During E3 2018, Naughty Dog co-directors Anthony Newman and Kurt Margenau told media outlets that plans were in place to bring back multiplayer for The Last of Us Part II. Clearly, these plans have since changed quite drastically. At a recent press event, USgamer received confirmation that multiplayer modes would not be a part of the sequel’s experience.
While speaking with USgamer, Lead Game Designer Emilia Schatz said that, unlike its predecessor, The Last of Us Part II will not feature an online component. Rather, the team is focused solely on delivering a single-player experience. Schatz told the publication, “We’re focusing on a single-player experience, so we’re just making a single-player game for this.” In an email exchange following the event, a Sony representative echoed the same sentiment: “Correct, it is a single player game.”
It’s kind of unfortunate news, as the Factions section of the original game played much like the core experience, with scavenging and stealth being of the utmost importance. Factions brought a different pace to what was then an overwhelming number of single-player titles receiving contrived online campaigns. Linking your Facebook account made Factions all the more compelling, due to names in your friends list appearing as survivors for the group you were trying to serve and protect.
Don’t fret, though. There’s still plenty of excitement to be had on Outbreak Day (September 26th), which is used to celebrate the in-universe date when the world effectively ended.
The long-awaited The Last of Us Part II will finally land in stores for the PlayStation 4 early next year on February 21, 2020. Fans who want to pick up a special edition should move fast, the more expensive versions are flying off virtual shelves with preorders becoming scarce online.
[Source: USgamer]
