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Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →If you have just watched HBO’s The Last of Us, play The Last of Us Part I. It is the original Joel-and-Ellie story, rebuilt for modern hardware and packaged with the Left Behind expansion. It is the closest possible follow-up because you are returning to the source rather than merely choosing a game with a similar mood.
Other adaptations call for different answers. Cyberpunk 2077 continues the universe of Cyberpunk: Edgerunners; God of War supplies a parent-child mythic drama; Hades makes repetition part of its storytelling; Baldur’s Gate 3 turns relationships and player decisions into the plot; and Portal 2 offers a tightly authored comedy built around puzzles. The best choice depends on continuity, narrative structure, tone, agency and the platform you own.
| # | Preview | Product | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
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The Last of Us Part I – PlayStation 5 | $39.99 | Buy on Amazon |
| 2 |
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Sony Interactive Entertainment The Last of Us Part 1 Standard PlayStation 5 | $45.06 | Buy on Amazon |
| 3 |
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The Last of Us: Part I and Part II Scripts | $31.06 | Buy on Amazon |
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Quick guide: which story game should you play next?
| If you want… | Play | Why it fits |
|---|---|---|
| The exact story behind a television adaptation | The Last of Us Part I | The source campaign about Joel escorting Ellie across a ruined United States, including Left Behind. |
| The world and themes of Cyberpunk: Edgerunners | Cyberpunk 2077 with Phantom Liberty | The same Night City universe, expanded into a player-directed role-playing story. |
| A grieving father and son in a mythic world | God of War (2018) | Kratos and Atreus travel together while confronting family, loss and gods. |
| A story that changes every time you fail | Hades | Zagreus’s repeated escape attempts unlock new conversations, relationships and revelations. |
| Branching choices, party bonds and co-op | Baldur’s Gate 3 | A Dungeons & Dragons campaign in which creative decisions can reshape situations and character arcs. |
| Sharp comedy and a complete puzzle adventure | Portal 2 | Chell’s portal-gun challenges combine authored dialogue, satire and an escalating story. |
How to choose a story game after a film or series
A game can follow an adaptation in three fundamentally different ways. It can be the original source, as The Last of Us Part I is for HBO’s series. It can share a fictional universe without retelling the same events, as Cyberpunk 2077 does with Edgerunners. Or it can simply match the emotional experience you want next, which is why God of War, Hades, Baldur’s Gate 3 and Portal 2 belong on the same list.
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Continuity versus a tonal match
Choose the source game when you want to compare scenes, characterisation and world-building with the adaptation. Choose a shared-universe game when the setting and themes matter more than seeing the same plot. Choose a tonal match when you mainly want a particular feeling—grief, family drama, satire, danger or discovery.
#1 Best Overall
- Enhanced visuals: Completely rebuilt from the ground up using Naughty Dog’s latest PS5 engine technology to improve every visual detail, The Last of Us experience has been faithfully enhanced with more realistic lighting and atmosphere, more intricate environments and creative reimaginings of familiar spaces.
- Fast loading: Initial loading times are near instant, and seamless after the first instance thanks to the PS5 console’s SSD – so you can pick up where you left off in the story and load specific encounters and chapters more quickly.
- Haptic feedback: DualSense wireless controller haptic feedback support for every weapon elevates combat encounters, and environments are brought to life through DualSense wireless controller haptic sensations of subtle falling rain, the crunch of stepping on snow and more.
- Adaptive triggers: All The Last of Us iconic weapons, including Joel’s revolver and Ellie’s bow, now deliver dynamic DualSense wireless controller trigger resistance and kickback on firing for deeper combat immersion.
- 3D Audio: Designed to make use of the PS5 console’s Tempest 3D AudioTech, Naughty Dog’s newly upgraded audio engine delivers richer soundscapes, bigger explosive moments and more visceral gameplay through compatible stereo headphones (analogue or USB) or TV speakers.
Linear, branching, systemic and repeat-run stories
Linear games present a controlled sequence of scenes, making them closest to a movie’s pacing. Branching role-playing games let choices alter relationships, quests or outcomes. Systemic games provide rules and tools that allow many solutions instead of one prescribed path. Repeat-run games tell their stories across multiple attempts, so failure becomes part of the narrative rather than a simple restart.
Player agency changes the kind of story you receive
In a linear campaign, you mainly interpret an authored arc through play. In a choice-driven role-playing game, your decisions help determine which arc you see. A repeat-run game asks you to notice how small changes in dialogue and relationships accumulate. Decide whether you want to follow a fixed journey or participate in shaping one before you buy.
Platform, edition and comfort checks
Before purchasing, confirm the edition sold in your region, the platform you use and whether the game’s current settings meet your needs. Check for the difficulty options, subtitle controls, control remapping and visual-comfort features that matter to you; availability can vary by platform and edition. Subscription catalogues, digital prices, physical stock and regional storefront listings change, so treat the current store page as the final authority.
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The Last of Us Part I: the direct follow-up to HBO’s The Last of Us
Why it is the first choice
The Last of Us Part I is the game that started the Joel and Ellie story. Joel is hired to smuggle 14-year-old Ellie across a civilisation devastated by infection and collapse. The campaign’s emphasis is on the changing relationship between the two travellers, so viewers can immediately recognise the central conflict while still experiencing scenes through interactive exploration, stealth and combat.
PlayStation describes it as an emotional, character-led adventure and lists the complete single-player story together with Left Behind. That additional chapter follows Ellie before the main campaign’s later events and gives more context for her relationships and resilience. The package therefore supplies a substantial continuation of the world without requiring a separate purchase for that story chapter.
What changes when you play instead of watch
The television series can cut between viewpoints and control the rhythm of a scene. The game places you inside Joel’s movement through abandoned streets, interiors and wilderness. You decide when to search a room, conserve supplies, take a quieter route or confront a threat. Those actions do not turn the campaign into a branching role-playing game—the main plot remains linear—but they make the relationship and danger feel personal because progress depends on your decisions in each encounter.
Edition and buying information
| Detail | What is established |
|---|---|
| Platforms | PlayStation 5 and PC editions are listed by PlayStation. |
| Release listing | The official US product listing gives 2 September 2022 as the release date. |
| Included story | The complete single-player campaign and Left Behind. |
| Subscription access | The listing identifies access through the PlayStation Plus Extra catalogue; catalogue availability can change. |
| Physical edition | Blu-ray editions are listed for the PlayStation version. |
| Price and stock | Not fixed here; verify the current store or retailer listing for your country. |
How to approach it after the show
- Start with the main campaign if you want to follow the story in chronological release order.
- Pay attention to environmental details and optional conversations; they expand the world beyond the major scenes familiar from television.
- Play Left Behind when you want Ellie’s earlier story and a closer look at the relationships that shape her.
- Use the difficulty and comfort settings that let you focus on the characters rather than forcing yourself into a style of play you do not enjoy.
Sony Interactive Entertainment’s 2022 product listing says the game has won “over 200 Game of the Year awards.” That is the publisher’s stated figure, not an independently audited total, but it explains why the game remains the clearest source-material recommendation.
Cyberpunk 2077: the natural game after Cyberpunk: Edgerunners
Shared universe, different protagonist
CD PROJEKT RED’s official Cyberpunk hub places Cyberpunk 2077, its Phantom Liberty expansion and Cyberpunk: Edgerunners in one universe. You do not replay David Martinez’s anime story. Instead, you create and control V, a mercenary trying to build a reputation in Night City. Familiar locations, technology and social pressures make the connection meaningful while leaving room for your own version of the city.
Rank #2
- Flexible design
- High-quality material
- Durable
A longer, more player-directed narrative
The base game is an open-world role-playing experience built around exploration, missions, character builds and conversations. BFI characterises Phantom Liberty as a cinematic political thriller involving V, Johnny Silverhand and Songbird. That expansion adds a concentrated spy-thriller tone to the wider Night City story, so it suits viewers who want the anime’s atmosphere with more investigation, choice and time to explore.
Unlike a linear adaptation, the game lets you decide how V approaches missions and which relationships receive attention. The result is less like watching a fixed sequel and more like entering the same setting with a new lead and a larger set of possible routes through the plot.
Who should choose it
- Choose it if the anime’s Night City setting, class tensions, body modification and tragic ambition mattered more to you than its exact cast.
- Choose the expansion as well if you specifically want the political-thriller angle associated with V, Johnny Silverhand and Songbird.
- Skip it as an immediate follow-up if you want a short, tightly controlled campaign that reproduces the anime’s sequence of events.
God of War (2018): a parent-child drama with mythic scale
The emotional connection
In the 2018 reboot, Kratos is no longer presented only as a force of rage. He travels with his son Atreus to scatter the ashes of Atreus’s mother. Their journey turns a mythological adventure into a story about grief, secrecy, responsibility and the difficulty of teaching a child while still confronting your own past.
Why it works after a character-focused series
BFI describes the reboot as a relationship-driven drama carried by Kratos and Atreus. The appeal for viewers coming from The Last of Us is not a shared universe or adaptation link; it is the careful use of travel, danger and quiet conversations to develop a parent-child bond. The setting is Norse mythology rather than post-pandemic survival, but the emotional structure is intimate even when the conflicts become enormous.
Choose it when tone matters more than continuity
This is the recommendation for someone who wants a cinematic journey centred on family. It is less suitable if your priority is branching decisions or a direct recreation of a show’s plot. The story is authored and deliberate, with the relationship at its centre.
Hades: a story that advances through repetition
Failure is part of the narrative design
Hades follows Zagreus as he repeatedly attempts to escape the Underworld. Each failed attempt returns him to the House of Hades, where conversations, relationships and new information continue. Death is therefore not a reload that erases progress; it is the structure through which the characters respond to what happened and reveal more of the world.
What makes its storytelling different
The action loop asks you to learn enemy patterns, experiment with abilities and try another route. Between attempts, characters comment on your progress and your choices in the House create a sense of an ongoing community. The plot unfolds in pieces, rewarding attention to dialogue and relationships rather than asking you to sit through one uninterrupted cinematic sequence.
Who will enjoy it
Pick Hades if you like action but want every run to contribute to character development. It is a poor fit if repeating combat encounters feels like wasted time or if you want a single pass with a fixed beginning, middle and end. Its story is most satisfying when you accept the loop as the narrative form.
Rank #3
Baldur’s Gate 3: relationships and choices become the plot
A campaign built for agency
BFI describes Larian Studios’ game as a Dungeons & Dragons campaign playable alone or with friends. You assemble a party whose members have their own histories and goals, then deepen—or damage—those relationships through conversation and action. The game’s situations can often be solved in multiple ways, so the story you remember is shaped by what you attempted, refused or overlooked.
Why it follows a movie differently
There is no single authorised version of every scene. Your character’s background, party composition and decisions influence which conflicts escalate and which alliances survive. The campaign can feel like a television ensemble drama, but you are also the writer of many turning points. That makes it the strongest choice here for readers who want to discuss what they did rather than compare every scene with a screen adaptation.
Solo or with friends
You can play alone and direct the whole party, or play with friends as a shared campaign. Cooperative play adds another layer of unpredictability because each participant may pursue different solutions or relationships. Choose it when you have time for a long-form role-playing campaign and enjoy reading, planning and revisiting decisions.
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A compact alternative to epic dramas
Portal 2 places Chell in a sequence of portal-gun tests that gradually exposes the facility’s history and the forces controlling it. Wheatley provides a comic partnership that shifts as the story develops, while the writing maintains a dark satire of experimentation, obedience and control.
Why it belongs on a story-driven list
The puzzles are not separate mini-games pasted onto a script. New mechanics reveal character, establish the rules of the facility and create the reversals that move the plot forward. You learn by experimenting, then use that knowledge to understand what the characters are trying to do. The result is an authored adventure with a clear arc rather than an open-ended role-playing system.
Best for viewers who want immediate momentum
Choose Portal 2 when you want sharp dialogue and inventive problem-solving without committing to a huge world or a long party campaign. Its tone is comic and satirical, making it a useful reset after a bleak drama or a tragic cyberpunk story.
Match the game to the experience you want
| Your priority | Best fit | What you are accepting |
|---|---|---|
| Compare a show with its source | The Last of Us Part I | A mostly linear campaign with one principal path. |
| Return to an adaptation’s universe | Cyberpunk 2077 | A new protagonist and a much longer role-playing structure instead of the anime’s exact plot. |
| Follow a family relationship | God of War (2018) | A mythological setting and authored storytelling rather than branching outcomes. |
| Let repeated attempts reveal the story | Hades | Progress through a loop of runs, combat and return conversations. |
| Shape relationships and outcomes | Baldur’s Gate 3 | More reading, planning and freedom than a conventional cinematic campaign. |
| Solve puzzles while following a comedy | Portal 2 | A focused puzzle format rather than exploration of a large role-playing world. |
A practical checklist before you start
- Identify your connection to the film or series. If you want the same story, choose the source game; if you want the same universe, choose the shared-world game; if you want the same feeling, choose by tone.
- Choose your narrative structure. Decide whether you prefer one controlled campaign, branching decisions, a repeat-run loop or a systemic role-playing game.
- Check the exact edition. Confirm whether expansions or story chapters are included, especially when a complete package is important to you.
- Confirm platform access. The Last of Us Part I is listed for PS5 and PC; for the other recommendations, verify the current platform listing for your region before buying.
- Review comfort settings. Check the current edition for the subtitle, difficulty, control and visual options you need.
- Set expectations about length and commitment. A linear campaign, a repeatable action game and a party role-playing campaign ask for very different amounts of time and attention.
Bottom line
For viewers of The Last of Us, The Last of Us Part I is the unambiguous first recommendation: it is the source story, includes Left Behind and is officially listed for PS5 and PC. For Cyberpunk: Edgerunners, choose Cyberpunk 2077 and consider Phantom Liberty for its political-thriller focus. After that, pick by storytelling method: God of War for family drama, Hades for narrative repetition, Baldur’s Gate 3 for agency and relationships, or Portal 2 for comic, puzzle-led momentum.
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