Decades after an outbreak turns the United States into a dystopian wasteland full of zombie-like Infected, humankind struggles to survive in a world full of monsters and martial law. Widely believed to be one of the greatest video games of all time, Naughty Dog’sThe Last Of Uscombines incredible graphics,fantastic storytelling, and challenging gameplay. Spurred on by the success of the first,The Last Of Us Part 2made its climactic debut in June of 2020, but was received by fans with mixed reviews.
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Thefirst game establishedvarious Infected types - Runners, Clickers, and Bloaters - but the second game introduced a few more stages of infection. Let’s take a look at a list of every type of Infected ranked by difficulty, and the fastest way to beat each of them.
Updated on July 15, 2025 by Ritwik Mitra:The Last of Usis easily one of PlayStation’s biggest IPs right now. The story of Joel and Ellie in the first game was a cinematic masterpiece that has been translated brilliantly to the TV show format, with HBO’s take on The Last of Us being incredibly faithful while also building upon the series' concepts in its own way. With the first season on its way to a close, more and more people can’t wait to see how the show adapts the story of the second game, which received more of a mixed reception from audiences all over.
Both games feature many variations of the Infected, all of whom can be pretty imposing threats in their own right. Players need to have their wits about them and have some great weapons and enough ammo in store to deal with the many spore-infected denizens of this post-apocalyptic world. Here’s an in-depth look at all the types of Infected in the game and how they stack up against each other in terms of power and difficulty.
Best Strategy
Runners
The weakest kind of Infected, but should not be taken lightly
Both combat and stealth are viable options
Stalkers
Stealthy and can attack from the shadows, but not that strong
Using Listen Mode and homing down their location is important before engaging them
Clickers
Extremely tough and can insta-kill unprepared players after closing the distance
Stealth is the best way to deal with them; move slowly and take them down using shivs to maximize the chances of surviving an encounter against them
Bloaters
Slow, hulking monstrosities that chuck toxic spores and can take a decent beating
Heavy weaponry is paramount to defeating this foe since everything else will take ages to bring them down
Shamblers
Deceptively fast enemies that spray toxic gas after getting hit
Maintaining a distance and using heavy weaponry is recommended to take them down quickly while avoiding any damage from the gas they leak
The Rat King
An unholy mashup of multiple Infected that is the most advanced stage of the Cordyceps virus infection
Prepare for a long fight with heavy weapons; the Infected detach from the Rat King after taking enough damage, so get ready to take out stragglers before focusing on the main body
6Runners
Easily the weakest type of Infected, Runners can still be challenging. These Infected do not shy away from a fight. Loud and fast, Runners earn their name from their habit of charging at their prey. Not yet overgrown by the parasitic fungus, Runners still closely resemble humans and are the earliest stage of the infection process.
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Runners both see and hear fairly well, so stealth is important if there are many of them in an enclosed area. Swift and aggressive, Runners swarm if given the chance. Once that happens, it’s difficult to escape. Fortunately, killing Runners is fairly easy. They can be killed withJoel’s bare hands, Ellie’s knife, a melee weapon, any gun, or a simple stealth kill. If there are too many near, sprint away to a safer location to pick off a few separately.
5Stalkers
Stalkers are not difficult to kill, but they definitely have a creep-factor that the others do not. They behave very differently from Runners. Rather than moving towards their target the moment they see them, Stalkers stay low and hidden to spy on their prey. They crawl on all fours and move quickly, preferring to stay behind large objects or around corners.
Justbecause a playerdoes not see a Stalker, does not mean that the Stalkers do not see them. Patient and intelligent hunters, they wait to burst from their hiding spot and attack. Once engaged, a Stalker is not much more difficult to kill than a Runner, but they tend to live in packs. Players should use listening mode if they need to in order to “see” where Stalkers are, or shoot them from a distance when they peek from behind objects.
4Clickers
The middle stage of infection, Clickers are grotesque andchallenging to kill. The fungus has taken over their brain and grown on their faces, rendering them completely blind. They move quickly and have an impressive sense of hearing that makes up for their lack of sight.
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Walk slowly and quietly to avoid Clickers. Sneak up on them with stealth to kill them. Do not confront them directly like a Runner or a Stalker. The fastest way to kill Clickers is with fire. A Molotov cocktail is perfect for this and is especially helpful when taking on a group. Any Clickers in the area will run towards the sound and into the fire. If the fire does not kill the Clicker, a few shots to the head should finish the job.
3Bloaters
The third stage of infection spreads from the head to the entirety of the body. Bloaters move slowly but are far from harmless. Other than their brute strength, a Bloater’s primary attack is with sacks of toxic spores. The spores will slowly cause health damage and can obstruct eyesight. This gives them the chance to get close enough to attack.
Extremely durable, Bloaters should never be fought hand to hand, or with a small handgun alone. Like Clickers, Molotov cocktails, flamethrowers, and other forms of fire are the best ways to weaken the Bloater from a distance. Once weak, they can be taken out with a shotgun or a rifle, but it is still important to remain at a distance and away from the spores.
2Shamblers
Introduced inThe Last Of Us Part 2, Shamblers are one of the most difficult types of Infected to defeat. Shamblers start out slow but can pick up speed and rush across the room almost as quickly as a Runner. They have so much weight on them, that they can easily knock Ellie off of her feet.
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The most dangerous thing about a Shambler is that instead of throwing spores, they spray a toxic acid when hit, or when Ellie gets too close. Fire via a Molotov cocktail is the best way to attack a Shambler from a distance. Close range weapons are not recommended due to their speed. Pipe bombs are also a good option because they allow the player to put space between themselves and the Shambler.
1Rat King
The final stage of the Infectedis a vicious and disgusting mutation of the Cordyceps Brain Infection. The Rat King is a combination of Runners, Stalkers, Clickers, and other Infected, melded together into one giant monster. It is durable and deadly.
Rat Kings spew acidic gas at a much faster rate than their Shambler cousins. The most difficult aspect of fighting the Rat King is that as it takes damage, the fungus breaks, and individual Infected can break off and rush to attack. The mutated Runner or Clicker may have the traits of other types of Infected, such as the ability to throw spores. The Rat King is susceptible to fire but requires skill and patience to defeat.
