Do we like Ellie?
A character from The Last of Us (2013–present)
Our score: 7 out of 10. Sharp, funny and fiercely loyal, she's easy to root for, even when grief makes some of her choices hard to defend. We'd back her, with a worried look.
Ellie is a teenager who has grown up in a ruined America, years after a fungal outbreak turned much of humanity into infected monsters. She is tough and sarcastic, and she keeps a stack of terrible puns and old comics close. When the story starts, she is handed over to Joel, a worn-out smuggler. He is supposed to get her safely across the country, and the trip is much harder than either of them expects.
What makes Ellie work is the gap between her bravado and her age. She swears, jokes and picks fights she can't win, but she's curious about a world she never got to see. She also becomes loyal very quickly to anyone who earns her trust. She's a survivor first, but she's also kind and funny, and she wants to be useful to the people she cares about. She makes a great travelling companion even when she's being reckless.
Her score is held back by the later story. After a devastating loss, Ellie's grief hardens into a single-minded revenge quest. She does terrible things on it and drags others into the damage. We still understand her, and we still root for her, but we'd be nervous about being in the same room.