If you are interested in getting your hands on this edition - which comes with the base game, its prequel chapter Left Behind, the American Dreams comic series (which itself has new cover art), a SteelBook display case, and a variety of early unlocks for the game - you can head over to the PlayStation store to pre-order a copy. Its release date is currently listed as Thursday 26th January, 2023. This edition doesn’t come cheap however, and will set you back £99.99. Developer Naughty Dog has defended its decision to re-release The Last of Us Part 1 for a third time with such a high price tag, stating it isn’t a “cash grab” - something many had accused the project of being. Following this remake’s announcement, animator Robert Morrison - who worked on The Last of Us Part 1 and now works at fellow Sony studio, Bend - defended the remake, stating “actually, it’s the most meticulously built and crafted project that I have ever seen or been a part of in my entire career”. I also broached this subject with Naughty Dog developers Matthew Gallant and Shaun Escayg when I spoke to them about the remake back in August. This is what they had to say about the pricing: “The Last of Us Part 1 is a game that is going to stand toe to toe with any other game that comes out this year. It is a full PS5 game developed with all our latest and greatest engine technology. [It has been] developed with the furthest that we’re able to push fidelity and graphics and framerate and combat and AI - just every dimension that we could, we wanted to push that as far forward as possible and make this a version of the game that is just seamless with anything else that’s coming out on modern consoles. “So, from our perspective, this is a PS5 game. This is a game that was remade and [that] speaks to the price.” Meanwhile, if The Last of Us is your thing, then January is shaping up to be quite a good month. Along with this Firefly edition of the first game, next month will also see the debut of HBO’s TV adaptation of Naughty Dog’s series. Starring Pedro Pascal as Joel and Bella Ramsey as Ellie, this adaptation kicks off 15th January in the US, which makes for a 16th January launch here in the UK on Sky Atlantic. You can read more about my thoughts on the trailers for the show so far here and here.
