That Last of Us Part II Reveal Trailer is Not Actually in the Game

In the AIAS Game Maker’s Notebook, Naughty Dog Creative Director Neil Druckmann sat down with Insomniac Games CEO Ted Price. It was an interesting conversation, in which listeners got a “behind the scenes” look at what really goes into making a game.

We learned learned some new information about The Last of Us Part II, like how the project has been “ballooning” in a few directions the further along it gets in development; how Druckmann held off showing anything new from the game at E3 2017; and also how the reveal trailer for The Last of Us Part II is actually not a part of the game. “The first trailer we showed kind of exists purely as an announcement,” Druckmann says casually, almost as an after-thought. “It’s not a scene that takes place in the game.” This can be heard around the 7:45 mark.

The Last of Us Part II reveal was the big surprise of PlayStation Experience (PSX) 2016. Taking place five years after the first game, Ellie is nineteen now and Joel is…well, we’re not sure if Joel is still around, actually. There’s been a lot of speculation as to whether he’s dead, especially since Druckmann has stated the narrative of this game will be driven by Ellie’s hate. Then came the second look at the game from Paris Games Week, which basically solidified the The Last of Us Part II’s thread of hatred and revenge in a gruesome, five minute trailer. In it, we were introduced to several new characters, a cryptic plot, and a new side of this post-apocalyptic world.

Though we’ve only had two trailers for The Last of Us Part II, Druckmann stated at PSX 2017 that more will be revealed in the form of gameplay footage at E3 2018 in June. While it’s fairly common for trailer reveals to not be a part of the game (Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End, anyone?), let me know in the comments if you’re disappointed by this news. Keep up to date with The Last of Us Part II news here at LoadingXP. Listen to the full conversation between Neil Druckmann and Ted Price below.