Set twenty years after a terrifying viral outbreak that would plummet the United States into martial law, a jaded smuggler finds himself the temporary guardian of a 14-year-old girl who just might be the key to saving the world. First released in 2013, greatest PlayStation games of all time, and fans eagerly awaited a sequel for nearly a decade. They finally got their chance to continue the epic story with a sequel released in 2020, set five years after the end of the first game.
Known for being brilliantly written with empathetic and fascinating character development, both games boast a broad ensemble of incredible characters, but some of them would make far better romantic partners this Valentine's Day than others!
Best: Joel
Joel Miller was a hardworking and doting single dad before the outbreak takes his only daughter from him. Grief takes its toll, causing him to turn to a life of smuggling in a new world filled with vicious Infected. Despite all of his hardships and flaws that he struggles to leave behind him, the old, loving Joel is still there, and Ellie helps him find that part of him again.
Handsome, hardworking, and fierce when it comes to protecting people he cares about, Joel wouldn't make a half-bad partner after the first game. Does it even need to be mentioned that he also plays guitar and sings?
Worst: Abby
Abby Anderson makes her debut in The Last Of Us Part II as the daughter of Jerry Anderson, the doctor that Joel kills in order to save Ellie's life. Stricken by grief, her life becomes consumed by anger and a need for revenge. Abby is an incredible soldier and a strong survivor. She cares about others, but the problem is that she cares about her revenge so much more.
Her walls are up far too high to truly let anybody inside of them. She's focused on her own goals, even if it hurts her friends and loved ones along the way. Ironically, she is probably like a much younger Joel after the loss of his daughter.
Best: Dina
Also introduced in The Last Of Us Part II, Dina is one of the main characters, and Ellie's girlfriend. Like so many other survivors after the outbreak, Dina has been through a lot of awful things, including the death of her sister, but she hasn't lost herself. She hasn't succumbed to bitterness or cruelty.
Throughout the game, she is loving, playful, and keeps her sense of humor, even in the hard times. She has a respectful relationship with exes, and towards the end of the game, she proves herself to be a good mother with solid emotional boundaries. Dina really is the whole package.
Worst: David
An antagonist in the Winter chapter of the first game, David is outright dangerous in more ways than one. A skilled manipulator, David plays himself as a good man who is eager to help the young 14-year-old Ellie, and it takes some time for his true colors to show through.
Kidnapping her and eventually attempting to assault and kill her, David is not to be trusted - in a relationship or otherwise. Too smooth for his own good, he is absolutely the type that would seem like a nice guy at first, but it would become a downward spiral of gaslighting and other abuse.
Best: Tommy
Joel's younger brother, Tommy Miller has had his glory days as a freedom fighter of sorts when he took up with the Fireflies, but he doesn't want to fight the system anymore. He just wants to settle down with his wife and their group in Jackson, and live as good of a life as they can in this world.
Tommy is a protector like Joel, but he also has a soft heart, citing that he used to hate Joel's violent ways in the early days. Loyal and not one to hold grudges forever, he welcomes his brother and Ellie into his home with open arms and a warm welcome.
Worst: Robert
One of the first antagonists encountered in the franchise, Robert is a dangerous arms dealer who is completely out for himself. He had a deal with Joel and Tess to give them weapons, but when they arrive, he decides that he would rather keep the weapons and their money, and tries to kill them.
Violent and completely lacking loyalty, Robert has no problem lying if it lines his pockets with a little extra cash. A lot of people in dystopian settings might have to break the rules in order to survive, but Robert entirely crosses those boundaries and lacks any honor.
Best: Ellie
Only 19-years-old, Ellie has a lot of baggage from the death of her family, the traumatic loss of Riley, and the fact that Joel single-handedly kept the Fireflies from using her brain to make a vaccine that might have saved the world.
Ellie has the world on her shoulders, but the difference between Abby and Ellie is that it doesn't stop her from loving in a healthy way. She is smart, capable, resourceful, and has a pretty great sense of humor. Though vengeance does eventually interfere in her relationship with Dina, prior to that, she was an adorable girlfriend and a good mom to JJ.
Worst: Marlene
Marlene isn't a typical antagonist. She isn't a villain. She is an esteemed member of the Fireflies, and she desperately wants to save the world. That said, it would be hard to trust her when she was willing to have Ellie killed for a vaccine without even asking the girl her opinion on it first.
Yes, it was for the "greater good", but aside from time constraints, that either implies a lack of communication skills, or that she didn't want there to be an option for Ellie to say no. She is driven and focused on her goals, but there is no way that how far she is willing to go wouldn't get in the way of a relationship.
Best: Owen
Owen is a big sweetheart. That's all there is to it. He loves wholeheartedly, even if that means not being able to fall out of love easily. Romantic, adventurous, and kind, he is the type of boyfriend that asks to cut work and go on a fun date instead.
There is the issue of him cheating on his pregnant girlfriend with Abby, which is terrible, but doesn't seem to be indicative of who Owen is as a person. It was always Abby for him. Combined with the stressful and traumatic ordeal that they had recently been through, and the fact that he is truly still in love with her, it's hard to argue that he is just a bad person in general.
Worst: Bill
A distrustful old grump that prefers to live entirely on his own in a ghost town, Bill is definitely not a typical definition of "boyfriend material". Though not entirely inhuman, he represses any positive emotions so deeply that it's hard for him to even bring them up around the few people that he actually cares about in the world.
Abrasive and rude, even his own partner couldn't take him any longer, alienated by his moodiness and paranoia. Bill found him dead after he hung himself, and instead of leaving him a note filled with love and apologies, his partner left him a scathing letter essentially telling him that he was the worst.
