The Last of Us Part II (Grounded)

I went through maybe 50% of the game on grounded & with the crosshair turned off. It proved to be pretty stressful so I gave up. I had finished the game anyway.

The best tips I can give:

• stealth is your #1 tool; make use of the environment; lure enemies to various areas by throwing things
• be patient but decisive; once you identify an opening, commit to it: strike as efficiently as you can, then hide just as fast
• stealth kills are almost always more appropriate than using your gun
• have an exit strategy in mind; know exactly where you are going to hide after you strike; if you hesitate, the AI will mess you up
• always keep lethal traps in your inventory; they will prove useful once you run into dogs
• find a balance between following the enemies' patterns & playing aggressively; if you pay attention, you will notice that the enemies almost always patrol the area where you are hiding; you can't stay hidden forever
• be patient and look for opportunities for guerilla warfare: come out of stealth, kill an enemy, run back into stealth, circle around and repeat

It's extremely rewarding and the AI feels like you're playing against real people. But it's also infuriatingly hard (and tense), so remember that it's ok to die even 20 times in one section