How The Last Of Us' Cordyceps Infection Started (& How It Spreads)

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The Cordyceps Brain Infection is a central part of franchisebut the details of how the Cordyceps infection started can be easy to miss. The Cordyceps Brain Infection (CBI) is the fungal infection responsible for wiping out half of society in the world of resulting in the post-apocalyptic state that the games and show present. Both the original game and sequel provide insight into how it spreads, but players focused on the gameplay can find some of the subtler clues the details can be easy to miss.

In the original the outbreak initially begins in September 2013. The fungus, spread through a bite from an infected individual or exposure to spores, infects a living individual and transforms them until they become a horrific bloater. Symptoms appear within a couple of days, and then stage two will bring aggressive and unexplainable behavior as the fungus takes hold of the brain. The fungal growth begins taking over their body, leading to deformities. By stage three, the fungus is covering the infected individual’s eyes, rendering them blind. By stage four, the individual will have the fungus covering almost all of their body.

Related: The Last of Us: Part 1 — Best Things to Do After Beating The Game

The origin of the Cordyceps infection is revealed in-game through a newspaper clipping in Found at Joel and Sarah’s house, the clipping from the local paper reveals the Cordyceps infection and the Clickers that result from it began spreading after crops became infected in South America. ” the article reads. “

show tends to reveal information in a different way from the games, moving away from information that the player can pick up in the environment. The show points toward a similar origin but gives both more and less