The Ultimate Trophy Hunter Guide for The Last of Us Part II Remastered

I have spent more hours than I care to admit replaying The Last of Us Part II Remastered on PlayStation 5. The game demands precision, patience, and a willingness to die a hundred times before you get it right. If you are aiming for that platinum trophy or just want a clean no damage run on Grounded difficulty, you need a proper trophy hunter guide. Not a checklist of collectibles, but a real strategy that accounts for enemy behavior, resource management, and the mental toll of permadeath mode.

Let me start with a confession. My first no damage run ended in the sewers of Seattle, courtesy of a clicker I misjudged. I restarted the entire campaign. That failure taught me more than any walkthrough ever could. In this piece, I will share what I learned so you can avoid my mistakes and move efficiently toward that platinum. Think of this as a trophy hunter guide written by someone who has bled through every encounter.

Why Grounded Difficulty Changes Everything

Grounded difficulty is not just a tougher version of the game. It rewrites the rules of engagement. Enemies spot you faster, hit harder, and flank aggressively. The crafting system becomes your lifeline, but materials are scarce. On lower difficulties, you can barge into a room and shoot your way out. On Grounded, every bullet counts. A single gunshot can draw the entire patrol. This is where the no damage run becomes a test of discipline rather than skill.

I recommend starting your practice sessions on Hard before stepping up to Grounded. The jump in enemy awareness is jarring. Learn the patrol routes in the Hillcrest chapter on Hard first. Once you can clear that area without taking a hit, move to Grounded. That transitional layer of difficulty prepares you for the real challenge.

Stealth Tactics and Enemy Awareness

Stealth tactics in The Last of Us Part II are not optional on Grounded; they are mandatory. You cannot trade shots with three enemies at once. You must isolate and eliminate. Use bottles and bricks to lure enemies away from their group. The game gives you these tools for a reason. I see too many players hoarding them. Throw them. Create noise in a far corner, then take down the one who comes to investigate. Quiet kills with a suppressor are ideal, but suppressors degrade. Plan your shots. If you have only one suppressor kill available, save it for the armored enemy who would otherwise tank three rifle rounds.

Abby and Ellie play differently. Ellie is smaller, faster, and better at close-quarters stealth. Abby is a brawler who can take more punishment, but her larger frame makes her easier to spot. When you control Ellie, prioritize vertical space. Climb onto a truck or a balcony and pick off enemies from above. With Abby, use the environment to break line of sight and then rush in for a melee takedown. Knowing these differences is crucial in any thorough trophy hunter guide.

The Collectibles Run: Separate from Combat Practice

If you want all collectibles, do not attempt them on a no damage run. The two goals clash. Collectibles force you into exposed positions. You have to search desks, open drawers, and read notes while enemies patrol nearby. Instead, dedicate one playthrough purely to collectibles on a lower difficulty. Use a 4K HDR gameplay walkthrough to mark each artifact, trading card, and coin. The PlayStation 5 loads fast, so chapter select is painless. Once you have the collectibles done, your no damage run can focus entirely on survival.

That said, some collectibles are tucked into areas you would pass naturally. The coins in Jackson Hole, for instance, sit near the cabins you explore anyway. Grab those as you go. Just do not deviate from your path to hunt down every last note. That is a trap for trophy hunters who want efficiency.

Weapon Upgrades and the Crafting System

Weapon upgrades are permanent across playthroughs in New Game Plus, but on a fresh Grounded run you start with nothing. Prioritize the hunting pistol upgrade that increases accuracy. It saves you from wasting ammunition on missed shots. Next, upgrade the revolver for stopping power. Against the Seraphites and WLF soldiers, you need to put enemies down fast before they call reinforcements.

The crafting system is where most players waste resources. Do not craft explosive arrows unless you have a surplus of alcohol and rags. Stick to shivs for instant stealth kills and health kits for obvious reasons. Smoke bombs are underrated. In the hospital section with Abby, a smoke bomb can let you cross a hallway that would otherwise be a kill box. I keep two smoke bombs on me at all times past the halfway point of the game.

Checkpoint System and Permadeath Mode

The checkpoint system in The Last of Us Part II is generous on lower difficulties but punishing on Grounded. Checkpoints save at the start of each encounter, not during. If you die in the middle of a fight, you restart that entire encounter. That is fine for a normal run, but for a no damage run, one stray bullet means reloading the checkpoint anyway. You can use this to your advantage. If you take damage early in an encounter, restart immediately. Do not waste resources trying to salvage a damaged run. The moment Ellie or Abby gets hit, reload. That discipline saves you from a failed run hours later.

Permadeath mode is a different beast entirely. I do not recommend it for your first no damage run. Permadeath adds a psychological weight that causes mistakes. Instead, play on Grounded with normal checkpoints and treat each death as a reset. You will still get the stress of near-perfection without the agony of losing a ten-hour save. Once you can clear the game on Grounded with no damage, then try permadeath. By that point, your muscle memory is solid.

Speedrun Techniques for Efficiency

Speedrun techniques are not just for speedrunners. They help trophy hunters skip unnecessary fights. For example, in the opening chapter as Ellie in Jackson Hole, you can run past the first group of infected without engaging. Do not fight them. Sprint through the gate and let the scripted event trigger. This saves you health and ammunition for later. Similarly, in the Hillcrest sniper section, you can bypass the entire street by going through a garage window on the right. These shortcuts cut hours off a playthrough and reduce the number of encounters where you risk taking damage.

Watch a speedrun of the game on YouTube to pick up these routes. Do not copy the entire run, just the segments that apply to your path. The game is linear, but there are always alternative routes through buildings and over fences that casual players miss.

Accessibility Options That Help Without Cheating

The Last of Us Part II Remastered has robust accessibility options. Some trophy hunters worry that using them invalidates the challenge. I do not agree. Options like enhanced listen mode that highlights enemies through walls are fine for a collectibles run. For a no damage run, I use the high-contrast display mode. It makes enemies pop against the dark interiors of Seattle. That visual clarity saves me from being blindsided. I also turn on the option that shows enemy awareness indicators more clearly. This is not cheating. It is adapting the interface to your needs.

Do not use the toggle that skips puzzles or auto-aim. Those can disable trophies on some difficulties. Check the trophy description before enabling anything that changes gameplay mechanics. The accessibility options I mentioned do not affect trophy eligibility on Grounded.

Final Practical Tips for the Trophy Run

Here are the concrete takeaways I wish someone had given me before my first attempt:

• Always have a shiv crafted before you enter a new area. Shiv kills are silent and conserve ammo.
• In the Rat King boss fight as Abby, stay on the upper level. The ground floor is a death trap.
• Use the pause menu to survey the area. The game does not pause during cutscenes but does during gameplay. Take a breath and plan your next move.
• If an encounter feels impossible, check if there is a scripted ally helping you. Sometimes the game expects you to let them draw fire.
• Save your game manually at the start of each chapter. The autosave is reliable, but manual saves let you revert to a known good state if a bug or glitch costs you.

Survival horror games like this one test your patience as much as your reflexes. The Last of Us Part II is a masterpiece of tension and storytelling. Naughty Dog built a world where every corner holds danger. That same danger makes the platinum trophy feel earned. No other game on PlayStation 5 has made me reload a checkpoint so many times, and no other trophy felt as satisfying to unlock.

Whether you are chasing that platinum or just want to prove you can beat Grounded without a scratch, I hope this trophy hunter guide saves you some of the frustration I endured. Seattle and Jackson Hole are brutal landscapes, but with the right approach, you can walk through them unscathed. Good luck.