Prior to the release of the Left Behind DLC, the first The Last of Us (not to be confused with The Last of Us Part I) consisted of two parts: the prologue and the main story. In the prologue, players get to view the apocalypse as it is happening through the eyes of Joel's daughter Sarah. Amidst all the chaos and confusion, they also see Joel not as a survivor, but as a father. This is a stark contrast to when players take control of Joel in the main story, as he has acclimated to the post-apocalyptic world and now works as a smuggler.
Between these two time periods is a lot of character development. After the death of Sarah, Joel and his brother Tommy must have escaped their home city of Austin, Texas, and found a way to survive for 20 years. There are a lot of references to this time, so much so that creating a The Last of Us game centered on the middle-aged brothers would be feasible.
A Grim Tale of Two Brothers
Whenever Joel or Tommy speaks of the time they spent surviving together, they look at it with disgust and disdain. Joel indirectly tells Ellie about when he used to be a hunter - someone who tortured, tricked, and killed innocent people out of their belongings just so he (and potentially Tommy) could survive. This is how he knew about the ploy a group of hunters was playing on him and Ellie as they entered Pittsburgh. As for Tommy. players see him talking to Joel about how he still has nightmares from the years he and Joel spent "surviving" - alluding to the unspeakable things they did. The guilt and disgust that Tommy felt toward Joel's way of life led to him leaving Joel and joining up with the Fireflies. But even that relationship didn't last, as players see Tommy has deserted the Fireflies in The Last of Us in favor of running a community in Jackson, Wyoming
An interquel could allow players to see and experience what Joel and Tommy went through during these tumulous years. Joel must have been traumatized by Sarah's death to adopt such a brutal way of living, and Tommy, out of familial loyalty and pity for Joel's situation, could have easily followed Joel down his dark path. The early years of the Cordyceps breakout can easily be seen as a time of unrest, where people are trying to make sense of what is happening and adapt to the situation. Joel and Tommy must have come across all types of people during this time. While seeing younger versions of old characters such as Tess and Marlene would be nice, this also leaves room for Naughty Dog to add new characters that influence the protagonists.
In The Prime of Their Middle-Aged Lives
Seeing as the interquel will feature younger versions of Joel and Tommy, both characters should be capable of more physical tasks. Joel's size will never allow him to squeeze through the tight spaces Ellie can in The Last of Us Part II, but he could sprint faster and handle more enemies by himself. The game can show how Joel evolves from a reluctant survivor to a ruthless hunter, as his techniques change to become more brutal (he was the muscle in his and Tess's smuggling business, after all).
As with all The Last of Us games, partnerships and dialogue feed directly into gameplay. Tommy, being a tad younger than Joel, can combo with his brother to pull off some brotherly team-based tactics. Tommy's affinity for rifles could allow him to provide Joel with long-range support as he moves in for some stealthy attacks (think the rifle sequence with Joel and Ellie in The Last of Us). He could also provide close-range backup by stalking around cover and eliminating opponents. Naughty Dog could emphasize Joel and Tommy's relationship as brothers by allowing players to give simple commands to the A.I. Having a modicum of control over a companion is something players would greatly appreciate and would give Naughty Dog a chance to flex its creative muscles by creating more manageable A.I. not only for this game, but its future titles as well.
There is still a lot of ground to cover with this interquel idea, but Naughty Dog has already laid a solid foundation for it. Joel and Tommy are beloved characters in The Last of Us franchise and having an opportunity to see another side of them would be more than welcome. Since this game wouldn't take place after the polarizing sequel, this would give the developers a chance to bring fans of the original back into the world they fell in love with.
The Last of Us Part 1 is available now for the PlayStation 5