Naughty Dog has canceled its The Last of Us multiplayer game, The Last of Us Online. Though the studio has been developing the game for some time, it seems the amount of resourcing needed to get it off the ground and successfully run it would prevent Naughty Dog from doing anything else. Although this news may disappoint fans hoping to play the game together, it sounds like the decision was ultimately the best choice for the franchise. Here’s what Naughty Dog had to say about canceling this multiplayer version of The Last of Us.
A release shares:
In ramping up to full production, the massive scope of our ambition became clear. To release and support The Last of Us Online we’d have to put all our studio resources behind supporting post launch content for years to come, severely impacting development on future single-player games. So, we had two paths in front of us: become a solely live service games studio or continue to focus on single-player narrative games that have defined Naughty Dog’s heritage.
Ultimately, although The Last of Us Online offered “an experience we felt was unique and had tremendous potential” and the multiplayer game’s “vision crystalized… gameplay got more refined and satisfying, and [Naughty Dog was] enthusiastic about the direction,” it became untenable for the studio. Taken as read is that ultimately, Naughty Dog has elected to go with the latter choice of focusing on “single-player narrative games.”
The release concludes with a tease of the future. It notes, “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.”
Although The Last of Us fans were undoubtedly looking forward to a multiplayer option for the game, they still have a lot to look forward to. HBO’s The Last of Us will see its season two release in 2025, and additionally, The Last of Us Part 2 Remastered will release for PlayStation 5 on January 19, 2024.