TL;DR: Naughty Dog’s ambitious standalone The Last of Us multiplayer game is currently on hold amidst layoffs and internal restructuring, casting doubt on its future.
There’s been a lot of talk about Naughty Dog’s standalone The Last of Us multiplayer game. According to a report from Kotaku, the project isn’t canceled, but it’s currently on hold, which has left people wondering if it will ever happen.
Naughty Dog, the studio known for Uncharted and The Last of Us, is letting go of some contract workers, particularly those in quality assurance testing roles. While full-time employees seem safe for now, the fate of the project they were working on is uncertain.
In this situation of layoffs and restructuring, the future of the standalone The Last of Us multiplayer game is becoming increasingly unclear. Initially, it was touted as Naughty Dog’s most ambitious project, but now it’s been put on the back burner, though it hasn’t been officially canceled.
It’s important to mention that Sony, Naughty Dog’s parent company, had previously shifted resources away from the multiplayer project following an internal review that didn’t go well, as reported by Bloomberg. This decision added more doubt to the game’s release.
The layoffs at Naughty Dog are not an isolated incident. Other big studios like 343 Industries, Electronic Arts, Ubisoft, and Epic Games have also experienced recent cuts. This wave of layoffs in the industry adds another layer of uncertainty to the future of projects like The Last of Us multiplayer game.
At this point, we’ll have to wait and see if Naughty Dog and Sony decide to revive the multiplayer project. Given the current circumstances, it appears less likely to happen.
