?

[olorin818]

‘Olorin’ actually
And not at all actually. Never played halo game or owned any Xbox console sadly.
Clearly I meant it sarcastically.
Andromeda , you could argue was on another level. Just a different side of the spectrum.

[The_Sage]

Just trying to be funny. I have Andromeda and yeah... Even after the updates the faces are still weird. I don't know how they could go from the excellent animations in ME 3 to that. I wish that we could get a proper ME 4. My idea on how to begin the game would be to begin with Shepard being pulled out of the light that he/she ran into bellow the Reaper before the end sequence with the team saying that Shepard had been indoctrinated. The game would be all the races fighting the Reapers in a last stand on earth.

[Father__Merrin]

Proof that developer masters come first instead of improved hardware. Naughty dog on ps5 is going to blow everything away

[silenthillstrangler]

It just boggles my mind to think of what they will achieve with PS5.

[mgszelda1]

I remember when naughty dog could do no wrong. Now here we are. But their animation is definitely top notch.

[nommers]

They never did that good to begin with.

[MTVBG]

The facial animations were definitely incredible for the most part.

But I can't be the only one who thought Ellie's facial animations were sometimes a bit off? I'm thinking of the Everybody's Golf scene in particular: her facial animations definitely got the emotions/acting across powerfully, but they also looked really off/unrealistic/uncanny-valley here and there.

The facial animations reminded me of the deaging technology in The Irishman at times. Really great/impressive stuff generally, but every so often it would look creepily 'off'. (Though not as often as it did in The Irishman.)

Again, as a whole it really is amazing. Really shines a light on how impressive the performances are.