The way these two objects intertwine with the themes and emotions of Ellie and Joel's experiences in both games has a major significance in the way the game's finale plays out. Spoilers for The The first Last of Us game was such a critical and commercial success that it was only a matter of time before a sequel was announced, and like most follow-up titles, it received a ton of backlash for specific narrative element choices. Namely, the choice to have Abby kill Joel, which according to the game, is retribution for Joel killing her UBB1tKB.