There's no denying that The Last of Us Part I Remake is a visual masterpiece, a game that is perfect in its immersion and its ability to fully express the emotions of its characters. However, the visual improvements of the game aren't enough reason for long-time The Last of Us fans to purchase and play the game again.

Don't get us wrong – The Last of Us Part I Remake is the best version of the 2013 best-seller. It's also the best-looking game in the series thus far, and Naughty Dog has hit a home run in delivering a fantastic game. It's a great game added to a resume that is already brimming with achievements. However, from an old fan's perspective, The Last of Us Part I Remake is nothing short of a cashout.

One issue here is the naming convention of this version of the game. The word Remake bears with it a very heavy expectation – that the players' experience of the game would drastically improve or change. However, this didn't happen in this game. Instead, players got to play the same game with the same story, and at this point, fans have had the opportunity to revisit the story of Joel and Ellie three times already over the past decade – the PS4 Pro update, the Remastered version, and the PS5 uplift. We would dare say that fans are now experiencing a Last of Us burnout – if nothing but because the players have had way too many opportunities to revisit the past.

Meanwhile, the word Remake also made fans expect that the game would play closer to The Last of Us Part II. Many reviewers complained that they would be able to see attacks coming, and instinctively press the dodge button, only to realize that Naughty Dog didn't incorporate the dodge mechanic from The Last of Us Part II in this Remake. It's frustrating for fans to see the game regress in a way – the dodge mechanic was already introduced in Part II and people really hoped that would be introduced in Part I.

Finally, the game's steep $70 price point and the lack of any upgrade options for fans who own previous versions of the game inflicted a grievous wound on fans' feelings. Fans feel betrayed that Naughty Dog didn't provide them any discount even if they've shown their loyalty all these years by purchasing the game over and over again. It feels like a big misstep for Naughty Dog not to offer any discount for fans who already own the game on other platforms. The fact that the game is even $10 more expensive compared to what one would usually pay for a game is the salt on the wound – it just made it easier for fans to decide not to purchase the game at all.

For what it's worth, anyone who hasn't experienced The Last of Us yet should play the game for the first time with this version. It is, undoubtedly, the best version of the game. Hence, the game should be a great title to recommend to others – for your friends you'd like to introduce to the fandom, and to future generations of gamers who have yet to experience the game before. But for longtime fans – especially the most dedicated who didn't miss the previous re-releases of the game – this is an easy pass.