The enigmatic cloud of secrecy over Naughty Dog’s upcoming projects has made it the subject of much, even as studio boss Neil Druckmann remains tight-lipped on details.
This cloud thickened after Druckmann’s recent interviews with Entertainment Weekly and other media, where questions of a third installment in the mega-hit The Last of Us series was met with a tantalizing non-answer in an interview with Entertainment Weekly.
“As far as the next game at Naughty Dog, I can’t say anything,” Druckmann teased, a line he reiterated across multiple platforms. A predictable sidestep, considering he candidly admitted that his communications director would “slaughter” him if he revealed too much.
Amidst the silence, Druckmann’s non-answers have become everyone’s favourite puzzle. The studio’s co-founder and his guarded demeanor has only prompted even more questions, particularly when contextualized against Naughty Dog or its recent history and Druckmann’s own expanding role. It’s not just video games; Druckmann is also involved in the TV adaptation of The Last of Us and even mentioned giving feedback on a “theme park thing” – a Halloween Horror Nights walkthrough attraction at Universal Orlando Resort based on the franchise.
To understand this scenario, we must first look at Naughty Dog’s track record. The studio hasn’t rolled out a brand-new game since The Last of Us Part II in 2020. Instead, we’ve seen updates, remakes, and collections like Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection and the PlayStation 5 version of The Last of Us Part I.
While Naughty Dog works on a multiplayer game set in The Last of Us universe, there’s a marked absence of anything new from the studio. One might think that the momentum from the critically acclaimed HBO series would naturally lead to The Last of Us Part 3. But when Druckmann was queried specifically about a third game, he said, “It’s up to [Naughty Dog] whether we want to continue it or not,” making it clear that Sony isn’t holding their feet to the fire for another sequel.
There’s a particular wrench in the gears when it comes to the future of The Last of Us multiplayer game. Following an internal assessment by Destiny creators Bungie that was reportedly quite critical, the development team was allegedly downsized to a skeleton crew. Interestingly, Druckmann didn’t seem to be referring to this multiplayer spin-off in his latest interviews. His comments imply that the next big project, whatever it may be, is neither this nor the rumored Part 3 of The Last of Us.
Considering Druckmann’s statements, the chances of Naughty Dog focusing on a different series, like Uncharted, look relatively slim. A new Uncharted game is possibly in development, but it’s not likely to be at Naughty Dog unless the studio has considerably expanded its workforce. That being said, Druckmann’s influence could extend into an advisory or creative consultant role, even if it’s not a Naughty Dog project.
But let’s not discard the idea that the studio might be brewing something entirely original. Druckmann once indicated that the choice for their next game was between a sequel and a new IP. In light of this, could the mystery project be an entirely new intellectual property?
Given the studio’s reputation for genre-defining narratives and deep emotional engagement, a fresh storyline with a new world to explore could be an exciting prospect. The relatively long gaps between the studio’s major releases also lend credibility to this theory; after all, creating a compelling new universe takes time.
So, what’s Neil Druckmann and Naughty Dog’s big secret? Perhaps the true answer is that they are as malleable as the narratives they create, capable of unexpected twists and paradigm shifts.
Ultimately, all one can confidently say is we’ll all be watching Naughty Dog’s next move, ready to dissect every trailer, every tweet, and every cryptic statement, looking for clues to the puzzle that Neil Druckmann and Co. are so expertly assembling.
