In an in-depth feature fromGQ, Naughty Dog’s Neil Druckmann says he isn’t sure what the team will work on afterThe Last of Us Part IIlaunches.
“As you start wrapping things up, creatively there are fewer and fewer responsibilities and my mind can’t help but think about the next thing,” says Druckmann. “So, yeah, the next thing could be aPart III, the next thing could be some new IP.”
Druckmann goes onto mention the doubt he faced after they released the firstLast of Usgame in 2013. “People are always like, ‘Do another one but focus [on] all new characters.’ Or like, ‘Do it in, like, Europe. Or do it in Japan. Do something really different.’” Eventually, Druckmann decided they would look into what happens after the first game ends and “take some of the things that people hold sacred and just…dismantle it.”
In addition toPart II, we’ve been getting updates on the upcoming HBO adaptation of the series. The most recent news isChernobyl’s Johan Reneck may direct the first episode. The series is being produced by Druckmann and Chernobyl showrunner Craig Mazin.
“I felt things for Joel and Ellie. I was moved,” says Mazin in the GQ feature. “It’s ironic that in a medium where technology has progressed so rapidly and incessantly, the narratives so often feel 8-bit. That’s not because of lack of plot. Video games have been drowning in plot for years. The problem was always the lack of compellingcharacters. Neil brought emotional sophistication, but, maybe more importantly, he brought confidence – confidence that story and characters were worth stopping for.”
Besides the upcoming series, it’s been revealed that Part II has become themost pre-ordered PlayStation game in Brazil,surpassingGod of War. Additionally,pre-order numbers in Europeare also going beyondMarvel’s Spider-Man.
The Last of Us Part IIlaunches on June 19, exclusively on the PlayStation 4. While we wait for it to launch, you can check out the latest video from PlayStation that gives you an idea of its story and gameplay.
