There’s a Naughty Dog reunion happening at DICE 2026, with Neil Druckmann set to present former partner Evan Wells with its highest award
It’s been a while since we last had news on Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet (beyond talk of more crunch), Naughty Dog’s newest IP, but boss Neil Druckmann has been able to openly talk about other things, such as HBO’s ongoing The Last of Us show. Next month, however, he’ll be found in the open again as he presents former partner Evan Wells with DICE’s esteemed Hall of Fame Award.
Via VGC, we’ve learned the PlayStation veterans will be meeting again at the Aria Resort in Las Vegas on 12th February, 2026. Those who have been following the renowned studio for decades might remember Wells as one of the key creatives behind the Crash Bandicoot and Jak and Daxter series. This led to him becoming co-president of Naughty Dog in 2004. As the studio transitioned into more cinematic and blockbuster-y titles in its post-Uncharted era, he stuck around overseeing the creation and development of that series and The Last of Us. In 2023, he announced his retirement.
Ahead of the DICE 2026 summit, Druckmann took some time to praise Wells’ leadership and celebrate what he did to make Naughty Dog one of the industry’s most respected companies over many years:
“Naughty Dog was able to create some truly incredible games and leave a lasting mark on the industry because of Evan’s unwavering leadership and the trust he placed in all of us… I know I speak for many across the industry when I congratulate Evan on this well-deserved recognition. It’s a profound honor to present him with this Hall of Fame induction.”
In the past, the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences’ Lifetime Achievement award has gone to names like PlayStation’s Ken Kutaragi (2007), Nintendo legend Satoru Iwata (2015), and Xbox honcho Phil Spencer (2022), among many others.
Elsewhere, The Last of Us co-director and ex-Naughty Dog Bruce Straley is working on the debut game of his new studio Wildflower Interactive: Coven of the Chicken Foot. He’s also gone on to explain he left the PlayStation-owned studio after feeling he was “answering the same questions over and over again,” which sounds like a nice way to say maybe there’s life beyond cinematic action-adventure games. Intergalactic doesn’t appear to be substantially altering Naughty Dog’s current direction though.