An insider has broken down some details on why Naughty Dog cancelled The Last of Us Online.
15.12.2023 - 00:57 / venturebeat.com / Jason Schreier / Neil Druckmann / Last Of Us
Do you want to get the latest gaming industry news straight to your inbox? Sign up for our daily and weekly newsletters here .
For years, fans of The Last of Us have waited for Naughty Dog to release a promised online multiplayer title, an extension of the original games Factions mode. However, the developer officially confirmed today that The Last of Us Online is no longer in development. According to the company’s announcement, this is due to a limited amount of time and resources, which the company is choosing to put towards other projects.
The announcement reads, “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.”
At 2022’s Summer Game Fest, Naughty Dog’s Neil Druckmann said that its multiplayer title would have its own story and would be as big or bigger than any of its single-player games. The developer has also revealed a few pieces of concept art for the title, including the one above. It has never given a release window nor shown gameplay for The Last of Us Online. Rumors that the project was in trouble started earlier this year when Naughty Dog revealed that it was delaying its reveal, and Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier reported the team developing the title had been scaled back.
Naughty Dog confirms that it has more than one single-player title in development, and that the TLOU Online project lessons will “carry into how we develop our projects.” It plans to introduce a roguelike mode into the upcoming The Last of Us Part II Remastered, called No Return.
GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is «where passion meets business.» What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you — not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings.
An insider has broken down some details on why Naughty Dog cancelled The Last of Us Online.
The fate of The Last of Us Online hung in the balance for a long while, with mixed signals being sent from Sony and Naughty Dog. It all started before the launch of The Last of Us Part II when it was announced that there would be no Factions multiplayer mode like in the original game.
The fate of the Knights of the Old Republic Remake remains in flux, much like the Force itself, and conflicting reports from trusted sources have recently left us contemplating a turn to the dark side. Now, a Disney executive has thrown further fuel on the flames.
The Last of Us developer Naughty Dog has confirmed that more than one single-player game is in development at the studio.
Naughty Dog has cancelled The Last Of Us Online.
Naughty Dog has announced that it has officially ended development on The Last of Us Online, with the studio explaining that the decision was made so it could continue to focus on crafting the narrative-driven single player experiences it’s known for. And interestingly enough, it turns out there are more than one of those games in development at Naughty Dog right now.
The Last of Us won’t be returning to its multiplayer side after all. Naughty Dog confirmed today that it has stopped development on what it’s been calling The Last of Us Online, a multiplayer TLOU experience.
Following reports that development on Naughty Dog's long-awaited The Last of Us multiplayer game had been «slowed down» earlier this year, the studio has announced it's officially pulling the plug on the project, saying it didn't want to become a «solely live service games studio».
The Last of Us Online has been cancelled after more than three years in development. Naughty Dog made the announcement today, arguing that the ambitious project would require the studio to pivot entirely to post-launch support (read: a live service future) rather than their raison d'etre: big budget singleplayer narrative adventures.
Naughty Dog has cancelled The Last of Us Online.
The Last of Us blew up in popularity when it first launched, so it wasn’t shocking to see a sequel release. However, some fans were a bit surprised that The Last of Us Part II Remastered is already hitting the marketplace. Despite being released just a few years ago, the remastered edition will likely sell quite a few units. Fans who want to dive into this game all over again might be surprised to see Ellie’s last name. It’s not a massive revelation. There have been a few instances in the past that point towards Ellie’s last name being Williams.
E3 had been on life support over the past few years, but the Entertainment Software Association (ESA) is finally retiring the long-running expo for good.