Summary
- The Last of Us season 2 may introduce scarier Infected types like Shamblers and the Rat King, upping the horror factor significantly.
- New Infected, like Shamblers, are a more visually disturbing version of Bloaters, while the Rat King is unmatched in gruesomeness and power.
- The combination of all types of Infected in The Last of Us season 2 poses an almost insurmountable challenge for the main characters.
If The Last Of Us season 2 is true to its source material, it could introduce new types of Infected to the TV show adaptation that are much scarier than the varieties that have already appeared. The Last of Us lore means the undead are divided up into subcategories, and one of the deciding factors that dictates which category an Infected belongs to is how long it’s been since the host died. However, there are other circumstances that can influence an Infected’s designation.
All zombie types in The Last of Us season 1 also appear in the games, but that isn’t yet true of the opposite. Runners, clickers, and bloaters, while terrifying in their own right, are just the tip of the Infected iceberg. However, they’re still arguably more favorable to come across than some other members of the zombie tree. The Last of Us season 2’s new cast members will likely come across familiar forms of the monstrous creatures, but the show may also ensure they have run-ins with their gruesomely updated counterparts from the games.
The 2 New Infected Types To Expect In The Last Of Us Season 2
The Last of Us season could introduce Shamblers and the Rat King from The Last of Us Part II
One of the Infected types that debuted in The Last Of Us Part II may look familiar, even to those who have only watched the show and never played the games. Known as a Shambler, this form of Infected is an alternative version of an unfortunate soul during the fourth stage of their Infection. They look very similar to Bloaters, but Shamblers are the result of spending a long time in a wet environment, whereas Bloaters come from dry surroundings.
Both Bloaters and Shamblers come after the Clicker stage. What they lack in precise echolocation they make up for with heavily armored fungal exteriors. Like Bloaters, Shamblers can also infect healthy humans from a distance, with sacks of pus exploding onto them – which is marginally more disgusting than the toxins released by injured Bloaters. A taste of how difficult a Shambler can be to bring down can be witnessed by one of its dry counterparts coming under attack in The Last of Us season 1, episode 5, “Endure and Survive.”
They look very similar to Bloaters, but Shamblers are the result of spending a long time in a wet environment , whereas Bloaters come from dry surroundings.
Shamblers are scary, but they can be topped. One of the most fierce boss battles in The Last of Us Part II has the player going up against the Rat King. This vile creature is the Cordyceps drawing together many advanced-stage Infected into one organism. The Rat King is The Last Of Us' most horrifying zombie. It's incredibly durable, and inflicting damage can often cause individual Infected like Bloaters or Clickers to come loose and add to the attack. If the Rat King appears in The Last of Us season 2, it’s bound to be a landmark episode.
The Last of Us season 2 may also focus more on Stalkers, a stage two Infected that only briefly appeared in the first season.
The Last Of Us’ New Infected Are Way More Horrifying Than Season 1’s Monsters
The Last of Us has held back its scariest beasts until the second season
As scary as the Infected in The Last of Us season 1 are, the newer additions to the group take the horror to the next level. The Shamblers are essentially an even more visually disturbing version of the Bloaters, which are already not winning any beauty contests. The Rat King, on the other hand, is unmatched in gruesomeness, sheer power, and endurance.
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The Last Of Us Infected Types |
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Stage |
Name |
Notes |
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1 |
Runner |
Early-stage infection. Still have their sight and speed. |
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2 |
Stalker |
Mid-way between Runner and Clicker. Sight is being lost, but no echolocation yet. Often lurk in dark areas and wait to strike. |
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3 |
Clicker |
Completely blind, but use echolocation to locate their prey. |
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4 |
Bloater |
Large, armored, and powerful. Can infect from a distance. Develop from Clickers in dry locations. |
|
4 |
Shambler |
Similar to Bloaters, but are the result of Clickers spending long amounts of time in wet locations. |
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5 |
Rat King |
An amalgamation of several Infected. Very powerful and hard to take down. |
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6 |
Death |
Infected do eventually die, but the Cordyceps lives on. |
The Shamblers and Rat King would be more than formidable opponents on their own. However, they become even more intimidating when it’s considered that the show’s characters won’t just have to survive these newcomers. The Runners, Clickers, Stalkers, and Bloaters should all still be very present in The Last of Us season 2, so the combination of all the types of Infected together seems like an almost insurmountable challenge.
Scarier Infected Make Sense For Season 2’s Darker Tone
The second The Last of Us game was even darker than the first
The Last of Us season 1 and its respective source material is already quite dark. However, if The Last of Us Season 2 abides by the intense tone of the second game, the show’s atmosphere could become even more ominous. While the newer Infected are part of the reason for this increased darkness, there are other factors too. That being said, the addition of the Shamblers and the Rat King means the hopelessness of certain characters becomes even more pronounced.
The Last of Us Part II did a great job of pushing its world into a new realm of fear and tension, so the show already has the perfect framework to follow during the adaptation process. While it's true The Last of Us season 2 can be different from the games, any changes made are unlikely to include the Infected. Regardless, certain scenes from the second game will undoubtedly stick in the minds of viewers if they’re carried over to the show, but some will be for different reasons than the sequences with The Last Of Us season 2’s new types of Infected.
