LinkedIn may have leaked a little bit more information about The Last of Us 2's baffling roguelike mode

The Last of Us Part 2 Remastered is coming in January and a developer’s LinkedIn profile may have shed a little more light on what No Return, the game’s new roguelike mode, will involve.

If you’ve been living under a rock, since the remaster was spotted in the backend of the PlayStation Network database late last week, things have moved at a breakneck pace and we now know it’s set to arrive on January 19. PlayStation has even revealed that those upgrading from the original PS4 version of the game could be in line for an instant platinum trophy, as well as providing some info on what to expect from its array of additions and tweaks.

Arguably the most eye-catching of those additions is a new roguelike survival mode called No Return, with the LinkedIn profile of former Naughty Dog developer Colin Freeman having possibly offered a bit of extra info on how it’ll work. As part of his experience providing QA Testing and Developer Support on TLOU2 Remastered, Freeman cites having worked on several aspects of “12 different No Return roguelike level layouts”.

So, it seems like that could well be the number of unique layouts you’ll be battling your way through as part of the mode. Even if some of these are just variations/evolutions of a smaller number of actual backdrops, that should mean there’s enough change to keep things fresh across a number of repeat runs.

That said, it is important to note that Freeman doesn’t state that the 12 layouts he worked on constitute all of those available in the game and that things might well be cut before it actually arrives, so don’t put too much stock in this number unless it’s officially confirmed.

PlayStation’s blog post about the game suggests that there’ll be plenty of different paths for you to choose between during each run, as well as some “unique twists that can add new, unexpected factors to any given encounter”.

You’ll also be able to spice things up by swapping between a cast of playable characters “who each come with their own traits to suit different playstyles”. As fans have spotted, the roster includes the likes of Ellie's partner Dina and Lev.

In other Naughty Dog news, it’s just one of the studios across the games industry to have made cuts to personnel in recent months, having cut short the contracts of at least 25 contractors.