The bottom line: caves and bunkers are the real story
This game is not only about base-building — the main thread is clearing caves and bunkers to escape and reach an ending. The single biggest thing that stalls your progress is not having the gear you need. So the first thing to lock down is the order in which you collect that gear.
The golden rule for the fastest route is "Rebreather, then Rope Gun, then Shovel." Once you have all three, you can reach nearly every flooded cave, vertical cave and buried bunker, and the story moves quickly.
Base-building and combat basics are covered in separate articles, so here we focus purely on progression and item order.
The key-item order (the top three)
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1
Get the Rebreather (diving gear)
Found in a beachside cave on the north coast. It lets you move through flooded sections without surfacing, unlocking many caves.
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2
Get the Rope Gun
Clear a cave near the crash site west of the snowy mountain to find it. It fires a rope to descend or cross gaps, opening up vertical caves.
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3
Get the Shovel
Found in a cave around the center of the map where streams meet, in the mountainous region. Requires the Rebreather and Rope Gun. It digs up buried bunkers.
Caves are far safer to explore once your gear is set. Bring plenty of light (a lighter or flashlight), healing items and ammo, and keep your distance from mutants. See the combat article for how to fight them.
Keycards and clearing the bunkers
Once you have the Shovel, dig up the buried bunkers to collect keycards. These are the keys to the deeper sections and to other bunkers.
| Item | Location / requirement | Use |
|---|---|---|
| Maintenance Keycard | Bunker you dig up with the Shovel | Opens locked doors, the 3D printer and the path to the Chainsaw |
| VIP Keycard | Food bunker in the northwest (needs Maintenance Keycard) | Access to deeper areas and facilities |
| Pistol (second one) | Multi-level bunker on the east coast | More firepower — conserve your ammo |
| Stun Baton (Stun Gun) | Shark-infested cave on the north coast | A melee tool that staggers enemies |
Bunkers and caves are full of mutants, and they burn through ammo and healing items fast. The food bunker for the VIP Keycard has a flooded stretch, so the Rebreather is mandatory. Charging in underprepared is an easy way to get stuck — gear up and stock supplies first.
Handy gear and how to use GPS Locators
It pays to grab some quality-of-life gear while you explore.
GPS Locators are recovered from corpses around the island and reveal caves and bunkers on your map. Stake one and it becomes a personal waypoint. You can craft more by printing a case at a 3D printer and combining it with a battery, wire and a circuit board.
The path to the endings (spoiler-light)
Gather the Golden Armor (inside a cave that requires diving gear) and the Golden Mask (in a bunker morgue), equip both, and head to the final bunker on the island's north coast to trigger an ending.
Pros
- +Following the gear order keeps you from getting stuck
- +There are multiple endings that branch with extra effort
- +Keeping your companions (Kelvin and Virginia) alive is the key to the secret ending
Cons
- −Without the right gear you hit cave dead-ends and backtrack a lot
- −Late-game bunkers are tough and quickly drain ammo and healing
There are several endings, and reaching the final sequence with both Kelvin and Virginia still alive unlocks the secret ending. We will keep the staging itself under wraps, but if you remember the flow — collect gear in order, push deeper with keycards, finish with the golden set — you will not get lost.
Related articles
For getting started, see the beginner guide, and for dealing with enemies in caves, see combat and cannibals.
Verdict: exploration that genuinely delivers
Honestly, progression here is designed so that you feel free to roam while an invisible rail — the item order — quietly guides you. Dive in blindly without knowing it and you hit dead-end after dead-end and lose heart. Learn the order, though, and you can soak in the claustrophobia of the caves and the dread of the bunkers while making smooth progress. As a blend of survival and exploration adventure, it feels remarkably well put together.
