Naughty Dog has announced a Last of Us tabletop board game. The game developer is partnering with board game company Themeborne on the game, which is called The Last of Us: Escape the Dark.
Players work together to overcome challenges in the board game, similar to Themeborne’s other Escape the Dark games. The board game includes black-and-white illustrated chapter cards, dice, and player pieces.
The game, which supports 1-5 players, lets players become Ellie, Joel, Tess, Billy, Tommy, or Marlene as they “weave their own story of survival and companionship,” according to Themeborne.
“Gameplay involves players making choices about which route to take and resolving immersive ‘chapter cards’ at familiar locations from the video game, including the Suburbs, Sewers, and University. Survival will depend on using a tactical combination of item cards and custom dice to overcome iconic threats, such as Hunters and Infected,” the company said.
Each survivor starts with a “Hang-up” and must complete their journey of “personal growth” to overcome whatever it may be. “A simple, satisfying crafting and weapon upgrade system also can be utilized to give players the edge in whatever strategy they choose to employ–from stealth to full-on combat,” Themeborne said.
Themeborne is funding the board game on Kickstarter, and the campaign will go live on November 8. For now, you can get a glimpse at the board game via the artwork above. There will also be a collector’s edition, Naughty Dog confirmed, but no details were made available.
“With Themeborne’s penchant for bold art and approachable game design going into the development of The Last of Us: Escape the Dark, we can’t wait to see how they realize the world of The Last of Us in a brand-new way,” Naughty Dog said.
Themeborne described its The Last of Us: Escape the Dark as “a board game with dark twist on the critically acclaimed video game series.”
The Last of Us is heating up lately, as the game’s remake launched in September and HBO’s TV series will debut in 2023. There is also a standalone Last of Us multiplayer game in the works. Beyond that, Naughty Dog has said it might develop The Last of Us: Part III.
The next big PlayStation exclusive is God of War Ragnarok, which releases on November 9 for PS4 and PS5.
