Naughty Dog gave fans a big clue about "The Last Of Us 2" back in September, but most didn't notice - until now. As it turns out, an official "The Last of Us" poster released months ago hinted at the upcoming sequel and contained elements that fans didn't connect to "The Last Of Us 2" until recently.
In September, Naughty Dog released a limited time poster of "The Last of Us" for its annual "Outbreak Day" celebrations. The artwork was crafted by designer Kevin Tong and featured an arm holding a switchblade knife. Fern branches twisted around the arm while moths perched on the knife and flitted the arm. At the time, it was clear whose arm was on the poster and whether it belonged to a man or a woman, though many presumed that it was Ellie's.
"This year, we wanted to create something special, so we teamed up with Mondo to create a limited edition poster inspired by 'The Last of Us,'" read the video game developer's announcement at the time. "Illustrated by Kevin Tong and developed in close collaboration with the studio, this incredible design is part of a small volume production and each will be individually hand numbered and signed by the artist."
Earlier this month, Naughty Dog finally announced "The Last of Us 2," the sequel to the critically acclaimed action-adventure survival horror video game. The reveal trailer showed a grown-up Ellie, who replaces Joel as the sequel's main protagonist, with a new tattoo on her arm. The tattoo featured a fern frond with a moth perched on it. On Wednesday, Dec. 7, "The Last of Us 2" director Neil Druckmann unveiled the full tattoo design on Twitter, which is when fans finally made the connection. Many realized that the poster designed was Tong wasn't for "The Last of Us"; rather, it was for "The Last of Us 2."
Meanwhile, "The Last of Us" fans have an interesting new theory about the long-awaited "The Last of Us 2." According to some, Joel, the original video game's protagonist, died in "The Last of Us" and appears in the sequel as either a ghost or a figment of Ellie's imagination. Eurogamer notes that this theory could explain why Ellie is the main protagonist in "The Last of Us 2" and why Druckmann recently said that the sequel is about hate.
