A new report from a reputable Chinese source has revealed that The Last of Us Part II will be released in February 2020. The sequel to the hit Playstation 3 games from Naughty Dog has been teased as far back as PSX 2016 without any confirmation as to when the game would release. Now, despite no official word, we may have an answer.
With Sony completely absent from E3 this year and with no real updates since E3 2018, many assumed we would not be getting The Last of Us Part II until the Sony releases the Playstation 5. Based on the history of the franchises, that may still be the case.
The Last of Us released for the Playstation 3 on June 14, 2013. Originally set to come out in May 2013, the game was delayed for the sake of quality. Naughty Dog, developers of the series, put out a statement in February of that year that explained the delay:
As we entered the final phase of development for The Last of Us, we came to realize just how massive Joel and Ellie’s journey is. But instead of cutting corners or compromising our vision, we came to the tough decision that the game deserved a few extra weeks to ensure every detail of The Last of Us was up to Naughty Dog’s internal high standards.
The Last of Us came out during a very similar time in the life cycle of Playstation to the one we find ourselves in today. Five months after the release of the game, the Playstation 4 launched. The following year in July, The Last of Us Remasted released on the Playstation 4 and went on to become one of the best selling games on the console.
Similarly, The Last of Us Part II has already purportedly been delayed, as it was originally intended to be released in Q4 2019. The February 2020 release window puts it into a strikingly similar proximity to the PS5 that the original had to the PS4. It would be no surprise for the sequel to be a launch title for the next generation, or as a remaster the following year like the original.
The leak comes from a Chinese source with a history of correct game release predictions: the same source leaked the accurate release date for Hideo Kojima's upcoming Playstation exclusive, Death Stranding.
This isn't the first time we've heard February 2020 either: 3 other sources suggested the release date, including the actress that plays Ellie, industry analyst David Ahmed, and Jason Schreier, editor of Kotaku.
Now, this 4th source seems like more than enough to give credence to the supposed The Last of Us Part II release date, and will be a perfect send-off to one of the greatest console generation in history.