After seven years of development, the multiplayer standalone The Last of Us Onlineheir to Factions mode, was stopped short when it was, according to its former director, “around 80% finished”. A project designed to extend the universe of The Last of Us Part II into a game-service, and which seemed close to a release on PlayStation.
In a podcast relayed by IGN, the game director Vinit Agarwal says he learned of the cancellation barely 24 hours before the announcement to the public, on the eve of a presentation of the game. He describes a “devastating” and “heartbreaking” moment, reports Numerama. How could such an advanced title disappear at the last minute, despite very positive internal feedback?
The Last of Us Online at 80%: what was Naughty Dog really planning?
Designed by Naughty Dog and funded around 2020, The Last of Us Online was to be a multiplayer standalone anchored in the universe of the license, much more ambitious than the simple Factions mode of 2013. The concept arts published by the studio showed a large coastal city in ruins, close to San Francisco, with clashes on the roofs and in streets overgrown with vegetation.
Behind, the objective was clear: to transform The Last of Us basically game-service. Leaks from the main menu revealed an in-game store and battle pass, signs of a *Fortnite*-style economy with cosmetics and regular seasons. According to Vinit Agarwal, development was “progressing very well” internally, and the former boss of Sony Interactive Entertainment Shuhei Yoshida reportedly rated the game “amazing” after trying it.
Why did Sony cut short The Last of Us game-service so close to release?
The explanation lies on the business side. In the midst of the COVID period, game-services have exploded, pushing Sony to launch a dozen multiplayer projects. But by 2022, play time and revenue on these titles began to decline, making the model riskier. A game-service is not just a launch: you have to finance servers, balancing, seasonal content, community support for years.
According to several surveys, Bungiebought by Sony for its expertise in Destiny 2audited in-house live-service projects and alerted on the requirements of a title like The Last of Us Online. To keep the game level, Naughty Dog should have immobilized a large part of his team for a very long time, to the detriment of new solo blockbusters.
The studio therefore made a choice: stop TLOU Online and switch to a new narrative AAA, Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophetled by Neil Druckman. Vinit Agarwal left the studio to found a new label focused on cinematic multiplayer between the United States and Japan.
What does this cancellation change for The Last of Us and PlayStation players?
For fans, it’s the promise of a modern “Factions 2” that is disappearing, while few first-party competitive games occupy the field on PlayStation. The episode also reminds us that an “80%” project is not necessarily close to release: the remaining 20% on a multiplayer AAA often represents months of QA, network tests, anti-cheating and post-launch content preparation.
On the license side, The Last of Us seems refocused on the solo, between Intergalactic and the persistent rumors surrounding a possible The Last of Us Part III. The story of The Last of Us Online will remain that of a game praised internally but sacrificed for structural reasons, which players will probably never discover.