Naughty Dog officially cancels its The Last of Us multiplayer title
Following reports of development issues earlier this year, Naughty Dog has announced that its long-awaited The Last of Us multiplayer project has been canceled.
The details:
The cancellation was announced in an update on the studio's website, citing the costs of post-launch development for the title as forcing it to choose between becoming a "solely live service games studio" or continuing to make "single-player narrative games that have defined Naughty Dog's heritage."
The project's development has been surrounded by rumors of internal struggles, including contractor layoffs, an official delay, and an internal review from Bungie, which reportedly led to Sony taking a step back from the game after concerns were raised about its "ability to keep players engaged for a long period of time." Despite the reports, its director, Vinit Agarwal, stated that development was still ongoing as of last month.
The majority of Naughty Dog's projects are currently unknown, but the studio did reveal that it was working on a remaster of The Last of Us: Part II for the PS5, complete with a new roguelike mode and previously cut "lost levels" from the game's story, as well as developer commentary. Some of the game's events will also be covered in the franchise's HBO series, which will begin production in February.
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