The Last of Us Part 2 started as an 'open world inspired by Bloodborne' according to co-director

The Last of Us Part 2 could've taken an entirely different approach to the first game, according to co-director Anthony Newman. In the behind-the-scenes documentary, Grounded 2: Making The Last of Us Part 2, Newman confirmed that the team wanted the second part to be "as different as humanly possible from the first game."

When development started, Newman stated that the team wanted to be "very ambitious in changing the game entirely." Because of this, an open-world game inspired by Bloodborne started to come to fruition with a heavy emphasis on melee combat rather than what we know Part 2 to offer. 

However, according to lead game designer Emilia Schatz: "It wasn't just about melee combat, we were also looking at layout structure.

"Bloodborne had a very open space that kept getting bigger and bigger as you explored. I really like that feeling that you get of mastery over the world. It starts to become almost a character in the game itself. And so, that was also something we were looking at."

The idea of an adventure getting bigger the more you explore was incredibly appealing to the team, as expressed by Newman, so it set the basis for the first four to five months of development. Plus, this theme perfectly suits the post-apocalyptic world of The Last of Us Part 2.

But, even though this idea didn't leave production, there's still a chance that the next installment to the series could follow in the footsteps of a game like Bloodborne. As mentioned in the same documentary, Neil Druckmann, the co-president of Naughty Dog, stated that he has a "concept" ready for a final chapter of the series, but didn't share any further details. 

We've got a guide to the best single-player games if you're looking for more games to sink your teeth into. However, if you want something specifically post-apocalyptic, our guide to the best zombie games is sure to satisfy too.