The Last of Us 2 loses co-creator Bruce Straley but gains a Westworld writer

Following the shock announcement of The Last of Us 2, that definitely no one was expecting at all, Naughty Dog has followed up with some big changes to the creative line up. 

Firstly, and most importantly, co-creator and director Bruce Straley won't be returning for the sequel. While Straley still calls himself "Co-Director Dude at Naughty Dog" on his twitter account, Sony issued a statement (via Kotaku) stating that, "Bruce recently decided to take some much deserved time off after shipping two critically acclaimed games in the last few years. He’s looking forward to returning to the studio soon and jumping back in on his next project.”

It'll be interesting to see how his absence affects the sequel, if at all, and it'll be great to see what he does next. 

But, while The Last of Us 2 is saying goodbye to one talent, it's definitely gained another in the shape of Halley Gross, a writer and story editor on Westworld. 

Considering the critical acclaim the series has received, that's quite an exciting signing - Halley was directly involved in some the show's key episodes so she can clearly handle challenging narratives and deep characters. Just don't expect Ellie to discover Joel's a robot. Actually...? No.

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Leon Hurley
Managing editor for guides

I'm GamesRadar's Managing Editor for guides, which means I run GamesRadar's guides and tips content. I also write reviews, previews and features, largely about horror, action adventure, FPS and open world games. I previously worked on Kotaku, and the Official PlayStation Magazine and website.