The Last of Us includes gay and lesbian characters to shed light on the LGBT community.

The lesbian character Ellie from The Last of Us is a character that travels through a post apocalyptic world scavenging items within her environment. The game designers were accused of “ripping off [Ellen Page’s] likeness” because of the many similarities that can be found between her and Ellie.

Ellie’s sexual orientation is seen as a stepping stone for the LGBT community as she is a highly respected character within the game. Players can fight off zombies in the game playing as Ellie  which allows younger, and possibly older, players to have a different perspective on gay individuals. Ellie is portrayed very realistically and in a way that her sexuality doesn't become a source of awkward discussion. She is who she is. Which may be what the game creators were trying to prove to their players.

The creators included another gay character, Bill, in their game. GLAAD, an American organization promoting the LGBT community’s image in the media, also named Bill, a supporting character, "the most intriguing new LGBT characters of 2013”.