The Last of Us Part 2 Animator Leaves Naughty Dog

The Last of Us Part 2 has been in a rollercoaster of a news cycle over the last month. After finally receiving a February 2020 release date after years of anticipation last month, Naughty Dog announced just a couple weeks later that the game’s release had been delayed by three months to May. We now have another little update on some behind-the-scenes stuff about the game’s development.

Jonathan Cooper, who was an animator at Naughty Dog, recently announced on Twitter that he has left the studio. His LinkedIn profile actually shows that he left last month- a look at his profile also shows that he’s been involved in all of Naughty Dog’s recent major stuff. After working on Uncharted 4, he then moved on to Uncharted: The Lost Legacy, before working on The Last of Us Part 2 for over two years.

Naughty Dog has touted the new and advanced animation techniques that they’ve made use of in The Last of Us Part 2, so it’d be interesting to know how much Cooper was involved in that, and how his departure affects development.

Either way, The Last of Us Part 2 is out on May 29, 2020 for the PS4.

I've decide to part ways with Naughty Dog.

I'm thankful to have contributed to the PS4 era of this storied studio, and I wish them luck in their future endeavours.

— Jonathan Cooper (@GameAnim) October 26, 2019