Neil Druckmann admits it’s “hard to justify” another The Last of Us sequel

Naughty Dog vice-president Neil Druckmann has admitted it will be “hard to justify” another The Last of Us sequel to round out the post-apocalyptic series, despite how well-received Part II has been since its June 19 release.

The Last of Us series finally got a second main-series installment this month, after a seven-year wait for fans of the cult classic. Now writer Druckmann has warned this may be the final entry “for a long while”. Basically, there’s no ‘trilogy’ sequel in sight.

Why? Well, like many storytellers, Naughty Dog wants to get it “just right.” If there’s no way for them to expand on their established characters, as well as the world and themes, the devs won’t pull the trigger on a third The Last of Us game.

“I think the test for whether or not to make a ‘Part III’ would be a similar test to what we did with ‘Part II’. With the first game, there were no expectations. It was like we could do anything, but now we’ve established certain characters and themes,” Druckmann admitted in an interview with IndieWire.

“It felt like to justify making a ‘Part II’ we had to do something not that fans would just be comfortable with, but do something that would match the emotional core we found in the first game. Without that, there’d be no reason to do a ‘Part III’.”

• Read more: Neil Druckmann responds to angry The Last of Us 2 reviews

Druckmann added Naughty Dog found it “much harder” to find that same drive for the sequel. They did eventually find the story they wanted to tell. Unfortunately, it took them nearly half a decade to find the same spark as the 2013 original.

“Finding it with the sequel was much harder than it was with the first [title] and going forward it would be exponentially harder to justify going back to that world and finding a way to vary things up [all over again],” he continued.

“There’s already so many things you’ve seen about the backstory, about how the outbreak happens. We’d really have to create a new experience that matches the emotional impact of these stories. I don’t know what that is… currently.”

Naughty Dog certainly seems to have landed right on the money with the “emotional impact” in their sequel too. The second installment is filled with twists ⁠— many of which leaked early ⁠— and it’s already splitting opinions.

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In the eyes of critics, the sequel has been nothing short of spectacular. Part II is already being tipped by many to be crowned game of the year by some. Conversely, the sequel has been slapped with an “unfavorable” 4.4 fan rating on Metacritic.

There isn’t a new video game on the horizon any time soon, according to Druckmann. That doesn’t mean TLOU fans will go wanting though. Naughty Dogs’ series is officially heading to the small screen as HBO’s next blockbuster production.

In March, The Hollywood Reporter reported the series will cover the events from Part I, with the “possibility” of it delving into Part II in the future. The show has yet to confirm a release date, but casting is already underway.