The Last of Usfirst captivated audiences in 2013 at the tail end of the PlayStation 3’s life cycle and still remains one of the greatest games in history.Part II, its PS4 sequel in 2020, proved to be much more polarizing, yet is still beloved by many. Both games have been updated and remastered for newer hardware, with developer Naughty Dog even releasing a full-on remake of The Last of Us Part I in 2022 built for thePlayStation 5.
The newest re-release, however, is sure to raise fans’ eyebrows. On April 10th, 2025, Naughty andSonyreleasedThe Last of Us Complete, a compilation of the PS5 versions of the first two games. If this re-release is supposed to encompass the “complete” series, does that mean Naughty Dog is done with The Last of Us? The answer isn’t so cut and dry.
The Last of Us Complete on PS5
Includes the definitive versions of Part I and Part II
Sony has been re-releasing The Last of Us as much as Bethesda enjoys repackagingSkyrim, so what exactly does the new The Last of Us Complete collection entail? Purchasers receive the PlayStation 5 remake ofThe Last of Us Part IandThe Last of Us Part II Remastered, which dropped on the PS5 in January 2024. Naughty Dog studio head Neil Druckmann described them as “the definitive ways to play each of these games,” in thePlayStation blog postannouncing the Complete edition.
The Part I remake includes updated and enhanced character models and environments, more dynamic enemy AI, haptic feedback, 3D audio, additional accessibility options, and more. Part II Remastered features noticeable updates aside from better visuals, like developer commentary for cutscenes, Lost Levels (where players can explore cut environments), and the roguelike No Return mode.
For $110, $10 more than the digital version, fans can getThe Last of Us Complete: Collector’s Editionon disc exclusively viaPS Direct. It features stunning minimalist box art and a host of goodies fans will surely enjoy. Unfortunately, as of this writing, it appears to be sold out.
Will There Be a Part III?
Naughty Dog has been unclear about the future of the series
While bothThe Last of Us and The Last of Us Part IItell complete stories, that doesn’t mean there’s not room for more. Part II built off the relationships from the first game and introduced a new playable character with her own emotional arc; it’s not unreasonable to think a Part III could do the same and continue one of PlayStation’s best series. However, don’t bet on it as Neil Druckmann has been cagey at best about a potential Part III and pessimistic at worst.
“I think there’s more story to tell,” Druckmann toldThe Hollywood Reporterin 2023 ahead of the HBO show’s premiere. In theGrounded II: Making The Last of Us Part IIdocumentary that released a year later, Druckmann again stoked the flames of anticipation for a potential Part III, saying, “I do have that concept that to me is as exciting as [Part I], as exciting as [Part II], is its own thing, and yet has this throughline for all three. So it does feel like there’s probably one more chapter to this story” (viaIGN).
Unfortunately, in March 2025, before the HBO show’s second season released, Druckmann seemed to pour cold water on any hope for a Part III in a conversation withVariety.
“Don’t bet on there being more of ‘Last of Us.’ This could be it.
Ideas for creative stories are nebulous, and perhaps a concept that interested Druckmann and the developers at Naughty Dog after Part II released no longer seemed worth pursuing a few years later. Or perhaps Druckmann is lying through his teeth like a seasoned Marvel actor. Either way, if the studio was ever to makeThe Last of Us Part III, don’t bet on it coming out anytime soon; Naughty Dog’s next game and franchise has already been announced, and it’s a few years away.
Naughty Dog’s Current Project
Naughty Dog’s next game will be its first new IP since The Last of Us in 2013 and first non-TLOU or Uncharted game in over 20 years.Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophetputs you in the role of a space-faring bounty hunter who ends up stranded on a remote planet while hunting her quarry.
It was revealed during The Game Awards 2024 with a cinematic trailer that shows off a retro sci-fi vibe, a snippet of the Trent Reznor- and Atticus Ross-composed score, and members of its cast Tati Gabrielle, Kumail Nanjiani, and Tony Dalton.
In an announcement post on thePlayStation Blog, Neil Druckmann wrote that Intergalactic is “shaping up to be our wildest, most creative story yet” and that it began production in 2020 afterThe Last of Us Part IIshipped. However, Naughty Dogs fans shouldn’t expect to be playing it any time soon. On aResetEraforum in March 2025, Bloomberg reporter Jason Schreier wrote that, “Neither of [The Witcher IV or Intergalactic] will be out next year.”
IfIntergalactic: The Heretic Prophetreleases in 2026, it would drop around the end of the current console cycle, like bothThe Last of Usgames. Any later and it could potentially be a PlayStation 6 exclusive, putting the studio in danger of not releasing any new games for the PS5.
What could have been the studio’s flagship PlayStation 5 game was canceled in 2023.The Last of Us Onlinewas meant to be a multiplayer game set in the world ofThe Last of Us(think of the first game’s Factions mode), but Naughty Dog “made the incredibly difficult decision to stop development on that game,” according to a December 2023post on its website.
“To release and supportThe Last of Us Onlinewe’d have to put all our studio resources behind supporting post launch content for years to come, severely impacting development on future single-player games.”
Ultimately, the studio chose to eschew the live service model and completely focus on the single-player games ahead of them.
Naughty Dog Releases During the PS5 Era
The Last of Us Will Live On, No Matter What
Video game development is a complicated process, and just because Naughty Dog may not have plans for The Last of Us Part III at the moment, that doesn’t mean the studio won’t ever revisit the franchise. Regardless, the franchise will live on in one way or another.
The Last of Us adaptationis currently airing on HBO and is gree nlit for a third season to presumably finish adapting the events of the second game. Once that wraps, I’ll personally have a hard time thinking the franchise is over for good, but we’ll have to wait and see what Naughty Dog, Neil Druckmann, and Sony have cooking for the years ahead.
