The text below was published on the official PlayStation blog, listing all the news from the Grounded update, which arrives on August 13 for The Last of Us: Part II.
Grounded difficulty returns, along with Permadeath mode
For veteran fans of The Last of Us, Grounded difficulty represents the biggest test of their skills. This difficulty increases the stakes by making enemies more difficult, materials and ammunition more rare and removes survival tools like Listen mode, disables elements of the HUD, and more. From the update, Grounded will be one of the basic difficulty options available at the beginning of the story, you won't have to finish the game once to access it.
As an additional layer of challenge, we are also introducing the new Permadeath mode. With this mode activated, there is no second chance - you have to complete the entire game without dying, or start all over again. However, if you think that completing the whole game is too much to ask, you can activate Permadeath mode, with checkpoints per chapter or per act. That is, if you die on Day One, you will have to play that entire day again.
You will also be rewarded for your effort. The Grounded update comes with two new Trophies: one for completing the game with any Permadeath mode enabled, and one for finishing on the Grounded difficulty. Don't worry, none of these Trophies will be necessary to obtain the Platinum Trophy.
New graphics, audio and gameplay modifiers
Have you ever wondered how The Last of Us: Part II would look like a cel-shaded adventure, or if it was created in the 8-bit era? What if it was a black and white noir thriller, or a sepia-toned classic? In this week’s update, we’ll add more than 30 new rendering modes, plus several audio modifiers to let you change the look and feel of the game.
We are also debuting new unlockable gameplay modifiers, such as One Shot or Touch of Death, which allow you to kill with one stroke, or Infinite Ammo, Infinite Crafting, and Infinite Listen Mode Range, for you to further customize your game:
- Mirror World
- Mirror on Death
- Slow Motion
- Bullet Speed mode
- Infinite Ammo
- Infinite Crafting
- Infinite Melee Durability
- Infinite Listen mode Range
- One Shot
- Touch of Death
- 8-bit Audio
- 4-bit Audio
- Helium Audio
- Xenon Audio
All of these modifiers can be accessed through the Extras menu, and are unlocked after completing the game.
New options and improvements
In addition to these new modes, we are happy to introduce several required improvements to the game, including the option to disable Listening Mode, adjust Film Grain levels, more display options, improvements to accessibility options, and more. For our friends in the speedrunning community, we've also added the ability to see your playing time down to seconds in the game save menus, making it easier to track and verify your attempts. Here is a summary of what's new with the Grounded update:
- Recorded games now show playing time until the second
- Film Grain adjustment option
- Option to disable Listening Mode
- Motion Sensor Function Aiming option
- Option Arc Throw HUD Display
- Aiming Acceleration Scale option
- Option Aiming Ramp Power Scale
- Accessibility improvements for Ground Zero Encounter, collectible tracking, improved Listen Mode for collectibles, and strings
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We hope you enjoy everything that will arrive in The Last of Us: Part II in the Grounded update, which arrives on August 13th. The game is available for PlayStation 4.
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