The Last of Us Part 2 finally has a release date. The sequel of the 2013 classic will arrive next year on Feb. 21 exclusively on PlayStation and is now available for pre-order.
Quite obviously, fans of the first TLOU are antsier than ever, hungry for details from Naughty Dog, which has apparently decided and bent on misleading fans by throwing some deceptive edits to the game trailer.
Well, Game Director and Writer Neil Druckmann shared today that the goal is for you to believe that any character could die, even Ellie herself.
In an interview with The Telegraph, Druckman said:
"We want you going into this game to really believe that anybody's life is at risk - including the character you're playing yourself, meaning Ellie. Including Joel. Including Dina. Including all the other cast of characters. That's really important to us."
Naughty Dog has always been fond of taking classic storytelling tropes and turning them on their head. Previously, Druckmann has admitted to deliberately altering trailers for Uncharted 4 and The Last Of Us in order to throw off fans from the original trail. He's doing this to preserve the final product's surprise factor. That being established, we now know that The Last of Us Part 2 trailers may have some misdirects.
Meanwhile, co-director Anthony Newman told GameSpot that a jarring addition to Part 2 is hearing your enemies react to pain, both physical and emotional aspects. He said that it's supposed to emphasize the series' core thematic thrust, and players will find it unsettling because that's what Naughty Dog wants.
Fighting for your life is also more brutal and characters are more connected. According to Naughty Dog, every human you'll find in Part 2 has a name, so you'll hear them addressing each other by name whether they're shouting orders or discussing tactics.
Part 2 will also see Ellie work with allies while there are instances in which she can be seen alone. But like the Last of Us Part 2 trailer released during Sony's State of Play event this week, the second preview section ended with Ellie discovering Joel in Seattle, suggesting that at least part of Ellie's journey will see the two characters reunited in both story and gameplay.
All this will be revealed and experienced once The Last of Us Part 2 comes out next year. Until then, stay tuned for more updates on Naughty Dog's highly anticipated sequel.
