As the most avid fans will already know, John Sweeney, Art Director of N and The Last of Us Part II, through his profile Twitter has published some screenshots coming, according to his own description, from a personal project. The images, certainly suggestive, immediately made us think of a new game from the celebrated developer. To feed this thesis, of course, the users thought about it and in the end we too let ourselves be carried away by a sort of "hype" trying to imagine what a fantasy title made by this team would look like. The talent of the software house is undeniable and, after years struggling with the same IPs, it would also be natural to propose something different to further raise the production bar. In any case, it is very likely that Naughty Dog is already thinking about the future, given that N and associates will not remain idle. From the same post by Sweeney we have learned that the work behind the publication of the artwork has been going on for a few months already, so it is undeniable that something is happening.
The perfect scenario
Before starting to imagine what this elusive fantasy title could look like, we need to make a small introduction to all the information in our possession. As confirmed by the Lead Game Designer Emilia Schatz, Naughty Dog published a statement in the past announcing a new project focused on online multiplayer. The studio had published a letter on Twitter explaining that, at least in the early stages of development, The Last of Us Part II should also have a multiplayer mode within it. However, the single player campaign has quickly become the most ambitious project of the software house and for this reason it was finally decided not to include an online experience within the latest adventure of Ellie. In any case, it was also specified that fans would still enjoy the multiplayer dedicated to the factions, but for this they would have to wait a little longer.
Furthermore, to corroborate what has been said, the same team thought about it a few months later, which communicated the availability of new jobs for programmers specialized in the development of online systems. We also know for sure Naughty Dog's Lead Game Designer, Vinit Agarwal, confirmed the rumors about developing a multiplayer game for PlayStation 5. While for some users Sweeney's artwork is linked to this online title, we don't believe the two can actually coincide. From how the team communicated, it seems clear the intention of wanting to propose the Factions seen in the first The Last of Us in a new guise, as a solid stand-alone product able to "feed itself" on its own for the next few years, a sort of GTA V, The Elden Scrolls Online or Final Fantasy XVI. This is a very widespread commercial operation and it makes sense that, perhaps in The Last of Us style, the company wants to replicate the business model of other competitors. Therefore, having ascertained that the team is working on this multiplayer game, and that in all probability it will take advantage of some assets and settings taken from The Last of Us Part II (a project of which it was originally part), the time has come to really focus on what is published. by John Sweeney.
Let the artwork do the talking
The artwork, basically, seems quite far from everything Naughty Dog has done so far, although the colors, framing and aesthetic sense may be perfectly suited to the other productions of the team. On the horse, however, there are no characters known to us, but there is what we believe is a warrior. Armed with sword, shield and bow, with a cloak to protect him from the elements, he seems intent on reaching the city in the background. The latter is located on a mountain, overlooking a splendid green valley. The inhabited center seems to be divided into 4 zones, separated by three waterfalls with the sectors connected to each other by bridges. We can also see the steed with two nice capacious bags, which of course made us think about the possibility of having a large inventory, a classic for fantasy games. The perfect landscape seems almost the beginning of an adventure with a wider breath than the classic ones of Naughty Dog, but able to maintain unchanged the exceptional aesthetic taste and for the art direction of the studio.
What have we imagined
As shown above by Uncharted 4 and now with The Last of Us Part II it seems evident: the development house wants to expand the game areas, but proposing a mass of content within them that can not only satisfy the user in terms of prizes, but also make greater clarity on some aspects of the play world. We would like to see Naughty Dog finally engaged in a real open world, dense and well characterized not only by art design, but also in the characters and their stories. The development house's talent for creating meaningful plots, within a role-playing game, could be highlighted even more, giving us missions worthy of those seen in a The Witcher 3, if not even higher.
We dream, as usual for the open world, different environments characterized at best, all obviously seasoned with a day / night cycle and a dynamic weather that we would like to have repercussions on the way we play. An example we can give is that during a fight in the middle of the mud, those affected find themselves with less stability due to the slipperiness of the ground, which could cause fatal falls. Given the concreteness that the team has shown so far, seeing all these creative minds at work on a new imaginary makes us place a lot of trust even in a bestiary made up of unique monsters and, perhaps, reinterpretations of some more known and established in the popular imagination. Removing the hypothesis of the "narrative corridor", therefore, every self-respecting open world RPG obviously has multiple choices that affect the course of history. Here too we hope that Naughty Dog pushes his foot on the accelerator enough, bringing this mechanic to be even more decisive and characterizing.
The combat system, although it is difficult to imagine it outside the classic canons of the team, would obviously be the tip of the balance. We therefore think that what is shown in the melee system in Uncharted and The Last of Us, can be further defined and enlarged; of course we also like to think about the presence of different weapons and spells. Although we believe that the protagonist will be in some ways unique for everyone, the software house it could give the player freedom of customization with regards to build or alignment. The latter could also be decisive for the system of choices already mentioned above, perhaps unlocking a certain piece of plot rather than another.
Conclusions
Clearly, what has been written so far is the fruit of our imagination, but if we really have to expect a fantasy game from Naughty Dog it is legitimate to think big, especially if the landing is expected on future consoles. With the arrival of the new generations, the qualitative bar of the products will inevitably rise, and the digital entertainment sector will be able to aspire to new heights of play and game design that are still not accessible today. We hope that what John Sweeney has shown is not only and exclusively an exercise in style or a minor project, but a small taste of a much larger and more complex world. But there is still time for that, now let's enjoy The Last of Us Part II and the arrival of the Next-Gen; luckily, there are those who are already working for us.
