Despite being known for its story, 2013’s The Last of Us featured a rather fun multiplayer mode known as Factions. Ahead of 2020’s The Last of Us Part II, Naughty Dog confirmed that the sequel would not include a Factions mode – with the team instead working on a standalone multiplayer project. Since then, the title has seemingly struggled to find an identity – with it reportedly now being put on ice.

Yesterday we reported that Naughty Dog followed many other studios in laying off a portion of its staff – in this instance cutting a couple dozen contractors. According to Kotaku, the bad news continues, as the studio’s long-in-development multiplayer title has reportedly been halted, saying “while not completely canceled, is basically on ice at this point.”

This isn’t the first time that we’ve heard about the studio’s multiplayer struggles, with Bloomberg claiming back in June that resources were being moved away from this title following reviews by Sony and live-service giant ‘Bungie’. It seems as though the situation has unfortunately not improved in the months since.

As mentioned, The Last of Us’ Factions mode was a genuinely fun and engaging time, and Naughty Dog seemed to be giving this standalone multiplayer title their all. Had the game managed to deliver a successful live-service system while featuring TLOU Part II’s excellent gameplay, then the team could have had a massive hit on their hands. Unfortunately, it seems as though the title may never get the chance to prove itself.

KitGuru says: What do you think of this latest development? Are you disappointed? What did you think of The Last of Us Part II’s gameplay? Let us know down below.

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