The Last Of Us: Multiplayer Will Not Feature Co-op

Any game that has two lead characters is always going to be ripe for co-op gameplay however, it seems that it isn't on the cards for The Last of Us. Creative Director Neil Druckmann told Gaming Examiner, "We are supporting multiplayer with The Last of Us. We€™re not ready to talk about the details of how multiplayer will be implemented, however we can say that it is not co-op within the main campaign." Druckmann goes on to describe the role that your AI partner will play; "we€™ve...designed Ellie to be a very capable ally who provides vital mutual aid to Joel in overcoming obstacles. In and out of combat situations, Ellie will be a valuable resource throughout the game." Perhaps the effort that has been put into realising Ellie as an AI partner is in part responsible for the lack of a co-op campaign. So, what kind of multiplayer could a game like The Last of Us have that doesn't compromise the survival horror aspects of the game? The usual death matches and team games could still come into play but, to stay true to the single player campaign, would severely restrict ammo. This could make for a distinctly unique experience, even in game types we have seen many times before. What usually turns into blood baths could instead be bitter struggles where luck has more of an impact that level or skill. This could potentially even the playing field and give new comers more of a chance to shine. At the moment this is still speculation as no concrete information has been released regarding the multiplayer component. We probably wont be seeing anything solid until 2013 but for the moment, this is another indication that The Last of Us will be a key player in 2013.