As a counterpoint, tlou 1 already had multiplayer. It was immersive, and it was very good. On the topic of a story in multiplayer games, that's a very common thing these days. It's different than a single-player story because, of course, it is, but they are finding ways of doing it.

I don't particularly care for a ltou standalone multiplayer, I doubt I'd pay new game prices for it. But I don't find your arguments for why they shouldn't do it very compelling