The Last of Us Part II took the gaming world by storm upon its release on June 19th, 2020. Games are not made overnight, and Naughty Dog's most recent opus took an especially long time to make with a massive development team. With the seven year gap between the original and the sequel, one can be sure that numerous wild stories occurred during the game's creation.
Making games is often a messy endeavor, after all. Most of the facts below come from stories divulged straight from the mouths of Neil Druckmann, Halley Gross, and the actors who brought these virtual characters to life.
10 The Rat King
One of the most terrifying moments of the game is the Rat King boss fight. This monstrosity cooked in the hospital basement for decades before Abby takes it on. In order to make this disgusting creation, three actors motion-captured simultaneously, mimicking the movements of what such an offense to nature would do. One part of the boss's terror is how realistically it moves, despite the unbelievable design.
9 Laura Bailey Tried To Hold Her Breath
The last combat encounter of the game ends with Ellie almost drowning Abby at the beach in Santa Barbara. She lets go at the last moment, however, and allows Abby to leave with Lev to Catalina Island. While filming the scene, Laura Bailey, who plays Abby, tried to hold her breath for as long as possible to get into the proper headspace. By her recollection, Ashley Johnson only let go of Laura when she started turning blue.
8 Ellie Was Going To Kill Abby
The general narrative outline remained the same throughout the game's development, but with one major change. Originally, Ellie was going to end Abby's life during the final fight at the beach. However, things changed while talking through how to execute it, and the team ultimately thought it was better for Ellie's character to let Abby live. Some gamers did not like this, while others applaud the bold move.
7 One Night Live Inspired Future Days
Last of Us: One Night Live was a live event where the actors got together to act out some of the first game's iconic scenes in front of an audience. They did an additional scene when the cameras turned off however, which eventually morphed into the Joel and Ellie's opening scene in the sequel. The Pearl Jam song "Future Days" first became associated with the game on this night.
6 Filming Took Five Years
When making a movie, production can last anywhere from a few weeks to a few months. The Last of Us Part II has most typical films beat by a long shot.
Laura Bailey says the filming process took approximately five years, an astonishing timespan. Not only is it difficult to dedicate one's time to a project for so long, it also must have been torture to keep it a secret for half a decade.
5 The Protagonist Switch
Anybody who avoided spoilers pops The Last of Us Part II into their PlayStation 4 fully expecting to play as Ellie for the whole game. At about ten to twelve hours in, players switch over to Abby and spend almost a whole game's length with her. Neil Druckmann has cited Metal Gear Solid 2: The Sons of Liberty an influence on this design choice. His only complaint with Hideo Kojima's game was never returning to Solid Snake for the ending.
4 Laura Bailey Had A Baby During Development
Even though filming took five years, life did not stop for the performers. Laura Bailey went through a pregnancy and had a child while filming. Another character's pregnancy plays an important role in the plot, so having a child during this time must have made those scenes particularly impactful. Laura also attempted to build a more muscular physique for the role, but the baby slowed stumped this plan.
3 Why "Take On Me?"
One hidden scene sees Ellie serenade Dina with an acoustic rendition of A-Ha's "Take on Me," a classic '80s pop song. This song was mainly chosen because of how simple it was to acquire the rights. Music licensing can be a real headache, but someone on the team knew the guitarist for the band, making it easier to have the song included in the game.
2 The Leaks
Nobody likes their story leaking before release. When that game is The Last of Us Part II, one of the biggest releases of the year with countless plot twists and surprises, a leak becomes devastating. In post-release interviews, Neil Druckmann describes the feeling of learning about the story getting out before release and the emotional toll it took on the team. Fortunately, experiencing the game is still a wholly unique and worthwhile endeavor.
1 The Journal
One expects every Naughty Dog game since Uncharted to come with a journal. It will surprise many to learn that Ellie's journal was added late into development. It helps the player further understand Ellie and learn things she otherwise wouldn't tell Dina or Jesse. She also spends a large chunk of the game alone, so it helps add lore during heavy gameplay segments.