Naughty Dog shares update about The Last of Us multiplayer ahead of reported cutbacks

It’s been a great year for The Last of Us, with Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey making headlines portraying the events of the first game in the hit HBO show followed by a remaster hitting PC. There was the promise of news about a multiplayer project coming sometime this summer, but a new update from developer Naughty Dog is dashing those hopes.

In a tweet today from the developer’s official account, Naughty Dog said that while it’s proud of the work that’s been done so far on The Last of Us multiplayer, it’s still not at a place where it’s ready.

Within an hour after that tweet, Bloomberg gaming reporter Jason Schreier reported the message came as a result of his reaching out about reported cutbacks around Naughty Dog’s The Last of Us multiplayer.

Schreier shared an article shortly after the message was posted detailing reports that Naughty Dog recently began cutting down its team around the TLOU multiplayer game. He claims the Naughty Dog PR message was a result of his reaching out for comment about the cutbacks on the game, with the timing being suspect at the very least.

According to Schreier, this is occurring as Naughty Dog’s “creators reassess its quality and long-term viability, according to four people familiar with the project.” He spoke with multiple people familiar with the project, who said the title was “scaled back after a recent evaluation.” Schreier makes it clear that the title hasn’t been canceled, but “many” developers have reportedly been moved to other projects.

Naughty Dog also confirms in its message that it has a new “single-player experience” in development alongside the multiplayer game. The message doesn’t share when players can expect more information about either project, though, leaving the new release date for any details up in the air. But following Schreier’s reporting, it isn’t looking promising.

Related: The Last of Us Part 1 ending, explained

The post that the developer shared was a little confusing given that it reads like it was planning to release the game, but no one knows what the title is planned to be. All that’s been revealed is that it’s a multiplayer title set in The Last of Us‘s universe, but rumors have been spreading about anything from an expanded version of The Last of Us‘ Factions mode from 2013 to an extraction shooter.

Whatever it is, players will likely be waiting until at least the end of the year before they find out what Naughty Dog has been cooking in secret.