As many will surely know,The Last of Us 2tells a story about revenge, focusing closely on the lives of Abby and Ellie. While both characters exist in a world inhabited by many factions, two of these groups have a major role to play in the story: the WLF and Seraphites. However, seeing as the narrative is aboutAbby and Ellieas opposed to these factions, the war between them happens in the background. With the upcomingThe Last of Usmultiplayer spin-off, Naughty Dog can and should provide more lore about these two groups.
The upcoming multiplayer entry inThe Last of Usseries initially started as an online mode for the sequel, and it can be assumed that the two groups it would have let players control are the aforementioned WLF and Seraphites. Though the game has since grown significantly, becoming a standalone project, any Factions-like content it has may still focus on these two groups. If that is the case, Naughty Dog has a unique opportunity to further flesh outThe Last of Us 2’s version of Seattle.
The Last of Us Part 2
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Play the winner of over 300 Game of the Year awards, remastered for the PlayStation®5 console. Relive or play for the first time Ellie and Abby’s story, now with graphical enhancements, new gameplay modes like the roguelike survival experience No Return, full DualSense® wireless controller integration, and more. Five years after their dangerous journey across the post-pandemic United States, Ellie and Joel have settled down in Jackson, Wyoming. Living amongst a thriving community of survivors has allowed them peace and stability, despite the constant threat of the infected and other, more desperate survivors. When a violent event disrupts that peace, Ellie embarks on a relentless journey to carry out justice and find closur
With the two factions essentially used as world-building that enhancedAbby’s story inThe Last of Us 2, giving more insight into how the groups functioned with the multiplayer game could retroactively improve their parts ofThe Last of Us 2’s narrative. For instance, more insight can be given into each group’s leader, with players learning how the Prophet inspired the Seraphites and how someone as unforgiving as Isaac was able to keep the support of his soldiers.
Obviously, this would mean that the multiplayer spin-off would have to take place beforeThe Last of Us 2, which could allow for cameos from Abby’s group as well asYara and Lev. Regardless, the main focus should be on showing players more about how these leaders influenced their respective groups. Isaac’s arc in particular feels lacking, as players see very little of him duringThe Last of Us 2. This makes his death feel unexpected and a bit unearned, so fleshing out his story with the multiplayer spin-off could make him less of an afterthought. Additionally, The Seraphites decline in a major way after the death of The Prophet, so showing how she made such a twisted group attractive would be interesting.
It is rumored thatthe upcomingThe Last of Usmultiplayer gamewill have a live service approach, and assuming that it does, an evolving story could be used to show the fights between the WLF and Seraphites progressing. Players can engage in small skirmishes early on before fighting in full-on battles, with The Prophet eventually being captured by the WLF after a few Seasons of content. Actually seeing her speak with Isaac could be interesting, as could the moment where he executes her.
Exploring Life in WLF and Seraphite Camps
IfThe Last of Usmultiplayer game expands the clan systemto let players walk around actual settlements, or the main bases of either faction, even more insight into the two groups could be provided. Players could witness what day-to-day life was like for a regular WLF soldier, as while Abby’s story briefly provides something like this, she is a character that is given special treatment by Isaac. Going on patrols and completing missions could be interesting, and both would align with the concept of multiplayer matches.
Similarly, setting up camp on the main Seraphite island or in one of the group’s skyscraper camps could allow players to get insight into the religion and values that drive the group. Players learn about some of these things through Yara’s punishment, the facial scars, and Lev’s rebellion against the group, but there would surely be far more traditions that went undocumented in the game. WhileNaughty Dogcould easily focus on some generic Hunter groups in the spin-off, or let players craft their own, focusing on these two factions would be worthwhile.
