Naughty Dog want to “raise the bar” for the “poor” storytelling in video games with their new title, The Last of US.

The new game from Uncharted developer Naughty Dog was revealed at last weekend’s VGAs and will be exclusive to PlayStation 3.

“We try so hard at Naughty Dog to push things,” The Last of Us Creative director and writer Neil Druckmann told Eurogamer 

“And then games come out that are fun and exciting and get visceral things right, but to read in reviews that they have an amazing story is disheartening to us because we work so hard at it.

“As critics we need to raise the bar, otherwise no-one’s going to change. We’re going to keep pushing ourselves, and kill ourselves to make this story happen – but hope that by doing it, the rest of the industry is going to take notice and try to do the same thing.”

Druckmann says that The Last of Us is a love story between father and daughter and that they’re doing it because ‘love’ isn’t something that’s often properly explored in games writing.

“We approached this genre because we felt no-one is getting to the heart of it. It tells you something about the human condition – that’s what you want to do as a storyteller.” he said

“We’re not saying every game needs a strong, compelling and dramatic story, but if you are going to make a narrative-based game then you better learn the craft.” Druckmann added.

Naughty Dog describe The Last of Us as “a genre-defining experience that blends survival and action elements to tell a character driven tale about a modern plague decimating mankind. Nature encroaches upon civilization, forcing remaining survivors to kill for food, weapons and whatever they can find. Joel, a ruthless survivor, and Ellie, a brave young teenage girl who is wise beyond her years, must work together to survive their journey across what remains of the United States.”

Train2Game blog readers can see the first trailer for The Last of Us below.

So Train2Game, what are your first impressions of The Last of Us? Is a ‘love story’ a bold move for Naughty Dog? Do you believe game writers need to raise the bar?

Leave your comments here on the Train2Game blog, or on the Train2Game forum.

[Source: Eurogamer]