The Last of Us Sales Million Copies Record

It's been over a month since we had any updates on The Last of Us DLC add-ons, let alone a potential sequel to the critically acclaimed title (read our Last of Us review). After three full months on the market, gamers have been eager to step back into Naughty Dog's post-apocalyptic world, where an evolved branch of the real-life cordyceps fungi has nearly wiped-out humanity, turning mothers, fathers, and even children into brutal zombie-like creatures.

The main storyline between Joel and Ellie came to a satisfying (albeit controversial) close - the game's creative director, Neil Druckmann, has even shared alternate ending ideas with interested gamers - so fans have, understandably, been interested to find out how Naughty Dog intends to add further narrative layers to The Last of Us without undercutting the power of the main storyline. Now, we may finally be on the cusp of getting some answers.

According to a tweet from game co-director Bruce Straley, an official Last of Us DLC announcement is coming this week (September 23-30, 2013 at the time of writing). Check out Straley's tweet below:

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"This week" isn't a particularly specific timeframe, so (at this point) there's no way of knowing exactly when Naughty Dog intends to unveil their DLC plans - or what those plans will entail. It's also unclear whether or not the developer will be outlining their entire Season Pass schedule (a la BioShock Infinite) or simply offer-up details on the first piece of post-release content.

The Last of Us Easter Eggs

We do that three pieces of DLC content are included with the season pass - one single player add-on and two multiplayer add-ons. The multiplayer portion will include new maps and "other expansions" (possibly exclusive modes and customization elements) and while the online component has proven to be a unique and interesting bonus, most gamers will, without question, be most eager to hear about the single player element.

The studio has been keeping their DLC strategy very quiet but, prior to the game's release, Naughty Dog took to the PlayStation Blog to post a few (albeit vague) details about what to expect:

"For the first time ever we’ll be offering single player DLC. The journey and cast of characters in The Last of Us lends itself to thorough narrative exploration and we’ve got more of the story to tell."

Some players had speculated that the studio would tell a story set in the same post-apocalyptic world but entirely separate from the core Joel and Ellie narrative. However, with Naughty Dog highlighting their primary "journey" and "cast of characters," it's much more likely that the respective DLC will tie into The Last of Us campaign in one way or another. Maybe the studio will expand on one side of the narrative before Joel and Ellie meet - possibly a prequel centered on Joel and Tess or the story of [SPOILER WARNING] how Ellie became infected. It's also possible that the DLC will chronicle a chapter in Joel and Ellie's story that was not told in The Last of Us - possibly a section of their journey that took place between two of the game's main locales.

The one thing that gamers should not wait to see is an epilogue that follows the events of the main game - since Naughty Dog would not want to undercut the power and subtlety of that ending (not to mention segmenting their audience) by spelling-out what happens next in a future-set add-on adventure.

We'll keep you up to date as Naughty Dog drops their official Last of Us DLC plans.

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The Last of Us is available now, exclusively for the PS3.

Follow me on Twitter @benkendrick for more on The Last of Us as well as future movie, TV, and gaming news.

Source: Bruce Straley