The Last of Us 2 Infected Types

The Last of Us Part 2 continues the story of Joel and Ellie, two survivors of a deadly infection that has decimated the world. Infected humans litter the streets, having succumbed to a fungus that turns them into rabid monsters. There are many different types of infected and each requires a slightly different tactic to take on. To help you come out on top against any infected enemy you come across we've put together this guide on Infected Types. We'll show you an image of each type and describe the best strategy for dealing with them.

On this page:

• The Last of Us Part 2 Infected Types
• Runners
• Stalkers
• Clickers
• Bloaters
• New Infected Types
• Shamblers
• The Rat King

The Last of Us Part 2 Infected Types

The four infected types from the first game have all returned for The Last of Us Part 2. They are as follows:

• Runners
• Stalkers
• Clickers
• Bloaters

Runners

Runners are the first stage of infected in The Last of Us Part 2. They are still fairly close to human in appearance and can sprint after you. They are pretty weak, one shot to the head with any weapon will kill them so we recommend trying to use stealth. You don't really need to be wasting ammo on Runners unless swarmed, and a well placed brick or bottle will be enough to stagger them.

Stalkers

Stalkers are essentially halfway between Runners and Clickers. As they lose their sight they start to cower in dark buildings, waiting for the opportunity to strike. To take them down, you will need to move slowly through the area you are in. Once you spot one peeking its head out from cover, rush it with a shotgun. This will draw any other Stalkers out from hiding. You can group them and take out multiple Stalkers with one shotgun blast too.

Clickers

Clickers are completely blind, but use echo-location to track you down. This means you have more leeway in how you approach them. If one gets close to you, stand completely still, just like in Jurassic Park (for more Jurassic Park references, visit our The Last of Us Part 2 Easter Eggs Guide). Clickers have hard fungal plates on their skulls which means that one shot to the head isn't enough to take them down. We recommend killing them stealthily with Ellie's knife or a shiv. If a Clicker spots you, kill it before it grabs you, otherwise you're toast.

Bloaters

Bloaters are what happens after someone is infected for many years, decades even. They are huge and covered in thick fungal plates that give them a lot of health. Use a flamethrower or molotov cocktails on them, or a shotgun. Bloaters will intermittently throw spore bombs at you which will damage your health and stun your for a short while. If a Bloater grabs you it will kill you.

New Infected Types

There are actually two new infected types to deal with in The Last of Us Part 2. One is a bit of a spoiler for a later boss fight, so proceed with caution.

1. Shamblers
2. The Rat King

Shamblers

Shamblers are a new, and quite frankly horrifying, new addition in The Last of Us Part 2. They are kind of like Bloaters, but instead of throwing spores at you, they emit a cloud of corrosive spores that follows them around. Because of these spores it is seriously dangerous to get anywhere near them. Use fire and bullets here, they go down surprisingly easily. You cannot stealth kill a Shambler.

The Rat King

Finally we have The Rat King. This absolute abomination is a long-gestated form of infected, composed of multiple individuals. The Rat King is essentially patient zero for the pandemic in Seattle, so has had plenty of time to turn into the thing you see before you. Just fire every single round of any weapons you have at this thing, after some damage it will split into two enemies. The enemy that splits off is essentially a Stalker, but with a larger health bar. Use your newly acquired flamethrower (more on that in our Weapons Guide) to take it down. Thankfully there is only one Rat King in the whole game.

That's everything you need to know about the infected in The Last of Us Part 2, but that's not all we've got! First up there's Kat's review. Next up be sure to read Eric's PSA on whether or not you can beat the game without killing any dogs.