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The Last of Us: Part 2 reportedly delayed weeks after release date announcement

Gabe Gurwin
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The Last of Us: Part 2 received a new trailer in late September that revealed a February 21, 2020, release date for the PlayStation 4 exclusive. However, it appears Sony may have jumped the gun on this news, as the game has reportedly already been delayed.

According to a new report from Kotaku, The Last of Us: Part 2 has been bumped to an undetermined final date next spring. The reason for the release date change was not revealed, but Naughty Dog has always valued perfection over getting a game out at its originally scheduled time. This was certainly the case with Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End, which effectively had its own development rebooted after a change in leadership at the studio.

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If the game does release in spring, it will be nearly seven years since the launch of the original The Last of Us on PlayStation 3. That game then came to PlayStation 4 the following year, and we fully expect The Last of Us: Part 2 to also include an upgraded version for PlayStation 5. Given the power of Naughty Dog’s engine and the amount of detail on characters’ faces in the game, we can’t wait to see how the next-generation hardware can make it look even better.

The Last of Us Part II – Release Date Reveal Trailer | PS4

Naughty Dog has been relatively secretive regarding The Last of Us: Part 2 thus far, only releasing a handful of trailers and a small amount of gameplay footage. Rather than play as Joel from the original game, you will play as Ellie, who has grown older and more hardened in the continued apocalypse. Joel will make an appearance, however, with much more gray hair, and will aid Ellie in a mission that is still fairly unclear.

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The Last of Us: Part 2 will be, funnily enough, one of the last of the PS4’s exclusive games before Sony goes head-first into releasing games on PS5. The other major games still due to release for PS4 include Death Stranding, which will launch on November 8, as well as Ghost of Tsushima. The latter game doesn’t have a release date or even window yet, so it’s entirely possible that it could still come to PS5 instead of PS4.

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Gabe Gurwin
Gabe Gurwin
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Gabe Gurwin has been playing games since 1997, beginning with the N64 and the Super Nintendo. He began his journalism career…
We tasted The Last of Us Part II’s apocalyptic new whisky
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Just before this year's Penny Arcade Expo in Seattle, The Last of Us Part II developer Naughty Dog brought a group of fans, press, and staff to a small bar for a special event to celebrate the franchise's latest release. This wasn't The Last of Us Part I, which came out the next day; instead, they were there to debut a new whisky inspired by Part II called Moth & Wolf.

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