To get through The Last of Us Part II, players need to fight against hordes of fungal zombies and armed humans, leading to some truly brutal combat. While players can opt for a stealthy approach, much of the game requires the use of weapons regardless; there are several to choose from along the way depending on individual play-style.
Below are the locations of each weapon, as well as some information about what to upgrade. It is important to consider initial upgrades carefully, because there simply are not enough materials to upgrade all weapons on the first playthrough.
Ellie’s Weapons – Semi-Auto Pistol
The Semi-Auto Pistol is a default starting weapon for Ellie. While the gun does not have much in terms of stopping power per shot, it serves a purpose in that more powerful weapons with limited ammunition need not be wasted.
Players will be able to upgrade this weapons fire rate, stability, recoil, and capacity. If upgrading this weapon, stability and recoil are the best options at first. This allows for players to improve upon precision and accuracy, wasting less ammunition and ending confrontations as quickly as possible. Capacity and fire rate are secondary considerations, helpful for dealing with a rush of enemies quickly.
Bolt-Action Rifle
This is another default weapon for Ellie, and one that has outstanding stopping power and utility when upgraded, though ammunition is often limited by what a player can carry. Its upgrades include stability, capacity, 6x scope, and damage. This weapon offers versatility as it can be used at both close and long range, though we recommend using the 6x scope. Learning to deal with targets at long range is an excellent skill to develop.
Revolver
The Revolver can be picked up in the chapter “Packing Up” from a red box. While slow to reload, this weapon packs a punch. Unfortunately, ammunition for this weapons always feels incredibly rare throughout the game, so while it is a great way to start off a fight against a tough enemy, the best plan is often to empty it and swap out to another weapon to finish that job. Since ammunition is scarce for the revolver, upgrading reload speed is not worth the resources, even if it makes it nearly twice as quick to do so.
Pump Shotgun
In the “Downtown” chapter, players can find the Pump Shotgun in the Westlake Bank vault. Its upgrades include fire rate, stability, and capacity. Once again, stability is a great choice here. However, not all players may find it necessary since the optimal range for this weapon is right up close, as the damage drop off climbs quickly. Fire rate and capacity can also be useful for those situations when there are simply too many opponents coming at once.
Bow
In the “Hillcrest” chapter, players can find the Bow inside of a home that is near the end of the main story component. Although the draw time is slow, the Bow offers players one of the best ways at playing stealthily. With a little practice, a head shot will take down a target instantly and prevent anyone from being alerted to Ellie’s presence. Rangefinder is a great upgrade to make this easier, while draw speed and stability are more for personal preference. Regardless, this is not something players should utilize when opponents are rushing up close and personal.
Silenced Submachine Gun
When beginning “The Resort” chapter, this weapon is added automatically for use. It has no upgrades available, which only makes sense given its raw stopping power and speed by default.
Abby’s Weapons – Military Pistol
This is Abby’s default weapon, and its upgrades should be considered in the same way as Ellie’s pistol: it is not a powerful or fancy weapon, but it works great for conserving better ammunition for other weapons.
With that in mind, the rest of Abby’s weapon choices tend to guide players towards a more direct, brutal style of play. On that note, upgrading should be considered in a way that better suits the following weapons, starting with the Semi-Auto Rifle and its abundance of ammunition relative to other weapons in the game.
Semi-Auto Rifle
This is another default weapon with upgrades available for stability, capacity, 4x scope, and burst fire. Unlike the Revolver, it seems as though ammunition for this weapon is scattered throughout the game. Given its raw power, the burst upgrade is not a bad choice, and its only real limitation is that you can only carry a small amount of ammunition at once.
Hunting Pistol
In the “On Foot” chapter, this can be found in a safe. Its upgrades include stability, 4x scope, and damage. The 4x scope is surprisingly useful on this weapon, and depending on play style, so is damage for devastating headshots.
Double Barrel Shotgun
This weapon can be found in Chinatown during the “Hostile Territory” chapter, and features upgrades for damage, reload speed, and stability. Damage often seems like a tempting choice, but the reality is that there are better, more efficient weapons for situations that require lots of damage. Instead, reload speed is a better choice, letting you use this weapon to stagger nasty opponents and then finish them off with a more powerful weapon.
Crossbow
The Crossbow need not be found, since it is added automatically upon starting “The Coast” chapter. Reload speed is a great upgrade here since this silent weapon works wonders for taking targets out before they know what is happening, as well as for dealing with opponents looking to close the distance.
Flamethrower
In “The Descent” chapter, this can be found next to a corpse in the image below, though it has no upgrades available.
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