The Last of Us Was Designed to Be ‘the Opposite of Resident Evil,’ Says Neil Druckmann

The Last of Us and Resident Evil are supposed to be “opposites.” That’s according to Naughty Dog co-president Neil Druckmann, who said in a recent interview that the 2013 PlayStation exclusive was envisioned to be a game that delved more into intimate relationships, unlike Capcom’s popular franchise, which he’s a fan of.

How The Last of Us and Resident Evil differ

Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, Druckmann said that when designing his horror franchise, he considered how Resident Evil focuses on “over-the-top” action with a variety of enemies like giant spiders. The Last of Us, on the other hand, is an exploration of relationships against the post apocalyptic backdrop, with enemies that were once human.

“What if it’s about intimate relationships — an exploration of the unconditional love a parent feels for their child and the beautiful things that could come out of that and the really horrible things that could come out of that?” Druckmann recalled thinking.

Interestingly, the idea of The Last of Us first came about when Druckmann was still a student and had to pitch a zombie story to Night of the Living Dead (1968) director George Romero as part of his computer class. Romero didn’t like it.

Now, the concept forms basis of one of the biggest PlayStation franchises ever.