The Last of Us is one of the most successful franchises PlayStation has ever released. Its fans are numerous, and now, thanks to the HBO television series that launched back in 2023, its popularity has grown tenfold. Gamers all over are talking about this franchise in detail. The hype is such that gaming fans are waiting for the next game in the series, while TV show fans are eagerly awaiting the next season of the series.
It comes as no surprise that these games have met incredible success sales-wise too. Their fan base is such that they even made The Last of Us: Part 1, which was basically the original game made with a graphical overhaul, a success. Even though that game was launched for a full price of $70, despite not offering anything new. Still, some fans call The Last of Us: Part 2 a financial disappointment for Sony.
Recently revealed sales numbers dismiss a weird rumor about The Last of Us: Part 2
When it launched back in 2020, the game was met with an overwhelmingly positive critical reception. Over that, fans everywhere could not help discussing how visually incredible this game looked. Without a doubt, Naughty Dog had put a lot of work into their game.
But it was quickly met with controversy thanks to its very dark story. Its treatment of several fan favorites was also not taken lightly by some hardcore fans. And they decided to shun this game and criticize it whenever they could.
Top 5 sales numbers for PlayStation First Party Exclusives on PlayStation Store 💰
1. Marvel’s Spider-Man (315 Million)
2. God of War Ragnarok (279 Million)
3. The Last of Us Part 2 (242 Million)
4. Marvel’s Spider-Man Miles Morales (231 Million)
5. God of War PS4 (229 Million) pic.twitter.com/JBTdCRcUXE— DomTheBomb (@DomTheBombYT) April 27, 2024
But someone told me The Last of Us Part II was a financial disappointment 🤔
— korii 🍀 (@koriibliss) April 27, 2024
The common thought amongst those fans was that maybe, due to the polarizing response to this title, it was a flop. Some even suggested that The Last of Us: Part 2 struggled to break even on its production cost. One must understand that it is, in fact, one of the most expensive games ever made.
This game was made at a budget of $220 million, while it was still way below that of GTA 5, which was somewhere between $259 and 310 million, but it’s still an expensive game. To break even, The Last of Us: Part 2 had to be a blockbuster. A recent revelation suggests that it was indeed a blockbuster.
This new leak reveals that The Last of Us: Part 2 is among the highest-selling games on PlayStation. The highest is without a doubt Marvel’s Spider-Man, which has earned around $315 million. It was followed by God of War: Ragnarok, which earned $279 million. Then comes The Last of Us: Part 2, which earned $242 million.
These numbers do not make it look like this game was a flop in any way. It means that just through PSN sales, this game earned way above its break-even mark. It goes to show that many people might have hated this game, but there were a bunch of people who supported it too.
The HBO series’ stellar success also boosted its success
While The Last of Us: Part 2 in itself is an incredible video game, there are some other aspects that worked in its favor and helped it sell a bit better than fans expected. One of them was the HBO series based on this game, which definitely increased the number of people who wanted to give this game a go.
They might have wanted to understand the direction the second part of the series would take. To know that they got their hands on The Last of Us 2.
Then there was the release of The Last of Us: Part 2 Remastered, an enhanced version of the original game. It was released recently, and it came with a number of additional graphical and gameplay enhancements. No doubt it sold pretty well too; all in all, The Last of Us: Part 2 was not a failure.
