The Last of Us developer Naughty Dog has confirmed that more than one single-player game is in development at the studio.
The Last Of Us and Uncharted studio dropped the news in a recent blog post: “We have more than one ambitious, brand new single-player game that we're working on here at Naughty Dog, and we cannot wait to share more about what comes next when we’re ready.” The studio buried the tidbit while announcing the cancellation of an online game set in The Last Of Us universe, though the project’s “learnings and investments in technology” will supposedly carry over to future games.
Naughty Dog claims to have canceled the multiplayer game to instead focus on whatever those “ambitious” single-player projects are. The team is about to release The Last Of Us Part 2 Remastered, a $10 next-gen upgrade that comes with a roguelike mode and other improvements.
That aside, what could the studio be cooking up? When asked about the inevitable Last Of Us Threequel, director Neil Druckmann said the team had “other projects in the works.” That’s certainly not a denial, but the comments vaguely hint at something else that’s not depressingly zombie-related.
Naughty Dog could even go back to other gems in its back catalog, including either Uncharted or (even more unlikely) the joyous Jak and Daxter series. However, the most likely option is: something new entirely. What form that takes is up in the air, but after retreading the same stories for years - between The Last Of Us Part 1, HBO’s adaptation, and now Part 2 Remastered - I’ll welcome anything that doesn’t feature deadly fungal infections.
Some fans have convinced themselves that The Last Of Us Part 3 is real, despite the studio’s comments.