Logan and I have been overwhelmed with the response to Chapter Select in its first week. Particularly here in the Chasing the Stick podcast feed! So, I wanted to pop back in one more time to properly share the Season 1 announcement and share a little tease of the full episode.
Which, is out right now! Check out the links below to listen to S1E1 – Paper Mario and subscribe to Chapter Select!
In this inaugural test season of Chapter Select, Max and Logan dig into Naughty Dog’s post-apocalyptic series The Last of Us. Hot off the heels of its release in 2020, we sink our teeth into Naughty Dog’s divisive sequel. Did PlayStation’s top team capture earn the “Part II” in the title? How does The Last of Us Part II affect the legacy of the first game?
In this inaugural test season of Chapter Select, Max and Logan dig into Naughty Dog’s post-apocalyptic series The Last of Us. Weeks before the release of the sequel, Logan and Max replayed the PS3’s swan song to explore how it aged and explore its impact on the video game industry in the past seven years.
Welcome to Part VI of Chasing the Stick: The History of Naughty Dog during the PS4 Era.
I decided to break-up the six parts of my history into individual episodes as well, for more choice for you, the listener.This episode talks about the future of Naughty Dog with the PlayStation 5 and what could lie ahead. I hope you enjoy.
Continue reading “Part VI: Conclusion”
Welcome to Part V of Chasing the Stick: The History of Naughty Dog during the PS4 Era.
I decided to break-up the six parts of my history into individual episodes as well, for more choice for you, the listener. This episode focuses on the tumultuous and generation-long development cycle of The Last of Us Part II. I hope you enjoy.
Continue reading “Part V: The Last of Us Part II”
Welcome to Part IV of Chasing the Stick: The History of Naughty Dog during the PS4 Era.
I decided to break-up the six parts of my history into individual episodes as well, for more choice for you, the listener. This episode dives into the rapid, slammed development of Uncharted: The Lost Legacy. From pre-production to release in just 15 months, The Lost Legacy is a marvel to explore. I hope you enjoy.
Continue reading “Part IV: Uncharted: The Lost Legacy”
Welcome to Part III of Chasing the Stick: The History of Naughty Dog during the PS4 Era.
I decided to break-up the six parts of my history into individual episodes as well, for more choice for you, the listener. This episode is all about the non-stop development of Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End. I also dig into how the team designed Nathan Drake’s final game. I hope you enjoy.
Continue reading “Part III: Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End”
Welcome to Part II of Chasing the Stick: The History of Naughty Dog during the PS4 Era.
I decided to break-up the six parts of my history into individual episodes as I decided to break-up the six parts of my history into individual episodes as well, for more choice for you, the listener. This episode discusses how Naughty Dog managed developing for two console generations, as well as how much of an impact The Last of Us had for the studio. I hope you enjoy.
Continue reading “Part II: The Last of Us”
Welcome to Part I of Chasing the Stick: The History of Naughty Dog during the PS4 Era.
I decided to break-up the six parts of my history into individual episodes as well, for more choice for you, the listener. This episode explores the genesis of this project and the scope of Naughty Dog’s work from 2013-2020. I hope you enjoy.
Continue reading “Part I: Naughty Dog by the Numbers”
Welcome to the audiobook version of Chasing the Stick: The History of Naughty Dog during the PS4 Era.
What started out as an idea to explore the history of The Last of Us Part II has (in a Naughty Dog-like fashion) turned into something more ambitious than I anticipated. I want to take a look at Naughty Dog’s PS4 legacy; analyze their game design, explore their developmental history, and compile it all in one place. The Last of Us Part II didn’t just happen out of thin air. It is a sum of years of hard work, lessons learned, and the tireless pursuit of perfectionism.
How did Naughty Dog actually pull it off though? What lessons did they learn, implement, and explore on the PS4? What did it cost their team, both personally and professionally? How has their PS4 catalog defined the studio in a way no previous generation has?
Chasing the Stick is also available online at MaxFrequency.net and as an e-book. Check out the links below to download your preferred format for free.
Chasing the Stick: The History of Naughty Dog during the PS4 Era
• Sony First Party Releases
• Sony First Party Metacritic Scores
• Sony First Party Metacritic Averages
• Sony First Party Metacritic Averages with Three or More Releases
Raindrop.io Bookmark Folder with all cited sources
You may reach out to me on Twitter @MaxRoberts143 or via e-mail at max@maxfrequency(dot)net
Update (06/05/2020): It is live.
Chasing the Stick is the story of video game developer Naughty Dog. It tells how they make their games with the unified goal of telling the story on the joystick. From The Last of Us to the PS5, Chasing the Stick tells the story of one of the video game industry’s most renowned and prolific developers.
Direct Download – Apple Podcasts – Google Podcasts – Spotify – Overcast – Castro – Pocket Casts – RSS Feed
A couple of months ago at the end of March 2020, I announced this new project called Chasing the Stick. It would be the definitive history of Naughty Dog and their time working on the PlayStation 4. Covering the years 2013-2020, I have researched, analyzed, and critiqued the catalog that Naughty Dog has developed within one console generation. My transcription skills have gotten pretty good, if I do say so myself.
The end of the project is in sight. I plan to click the publish button on June 5, 2020. I chose that date for two reasons: It happens to be two weeks before the release of The Last of Us Part II and it also happens to be my birthday.
Chasing the Stick has turned into more than a lengthy editorial for my website. I have also turned it into an e-book and audiobook. It has been completely self-produced and published.
It will also be entirely free.
You will be able to download the e-book as a .epub or .mobi file. These can be added to your phone or Kindle reader quite easily. The audiobook will be available as a podcast through major podcast providers and as a direct download. I narrated the entire audiobook. It is the same experience no matter where you read (or listen) to Chasing the Stick. Everything will be available on MaxFrequency.net.
Chasing the Stick is part essay, part research, part history, part editorial, and part critical analysis. It is a celebration of my favorite video game developer. I’ve channeled all my excitement and energy for The Last of Us Part II into this story over the past four months. I cannot wait to share this all with you.
Max Frequency 
