The Last of Us Part 1 remake for PS5 has been rumoured for months, and now it’s finally been confirmed with a splashy cinematic trailer. A massive increase in quality is evident, but how has the tech been pushed since the original game – and how does the new remake compare to the series’ second entry in 2020? Is this a simple remaster or something more exciting – a TLOU1 remake in the TLOU2 engine?
While the game is set to be released in less than 90 days, all we have to try and answer those questions are a 90-second trailer – mostly of cinematics – along with some high-quality screenshots. Suffice it to say, a full Digital Foundry tech analysis will come later, but there’s still enough here to produce some intriguing comparisons.
Right off the bat, there’s a massive improvement in visual fidelity and asset quality comparing the PS4 Pro version of the 2014 Last of Us remaster against the PS5 remake footage. The opening shot, which depicts a gameplay area, has been completely redone. The buildings have new geometry and higher grade materials, lighting and shading is much more subtle, and high-quality foliage is now flowing over the buildings in much the same style as The Last of Us Part 2. In broad strokes, the design of the area is very similar, but the technology and art is much improved with substantially revised – if not brand new – assets.
