The Last of Us Online Was 80% Finished When It Was Canceled - Inside Games Daily

The canceled Last of Us online live service game was reportedly 80% complete when Sony PlayStation abruptly shut it down in late 2023, according to former director Vinit Agarwal, who spent seven years developing it. Agarwal revealed the game's cancellation came amid a post-COVID industry downturn, as Sony scaled back massive investments made during the pandemic's peak. Despite the project's advanced state, Naughty Dog was forced to choose between the online game and Neil Druckmann’s next single-player title, Intergalactic, ultimately prioritizing the latter. Agarwal’s personal experiences—being mugged twice in Austin and New York—served as the emotional core of the game’s design, aiming to explore the dehumanization of desperation. The cancellation devastated him, leading him to move to Japan to start his own studio, blending Western collaborative design with Japan’s hierarchical, vision-driven approach. The episode critiques Sony’s mismanagement, highlighting how short-term spending surges led to unsustainable projects, many of which were canceled before release, including Concord and Foam Stars. While Helldivers proved a rare success, the overall live service market appears saturated, and the financial logic behind pre-release cancellations—such as tax write-downs—raises ethical concerns. The episode ends on a bittersweet note, mourning lost creative labor while acknowledging the industry’s harsh realities.