The Last of Us season 2 episode 4 series vs game: How different are they?
The fourth episode of The Last of Us season 2 premiered on May 4, 2025, and followed Ellie and Dina as they waltzed through Seattle in pursuit of Abby and her friends. Additionally, the episode introduced the character Isaac, played by Jeffrey Wright, and featured the return of the infected, who were involved in another tense scene in the show.
With The Last of Us season 2 being an adaptation of The Last of Us: Part II video game, there will be a few changes here and there. In that case, episode 4 is not different and perhaps features some of the biggest deviations the series has had compared to the games. From the way Ellie behaves to Isaac's backstory, there are many changes to be found here.
Exploring the differences between The Last of Us season 2 episode 4 and The Last of Us: Part II
Isaac's backstory
One of the biggest changes in The Last of Us season 2 episode 4 was the show exploring Isaac's backstory, whereas in the game, not much about him is revealed. In the show, fans see him as a FEDRA officer first, and then defects to the Washington Liberation Front (W.L.F.) when he starts losing his faith in the military organization.
None of this was present in The Last of Us: Part II. While it explains who he is, the game never really dives much into his backstory, and rather, he is introduced as the leader of the W.L.F. from the get-go.
The events of day one in Seattle
Season 2 also takes many liberties when it comes to how it presents the events of day one in Seattle when compared to The Last of Us: Part II. In the game, Ellie and Dina explore a lot of Seattle together before finding the W.L.F. and learning about their war with the Seraphites.
The scene where Ellie sings "Take on Me" by A-Ha starts differently as well, as she can be seen playing "Future Days" by Pearl Jam first in the game. Aside from that, the game also constantly sees Ellie and Dina being chased by the W.L.F. throughout the day before making it to their radio tower. They are captured at one point as well and interrogated by a few soldiers.
However, the show completely skips over this section and has none of these events take place. Rather, Ellie and Dina directly go for the W.L.F. radio tower and run into W.L.F. soldiers there, which leads to them running into the infected horde as well.
The show also doesn't feature Shamblers, another variety of the infected in the game, who are introduced on their day one in Seattle.
Ellie's reaction to Dina's pregnancy
In the show, Ellie's attitude is completely different than how she is portrayed in the game as well. Whereas in the game Ellie is a more depressed person who has made getting revenge on Abby her whole life, the show portrays her as a more upbeat character who isn't bothered much yet by what has happened to her.
This can especially be seen in the way she reacts to Dina's pregnancy. In the game, Ellie treats Dina's pregnancy more as a liability to her mission, while in the show, she is shown to be really happy about it.
For further updates on season 2, be sure to stay tuned with us.
