During the Summer Games Fest, Naughty Dog announced that it is working on a new multiplayer title for TLOU. The new game will be a stand-alone version of the multiplayer mode called Factions from the original The Last of Us, which launched on the PS3 and PS4. New rumors suggest that the TLOU multiplayer spin-off will be a free-to-play title. A new job listing at Naughty Dog was first spotted by Insider Gaming looking for a “Live Ops Producer to support our major new multiplayer title.” The studio is “looking for the right candidate to get in early and help define the processes, requirements, and infrastructure that will support the project through launch and beyond.” There are bonus points if the candidate has experience in “supporting a AAA, free to play, live title.” To sum things up, the Producer will be responsible for the development of a free-to-play live service multiplayer AAA title. The Last of Us is not specifically mentioned in the job posting but it is the only game that has been announced by Naughty Dog as being in development. The studio has only released titles under the Uncharted and The Last of Us franchises since 2007. In 2019, Naughty Dog revealed that it was working on the “evolution of Factions mode from The Last of Us Part 1.” It was intended to be a part of The Last of Us Part II but was eventually cut from the game when the ambitions of the developers “grew beyond an additional mode that could be included with our enormous single-player campaign.” According to the statement, “you will eventually experience the fruits of our team’s online ambition.” Naughty Dog Co-President Neil Druckmann, in an interview during Summer Game Fest 2022, confirmed that the studio is working on a stand-alone multiplayer game set in The Last of Us universe.
— Naughty Dog (@Naughty_Dog) September 27, 2019 Druckman revealed that the multiplayer title is in some ways bigger than any of the other titles from the franchise. The game will have its own story and will take place in San Francisco based on the concept art showing the Golden Gate Bridge. He adds that the studio will reveal more about the game in 2023. It is an interesting choice to make the stand-alone multiplayer title into a free-to-play live service game. If it is as big as Druckman describes, then it would surely have some sort of monetization or microtransaction component. It may be something similar to open-world survival games such as DayZ where players roam around a map to gather resources, build shelters and survive the hordes of zombies. Imagine a game having a similar gameplay style to DayZ but with the storytelling and graphics of The Last of Us. As Druckman shares, “it is something special.”
