Creator of The Last of Us: Part 2 Neil Druckmann Explains Why He Doesn't Plan Sequels in Advance
Neil Druckmann discussed his stance on sequels and the fate of characters. Speaking at the D.I.C.E. Summit, the creative director shared that he doesn't think about sequels while working on the first installments. According to him, this would distract from focusing on the current project.
"I think you're jinxing yourself if you're starting to think about the sequel when you're working on the first game," Druckmann said. "I'm not saving some idea for the future. If there's a cool idea, I'm doing my best to get it into here."
He added that the team always tries to avoid repetition, using the Uncharted series as an example.
When we made Uncharted, we had no idea we would do the train sequence of Uncharted 2, or where Nathan Drake would be. We figured it out when we made Uncharted 2. And eventually, [it was] the same when we worked on Uncharted 3, [and the] same when we worked on Uncharted 4, where we look back and say: 'How do we not repeat ourselves? Where else could this character go? What else could get him back into the adventure?'
And we have to come up with a new answer. And if we don't have a new answer then we should ask ourselves, is this the right character? Is this the right game for us to work on? Or is it time to find something new?
In conclusion, Druckmann admitted that to plan a character arc for multiple games in advance, you need a huge amount of confidence — which he doesn't have. "I'm like, I just want to focus on the next five days in front of me, let alone 10 years down the line," he joked.
Currently, Naughty Dog is working on a sci-fi game called Intergalactic, which has no release date yet.