The Last of Us Part 2 Remastered: No Return beginner tips and tricks

Check out these TLOU2 No Return beginner tips to improve your survival prospects

When it comes to Factions, The Last of Us Part 2 has been Left Behind, as there’s no multiplayer mode in the original game or in the PS5 remaster. We’ve also come to know that Naughty Dog canceled The Last of Us Online, a standalone multiplayer project, which is a shame.

However, fans can now enjoy No Return, a roguelike mode similar to God of War Ragnarok’s Valhalla. No Return is included in the new remaster whether you buy the full version for PS5, or upgrade the PS4 game you already own at just $10. While deeply different in tone and gameplay compared to The Last of Us Part 2 base game, No Return still allows you to navigate iconic locations and stealth your way through levels, getting rid of both human survivors and infected.

If you are struggling with the new mode, or if you’re a The Last of Us beginner, you can find some No Return tips and tricks to make your life as a survivor much easier.

Use the entire cast of characters

No Return includes the entire TLOU2 cast, and you should try out each character / Sony Interactive Entertainment

What makes No Return way different from Valhalla is the ability to switch between characters. While this precludes a narrative progression, it also introduces a variety of ways to play the new mode. Whether you want to find your favorite protagonist – they all come with strengths and weaknesses you discover along the way – or just to unlock them all, you should make sure to try each character for a while, and not stick to your first choice.

Start as Abby

Abby's melee prowess in No Return makes her a better starting pick over Ellie / Sony Interactive Entertainment

The Last of Us Part II Remastered: No Return starts with only two unlocked characters: Ellie and Abby. For strictly story-related reasons, our official protagonist here is Ellie, so she seems the obvious choice for a starting character. However, the little girl we raised in the original The Last of Us can feel rather weak, especially when it comes to melee interactions. Meanwhile, Abby has powerful melee attacks that will make your initial approach less traumatic. This helps a lot, especially if you haven’t played the game for a while. In short, for this roguelike mode, we’ll make an exception and start with Abby.

Unlock Tommy as soon as possible

Tommy may not have a major role in the main story, but he's a great character to play as in No Return / Sony Interactive Entertainment

Tommy is a relatively minor character in the story. As Joel’s younger brother, we see him interfere with the main story a couple of times or so, but in No Return, he’s an asset you shouldn’t underestimate. You unlock Tommy by playing characters from Ellie’s faction and he is a pretty far-out upgrade, but once unlocked, you’ll have a lethal sniper at any distance on your side. A huge help against the fearsome infected, especially. Only con: he can’t dodge.

Upgrade your pistol’s capacity

Increase your pistol's ammo capacity, so you never miss out on precious bullets lying around / Sony Interactive Entertainment

If your character has a gimmick weapon – Lev and his bow, Tommy and his sniper rifle – you should improve your pistol’s capacity. It’s the basic weapon each character starts their No Return run with. That’s because, once on the field, you’ll collect so much ammo for the gun and use so little, that the game will prevent you from getting more. And it’s a real shame when precious bullets go to waste in The Last of Us.

Open Supply Caches

Sweeping Supply Caches between waves can be a matter of life and death in No Return / Sony Interactive Entertainment

Especially in the beginning, we often found ourselves forgetting to open the precious supply caches at the end of each level. Marked by an icon popping up at the right time on the screen, these caches contain essential ammunition and healing items, allowing you to continue your run. Don’t forget to run for them wherever you are, and don’t underestimate what’s inside, even if you have to open them all at once after killing away every wave…

Gather as many resources as you can

Use gathered resources often to free up inventory space for more / Sony Interactive Entertainment

The resources you collect in a run stay with you at the beginning of the next. This is the most prominent element of continuity between your No Return runs. So gather as many resources as you can, and craft often between waves to free up more space for gathering. Make use of the time between the end of the run and returning to your Hideout to do it, and you’ll ease your way into the next game.

Complete Gambits

Completing gambits and challenges earns you much needed rewards in No Return / Sony Interactive Entertainment

These are not real challenges, but small tasks such as performing a certain number of headshots. The effort required to complete them is relatively low, while the rewards are great, ranging from more supplements for new skills to parts for weapon upgrades. And, in a mode like this, it’s the tiny upgrades that can make all the difference. It goes without saying, but you should also complete the daily challenges that give you extra rewards and allow you to use characters you haven’t unlocked yet.

Spend wisely at the Trading Post

Always buy as much stuff as you can at Trading Posts / Sony Interactive Entertainment

The Trading Post sometimes allows you to buy parts and supplements, somewhat contradicting its mission - it’s supposed to let you buy weapons, holsters, and healing items. When it happens, don’t worry about saving currency, and buy as many as you can, given how rare and useful this opportunity is. If it doesn’t happen, try buying Trading Post Re-Rolls to shuffle your inventory: they’re cheap (you buy them with currency) and maybe you’ll be luckier next time.

Stealth is still key

Stealth is still critical, especially against human survivors / Sony Interactive Entertainment

On the Slay the Spire-style Planning Board, you’re free to choose your route, but those involving human factions are undoubtedly easier to approach than the infected. Against human survivors, stealth remains crucial to thin their ranks, especially in modes where they are not immediately aware of your position. This way, you’ll also save ammo for later runs.

The Last of Us Part 2 Remastered review – good DLC wrapped in a pointless “remaster”