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The Last of Us Part II: The Last of Us Part II 100% Completion Guide

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No Return: Unlocks, Characters, Bosses and Wins

The roguelike mode's groundwork: the run counts that open its modes, every character to unlock, the six bosses in order and one won run with each character.

No Return is the roguelike survival mode on the main menu. It is open from the first boot and nothing in it needs the story, but finish the story first anyway: the roster, the boss arenas and the run types name people and places from the second half of the game. A run is a chain of randomly built encounters that ends with a boss. Everything you unlock (characters, encounter types, run modes) stays unlocked whether the run is won or lost. This section covers the groundwork in the order that costs least: a handful of short runs to open every mode, then the characters, then one won run per character, which also clears the six bosses. The challenges and trophies follow in the next section; the game doesn't record which characters have won a run, so tick the rows here as you go.

How a run works

Each run starts in a hideout, and you come back to it after every encounter you win. There you read the planning board (the coming encounters, their faction, rewards and mods; the path splits twice), spend currency at the Trading Post on guns, explosives, recipes and health kits, upgrade guns at the workbench, craft and heal. Dying ends the run and takes every gun, item and upgrade it gave you; the next run is built fresh. There is a single autosave and no manual slots: quit only from the hideout between encounters, since leaving in the middle of one counts as a death.

Make it easier

Difficulty runs from Very Light to Grounded, plus Custom. Only the Grounded Daily Run cares which one you pick, so play everything in this section on Very Light. The combat accessibility options (slow motion on a toggle, enemies that don't flank, lower enemy accuracy, invisible while prone, high-contrast outlines) block no trophy and make every run safer.

No Return: Play 1 Run (optional)Quest step
Location
No Return · No Return menu – From the main menu, choose No Return and start a Standard Run with either starting character. Win or lose, it counts once it is played; a death in the first encounter is enough. The Custom Run is the only place that allows up to six mods per encounter, and its runs count for the bosses, the challenges and the run wins.
Summary
Your first run opens the Custom Run, where you set the difficulty, encounter types, factions, boss and mods yourself.
Sources
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No Return: Play 2 RunsQuest step
Location
No Return · No Return menu – From the main menu, choose No Return and play two runs, a Standard Run with either starting character being enough (a quick death in the first encounter still counts). From now on, a gambit can show in the top left corner of an encounter, at most one per encounter; take every one you are offered. Completing them opens more kinds of gambit, and five of them unlock a new character.
Summary
Opens Gambits: an optional side task that can appear in an encounter for a small reward.
Sources
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No Return: Play 3 RunsQuest step
Location
No Return · No Return menu – Start and end a third run from the No Return menu. From now on an encounter can hold a drop box asking for certain crafting items; hand them over and the gun or recipe waits for you in the hideout afterwards. Fill every drop box you find: three of them unlock a new character.
Requires
Summary
Opens Dead Drops: a drop box in an encounter that trades crafting items for a gun or a recipe.
Sources
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No Return: Play 5 RunsQuest step
Location
No Return · No Return menu – Play runs four and five from the No Return menu. Holdout encounters then join the mix: an ally fights beside you, and the encounter is lost if the ally dies. The map has extra loot, trap mines and pipe bombs, and a Bloater may turn up near the end.
Requires
Summary
Opens Holdout encounters: keep an ally alive against the Infected.
Sources
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No Return: Play 7 RunsQuest step
Location
No Return · No Return menu – Play runs six and seven. Capture encounters then join the mix: human guards stand around a safe you must open in time. Reach it without being seen and you can open it without clearing the area; if the timer runs out the safe locks and every guard has to die instead.
Requires
Summary
Opens Capture encounters: crack a guarded safe before a timer runs out.
Sources
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No Return: Play 9 RunsQuest step
Location
No Return · No Return menu – Play runs eight and nine. The Daily Run then appears in the No Return menu: one attempt a day, with the same seed and the same character for every player (even one you haven't unlocked yet). It needs an internet connection but no PS Plus, and a run left unfinished for 24 hours is abandoned. Nine runs played in all open every mode, which is why short throwaway runs come first.
Requires
Summary
Opens the Daily Run: one shared run a day, with a leaderboard.
Sources
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Character: DinaHidden spoiler – activate to revealOtherMinor spoiler
Location
No Return · Dina – In the No Return menu, pick Ellie (open from the start) and win two encounters. Win both in the same run to be sure they count. Dina then joins the roster. A Custom Run on Very Light makes these early wins easy.
Summary
The first character of Ellie's side to unlock; she can craft a trap mine and a stun bomb from the start.
Sources
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Character: JesseHidden spoiler – activate to revealOtherMinor spoiler
Location
No Return · Jesse – Pick Dina and win three encounters, ideally in a single run to be sure they count. Jesse joins the roster.
Requires
Summary
Earns extra currency, rerolls the Trading Post as often as you like and has pipe bombs.
Sources
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Character: TommyHidden spoiler – activate to revealOtherMinor spoiler
Location
No Return · Tommy – Pick Jesse and win three encounters, best in one run. His extra currency and free Trading Post rerolls make those encounters easier to stock for. Tommy joins the roster.
Requires
Summary
Starts with a sniper rifle; he shrugs off melee hits but can't dodge.
Sources
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Character: JoelHidden spoiler – activate to revealOtherMinor spoiler
Location
No Return · Joel – Pick Tommy and win four encounters, best in one run; his rifle keeps fights at range. Joel joins the roster, which completes Ellie's side.
Requires
Summary
Brings a custom revolver and the shiv recipe; like Tommy, he takes melee hits but can't dodge.
Sources
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Character: LevHidden spoiler – activate to revealOtherMinor spoiler
Location
No Return · Lev – In the No Return menu, pick Abby (open from the start; she heals on melee kills) and win two encounters, both in one run to be safe. Lev joins the roster.
Summary
The first character of Abby's side to unlock; he starts with a bow and can craft arrows.
Sources
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Character: MelHidden spoiler – activate to revealOtherMinor spoiler
Location
No Return · Mel – Pick Yara and win three encounters, best in one run. Mel joins the roster.
Requires
Summary
Starts with the Healing tree, whose Double Health Kits skill makes two health kits with each craft.
Sources
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Character: MannyHidden spoiler – activate to revealOtherMinor spoiler
Location
No Return · Manny – Pick Mel and win four encounters, best in one run; her extra health kits help you last. Manny joins the roster, which completes this side.
Requires
Summary
Carries a hunting pistol and gets incendiary shells once he holds a shotgun.
Sources
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Character: MarleneHidden spoiler – activate to revealOtherMinor spoiler
Location
No Return · Marlene – Complete five gambits with any character. Gambits show from your third run on, one per encounter at most, so take every gambit you are offered while unlocking the others above; she joins the roster when the fifth is done.
Requires
Summary
A character from the first game. She carries her own assault rifle, her gambits are all or nothing (fail one and the reward is lost), and she may switch paths once per run.
PlayStation 5
Bill and Marlene came to the PS5 version with the free Patch 2.0.0 in April 2025. If they are missing from the roster, update the game first. The PC version has had them since launch.
Sources
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Character: BillHidden spoiler – activate to revealOtherMinor spoiler
Location
No Return · Bill – Complete three Dead Drops with any character. Drop boxes show from your fourth run on; whenever an encounter has one, gather the crafting items it asks for and hand them over. He joins the roster when the third is done.
Requires
Summary
A character from the first game: starts with a trap mine, gets double Dead Drop rewards and shrugs off melee hits but can't dodge.
PlayStation 5
Bill and Marlene came to the PS5 version with the free Patch 2.0.0 in April 2025. If they are missing from the roster, update the game first. The PC version has had them since launch.
Sources
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Ten won runs, six bosses

Win one full run with each of the ten characters from this game; the two from the first game aren't part of that set. The quickest setup, once Capture is open, is a Custom Run on Very Light with only Capture encounters and only Seraphites, and the next boss you haven't beaten. Bosses come in a fixed order, and a boss you lose to waits for you on the next run, so six wins that each pick the next unbeaten boss clear all six; a run aimed at a Bloater for a challenge doesn't move the order on. After the sixth, bosses come at random. The Seraphite and Rattler bosses tend to be the easier fights and the Infected ones the hardest, so arrive at an Infected boss well stocked.

Boss: ArcadeHidden spoiler – activate to revealBossMinor spoiler
Location
No Return · Arcade – Every Standard Run ends with this fight until you win it; in a Custom Run, choose it as the boss. It comes after the last regular encounter, so spend your currency in the hideout first: explosives and health kits at the Trading Post, gun upgrades at the workbench, and craft before you leave. Win it and the next boss takes its place.
Summary
The first boss: a Bloater in the arcade. Beating it opens the second boss.
Sources
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Boss: TheaterHidden spoiler – activate to revealBossMinor spoiler
Location
No Return · Theater – Once the Arcade fight is won, the next Standard Run ends here; in a Custom Run, choose it as the boss. It is one of the Infected fights, the harder kind, so go in with health kits and explosives bought and your guns upgraded. Winning it also adds the Rattlers to the factions you can face.
Requires
Summary
The second boss: the Theater Infestation, an Infected fight. Beating it opens the third boss and the Rattlers as a faction.
Sources
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Boss: Resort FarmHidden spoiler – activate to revealBossMinor spoiler
Location
No Return · Resort Farm – After the Theater, runs end at the Resort Farm against the Rattler Captain; pick it in a Custom Run as the next unbeaten boss. Human bosses are among the easier ones: stock up in the hideout as before and win it to move the order on.
Requires
Summary
The third boss: the Rattler Captain. Beating it opens the fourth boss.
Sources
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Boss: GarageHidden spoiler – activate to revealBossMinor spoiler
Location
No Return · Garage – After the Resort Farm, the next boss is the Garage Bloater; choose it in a Custom Run or meet it at the end of a Standard Run. Another Infected fight: carry explosives and health kits from the Trading Post and upgrade your main gun first.
Requires
Summary
The fourth boss: a second Bloater, in a garage. Beating it opens the fifth boss.
Sources
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Boss: StripmallHidden spoiler – activate to revealBossMinor spoiler
Location
No Return · Stripmall – After the Garage, runs end at the Stripmall against the Seraphite Elite; pick it in a Custom Run as the next unbeaten boss. It is reckoned the easiest of the six: stock up in the hideout and win it to open the last one.
Requires
Summary
The fifth boss: the Seraphite Elite, at a strip mall. Beating it opens the last fixed boss.
Sources
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Boss: Hospital BasementHidden spoiler – activate to revealBossMinor spoiler
Location
No Return · Hospital Basement – After the Stripmall, the last boss in the order waits in the Hospital Basement; choose it in a Custom Run or meet it at the end of a Standard Run. It is an Infected fight, among the hardest, so save your currency for health kits and explosives and upgrade your best gun before it. Once it is beaten, runs end with a random boss.
Requires
Summary
The sixth and last fixed boss: the Rat King, in a hospital basement.
Sources
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Run Won: EllieHidden spoiler – activate to revealQuest stepMinor spoiler
Location
No Return · Ellie – In the No Return menu, pick Ellie and win every encounter of a run, the boss at the end too, with the setup from the plan above. She starts with the Perseverance skill tree and the Molotov recipe.
Summary
A full run won as Ellie, boss included.
Sources
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Run Won: JesseHidden spoiler – activate to revealQuest stepMinor spoiler
Location
No Return · Jesse – Pick Jesse and win a whole run with the same setup. His extra currency and free rerolls make him the easiest to stock for the boss.
Requires
Summary
A full run won as Jesse, boss included.
Sources
Report an issue
Run Won: TommyHidden spoiler – activate to revealQuest stepMinor spoiler
Location
No Return · Tommy – Pick Tommy and win a whole run with the same setup. He can't dodge, so keep enemies at range with his sniper rifle.
Requires
Summary
A full run won as Tommy, boss included.
Sources
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Run Won: JoelHidden spoiler – activate to revealQuest stepMinor spoiler
Location
No Return · Joel – Pick Joel and win a whole run with the same setup. Like Tommy he can't dodge; his custom revolver and shivs carry him.
Requires
Summary
A full run won as Joel, boss included.
Sources
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Run Won: AbbyHidden spoiler – activate to revealQuest stepMinor spoiler
Location
No Return · Abby – In the No Return menu, pick Abby and win a whole run with the setup from the plan above. Melee kills heal her, and she starts with the melee upgrade recipe.
Summary
A full run won as Abby, boss included.
Sources
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Run Won: MelHidden spoiler – activate to revealQuest stepMinor spoiler
Location
No Return · Mel – Pick Mel and win a whole run with the same setup. Buy her Double Health Kits skill early, so each craft gives two kits for the boss.
Requires
Summary
A full run won as Mel, boss included.
Sources
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Run Won: MannyHidden spoiler – activate to revealQuest stepMinor spoiler
Location
No Return · Manny – Pick Manny and win a whole run with the same setup. Buy a shotgun at the Trading Post early: once he holds one, he gets incendiary shells.
Requires
Summary
A full run won as Manny, boss included.
Sources
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About this guide

Three runs of the story, plus No Return alongside any of them. Run 1, on any difficulty below Grounded, takes every collectible, safe, manual, weapon and workbench; before the last chapter of that run, make a manual save to keep for cleanup. Run 2 is New Game+ on Very Light with Permadeath set to Per Chapter: it finishes the upgrades, which one run doesn't give enough Supplements and Parts for. Run 3 is Chronological mode on Grounded. After the credits, Chapter Select replays a chapter, with limits: the chapter list follows your latest autosave, so replaying an early chapter hides the later ones until you reload the cleanup save, and Supplements and Parts taken on a replay don't count toward the upgrades.

Last verified: Nov 12, 2026 · Patch Remastered, latest patch (PS5, PC on Steam and Epic) · 0 community corrections shipped

Unofficial fan guide. Not affiliated with the publisher.