Max Frequency

Chasing the Stick: The History of Naughty Dog

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The History

A deep-dive into the history of PlayStation Studios team Naughty Dog and their development during the PS4 generation. From the The Last of Us on PS3 to Nathan Drake’s finale in Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End to the 7-year sequel, The Last of Us Part II, Chasing the Stick explores how the team puts narrative on the control stick. Available as an article or a podcast for audio listeners.

Direct Link – Apple Podcasts – Spotify – Overcast – Castro – Pocket Casts – RSS

Behind the Scenes

Dive into Max’s creative process as he shares how he wrote and recorded Chasing the Stick. Explore the apps, locations, and tools he used alongside the creative decisions he hade to make to bring the definitive history to light.

Naughty Dog's Development Timeline

Check out Naughty Dog’s turnaround time from announcement to release all the way from the PS1 generation to today.

Cutting the Hair: The History of Neil Druckmann’s Hair during the PS4 Era

Inspired by Halley Gross revealing Neil cut his hair after The Last of Us Part II released, Max took the Chasing the Stick format for research and accurate reporting to explore the evolution of Naughty Dog Co-President Neil Druckmann’s hair.

It turns out that one lunch-break idea can turn into one of your more popular articles that you’ve ever written.

The Last of Us Part III

A collection of stories about the rumored development of The Last of Us Part III.

  • The Last of Us Part III Rumored to be in Production, dated December 14, 2022
  • Naughty Dog’s Next Game has a Writer’s Room, dated December 27, 2022
  • History is Repeating Itself, dated January 9, 2023

The Last of Us Online

A collections of stories about the development of The Last of Us Online.

  • The Last of Us Part II Major Leaks Have Begun dated April 7, 2020
  • The Last of Us Multiplayer Game Drip Feed Keeps on Dripping dated January 6, 2023
  • The Last of Us Multiplayer Game is going to Pop Off dated January 9, 2023
  • The Last of Us Factions Multiplayer Game Delayed dated May, 26, 2023
  • Naughty Dog Cancels The Last of Us Online dated December 15, 2023

The Last of Us Prequel – From Animation to DLC to Second-Party to HBO

A very Chasing the Stick-lite timeline and analysis of the prequel story about Ellie’s mother and father.

The Year of The Last of Us and its Review

2023 marked the ten year anniversary of The Last of Us. I whipped up a post about what to expect for the celebration and then a follow-up a year later about how the year went.

Evan Wells Announces Retirement

After 25 years at Naughty Dog, co-president Evan Wells announced his retirement from the studio by the end of 2023.

Ski Crazed in 4K

Using a MiSTer FPGA console, Max played Naughty Dog’s second game, Ski Crazed. Max recorded the off-screen CRT footage with his Canon 90D to show off the Apple II game in 4K.

Announcement and Trailer

You can check out both the original announcement and the launch trailer for Chasing the Stick.

The Last of Us Season 1 Episode Thoughts & Impressions

Being such an important game in Max’s life, he decide to review each episode of the first season of HBO’s The Last of Us.

  • The Last of Us Ep. 1 – “When You’re Lost in the Darkness” Thoughts & Impressions
  • The Last of Us Ep. 2 – “Infected” Thoughts & Impressions
  • The Last of Us Ep. 3 – “Long, Long Time” Thoughts & Impressions
  • The Last of Us Ep. 4 – “Please Hold to My Hand” Thoughts & Impressions
  • The Last of Us Ep. 5 – “Endure and Survive” Thoughts & Impressions
  • The Last of Us Ep. 6 – “Kin” Thoughts & Impressions
  • The Last of Us Ep. 7 – “Left Behind” Thoughts & Impressions
  • The Last of Us Ep. 8 – “When We Are in Need” Thoughts & Impressions
  • The Last of Us Ep. 9 – “Look for the Light” Thoughts & Impressions

Naughty Dog Previews and Reviews

Here is a collection of Max’s previews and reviews on Naughty Dog’s library of games. The list is in order of the game’s release order, not publication.

  • Uncharted 2: Among Thieves Review from Go Left Gaming on August 4, 2013
  • The Last of Us Demo Preview from Go Left Gaming on June 1, 2013
  • The Last of Us Review from Go Left Gaming on June 22, 2013
  • The Last of Us: Left Behind from Go Left Gaming on February 25, 2014
  • Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End Preview from Millennial Gaming Speak on April 20, 2016
  • Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End Review from Millennial Gaming Speak on May 17, 2016
  • Uncharted: The Lost Legacy Review from Go Left Gaming on August 26, 2017
  • Uncharted: The Lost Legacy Spoiler Discussion from Millennial Gaming Speak on August 22, 2017
  • The Last of Us Part II Review from Max Frequency on July 25, 2020