2016 Geek-A-Long: The Last of Us

The Last of Us is one of the best games I’ve never played, and happily. My husband and I like to do this thing where he plays a video game with a compelling story line while I knit and watch. During the really exciting parts, I’ll even put down my knitting or crochet long enough to make popcorn on the stove and feed it to both of us.

Yes, I’m what nerds call ‘a keeper’ or even ‘a majestic lady nerdacorn’. In exchange, he pretends like there isn’t a secret yarn horde in the closet, under our bed, or inside both of the end tables in the living room. Really, everyone is winning here.

Anyway, I can’t speak about the game play for the Last of Us since I technically didn’t play it, but I can tell you about the story. It’s fantastic. The third-person action/survival game has a character driven story line featuring the unlikely pairing of a forty-something hardened scavenger that is tasked with protecting mankind’s only hope, a teenage girl named Ellie. Normally, I’m not big a fan of zombie post-apocalyptic games, but this one really got me. Watching the jaded and stoic Joel slowly take on a fatherly role with Ellie gave me all the feels.

I don’t want to talk about anything past the end of the first act. The ending of the game deals in grey areas, survivor’s guilt, and make you seriously consider the ‘one man versus the greater good’ quandary. My husband and I actually got into a heated debate when we finished it, but I won’t go into that here since I want all of you to do yourselves a favor and play it. Sony recently remastered the game and released it for the Playstation 4. You can buy it here.

For the square, we chose the emblem for the Fireflies. In The Last of Us, the Fireflies are a revolutionary militia group aimed at restoring the United States government. While they do fight a losing war against FEDRA, the Federal Disaster Response Agency that has morphed into an oppressive and tyrannical force, the Fireflies are one of the few remaining groups still searching for a vaccine to stop the cordyceps brain infection, which turns people into zombies. Joel’s task in the beginning of the game is to help Ellie escape FEDRA’s quarantine zone to reach the Fireflies, and I wanted to pay homage to Joel and Ellie’s humble beginnings before shit hit the fan.

Before I leave you to download the pattern or disappear to buy the game and play it in one weekend like my husband and I did, I wanted to give props to the game developers. They based their zombies on science. And by science, I mean a form of zombie-ism that already exists in nature: Cordyceps. Seriously, it’s a real thing. And knowing about the parasitic fungus before playing the video games, makes the experience even better.

Whether you’re knitting, crocheting, or cross stitching this square, you can download the The Last of Us pattern here. Instructions for both knit and crochet are listed in the pattern. When you’re finished making it, don’t forget to tweet or instagram your squares at me @jac_attacking or Megan-Anne @Doctor_Llama with the hashtag #geekalong!

https://www.instagram.com/p/BEPgESyiZnL/?taken-by=doctor_llama

If you’re having trouble with double-sided knitting, we have a how-to video here and a tutorial on crochet here. Want to hang out with other people making the blanket? You can find moral support in the Geek-A-Long group on Ravelry here.

~ Jac
“When you’re lost in the darkness, look for the light.”

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If you enjoyed this post, please consider making a donation to Child’s Play Charity. Here is a direct link to our donation page benefiting the charity. Please help us raise $1,000 this year! No contribution is too small. Wanna make your donation go even further? Louet Yarn is donating 50 cents for every skein of Louet Gems Worsted purchased this year to make a Geek-A-Long blanket. You can get Gems at your Local Yarn Store or through Louet’s website. Just remember to mention the GAL at check out.