HBO Max surely has a massive hit on their hands with the upcoming video game adaptation “The Last of Us” (read Meagan’s rave review), and we’ve learned this afternoon that it’s going to cost a tad bit more if you’re a new subscriber who wants to check it out. Effective immediately, the monthly rate for HBO Max just went up from $14.99 to $15.99 per month.

An official statement from HBO Max indicates, “This price increase of one dollar will allow us to continue to invest in providing even more culture-defining programming and improving our customer experience for all users.” The team also clarifies, “Existing subscribers who are currently paying $14.99/month will see their monthly rate increase to $15.99 effective their next billing cycle on or after Saturday, February 11, 2023.”

It’s interesting to note that HBO Max is likely being collapsed into the Discovery+ streaming service this Spring, which makes it a bit of a strange time to increase the subscription cost.

In addition to “The Last of Us,” HBO Max also just launched adult animated series “Velma,” and it’ll also be the home of the upcoming IT-based horror prequel series “Welcome to Derry.”

HBO’s “The Last of Us” takes place twenty years after modern civilization has been destroyed. Joel, a hardened survivor, is hired to smuggle Ellie, a 14-year-old girl, out of an oppressive quarantine zone. What starts as a small job soon becomes a brutal, heartbreaking journey, as they both must traverse across the U.S. and depend on each other for survival.

Pedro Pascal (“The Mandalorian”) is starring in the series as Joel and Bella Ramsey (“Game of Thrones”) is playing Ellie. Gabriel Luna (Terminator: Dark Fate) is playing Tommy, the brother of Pascal’s Joel. Storm Reid, Anna Torv, Jeffrey Pierce, Nick Offerman, Merle Dandridge, Nico Parker, Murray Bartlett and Con O’Neil will also star in the series.

Craig Mazin (“Chernobyl”) developed the series for HBO, and worked directly alongside Neil Druckmann to write and executive produce the small screen adaptation.