By postponing the license, like Uncharted, Naughty Dog will be able to focus on building a new PS5 project.
Neil Druckmann, co-president of Naughty Dog, officially stated in an interview with BuzzFeed that the new Uncharted is not in the plans of the American studio:
For us, Uncharted was a huge success – A Thief’s End (the fourth part of the license) was also one of our best-selling games – and we were able to put the finishing touch to this story to say that we have it finished. Now we can move on.
Naughty Dog co-president Neil Druckmann says the studio has “gone”with the Uncharted series and could do the same with The Last of Us if it decides not to continue with main series 3 https://t.co/ u7FO964fJW pic.twitter. com/E0rwtUp8dC
— VGC (@VGC_News) January 26, 2023
He also shared that The Last of Us 3 may never see the light of day:
With The Last of Us, it’s up to us whether we want to continue or not. Our process is the same as for The Last of Us 2: if we can create a compelling story with a universal message and a declaration of love – like we did in parts 1 and 2 – then we’ll tell that story. If we can’t find something, we will have a very strong ending to The Last of Us 2 and that will be the only conclusion.
Uncharted, flagship license from Naughty Dog and Sony
Naughty Dog developed Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune (2007), Uncharted: Among Thieves (2009), Uncharted: Drake’s Deception (2011), Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End (2016), the standalone expansion Uncharted: The Lost Legacy (2017), and the Uncharted version: Legacy of Thieves Collection for PS5, released in 2021 and includes remasters of Uncharted 4 and The Lost Legacy. Other Sony-owned studios have already developed Uncharted spin-offs or remasters, including Bend Studio (Uncharted: Golden Abyss) and Bluepoint Games (Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection).
Rumors and job offers imply that Sony’s new in-house development team is working with Naughty Dog to develop a game based on the beloved franchise that could be… Uncharted. Is there a new spin-off coming up?