Tough luck if you were looking forward to playing The Last of Us Part 1 on the PC - you likely won't have a good experience right now.
Initially slated to release around the same time as the penultimate episode of HBO's The Last of Us, the PC port of The Last of Us Part 1 is enjoying a reception that's the exact opposite of its PS5 counterpart.
Whereas the original PS5 release of The Last of Us Part 1 suffered mightly from "cash grab" accusations, The Last of Us Part 1 on the PC is genuinely bad.
Make no mistake, this is still the same award-winning game - it's just poorly optimized.
After being delayed to its current release date, it didn't take long for PC gamers to check out The Last of Us Part 1 and they didn't hold back. The game currently holds a "mostly negative" rating on Steam from more than 4,000 reviewers.
As pointed out by JackStillAlive:
Just remember: Sony hired the most infamous PC porting team to handle their two biggest IPs, despite owning Nixxes, the most famous PC porting team.
Sony bought Nixxes Software sometime ago, presumably to handle the porting duties of PlayStation exclusives full-time. Instead, Sony gave the project to Iron Galaxy.
For what it's worth, the previous PC port by Iron Galaxy, Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection, didn't do so badly. But, you can't help wonder why Sony would trust a third-party studio with one of its biggest IPs.
The only valid reason we see is if Sony is currently working on other "more important" PC ports of PlayStation exclusives, like, let's say, Horizon Forbidden West, Ghost of Tsushima, and Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, which still haven't come to the PC yet despite being included in an earlier very-valid leak.
Until Iron Galaxy and Naughty Dog resolve these issues, gamers are advised to stay away from The Last of Us Part 1 on the PC.
The good news is Iron Galaxy previously worked on the PC port of Batman: Arkham Knight. Even though it didn't do well at launch, the game eventually improved following several patches. Also, if this has forced you to pony up for a PS5, The Last of Us Part 1 is available for trial if you have an active PS Plus Premium subscription.
Naughty Dog co-founder, Neil Druckmann, recently downplayed rumors that the studio is working on The Last of Us Part III. The next game in the series, a multiplayer spin-off, is set for a reveal sometime later this year.
