This Last of Us TV show Uncharted Easter egg is so subtle Naughty Dog had to reveal it

Anna Torv as Tess in The Last of Us
(Image credit: HBO)

The Last of Us HBO series is hiding an Uncharted Easter egg so subtle Nathan Drake himself would struggle to spot it.

I'll be completely, irresponsibly honest here: I definitely would not have known this Easter egg exists if it weren't for Naughty Dog being like, 'Look, dummies, this thing is from Uncharted'.

Over on Twitter, the studio behind The Last of Us and Uncharted games shared an image of the sneaky nod to Nathan Drake in the second episode of the HBO series. The item in question is a Zippo-like lighter with '76' and a prominent star emblazoned onto its front. According to Naughty Dog, it's modeled after the one Sam Drake uses to light his cigarettes in Uncharted 4: A Thief's End.

Personally, I love that an HBO TV show clearly intended to appeal to the masses, and not just fans of the games, is staying true to its roots. That said, I genuinely question how many people would've noticed this if Naughty Dog didn't shout it from the rooftops. If you have seen episode 2, you were probably too distracted by that disgusting tendril kiss, and if you haven't seen it, I'm terribly sorry for bringing that imagery to mind.

The Last of Us TV show has been a hit critically and commercially, so much so that the game series has seen a 300% sales boost since its premiere. And yet despite being overall faithful to the games, there are some key differences between The Last of Us TV show and the games, one of which is the way the zombifying fungus spreads.

Fans of the games learned recently that The Last of Us almost had DLC starring Ellie's mom.

Jordan Gerblick

After scoring a degree in English from ASU, I worked as a copy editor while freelancing for places like SFX Magazine, Screen Rant, Game Revolution, and MMORPG on the side. Now, as GamesRadar's west coast Staff Writer, I'm responsible for managing the site's western regional executive branch, AKA my apartment, and writing about whatever horror game I'm too afraid to finish.

Read more
Bella Ramsey as Ellie and Pedro Pascal as Joel in The Last of Us
The Last of Us showrunner Craig Mazin praises Bella Ramsey and Pedro Pascal for "spectacular" take on one of Part 2's most iconic scenes in season 2
The Last of Us 2
Naughty Dog has done it: it's remastered the PS5 controller with a Last of Us-themed DualSense announcement 24 hours after Neil Druckmann dashed our hopes for The Last of Us 3
Bill getting teary-eyed in The Last of Us
A potential The Last of Us season 1 plot hole has sparked a lot of debate among the fans
best zombie games
The Last of Us "became the brand name for quality and storytelling within games" says Joel actor Troy Baker: "It became like the fridge"
Clicker and Ellie
The Last of Us season 2 trailer brings the heart and the horror back to Joel and Ellie
Kaitlyn Dever as Abby in The Last Of Us season 2
I'm really hopeful that The Last of Us season 2 flips a key part of the game's story – and I think the new trailer just confirmed it
Latest in Horror Shows
Linda Cardellini as Laura Barton in Hawkeye
Linda Cardellini cast as Jason's mom, the original Friday the 13th killer, for Crystal Lake prequel series
The Bondsman
Hollywood legend Kevin Bacon pitched his new "what the f***" demon hunter TV series to Amazon himself – which already has plans for season 2: "What’s that quote? 'Everybody loves bacon'"
The Walking Dead: Dead City season 2
First trailer for The Walking Dead: Dead City season 2 sees Maggie fight a bear, Hershel plot revenge, and Negan give Lucille a terrifying upgrade
Kaitlyn Dever as Abby in The Last Of Us season 2
The Last of Us showrunner says newcomer Kaitlyn Dever was "within The Last of Us DNA" before the show existed
Clicker and Ellie
The Last of Us season 2 trailer brings the heart and the horror back to Joel and Ellie
Rick and Michonne in The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live
The Walking Dead boss looks to squash hopes of The Ones Who Live season 2 – though that doesn't mean we won't ever see Rick and Michonne again
Latest in News
Pillars of Eternity
10 years later, in a post-Baldur's Gate 3 and Avowed world, Obsidian is giving its own throwback CRPG Pillars of Eternity a turn-based combat mode
Destiny 2 Lightfall
When Destiny 2 "weekly active users dropped lower and faster than we'd seen since 2018," Bungie assembled an A-Team to put out some fires: "We needed to do something"
Velma, Daphne, Fred, Shaggy, and Scooby-Doo looking at a giant key which is also a clue
Netflix is rebooting Scooby-Doo as a live-action series from the producer of Supergirl and The Flash centered around a "supernatural murder" at a summer camp
Astro Bot
Astro Bot went through 23 pitch iterations before its director promised PlayStation "happy gameplay" and "overflowing charm," though it did once end with robot decapitation that made "some people really upset"
Tomb Raider
5 years after Avengers, 2 years after its last layoffs, and who knows how long before Perfect Dark and Tomb Raider return, Crystal Dynamics announces another round of layoffs
AI Limit
"AI is not as effective as it might appear": Dev of AI-focused Soulslike RPG says they didn't use any AI-generated content and it can't match "genuine creativity"