Naughty Dog has maintained a low profile since the release of The Last of Us: Part 2. It’s evident that they are working on something; no studio really knows a moment of rest. However, what they are working on remains a mystery. Despite knowing they are busy with The Last of Us Factions, the multiplayer game for The Last of Us, whose development has hit some hurdles, we don’t know what else the studio is working on besides that. Or we didn’t know until someone put more information than they should have on their resume.
Mark Pajarillo, an artist who has worked on environments for games like Uncharted 4, Uncharted: The Lost Legacy, and The Last of Us Part 2, recently updated his LinkedIn profile. Specifically, he mentioned that, as a subcontracted artist, he was “responsible for overseeing the production of all externally produced environments, art assets, weapons, and interactive props for two iconic titles: The Last of Us Part 1 and The Last of Us 2: Remastered.” This information was removed from his LinkedIn profile at the time of this news publication, but it was captured in a screenshot by a user on Resetera.
Of course, The Last of Us Part 2: Remastered has not been announced by Naughty Dog or Sony. However, that doesn’t mean it hasn’t been referenced. Gustavo Santaolalla, the composer of the game’s soundtrack, hinted in a video interview with Blender that a new edition of the game might allow players to interact with his character. In this hypothetical new version, players could request him to play different songs from the game’s soundtrack during his banjo cameo.
That’s why, while everything is still up in the air, all signs seem to point to Naughty Dog’s next game being a remaster of their latest title. A somewhat puzzling decision, considering it was released on June 19, 2020, and doesn’t appear to need a remaster at all. Only time will confirm or debunk these pieces of information.
