Gabriel Stanford-ReisingerNaughty Dog co-studio head Neil Druckmann is working as the writer and director of an unannounced game. Some speculate it’s The Last of Us Part 3, while others consider the possibility of a brand-new IP.
The revelation came as Druckmann updated his Instagram bio to note this role. He hasn’t addressed the new bio and likely won’t.
Both sides have merits to what this new game is. He’s largely been involved making The Last of Us content and has expressed that it isn’t impossible for a third in the series if the dev gets the right idea. On the other hand, it’s been quite some time since it showcased a new IP, and it might be time for the studio to take some time to cobble together something new before releasing the next big TLoU entry.
Druckmann has shifted gears over the past year, finding inspiration within FromSoftware’s lack of a traditional narrative with Elden Ring — a direct contrast to Naughty Dog’s more story-heavy present day. It’s also possible that Naughty Dog will make more of an effort to “hold your hand” less. These together just don’t fit the studio’s pipeline for TLoU content, and so it would make sense that a new IP could be in development to explore and dip its toes into the water, and who better to lead the charge than the man who more or less managed to create a franchise empire?
That said, it could be a while, as Naughty Dog’s learned from announcing games too early.
