The Last of Us came out last Friday, but some players are now just starting out on their journey across post-apocalyptic America. They’re going to find that the game is pretty unforgiving and they might need some tips to survive the more harrowing enemy encounters. That’s where Naughty Dog comes in.

Bruce Straley, director on The Last of Us, recently shared a whole host of survival tips for players that are having some trouble in his game. A lot of the tips are common sense, such as upgrading shivs to counter clickers or throwing bricks to daze enemies, but some might be surprised to learn that you can get pretty creative in the game.

I’m almost near the end of my platythrough, but I wish I knew some of these when I started out. The Last of Us can be really brutal sometimes. In some cases, a little help doesn’t hurt.

Check out our previous coverage for more on Naughty’s Dog latest epic.