Days Gone is finally here, and there are quite a few tips and tricks that players should know before getting started. Even though the Days Gone story leaves a bit to be desired, there’s a lot to love about the full-on freaker massacres in store, and the many ways Deacon can dispatch his foes. The third-person open world shooter has a familiar approach for fans of Red Dead Redemption, Last of Us, or Mad Max, but there’s a few important distinctions to keep in mind.

Though not crushingly difficult, Days Gone does have a large difficulty spike towards the end, when taking down hordes becomes required instead of a random encounter you might run away from. Though there are plenty of early missions to learn the ropes of Deacons’ various skills: stealth, bike-riding, crafting, and so forth, some things aren’t explained quite as well. And so, it’s understandable for players to want to know some Days Gone tips and tricks.

Before you hop into your first playthrough, check out Screen Rant’s tips and tricks for Days Gone below. It’s always helpful to have a little assistance in the post-apocalypse.

  • You’ll burn fuel fast driving around on your bike Oregon, so make sure to add gas stations to your route (they’re marked on the map). You’ll save a lot on gas by taking your foot off the petal when heading downhill. Don’t always do this; sometimes in a chase you need to go fast, but know that coasting downhill may get you just the extra distance you need to make it to a gas station to fuel up again. Water is bad news for motorcycles, and even driving through shallow water can damage your bike. Though it isn’t too costly to repair it, you’ll want to save as much scrap as you can for other crafting opportunities. You need to loot after every fight, all the time. Bandits you kill will always have something; whether it’s an already-constructed bandage or medkit, or just an ingredient for a certain recipe. Their camps are often littered in supplies as well: scrap, kerosene, etc. It may not be incredibly engaging, but you’ll thank yourself for checking every nook and cranny later. Unfortunately, the primary enemies in the game, freakers, don’t carry much on them. But simply running over their corpse will place an ear in Deacon’s inventory. These ears can be sold as bounties at the various camps, increasing your credits and trust. Why they pay for freaker ears, we don’t know, but they should always be looted so they can be turned in and used to get upgrades or guns. Don’t hold onto your credits until the end of Days Gone. The various camps offer a lot of tantalizing upgrades. Copeland can get your bike in tip-top shape, and Tucker has a veritable arsenal of guns. While it is important to level up both your fighting and your… flighting, make your priority a new set of arms. Deacon starts Days Gone with a junk condition pistol (the worst level) and later gets a rifle as his primary weapon. They’re functional, but once you get your Trust with Tuck’s camp up to Level 1, there are a lot better guns you can buy. Don’t wait on leveling up trust or save up hard-earned credits to buy the really high-tier items. They may look amazing (and trust us, they are) but you need something in the interim. Days Gone features an extensive day-night weather system that is at times beautiful. Exploring the rainy forests of Oregon is not without its pleasures. However, the changing weather and time also leads to a lot of enemy unpredictability. Most noticeably, freakers are out in full force at night and are a lot more aggressive. They’re still out during the day of course, just less in numbers and less willing to give up the chase. Keep in mind this isn’t always the case; some missions will feature hordes of these freaks irregardless. If you’re struggling with a particular mission (one that doesn’t auto set the time or weather), try sleeping at one of the various beds and advancing the time or simply doing another activity and trying again when the weather’s changed. Way before the game is ready to introduce you to them, you may encounter a huge cluster of freakers, moving together like a mob. This is a horde, and they are tough. Each horde consists of around 150 or so of the undead and they can easily overwhelm you. If you run into one with low ammo, very few health kits, and most importantly - no molotovs, turn around. There’s no shame in running from a fight, especially one that you can’t win. NERO checkpoints often have anywhere from 2-6 loudspeakers. Once the power goes back on, these puppies will ring out, bringing down the wrath of freakers around you. To avoid this, you can either shoot the speakers down with a silenced gun or cut them down with a knife by climbing on top of the outpost. Be careful to look for hidden speakers in trees (sometimes they can be a bit tricky!). Use napalm molotovs all the time. Though the recipe is essentially the same as basic molotovs with a bit more ingredients that are a bit rarer, these guys are necessary in taking out hordes. Necessary. Fire can spread quickly over a large group of baddies and kills them much faster than praying and spraying. Gunfire attracts more freakers. Yes, guns also kill freakers, but if you keep firing in a crowded area, you’ll end up firing for a long time, wasting precious ammo. So instead of shooting these bad guys when there are only a few around you, take out a trusty crafted (or found) melee weapon and go to town.

Mastering all of these concepts in Days Gone will ensure that you’re prepared for the horde, marauders, and anything that the apocalypse can throw at you. Keep in mind that these may not suit your playstyle, so mix and match as you see fit.

Next: The Real Reason Days Gone Removed Player Choices