The original The Last of Us ended ambiguously but didn’t necessitate a sequel. However, Neil Druckmann and the team at Naughty Dog felt there were more stories to tell in that world, resulting in the equally impressive The Last of Us Part 2. Unlike the first game, though, the sequel left many questions unanswered that demanded at least one more upcoming video game.
Initially, the team was working on a multiplayer spinoff called The Last of Us Online, however, we now know that project has been abandoned and the team is once again focusing on single-player games. One of those games is indeed The Last of Us Part 3. Naughty Dog is considered one of the best studios at PlayStation, alongside Insomniac and its upcoming PS5 game Marvel’s Wolverine and Suckerpunch’s Ghost of Yotei.
While it was initially ambiguous, we can now for sure say a third chapter is on the way, but what other bits of information have we been able to scavenge while sneaking around Clickers? Activate your listen mode so you catch all the details we have on The Last of Us Part 3.
If you’re looking for the best upcoming Xbox Series X games or upcoming Switch games, you won’t find this title there. However, it could end up on the list of upcoming PC games if PlayStation continues its trend of bringing its exclusives to that platform.
The Last of Us Part 3 release date speculation
While we know that The Last of Us Part 3 is at least being worked on in some capacity at Naughty Dog, we have no idea how far along it is or when we can expect to see it. At The Game Awards in December 2024, Naughty Dog announced a brand new sci-fi title Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet, suggesting that The Last of Us Part 3 is going to launch even later than we initially thought.
Based on the incredible level of polish and attention to detail the studio likes to put into its games, it is possible we won’t see The Last of Us Part 3 until 2027 or later.
The Last of Us Part 3 platforms
The only thing we know for sure is that The Last of Us Part 3 will be on PlayStation platforms, specifically the PS5. Unless the game takes so long that a next-generation system comes out and the team decides not to make it cross-generational, you can feel safe knowing it will be playable on your PS5.
Since both previous games have made their way to PC, The Last of Us Part 3 likely will too. Previous games took over a year to arrive on PC, and while things may change by the time the game finally arrives, it is safe to assume PC players will wait at least a full year before it comes to that platform.
Trailers
There’s not a single trailer, screenshot, or even piece of concept art for The Last of Us Part 3. All we have for now are a few words about its existence in the most high-level way.
The first real word about Naughty Dog working on single-player projects came with its statement on the cancellation of The Last of Online, in which the studio states “We have more than one ambitious, brand new singl- player game that we’re working on here at Naughty Dog, and we cannot wait to share more about what comes next when we’re ready.”
With the release of The Last of Us Part 2 Remastered, we also got the making-of documentary called Grounded 2. At the very end, Druckmann spoke about a possible third entry. “I’ve been thinking about, ‘Is there a concept there?’ And for now years, I haven’t been able to find that concept. But recently, that’s changed. I don’t have a story, but I do have that concept that, to me, is as exciting as I, as exciting as II, is its own thing, yet has this throughline for all three. So it does feel like there’s probably one more chapter to this story.”
While it isn’t technically confirmed to be related to The Last of Us Part 3, Troy Baker, who played Joel in both games, had an interview with GQ mainly focused on Indiana Jones and the Great Circle in which he confirms to be part of whatever Druckmann’s next game is. Technically, this could be one of the other projects the studio has said it is working on, especially since we know the fate of Joel. However, there are plenty of ways Joel, or even a new character played by Troy, could feature in a third game.
Take the following with a grain of salt, but a leaker named Daniel Richtman reported on his Patreon that he has insight that The Last of Us Part 3 is not only real but already in the process of filming. He claims the story will focus on a group of survivors hunkered down in a large Victorian house led by a woman named Val who is in conflict with a man named Mason who is attempting to overthrow Val as the leader. Ezra is detailed as conflicted between whether they want to side with Val or Mason, and Lucas is described as having a relationship with a scavenger and may present some sort of dark turn in the story. There is also mention of a young girl named Gracie, but no other details were shared about her.
Gameplay
Both The Last of Us games follow a similar stealth-action style of gameplay with limited resources and light horror elements. We suspect the third game to at least use this same base, but include new weapons, enemies, and mechanics in the same way the sequel evolved over the first.
Preorder
The Last of Us Part 3 is only barely announced, let alone deep in development. It could be a long time before we see it, so preorders are still a long way away.
