Signs of impeding epidemic. HBO's TLoU vs. game: differences and similarities

The epidemic in this universe did not break out after midnight on September 27, but its disturbing indications were clear a little earlier. The series perfectly emphasizes this, showing more or less subtle warning signals throughout Sarah's day – the services on the streets, disturbing behavior of the girl's friend in the school hall, strange reactions of Adler senior, etc. The game, for obvious reasons, couldn't show us these things, because its action begins after the whole business is done.

However, it's also not like the game was completely quiet on the subject. In 2013, even before the release of The Last of Us, the developers created several fictitious accounts and profiles of people, companies and institutions. The best example is the Springs Hospital CO, which, on September 25, "reported" an increase in flu-like symptoms. Contact a doctor in case of feeling unwell and wearing masks was recommended. The last post came from day zero – the announcement said that the hospital was full and stopped accepting new patients.

Many other accounts can be found on Twitter, including Weston's Pharmacy, Swirls Frozen Yogurt, Laura Brown, and Drew Beckwith. They were all created in 2013, and posted just the regular kind of posts, responding to strange events before the tipping point, and stopped posting the day the apocalypse broke out.

The name of the main character

The series quickly reveals that Joel's surname is Miller (it is said during Joel and Tess' crossing, even before meeting Ellie), which is actually quite a funny decision, because gamers weren't so lucky. The character's name was never officially revealed until The Last of Us: Part 2, when Abby tries to identify Joel – this scene takes place in the shelter in the prologue.

It's not that there weren't serious suspicions that Joel's name was actually Miller – quite the opposite. Already in 2013, someone spotted the name on the diploma hanging in Sarah's room.

Tommy's military service

In the prologue of the series, a sticker of a US Army veteran can be seen on a car. This is another nod to shifting the timeline to 2003, because at that time, the Americans took part in various missions in the Middle East. The sticker reveals that Tommy has been on one of these missions, and immediately explains his efficiency with the rifle. In the game, the thread of Miller's military past wasn't discussed at all, while in the show it is not only referred with the sticker, but it also gets some proper exposure in further episodes.

Real music bands

Sarah's room is full of gadgets and posters. The authors of the show took a bolder approach to real music bands. Sarah is a fan of The Clash, Destiny's Child and Beyonce. In the game, the list of her favorite artists was shorter, and the posters, while similar, all showed invented bands. Her favorite band – rather than The Clash – was called The Bash.