According to Neil Druckmann, co-president, PS5’s Last of Us Part I features a number of gameplay and presentation enhancements to bring the game closer to its original vision. Developer Naughty Dog, along with creative director Shaun Escayg and game director Matthew Gallant, can learn more in a new video detailing many of the game’s updates and enhancements.
The Last of Us Part I can render native 4K at target 30FPS or dynamic 4K at target 60FPS * and has PS5 key features such as DualSense wireless controller haptics, trigger effects, 3D audio **, but many more. It’s clear. It’s a complete overhaul here, rather than a simple resolution and frame rate bump.
From art direction to character models, the entire game has been rebuilt from scratch to take advantage of a new generation of graphics features. This allows the game to reach the visual fidelity that the studio wanted when creating this experience. PS5’s powerful hardware drives many visual benefits from denser physics with lots of bubbling and chipping (bullets can tear concrete and environmental objects), and cinematics seamlessly. Move to gameplay. Motion matching technology means that character animations flow more compellingly, intuitively and realistically. Everything adds another layer of reliability to the interaction between the character and the world. In addition, AI upgrades mean that characters will live in the world in a more realistic and realistic way, such as buddy characters navigating covers to more reliably avoid the line of sight of enemy NPCs.
All enhancements are made in the name of making the game more immersive, but it’s not the only improvement. Naughty Dog has worked with the community to integrate several fan requests, including a “Permadeath” mode, a speedrun-focused mode, and a host of new unlockable costumes for Joel and Erie. The game also hosts over 60 accessibility options, surpassing what developers could offer in The Last of Us Part II, and including a new audio description mode, which makes it rewarding for everyone. It’s comprehensive.
The Last of Us Part I will be released on PlayStation 5 on September 2, 2022.
* 4K display device is required.
** 3D audio via TV speakers or analog / USB stereo headphones.
