‘The Last Of Us Part 2’ gets controversial new update

The Last Of Us Part 2 Remastered has received a controversial new update that changes the way players experience the game.

• READ MORE: ‘The Last Of Us’ season two review: heartbreakingly brilliant apocalypse drama

The Last Of Us Part 2 starts with plucky heroes Joel and Ellie struggling with their relationship following the brutal conclusion of The Last Of Us. As the game progresses, Ellie has to deal with the repercussions of Joel’s murder at the hands of newcomer Abby and sets out on a mission of revenge. Players experience Ellie’s first three days in Seattle, and then see things from Abby’s perspective.

The HBO adaptation of The Last Of Us follows a similar narrative path but a new update changes it completely with players now able to “experience Ellie and Abby’s story chronologically”.

“Those who have already played will know its story is told non-linearly, as Ellie and Abby’s motivations, realisations, and emotional stakes unfold across myriad flashbacks and present-day storylines. While this structure is very intentional and core to how our studio wanted Part 2’s themes and narrative beats to impact players, we always wondered what it would be like to experience this story chronologically,” explains a blog post.

They went from making, to remastering, to remaking, to remixing.

Whats next, redoing or rebooting? https://t.co/tdDWR9MNG3

— Joey (@JohanzelV) July 8, 2025

“Through the new Chronological mode, we believe players will gain even deeper insight into Part 2’s narrative. Players will be able to see how Ellie being gifted a guitar flows so neatly into her learning to play, for example, while the journey through Seattle will showcase the fascinating parallels between Ellie and Abby’s crisscrossing journeys. You’ll see just how close they come into running into each other, how their actions impact each other, and more.”

As a reward for playing the new chronological mode, players will unlock an Uncharted crossover in the form of two new skins – Joel dressed as Nathan Drake and Tommy as Sam Drake.

However some players aren’t happy with the new The Last Of Us update. “This is pretty crazy. Not sure how this will impact the game’s narrative. Personally, I think part of what makes Part 2 interstellar is being forced to play as the villain midway through the game after spending hours trying to find and kill her,” one fan wrote on X.

“The whiplash between the gameplay styles of Ellie and Abby is going to make this difficult,” said another.  “Just release something fucking new already,” added a third.

Other fans have praised the free update. “I had so many problems with the pacing/structure of the game and wonder if this will help,” wrote one Reddit user. “It’s literally the only thing about the game I don’t love so I’m stoked for this,” added another.

Last week, HBO’s The Last Of Us received a massive behind-the-scenes shake up ahead of season three. Neil Druckmann – co-creator of games and director/co-writer on of the HBO series – announced that he would be stepping away from the TV show to focus on new Naughty Dog games. Fellow Naughty Dog writer Halley Gross has also left the show.

In other news, Tomb Raider’s Lara Croft is heading to World Of Tanks and fans aren’t happy: “She’s everywhere but her own game.”

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