Former Naughty Dog Dev Hints About Potential The Last of Us 3 Location

One of the places in The last of us part 3 may be a settlement of humans immune to Cordyceps brain infection, as Ellie is. That possibility is revealed in a recent interview with a former Naughty Dog developer, who revealed that series creator Neil Druckmann had already written more lore than was ultimately included in the first two The last of us game.

Fans have long debated whether a cure for the Cordyceps fungus is really as simple as the fireflies presented it at the end of The last of us part 1. What is not up for discussion, however, is that Ellie's immunity to the devastating brain infection is genuine. Neither the first two mainline games nor HBO's hit TV adaptation have so far hinted that any other character in the franchise shares her condition.

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Rumor: More Last of Us 3 details leak online

A notable leaker reveals potential details about The Last of Us Part 3 despite Naughty Dog not officially announcing the project.

Former Naughty Dog Artist Shares Lore Cut From TLOU Games

That long-held assumption may have more cracks in it than previously thought, following a recent episode of the Kiwi Talkz podcast where Gabriel Betancourt, a former Senior Lighting Artist at Naughty Dog, sat down with host Reece Reilly. Betancourt, who worked at the Santa Monica-based studio from July 2012 to February 2019, recalled that Druckmann once told him that there is “a whole congregation” of people who are immune to all forms of the Cordyceps infection in The last of us universe. In other words, a community made up of individuals like Ellie.

Since neither the original game nor its 2020 sequel ever introduced or alluded to such a group, the simplest reading of Betancourt's account is that this mysterious immune settlement remains part of Druckmann's unpublished history. As such, it could potentially appear in the long-rumored third The last of us game, either as a playable location or as a background for the story. That conclusion is, of course, contingent on the Naughty Dog co-president not revising or rejecting the concept in the years since he mentioned it to his colleague in the late 2010s.

Ellie isn't the only immune person in the world matches TLOU Lore

The biology of Ellie's condition lends further plausibility to the idea that more people in Naughty Dog's post-apocalyptic universe are immune. As hinted at in the first game and directly confirmed in the Season 1 finale of HBO's TV adaptation, Ellie was exposed to the Cordyceps fungus in utero. It is suggested that this disrupted the normal progression of the infection and resulted in her immunity. If prenatal exposure is indeed the mechanism behind immunity, it's statistically likely that Ellie isn't the only person in the world of the franchise to have experienced it. Based on this, a showdown of people with the same condition would be in line with the series' internal logic, especially since, like Ellie, anyone else who was immune would likely have to hide their mutation.

The Last of Us Part 3 is unlikely to be released before the 2030s

Naughty Dog has yet to officially confirm plans to make a third entry in its famous franchise, although Druckmann has personally hinted at The Last of Us 3 multiple times, both in February 2024 and September 2025. Still, the studio is currently focused on finishing its sci-fi action adventure Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophetwhich is rumored to be targeting a mid-2027 launch. As such, though The last of us part 3 already in the pipeline, it will likely be released well into the PlayStation 6 generation, sometime in the 2030s.

System

Released

19 January 2024

ESRB

M for adult: blood and gore, intense violence, nudity, sexual content, strong language, use of drugs

Publisher

Sony Interactive Entertainment