Naughty Dog has come under fire recently after a report indicated the delay ofThe Last of Us 2did not alleviate acrunch culture harmful to its employees' well-being. However, many are still excited for the long-anticipated sequel to release this May, and its developer put out a Tweet today indicating players can expect to find more vertically-oriented areas throughout the game.
The Tweet features a video in which Ellie, the main protagonist forThe Last of Us 2, climbs to the top of an 18-wheeler truck so she can leap onto the crate it was carrying before being abandoned in a now-snowy area. Naughty Dog says that “Ellie is more agile in combat and when exploring the world,” which will translate into more vertical obstacles and hidden locations to discover.
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Many in the comments of the Tweet believe it was uploaded at an “interesting” time given Sony announced the company will berevealing the PlayStation 5 through a livestream tomorrow, showing off the device’s “system architecture” and other features it will offer. WhileThe Last of Us 2has only been announced for the PlayStation 4, it would certainly be interesting for Naughty Dog to coincide an announcement for the popular series' next-generation compatibility during the stream. However, this is just fan speculation so take it with a grain of salt.
The hype around Naughty Dog’s popular post-apocalyptic, story-driven series is not limited to the upcoming game. Earlier this month the developers announced they will be working on aThe Last of UsTV show with HBO, one with series' director Neil Druckmann involved as a writer and its composer Gustavo Santaolalla providing the music.
The announcement of an agile Ellie who will take part in more vertical-oriented gameplay also brings to mind theUnchartedgames, another popular Naughty Dog series following treasure hunter Nathan Drake that frequently includes climbing-based traversal and puzzles.Production was recently halted on theUnchartedmoviestarring Tom Holland as Drake due to concerns regarding the coronavirus pandemic.
With only two months beforeThe Last of Us 2is planned to hit shelves, players will have to wait and see how much of the game is impacted by Ellie’s improved verticality. In the meantime, it’s worth watching for more on Naughty Dog’s working conditions and how they mightimpact acquiring talent for future titles.
The Last of Us 2launches on May 29, exclusively for the PlayStation 4.
