The Last of Us has always done a marvelous job at depicting how much more foul and abhorrent humanity can be than the infected monstrosities that have claimed certain pockets of the world. That said, it will always be commendable and appreciated that The Last of Us went with its mushroom-themed ‘infected’ rather than generic, ubiquitous zombies. Each infected type has its own quirk that makes them troubling to deal with, whether runners can quickly gain on players or stalkers can ambush players from a corner, and dealing with infected versus human factions adds a wealth of gameplay variety in Part 1 and Part 2.
The Last of Us Part 2 debuted shamblers, suggesting that any new mutations could sprout and join runners, stalkers, clickers, and bloaters, and a unique boss encounter debuted the Rat King. Unfortunately, while The Last of Us should surely continue to unveil brand-new infected variations in every entry, shamblers and the Rat King aren’t exceptional for long and could realistically be outdone by whatever infected types appear in Part 3, assuming there will be a third installment.
A Show-Only Moment from The Last of Us Season 2 Episode 2 Can Actually Be Pulled Off In-Game
The Last of Us' Season 2 Episode 2 features a battle in Jackson that can be achieved in Part 2's No Return, albeit at a tenth of the scope.
The Last of Us Part 2’s Shamblers aren’t the Prettiest Mushrooms on the Bark
Shamblers aren’t terribly intimidating, however; they’re fairly weak, and players need only keep a bit of distance and be mindful of their AoE spore bursts. Shamblers are only threatening when they arrive within a pack of infected of any variation as runners and stalkers can hyper-stun players until shamblers can close the distance.
It’s great that Part 2 added a new infected type to The Last of Us so that there could be a tiny bit more variety, but the bloater infected type still reigns supreme and is even more terrifying and omnipotent in Part 2. Likewise, runners and stalkers were upgraded to pose a far greater threat in melee combat since they can interrupt players’ attacks with a series of their own.
Therefore, shamblers shambling over and releasing AoEs doesn’t quite scratch any gnawing itches and is in fact even more of a nuisance than anything. Ultimately, shamblers fail to dethrone clickers as The Last of Us’ most immediately lethal and dangerous infected type to see in an ordinary mob.
The Last of Us Part 2’s Rat King is a Shiv in a Haystack
The Last of Us Part 2’s Rat King is upheld by a huge amount of suspense leading up to its reveal in the Washington Liberation Front-occupied Lakehill hospital’s abandoned lower level. Here, players traverse a fungi-overgrown lab and can read patients’ and employees’ lamentations and concerns while witnessing some of the most horror-leaning imagery in The Last of Us to date.
This appropriately sets the tone for the Rat King’s reveal as a hulking mass of infected bodies, and when enough damage is dealt to it an elite stalker cleaves off from it and joins the boss encounter. The Rat King makes for an excellent boss, but it’s unlikely that players will ever see anything like it again in the future since its mutated amalgamation is quite specific to the events that occurred in the hospital beneath the WLF base.
The Last of Us Part 2’s No Return features the Rat King as a recurring boss encounter amid several others, breathing new life into it via a roguelike mode.
So, unless another ground zero hospital wing is visited elsewhere that was also left to fester and rot, the Rat King will probably be unique to The Last of Us Part 2. Nonetheless, the Rat King is a great example of how rare circumstances can lead to an authentic infected variation, and a Part 3 will hopefully conceive of something exceptionally gruesome.
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 89 /100 Critics Rec: 90%
- Released
- January 19, 2024
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Nudity, Sexual Content, Strong Language, Use of Drugs
- Developer(s)
- Naughty Dog
- Publisher(s)
- Sony Interactive Entertainment
WHERE TO PLAY
- Engine
- Proprietary Engine
- Franchise
- The Last of Us
- PC Release Date
- April 3, 2025
- PS5 Release Date
- January 19, 2024
- Genre(s)
- Action-Adventure
- Platform(s)
- PlayStation 5
- OpenCritic Rating
- Mighty
- PS Plus Availability
- N/A
