Shuhei Yoshida, the former executive at PlayStation, recently discussed several industry developments, including the cancellation of Naughty Dog’s The Last of Us multiplayer project and Microsoft’s strategy of releasing its games on the PlayStation platform, during an interview. Yoshida, who concluded his tenure at Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) last month, characterized The Last of Us Online as “great,” but noted that the studio could not allocate the necessary resources for a live-service game without impacting its upcoming projects. Naughty Dog decided to cancel the multiplayer title in December 2023 to focus on its forthcoming single-player game.
The Last of Us Online Was ‘Great’
In an appearance on the Sacred Symbols+ podcast (reported by Push Square), Yoshida addressed the choice to halt development on the multiplayer experience, stating, “I played the game and it was great.”
“The concept for The Last of Us Online originated from Naughty Dog, and they had a strong desire to bring it to fruition,” Yoshida remarked during the paywalled episode released on Wednesday. “However, Bungie explained the complexities involved in creating live-service games, leading Naughty Dog to realize that they couldn’t manage this project without jeopardizing their next title, Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet. This highlighted a significant oversight.”
These remarks align with reports from May 2023, which indicated that Bungie, experienced in developing live-service games, had assessed The Last of Us Online and expressed concerns regarding its potential to retain player engagement over time.
Following this evaluation, Sony and Naughty Dog reduced the team working on the multiplayer project. This change came after the studio stated that additional time was required for the online game and confirmed that they were developing a new single-player experience.
Eventually, in December 2023, Naughty Dog declared the cancellation of The Last of Us Online. While the studio was optimistic about the game’s direction, they acknowledged it would be unsustainable to support a live-service model in the long term without affecting upcoming single-player projects.
“As we progressed to full production, the extensive scope of our objectives became evident. To successfully launch and sustain The Last of Us Online, we would need to devote all our studio resources to post-launch content for years, significantly hindering our development of future single-player titles. This left us with two options: transition into a studio focused solely on live service games or continue our commitment to the single-player narrative experiences that have shaped Naughty Dog’s legacy,” the studio explained at the time.
Furthermore, the studio confirmed that it was working on “more than one” new single-player title, with one of them revealed to be Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet during The Game Awards 2024. Details about the sci-fi action-adventure game remain limited, but it has been reported that development began in 2020.
Yoshida on Xbox Games Coming to PS5
In another segment of the interview, Yoshida commented on Microsoft’s recent move to launch first-party titles on the PlayStation 5. He described the initiative as a “win for PlayStation owners.”
“Given the current install base of Xbox hardware, their strategy becomes quite logical and straightforward,” Yoshida noted. He emphasized that maintaining first-party development on a less popular platform would be “impossible,” as developers aim for their games to reach a wider audience.
Microsoft’s Xbox sales have been declining as the company shifts towards releasing its first-party games on competing platforms. After announcing several games for PS5 and Nintendo Switch in early 2024, Microsoft has continued to introduce more exclusive titles for those consoles.
This year, Microsoft confirmed that first-party games such as Forza Horizon 5, Age of Mythology: Retold, and Age of Empires 2: Definitive Edition will be made available on PS5 soon. The title Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, which launched as an Xbox and PC exclusive in December 2024, is scheduled for release on PS5 in 2025. Additionally, the upcoming first-party game Doom: The Dark Ages is set for simultaneous release on PC, Xbox Series S/X, and PS5 on May 13, 2025.
Following a distinguished career in the gaming industry spanning 31 years, Yoshida retired from SIE last month. He previously served as president of PlayStation Studios until 2019 before leading Sony’s initiative to support independent developers.
