On June 14th, 2013 Naughty Dog released Neil Druckmann’s amazing masterpiece The Last of Us. A linear single player narrative that changed the way stories would be portrayed in video games for a long time. The game has been referenced as inspiration for the way many future titles have been constructed and has solidified itself into the Video Game Hall of Fame. Its characters (Joel and Ellie) have been the faces of PlayStation’s mount Rushmore. Being carved next to the great founding fathers of exclusivity like Kratos, Ratchet, Clank, and Nathan Drake.
Of course I have a strong bias for TLOU. It has yet to be replaced as my favorite game of all time. My point being, to a lot of players, this game was damn near perfect. So it begged the question if it deserved or required a sequel. Personally, I would say yes. Knowing full well it would not match the perfection the first game was to me. So on June 19th 2020 a sequel is what we got.
I played it, I finished it, and……. I loved it. Does it compare to its predecessor, absolutely not. Is it a masterpiece in its own right, I would say yes. Naughty Dog has a tendency to tell phenomenal stories, build crazy worlds, and establish amazing characters for fans to love. But apparently they only do that for 2 franchises (Uncharted and TLOU)
Since 2013, Naughty Dog has only given us TLOU, Uncharted 4, Uncharted Lost Legacy, TLOU-II, TLOU Part 1, and TLOU-II Remastered. As much as I love these titles, I have to question, what could possibly be next.
Uncharted put a stamp on its franchise by ending Nathan Drake's story line, even though Lost Legacy was a fantastic side story, I don't believe that franchise can continue without him. TLOU Part 3 has been in question for several years now but Neil Druckmann can never seem to give a direct yes or no if it will happen.
During the Grounded: Making of The Last of Us Part III documentary, Druckmann leaves us with a small taste of TLOU Part 3 in our mouth but does so in the most “Sure it might happen” sort of vibe that it's already been for the last 4 years.
The first game left us questioning, should we have a sequel, sadly I think Part III left me thinking we absolutely need a third installment to wrap up the story. But, that being said, would it be wise of Naughty Dog to put TLOU in their back pocket? Should they focus on a new IP and allow that team to do what they do best? All these questions are being asked yet have no answers.
2024 seems a little bleak for PS exclusives unless we get some big announcements soon and for the past few years, I've really thought I'd see that Naughty Dog logo pop up on a trailer again, but sadly, just constant re-releases of TLOU. What do you think is Naughty Dog’s next step? Will Part III be around the corner of 2025? Or will Uncharted remastered come with the next Nathan Drake collection.
I myself, am hoping for an original idea. A new IP to come in and maybe take a seat at the great PlayStation table. Only time will tell.
New IP for me. Tlou can have one more to conclude but Uncharted is best left were it was. I wouldn't play an uncharted game without Nathan Drake it would turn out to be some sort of Tomb Raider