It's not my favorite Naughty Dog game (which says a lot about the quality of their games), but I think The Last of Us is still their most airtight work yet. The length of the game is perfect, the pacing is very well handled, and the gameplay just flows so well from one scene to the next. It all leads to making this game very easy to get into and lose yourself into it, which helps so much with the story presentation. From the moment it started, it already made me care so much about what's happening on the screen, and the game just keeps building on that sense of engagement as new characters are introduced and we get to know existing characters more. I think U4 and (especially) TLOU Part II takes more risks with the design that potentially disrupt that flow, and obviously those risks have paid off for me personally since I prefer those two games way more, but I still really admire TLOU's approach. Not to mention, the multiplayer is freaking awesome!
