Development on a multiplayer PvP mod for The Last of Us Part 2 on PC has been halted after PlayStation got in touch and asked the developers to cease work on the project.
“Hey everyone, as you all know, the [The Last of Us Part 2] multiplayer mod that has been in development since January was supposed to [be released] this month,” wrote modder Speclizer in a post on social media. “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.”
If you were curious about what the mod what have looked like in action, Speclizer uploaded about 25 minutes of gameplay for the mod back in June. You can see the video below. Given that the team has spent nine months working on the project, the legal request from Sony no doubt stings – but what did PlayStation’s legal team seek out cancellation of this mods when there are so many others out there? It may be because the team behind this one would have added a paid component to the mod, funded by a Patreon account – something that tends to get unofficial mods shut down.
The mod would have been quite an extensive one: the final project promised to include listening mechanics to help you figure out where enemy players were, different perks that would help you out in various ways, and a suite of maps that we didn’t see in the base, single-player game.
I imagine this news is going to sting for anyone that was particularly miffed about The Last of Us Online getting cancelled, which we learned about in 2023. That project was reportedly 80 percent complete by the time it was culled, and had a loyal early base of players. Between that, and the popularity of this sadly-cancelled mod, there is clearly an appetite for Last of Us multiplayer experiences, though whether that’s something Sony will pursue feels dubious at this point.
If you’ve never played the multiplayer mode in the original The Last of Us, it was a pretty unique mode that highlighted the stealth gameplay of the series and turned it into a more tense, emergent experience.
