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The flamethrower is a long gun in The Last of Us and The Last of Us Part II, and a purchasable in Factions MP. It is one of only two improvised weapons, the other being the Launcher.

History[]

The Last of Us[]

The flamethrower is a homemade weapon, evident by how the trigger is made from a bicycle brake lever. The source of the fuel is a small red propane tank hooked to the bottom. The flamethrower suffers from a limited range. Upgrading range increases its effectiveness and spread to put a greater distance between the targets and the user, reducing the risk of injury or attack.

Joel finds one in a loading dock at the University of Eastern Colorado, suggesting that a student created and used it. If players miss this one, another will be findable near a group of runners on the bottom floor of a nearby building. Given the infected encounter is mandatory, the weapon's placement acts as a chance to for the player to test the weapon.

Highly effective against infected, it can easily dispose of a bloater, but without the splash damage of the Molotov cocktail. A one-hit-kill to human enemies, even minor exposure to the flame will incinerate them, rendering them unable to attack before they succumb to the flames.

Factions MP[]

In Factions MP, the flamethrower can be purchased after the player has collected 4750 supplies. Costing two loadout points to equipped, it requires 240 parts to purchase 30 fuel with the price increasing by 60 parts on each successive purchase. Despite being the weakest weapon per hit (tied with the specter) it only takes 10 fuel to execute someone without incinerating them; they burst into flames of more than 10 fuel is used. To reach it's full range, an additional 5 units of fuel is required for sustained fire.

The flamethrower does small bits of damage in quick succession and unlike all other guns (that leave the victim in a near-dead state), the flamethrower burns the enemy just like the Molotov cocktails, meaning that the victim cannot be revived. Again, similarly to Molotov cocktails, if fired for long enough at one spot, the ground will catch on fire, dealing slow damage to anyone on it.

Due to its limited range, the flamethrower excels in close range combat, able to surprise and defeat multiple enemies at once, being most effective against players who are reviving a downed teammate. The aim is also not massively disoriented by rapid fire guns, like the full-auto rifle or burst rifle, so it can secure a kill at close range. It does well against the shotgun and Specter so long as the user is wearing armor.

The flamethrower is also silent so it works well with a stealth class, perhaps as an alternative to the easy-to-miss Specter but that ultimately comes down to preference; cheaper ammo and instant executions or rapid fire to disorient enemies.

The cheap but effective instant execution of the weapon makes it a popular choice in Survivor matches due to how quickly a player can obtain the parts needed to purchase it and the fact that most players lack armor and stronger weapons in the early rounds.

Flamethrower's Damage Output

Damage Output


Workbench upgrades[]

The following is a list of upgrades available for the flamethrower at workbenches, and the parts and level of tools required to upgrade each.

Upgrade Description Level Tools Tool icon Parts Parts icon
Reload speed Allows you to reload the weapon faster. 1 1 20
2 4 40
Range Increases the range of the weapon. 1 4 40
Power The weapon deals more damage. 1 5 60
Total: 160

In The Last of Us Part II[]

In Part II, the flamethrower is the final weapon the player obtains while playing as Abby Anderson. It is located in the hotel that Abby and Lev traverse through. As the final weapon Abby acquires, it is not possible to upgrade it, much like how the player can't upgrade the silenced submachine gun when obtaining it as Ellie.

While the flamethrower from The Last of Us is an improvised weapon, the flamethrower used in Part II is a purpose built one. 

Behind the scenes[]

  • When designing the flamethrower in The Last of Us, the developers ensured enemy character did not use the weapon against the player, a similarity shared with the bow. However, the developers also unintentionally created several glitches. Notably, using the weapon can cause the game to crash or freeze at certain points, especially when used on a large group of enemies and with a constant flow of propane. Furthermore, the flame it emits is orange even though propane fuel would cause the flame to be blue.
    • The player can even kill Ellie with the flamethrower during the chapter "The University". When caught in the range of Joel's flames, Ellie will die and drop her pistol, which the player can pick up. Soon after, the game reverts to the last checkpoint shortly after the glitch occurs, unless performed on a very specific frame.
    • A glitch is also present in Factions MP where when a player is sprayed with fire, the damage doesn't occur until several seconds after contact. This is probably due to the screen desync between players.

Gallery[]

In The Last of Us[]

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