The Last of Us Part II Unofficial PC Multiplayer Shut Down by Sony

After The Last of Us Online was canceled, plenty of fans were disappointed with Naughty Dog's decision, but this year, oddly enough, PC players got a glimmer of hope they might still get some form of multiplayer. This summer, a modder going by Speclizer revealed he is working on adding multiplayer to The Last of Us Part II, with a rough target of this month. That plan has now been scrapped.

On the X page where the modder had been sharing project updates, Speclizer stated Sony had officially asked them to take down the mod over copyright concerns. Speclizer added he regretfully had to comply, putting an end to the multiplayer project entirely. You can check out the full statement below:

Hey everyone, as you all know, the TLOU 2 Multiplayer mod that has been in development since January was supposed to release this month. Unfortunately I recently received a letter on behalf of Sony Interactive Entertainment requesting for the mod not to be released. Extremely sad that this never got to see the light of day but I hope you'll continue to follow me onto the next project, this time something of my own. Thank you all for the incredible amount of support over the last year. I hope to bring you something bigger and better soon!

Reaction in the comments was largely disappointment, with several users criticizing Sony for shutting down another promising fan project, one some felt could've even helped boost PC sales of The Last of Us Part II. Last month, Speclizer had shown off what a 4v4 mode might have looked like in the game.

Meanwhile, Naughty Dog continues working on its new IP, Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet, still without a confirmed release date, though the studio isn't done with The Last of Us either. In a recent interview, Naughty Dog head Neil Druckmann confirmed multiple projects are in the works within that universe, with more details to come when the time's right.

Despite The Last of Us Part II multiplayer mod being shut down, Albatross Interactive announced its own project this spring, Terminal War, which it's positioning as a spiritual successor to The Last of Us Online. It doesn't have a release date yet, as the game is still in the early stage of development.