The document summarizes how Naughty Dog developed the concept for the infected enemies in The Last of Us. They initially considered an infection that simply killed people, but realized they needed an ongoing threat for gameplay. They were inspired by real-life fungal infections in insects and envisioned a cordyceps-like infection in humans. An artist created a hybrid infected appearance drawing on real diseases and fungi. The studio developed the full biological cycle of the infection, including later stages where the infected's body is consumed by fungal growth. These stages were based on real fungal infections to make the concept believable.