Neil Druckmann, the director behind the critically acclaimed The Last of Us, has recently provided more insights into Naughty Dog's next ambitious project, Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet. In a fascinating interview with Alex Garland, the mastermind behind the zombie film 28 Days Later, Druckmann delved into the development journey of Intergalactic, revealing that the game has been in the works for four years.
Druckmann humorously reflected on the polarized reception to The Last of Us 2, saying, "We made a game, The Last of Us 2, we made certain creative decisions that got us a lot of hate. A lot of people love it, but a lot of people hate that game." Garland lightheartedly responded, "Who gives a shit?" Druckmann agreed and added, "But the joke is like, you know what, let's do something that people won't care as much about — let's make a game about faith and religion."
Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet Screenshots
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Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet, featuring Jordan A. Mun as Tati Gabrielle, is set in an alternate historical timeline where a "pretty prominent religion" has evolved and transformed over time. The game follows Jordan, who must utilize all her skills and intelligence to become the first person in centuries to escape the planet's orbit.
Druckmann teased, "This whole religion takes place on this one planet, and then at one point, all communication stops. And you're playing a bounty hunter that's chasing her bounty, and she crash lands on this planet." He emphasized the unique gameplay experience, stating, "So many of the previous games we've done, there's always, like, an ally with you. I really want you to be lost in a place that you're really confused about what happened here, who are the people here, what was their history. And in order to get off this planet — again, no one has been heard from this planet for 600 years or so — if you ever have hoped to have a chance to get off, you have to figure out what happened here."
AnswerSee ResultsIn other news, last week, The Last of Us Season 2 showrunners Neil Druckmann and Craig Mazin announced the return of “spores”, which were notably absent in Season 1. The latest trailer for the upcoming HBO series hinted at the spores' reintroduction. Speaking at SXSW 2025, Druckmann elaborated, "There is an escalation of numbers and types of infected, but also, as you see in the trailer, an escalation of the vector of how this thing spreads." He further explained, "Season 1, we had this new thing that wasn’t in the game of these tendrils that spread, and that was one form. And then one shot you see in this trailer, there are things in the air."
Additionally, actress Kaitlyn Dever shared her thoughts on portraying Abby in The Last of Us Season 2, admitting the challenge of resisting the urge to check online reactions to her performance.
