The Last of Us Episode 7: What song plays at the end?

For some viewers, The Last of Us Episode 7 concludes with a familiar, emotional piece of music – so, what song plays at the end?

In our review, we said it was a “moving, faithful adaptation of Ellie’s devastating backstory; success can be found in deviation, but why change perfection?”

Episode 7 directly brings The Last of Us’ Left Behind DLC to life, picking up with Joel and Ellie in the immediate aftermath of that cliffhanger, before flashing back to three weeks before they met.

We’re introduced to Riley, Ellie’s best friend from FEDRA school, who takes her out to see the “four wonders of the mall”, and it’s a night she’ll never forget – but what song was that at the end?

Spoilers for The Last of Us to follow…

What song plays at the end of The Last of Us Episode 7?

‘Left Behind’ by Gustavo Santolalla – the exact same piece of music in the credits of the DLC – plays at the end of The Last of Us Episode 7.

Santolalla is the franchise’s resident composer, having written and performed the scores for both Part 1 and Part 2, as well as Left Behind and HBO’s adaptation. The opening titles use the same theme from the game, which only serves as a testament to the lasting power of his work.

You can listen to ‘Left Behind’ below:

Ellie’s final scenes with Riley, coming after they’re both bitten by a runner in the mall, play out exactly the same as the game, with the musician’s cue dropping in just when you’re expecting it.

It’s only the second time the show has ended with one of Santolalla’s tracks, after Episode 2 used The Last of Us Part 2’s ‘Allowed To Be Happy’ for its credits.

If you glance at any comments on YouTube underneath videos with the Left Behind song, it’s obvious why they came back to it: it’s amazing, and fans still revisit it.

“This damn song makes me cry at the end of every damn playthrough of Left Behind,” one wrote. “If they play this exact song when Riley comes to her ending, I will be ugly crying,” another commented.

“Hoping to everything this makes into the Left Behind episode,” a third wrote. “Beautiful music and this is how you do DLC. Can’t wait for the show and hope it captures what made this game so good,” a fourth commented.

The Last of Us Episode 8 will be available to stream on March 5 in the US and March 6 in the UK. Check out the rest of our coverage here and the trailer for the weeks ahead here.