I wouldn't say that's what happened in the game. Bill didn't really have any affect on Joel in the game imo
They went their separate ways and Joel was able to get a truck out of the situation. There was no revelation made by Joel from Bill.
thats actually NOT true at all and in fact just a few minutes ago they released a story on Kotaku with Druckman and Mazin the show writers who were asked about this and its not my wording but theirs " a major change "
Neil Druckmann and Craig Mazin discuss adapting Bill and Frank’s story
kotaku.com
"Last night’s episode not only delved into the relationship in detail via flashbacks,
it also changed how it ended.
“When we got to this part in the season, Craig brought up a really interesting point which is... there’s a lot of examples of things not turning out well for people, and often those are reflections and cautionary tales for Joel of ‘here’s what you stand to lose’,” Druckmann told
IGN. “It was, what if we show them what you could stand to win?”
In the game, Bill helps Joel and Ellie find a truck they can use to head west. Bitter and foul-mouthed, he’s the lone person left in a town called Lincoln, surrounded by infected and his home-made booby traps. He lectures the pair on how caring about others is a sure-fire way to get yourself killed, mentioning a close partner he tried to take care of in the past. Later on that partner is revealed to have hanged himself after becoming infected, writing in a note that it was ultimately still better than remaining with Bill."
so pretty much this episode changes the story dynamic for Bill and the writers admit that they did this intentionally
Yeah Bill, Joel, and Ellie searching for the battery and running into the infected was a significant part of the game. To avoid that completely and have Joel, Ellie and Bill never even meet was a significant change.
Did they give a rational reason for why they refused to film that?
well i guess one of the reasons is Druckman is real big into the whole intersectionality and refusing character or story "tropes" and the tragic gay relationship is a huge trope for a lot of stories ( at the time this game was written in 2013 ) in media so in a game media it wasnt something that was even ventured - it was groundbreaking just that there was a "gay" that wasnt obviously "gay" in TLOU so ...
anyway ultimately in the game the banter between Bill and Ellie and with Joel kind of having to be the referee is the thing that moves the needle on him since he pretty much behaves and does the shyt Bill does ( ie close himself off and dont foster relationships with anyone and be as ruthless and objectives as fukk because thats what got him this far )
and mind you im not saying that the episode was terrible - or badly acted - its just it removed the focus from Joel and Ellie ( and them working thru their own fukked up interpersonal behavior ) which is where it should be at least this early in the story for observer ........