The Last Of Us Part 1 Co-Directors Say Restraint Was Their "Biggest Approach" To The Remake

thegamer.com:

The release of the remake of one of gaming's most revered titles is fast approaching, and those who steered its development have been speaking to the press. In an interview, creative director Shaun Escayg and game director Matthew Gallant opened up about their approach to remaking The Last of Us, explaining how Naughty Dog came to work on the project, among much else.

Speaking to Polygon, Escayg said the remake should satisfy both new players and existing fans, as well as provide visual continuity for those going from Part 2 to the game that kicked things off. As for Gallant, he mentioned that the upcoming PC port is something they're looking forward to, as well as anticipating interest from those who'll be watching the HBO TV adaptation.

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The pair spoke of the huge tech improvements that have occurred since the PS3 and what this has meant for the remake, with upgrades in AI, animation, and combat. For instance, since memory was so limited on the PS3 the original game had to use certain tricks to load in assailants behind and in front of the player to give the appearance of a bigger battle. "There might be a fight in the original game that only has male runners, because we couldn't afford to have the female runners loaded in at the same time," Gallant explained. "We can now go in and have more look variety in those fights, that sort of thing".

Addressing the differences between a remake and a remaster (the PS3 game was remastered for the PS4), the directors explained that while they now have much greater abilities available to them they still had to make key decisions. "I would say the approach is measured. When we come into a remake like