Last Wednesday, during Sony's State of Play, The Last of Us 2 was featured heavily, including a 20 minute gameplay demo for fans to sink their teeth in. While this is a game that generally takes itself very seriously, an unexpected cameo made its way into the gameplay, the PlayStation Vita.
The PlayStation Vita was the successor of the PlayStation Portable, but never really caught on the same way. Given that The Last of Us 2 takes place decades in the future, it is rather bizarre to see one in the gameplay, but it appears nonetheless.
During the gameplay demo which is full of violence performed both on and by Ellie, one character is found holding a PlayStation Vita. Despite the fact that she has one of the last existing pieces of pre-outbreak technology, Ellie mercilessly stabs her in the throat with no regard for
The Last of Us 2 takes place in the year 2038, which is pretty absurd considering the PS Vita was discontinued last year in 2019. More likely than not, this was included as a joke, but that doesn't stop many from making connections wherever they can find them. Given that the game is a PS4 exclusive, it could be that this is some form of product placement, but that is very unlikely because this handheld has been discontinued.
Ellie seems unphased by the device in the girl's hand, which makes sense given that she would have no idea what it is. With that in mind, the person playing on it also seems too young to know about the device, meaning this legendary PS Vita must have been passed down at least one generation in order to make it to where it is today. The video above shows the gameplay from The Last of Us 2, and fans wanting to see the PS Vita cameo should skip to around the 16 minute mark.
Unfortunately for the livelihood of the PS Vita, Ellie kills who is probably the last remaining owner of one, and the device is promptly discarded and forgotten about. This scene should make its way into the final product that will be available to fans in just a few weeks, so the strange cameo will live on.
The Last of Us 2 releases on June 19th exclusively on PS4.
Source: Polygon