Former PlayStation executive Shuhei Yoshida recently offered praise for Naughty Dog's canceled live-service game, The Last of Us Online.  While the project is sadly defunct, Yoshida's comments suggest a promising multiplayer experience was in the works.

Announced almost a year before The Last of Us Part 2, The Last of Us Online began as the original game's multiplayer component but evolved into a standalone project.  After four years of development, Naughty Dog confirmed its cancelation in late 2023, citing concerns that supporting a live-service title would consume resources needed for single-player game development.

The cancelation disappointed fans, many of whom eagerly awaited news about the game.  Naughty Dog never officially revealed The Last of Us Online, leaving its gameplay and scope shrouded in mystery. However, on a recent Sacred Symbols+ podcast, Yoshida revealed he played the game and found it "great." While vague, this positive assessment isn't surprising, given Naughty Dog's track record of delivering quality titles.

Yoshida further elaborated on the game's development, explaining that the concept originated within Naughty Dog, a studio passionate about bringing it to life. However, a mid-2023 review of PlayStation's live-service portfolio by Bungie prompted Naughty Dog to realize that ongoing support for The Last of Us Online would jeopardize the development of another project, reportedly titled 'Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet.'  Yoshida described this as a "lack of foresight."

Addressing public speculation, Yoshida confirmed that Sony doesn't mandate live-service development within its first-party studios. However, he acknowledged a tendency for studios to align their pitches with broader company initiatives to secure approval and resources.  Given Naughty Dog's prestige and creative autonomy within PlayStation, this scenario seems unlikely in their case.

With The Last of Us Online now canceled and PlayStation's live-service ambitions scaling back, Naughty Dog appears firmly committed to single-player experiences.