The Last of Us Part II Multiplayer Mod Hits 4v4 Matches, Revives Cancelled Factions Dream
An unofficial PC mod that recreates The Last of Us’ cancelled competitive multiplayer has taken its biggest step yet, with modder Speclizer confirming that full 4v4 matches are now working inside The Last of Us Part II. The developer, who has been building the project solo since January 2026, revealed the breakthrough on X, noting the mod “we can now have matches up to 4v4, previously we were limited to 1v1s only”.
From 1v1 Duels to Full 4v4 Squads
The mod previously only supported 1v1 and then 2v2 games. Getting all eight player slots to sync smoothly in the same session marks a genuine engineering leap for a fan-made project running on tools never designed for competitive PvP. Speclizer marked the update as a turning point for the mod, which is a multiplayer mod for The Last of Us Part 2 that began at the start of the year and recently “hit quite a big milestone” to get competitive 4v4 matches working ahead of the project’s planned launch in September.
Alongside the 4v4 news, Speclizer and other players who took part in recent playtests have been uploading fresh footage of matches to YouTube, giving the wider community its first proper look at squad-based combat rather than isolated tech demos.
Leaderboards and a Factions-Inspired Interface Land Too
The 4v4 jump isn’t the only system Speclizer has bolted on recently. The multiplayer mod already supports a matchmaking system, leaderboards, and even an interface inspired by the canceled The Last of Us Factions. On top of that, it now also has a functioning leaderboard, and recently added the Seraphite Forest map to complement the Houses map previously shown off.
The modder’s current focus is on replicating Naughty Dog’s signature movement fidelity in a player-versus-player setting. According to GamesRadar+, as recently as last week Speclizer was “looking to implement Naughty Dog level animation sync” and was exploring how the studio pulled it off in Uncharted 4 and The Last of Us Factions.
Building Factions From Scratch Since January
Speclizer’s project didn’t start as an ambitious PvP suite. Development began in January 2026, with Speclizer working independently and drawing on both personal expertise and feedback from the modding community. Early tests were far humbler than the current build, running two instances of Ellie in the same world simply to prove the concept could work at all.
Since then the scope has grown considerably, with synchronised sprinting, backpacks, weapon switching, doors and interactable objects all folded into the build over successive development logs. The result is a project that increasingly resembles the online mode Naughty Dog never shipped.
Filling the Gap Left by The Last of Us Online’s Cancellation
The mod exists because of a well-documented gap in the franchise. The first The Last of Us game featured a 4v4 multiplayer mode called Factions, but Naughty Dog decided to remove that mode from its sequel. The studio later spun the concept into a standalone follow-up, The Last of Us Online, which was ultimately scrapped.
That cancellation stung many fans given how far along the project reportedly was. The official The Last of Us Online was canceled at around 80% completion, leaving Speclizer’s fan build as the closest thing PC players currently have to that unreleased vision.
September 2026 Target, PC-Only and Unofficial
The mod will be exclusive to the PC version of The Last of Us Part II and is not planned for PlayStation platforms, meaning PS5 owners who haven’t picked up the Remastered PC release will miss out entirely. A launch window has been floated but not locked in: Speclizer has not yet shared final installation instructions, system requirements or details about how the mod will be distributed, so players should treat September 2026 as a targeted release window rather than a guaranteed launch date.
There’s also a legal shadow hanging over the whole effort. As an entirely unofficial project, the mod could face DMCA takedown requests from Sony or Naughty Dog, since it is not authorized by the rights holders. For now, though, the project continues to gather momentum in public view, with Speclizer posting regular updates rather than working in secret.
For Australian and New Zealand fans of The Last of Us who’ve been following the franchise since the original Factions launched on PS3, the mod offers a rare chance to actually play the multiplayer format Naughty Dog walked away from — provided they own the PC version and don’t mind the usual caveats that come with unofficial, unpaid fan projects still very much in progress.
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