At a roundtable interview attended by /Film’s Ben Pearson, Mazin and Druckmann were asked for their thoughts on how video game adaptations have changed over the years and what HBO’s “The Last of Us” would contribute to the genre. Craig Mazin was quick to point out the narrative strengths of the original game, since many video games, as entertaining as they may be, can sometimes lack narrative strength:
“Well, I think we are unique because we have “The Last of Us.” The secret to a great video game adaptation: Start with a great video game! And by great video game, I mean great story, characters, and relationships. Because I’ve played video games that I’ve absolutely adored, but they had no character. I was playing somebody that didn’t even talk. [In those games,] I don’t even know what [my character looks] like.”
Aside from being a video game that has a resonant story and characters viewers can empathize with, Mazin also believes their upcoming adaptation is unique simply because of the fact he’s working closely with Neil Druckmann, the original creator of the video game:
“So you start with the best possible story in that medium, and then you work with the guy who created it, and you work hand in hand. And you get lucky enough to work with a creator who understands what adaptation is and has just the smarts to know, ‘Hey, this is what we port over, this is what we don’t. This is what we change, and this is what we don’t.'”