Naughty Dog considered making infamously included the ability to kill dogs as a “new feature” in the game.
GameStop’s questionable marketing copy ended up being just one early example of what would become an avalanche of controversies surrounding the game. Aside from the unfortunate review bombing of The Last of Us Part 2 by players upset about some of the game’s narrative choices and its mere inclusion of LGBTQ characters, it also faced some more serious pushback. Toxic players went as far as to send death threats to one of the game’s voice actors, and Naughty Dog itself rubbed some people the wrong way by arguing with critics who were unimpressed with some of the bombastic praise the game received and even calling one publication to question whether its critic’s unfavorable review was fair.
One issue that many players have with The Last of Us Part 2 - but which hasn’t boiled over into full-blown controversy - is its inclusion of nearly unavoidable violence against dogs. It’s possible to sneak past them, particularly when using a workaround that involves turning on the accessibility option that makes the player invisible when prone, but most players will find themselves fighting against dogs at some point. In an interview with Game Informer, director Neil Druckmann says the team acknowledged how uncomfortable killing dogs could be for players but decided against making it optional. Druckmann said giving players a way to cut out any of the game’s violence would go against what the story is about and that they could just “play through” their discomfort.
Another feature that seems to have been canned much earlier in its development was the inclusion of a dog companion for Ellie. The dog would reportedly have been able to bring Ellie items that she couldn’t reach herself, but Naughty Dog decided early on to give an NPC the dog instead.
Given the work that Naughty Dog did to offer robust accessibility options in The Last of Us Part 2, it seems strange to draw the line at letting players turn off an element of the game that’s likely psychologically taxing for a lot of players. Even without violence against dogs, though, The Last of Us Part 2 would still be an uncomfortable experience at its core, given the game’s troubling themes of hatred and revenge.
The Last of Us Part 2 is available on PlayStation 4.
Source: Game Informer/YouTube
