Naughty Dog, the studio behind the acclaimed Last of Us franchise, has two new projects in the pipeline that will carry the story beyond the events of the first two games. Co-president Neil Druckmann shared the news in a blog post wrapping up this year’s The Last of Us Day. He also gave a rare update on Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet, the studio’s next original game.
Two new The Last of Us stories are in early development
Druckmann kept things vague in the blog, only saying that the studio has “a couple of very exciting new projects in very early stages,” and both “will expand the canon of The Last of Us beyond Part I and Part II.”
That phrasing is important, as it points to new stories rather than another remaster, and it’s the strongest signal yet for fans tracking every hint about a third game. Druckmann said the studio has been weighing more stories in this world since the Grounded II documentary.
Note that he said projects, not games. Neither has a name, a platform, or a confirmed format. He added that the team would only return if it had “something meaningful to say,” which feels like a fair bar after the fierce debate around The Last of Us Part II.
Intergalactic won’t surface until next year
Druckmann called Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet “Naughty Dog’s most ambitious game yet” and said the team needs “to cook for just a little bit longer.” The studio plans to go silent for the rest of 2026 before fully revealing the game in 2027.
That is a long wait for a game unveiled at The Game Awards 2024, but the latest announcement makes it clear that the studio’s attention is back on its own games. Druckmann stepped away from HBO’s The Last of Us last year to lead that work, and the payoff should begin arriving next year.
