Naughty Dog Reveals Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet, a New Sci-Fi Franchise for PS5

After years of silence on their new project, criticism over a slate of remasters and remakes and a cancelled online game, Naughty Dog has finally revealed its next game. The first-party Sony studio announced Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet, a brand-new franchise, at The Game Awards 2024 on Thursday. The game, which seems to be a science-fiction action title, is currently in development for the PlayStation 5. Naughty Dog did not share a launch timeline for Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet but confirmed it has been working on the game since 2020.

Naughty Dog's Announces Its Next Game

The Game Awards creator and producer Geoff Keighley premiered the reveal trailer for Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet in a final announcement on the night. “Because tonight is such a special show, we do have one more thing,” Keighley said.

Following the reveal, Naughty Dog studio head Neil Druckmann, who also serves as game director for Intergalactic, said the game would be the studio's “wildest, most creative story yet.”

“We're back! You have been dying to know what's next for us, and I'm thrilled to finally be able to answer: Naughty Dog's next game is Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet, currently in development for the PlayStation 5 console,” Druckmann said in a blog post on Naughty Dog's website, revealing more details about the game. “We've been working on this brand-new adventure since 2020! This game is shaping up to be our wildest, most creative story yet.”

Porsche spaceship in Intergalactic
Photo Credit: Sony/ Naughty Dog

Intergalactic: The New Heretic: What We Know So Far

The trailer, that follows a moody, 80s-inspired retro-futuristic aesthetic with pulsing synth music, recognisable branding (Porsche spaceship, Adidas sneakers), showcased Intergalactic's protagonist — Jordan Mun, a shaved-headed bounty hunter chasing a target to a distant, dark planet. Druckmann shared more details about the game's premise in the blog post, promising an “emotional, character-driven” story and the “deepest gameplay in Naughty Dog's history.”

“Intergalactic stars our newest protagonist, Jordan A. Mun, a dangerous bounty hunter who ends up stranded on Sempiria – a distant planet whose communication with the outside universe went dark hundreds of years ago,” Druckmann said. “In fact, anyone who's flown to it hoping to unravel its mysterious past was never heard from again. Jordan will have to use all her skills and wits if she hopes to be the first person in over 600 years to leave its orbit.

Intergalactic's protagonist is a bounty hunter named Jordan Mun, played by Tati Gabrielle
Photo Credit: Sony/ Naughty Dog

“Beyond that, we're keeping everything about the story under wraps – at least for now. What we can tell you is that this game lives up to the Naughty Dog tradition of creating an emotional, character-driven epic journey. Our narrative goals are rivaled only by our gameplay ambitions. This will be the deepest gameplay in Naughty Dog's history, taking our learnings from our previous franchises and pushing them beyond anything we've ever done before.”

The trailer, which features in-engine footage, showed Jordan picking up a bounty (Colin Graves, played by actor Kumail Nanjiani) through her agent. The bounty hunter is played by Tati Gabrielle; Better Caul Saul actor Tony Dalton can also be spotted in several photos in the trailer. More cast members will be revealed in time, Druckmann said. Additionally, Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, the acclaimed duo behind the original scores of films like The Social Network and Challengers, will work on the soundtrack for Intergalactic.

Intergalactic will likely feature melee combat
Photo Credit: Sony/ Naughty Dog

The trailer doesn't reveal much about the gameplay, but we see Jordan's retro-futuristic Porche spaceship, which suggests players may be able to use it for traversal, or as a home base. The bounty hunter can be seen equipping an automatic pistol and is later seen taking on a robot with her red laser sword, which hints game may include both shooting and melee combat.

“We know you're eager for more – and trust us, we're very eager to share more with you. For now, though, it's time to put our heads back down and keep cranking away on Jordan's adventure,” Druckmann said.

With no confirmed launch timeline, Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet, is likely at least a couple years away. The game, which serves as Naughty Dog's fifth original franchise after Crash Bandicoot, Jak and Daxter, Uncharted and The Last of Us, will release exclusively on the PS5.