Since its launch back in 2020, Naughty Dog have sporadically updated The Last of Us Part II in the form of a PS5 remaster; a PC release – and a couple bonus free post-launch updates. In a surprising addition, The Last of Us Part II has gotten a new mode which allows players to experience the story in a whole new way: chronologically.

Making the announcement on the PlayStation Blog, Naughty Dog have unveiled and released patch 2.1.0 for PS5 (and update 1.5 for PC), writing: “Available for players as part of a downloadable update today, we’ve introduced a new way to play the story of The Last of Us Part II like never before – chronologically.”

For the uninitiated, The Last of Us Part II is told in a somewhat non-linear manner, with the game’s dual protagonists switching back and forth in both time and space depending on the chapter.

While this was of course the intended way to experience TLOU Part II’s story, Naughty Dog notes that “we always wondered what it would be like to experience this story chronologically. And now finally, we can answer that question,” adding “Through the new Chronological mode, we believe players will gain even deeper insight into Part II’s narrative.”

Beyond the new mode, the update brings with it a couple other small additions, namely a new skin for Joel and Tommy in the style of Nathan and Sam Drake from Uncharted respectively, as well as some trophies for completing a playthrough using the chronological mode.

While the structure of The Last of Us Part II was highly intentional, it will be interesting to see how the story is perceived when played in this manner.

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KitGuru says: What do you think of this update? Is it a welcome surprise? What’s your opinion on the game's original story structure? Let us know down below.

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