The Last of Us 2 has had somewhat of a bumpy road to release. A considerable leak for The Last of Us 2 worried some players in terms of what would be included in the game, and the marketing of the title has since been heavily adjusted in terms of content and time scale. Despite this troublesome series of events, it seems that the game still has plenty to offer players and the game intends to limit the upgrades that players make to protagonist Ellie for what seems like a good reason.

The game is set to be a sequel to the critically acclaimed The Last of Us and many players have been eager to see what happened to the characters of the moving dystopian narrative. While many have anticipated another narrative-driven game, in The Last of Us 2 it seems that the way players upgrade Ellie will have a tangible impact on the experience of the story. With this in mind, the sequel may be making significant changes to the way players interact with the core story.

The co-director of The Last of Us 2, Kurt Margenau, revealed how the upgrade system will work in an “Inside The Gameplay” video. The director explained, “We wanted to put a much stronger emphasis on the importance of the choices you make in the long term for your character.” In terms of gameplay, Margenau revealed that players cannot fully upgrade their character in a single playthrough and instead the choices that are made will have a tangible impact throughout the game. With that in mind, players may pick upgrades carefully, particularly if it makes certain points of the narrative easier to overcome or harder to get past.

It is worth noting that players could not fully upgrade Joel in one playthrough in the original game either, and as a result players should be able to adjust to the consequences of their decisions. With this system in place, players will likely want to play the game more than once so they can build Ellie’s abilities and experience the narrative differently. The latest story trailer suggests that The Last Of Us 2 will have a compelling narrative and this upgrade system may be the extra encouragement players need to keep revisiting the title.

The voice actor from The Last of Us 2 claims that the leaks about the title don’t matter, and with this upgrade system which encourages different experiences they may be right. Many fans of the first title will now look forward to their own unique experience of The Last of Us 2.

The Last of Us 2 will be available June 19th, 2020 for the PS4.