The Last of Us Part 2 is a game that would have benefited from a bit of multiplayer, and this new gameplay proves that without a shadow of a doubt.
Regardless of your opinion on the game it’s hard to deny that The Last of Us sequel wasn’t a masterclass in deception. The misdirection in those early trailers made the game’s opening hours one of the most tense and confusing first acts in any video game, ever.
While Naughty Dog cooks up The Last of Us Part 3 though fans are still mourning what could have been, specifically the spin-off multiplayer game that was cancelled just hours before its initial reveal.
That dream is still alive though and this fresh gameplay proves how much PlayStation fumbled by letting that game go.
The Last of Us Part 2’s Gets Multiplayer PvP Mode
The Last of Us’ multiplayer game was going to be a standalone title that borrowed heavily from the Factions mode found in the first game.
It would have been PvP focused and while we never got to see it The Last of Us fan Speclizer has been giving us a taste of what it could have looked like, albeit with a few minor changes.
Speclizer has been working on a mod that would allow two players to experience the single-player story of The Last of Us Part 2 in co-op, and they’re now working on a PvP mode.
“A massive progress update for the TLOU 2 Multiplayer mod” said Speclizer on X. “Here’s our first ever Multiplayer 1v1 match. Quite buggy since it’s only the first PvP test but it is really playable.”
A massive progress update for the TLOU 2 Multiplayer mod. Here’s our first ever Multiplayer 1v1 match. Quite buggy since it’s only the first PvP test but it is really playable.#TheLastofUsOnline pic.twitter.com/zZUSo5OULP
— Speclizer (@Speclizer_) May 10, 2026
The gameplay showed Ellie and Dina duking it out in a fight for survival and it’s frankly glorious. The Last of Us Part 2’s gunplay feels so gritty and raw that making it a PvP mode just makes sense, which is yet another reason why PlayStation cancelling the official multiplayer game was such a fumble.
A similar sentiment was shared by the fans when reacting to Speclizer’s build, with maxdeploy commenting: “Naughty Dog cancelled the official tlou multiplayer in december 2023 after seven years of dev. One modder is shipping it for free.”
Don’t forget when the mod is finished you’ll also be able to play through the story with a friend as well, making this sublime expansion perfect for both types of gamers.
There’s still a lot of work left to do before it’s available to the public though. Speclizer hasn’t placed a release date on the project but hopefully it’s ready sometime later this year.
While there’s seemingly no chance of PlayStation reviving the cancelled Last of Us multiplayer game perhaps the outcry from fans and support for projects like the above will spur Naughty Dog on to include it in the next game.
Factions was one of the best parts of The Last of Us Part 1 and we’d love to see it return in the sequel, along with No Return.
READ MORE: The Last of Us’ Joel Confirmed To Return In New Project, We’re So Back
