First off, you'll want to start a new game if you just bought the game obviously. Once that's done choose to have full HUD and tutorials. As another guide author has stated this game isn't easy even with the tutorials.

Lastly before I delve into the basics of the guide, if you were expecting a casual survival game experience you can forget it. This game takes no prisoners and will eat you alive if you give it even an inch.

I also want to point out that I'm also still learning the game as I go at the time of writing this guide so if something isn't in here, it's probably because I haven't found it or don't know about it yet. So this isn't the definitive guide but it should help you get started. With that out of the way let's get on to the actual basics!

First off the tutorial will help you through most of the basic stuff so you won't have to worry about the intro of the game as much but after that aside from tutorials that appear after doing certain things, you're on your own in discovering stuff.. One thing you'll have to do is raise your motorcity. This unlocks abilities to do things with your hands. You will need this to alter objects items to make new tools and gain access to certain foods (such as coconuts).

Once this is out of the way let's talk about gathering. Gathering food is essential for your survival. Now thankfully there's no shortage of food in the surrounding areas of the starting location. You have plenty of cattails (don't eat them all though, more on this later on), some trees with red leaves and berries outside your little cave , and in the valley below some assorted fruits including Coconuts. You won't have to wander far from the starting location to find food but when in the valley or in the tree tops be weary of predators. More on the dangerous wild life later.

A word of warning if you plan on eating berries or certain fruits. There is a chance of becoming poisoned. I'll talk more about curing poison later. If you want to avoid getting poisoned altogether Inspect each berry or fruit before eating it.

A few things in this game require you to master QTE's of sorts. These QTE's are used for crafting and grooming other apes.


The prompt makes a noise and has an overlay like this above. When you hear the sound that accompanies this let go of holding the alter button or the grooming button. If done properly you should get good results. Keep in mind when altering items most items only give you one chance to properly alter them before breaking. So keep this in mind.

Some items also require you to hit them with a rock. Obsidian is good for this but any rock should do theoretically. Same rules apply for hitting. This is how you make a sharpened stick. (you can also do this to make a normal stick from a branch but it takes longer than stripping a branch does)

While grooming failing a QTE upsets the ape you're grooming. If you had previously raised a bonding level with the ape the bonding level will decrease unless you're already a couple. (in which case nothing changes)

Now we're getting into the predators and how to fight them. For the most part you'll want to avoid combat as much as possible. If a creature attacks you you have an opportunity to dodge the attack (onscreen instructions will appear the first few times this happens if tutorials are on so just follow it.)

If for some reason you don't have tutorials active basically you hold down the jump button and point your controller in any direction away from the predator. You may still take damage doing this. More on healing wounds and other afflictions later in the guide. As you evolve though you will have a higher dodge success rate and Ape followers will be able to dodge as well.

After dodging an attack you'll want to run up the nearest tree or cliff and get as far away from the attacker as possible. If you don't you will go into hysteria and lose all control of your ape.

Optionally as a last line of defense you can intimidate predators. The larger and more dangerous the predator the more apes it takes to scare it off, so keep this in mind. It should also be noted that intimidation uses up dopamine, so use caution otherwise if you do it too much you may wind up going into hysteria.

Killing an animal will give you meat. What kind of meat varies on the animal. To obtain the meat you will need to use a rock to butcher it (any rock will do, even gemstones and meteorites).

Here's a list of animals you can encounter:

Snakes
There are three types of snake in the game. Two species of Mamba and the African Rock Python.
Mambas
The Mambas aren't particularly dangerous if spotted. Using senses can aid with this. The Mamba make a rather loud hissing sound making them easy to spot. A single ape can intimidate a Mamba causing it to flee. The green Mamba appears in the Jungles typically around trees. Black Mamba appear in the Savanna and Canyon areas.
African Rock Python
The African Rock Pythons are another story however. They tend to stay quiet and don't typically move unless you get close to them. These snakes produce A LOT of Ovaperus meat. The Rock Pythons are found almost everywhere. Some guard nests. You can eat the eggs in these nests. Obviously without the omnivorism perk for eggs, you will get indigestion.

Bateleur Eagle
Keep in mind when you climb a tree, you have a chance of encountering a giant eagle if you climb too high. Generally this happens in areas close to their nests (such as the nests close to the starting area) If you've evolved omnivorism for eggs you can steal eggs from these nests and eat them if you'd like but be weary of the skies while doing this.

Miocene Pelican
Similar to the Bateleur Eagle, these guys swoop down on their prey. However, unlike that Eagle, these guys will attack the player on land. Thankfully, they're kinda rare as they're only encountered on the beach of the oceans. They do have nests with eggs high up.

Giant Warthogs
Giant Warthogs, while not predators, are very territorial they will try to intimidate you at first but may charge if you further provoke them (such as a failed attempt at intimidation). They can be damaged and killed with any type of stick and if your attack success rate is high enough, rocks.

Machairodus
Machairodus aka Saber-toothed Cat, is a rather common threat in the game. Machairodus Come in three colors: Golden, Black, and White. They also are encountered in the same respective order I listed them in the previous sentence. The Golden variation is the most common, while the White one is the least common. These are probably the most common larger predators in the game as they can be encountered almost anywhere and are super quiet about hunting you until they are right on top of you. Use your senses regularly to see if one is in the area. Thankfully in times of desperation, you can use a rock on them provided you've evolved better attack success rates. The branch, stick and sharpened stick are more effective however. These guys are the reason why you should sleep in the trees early game if you're out in the wilds away from your settlement.

After your first evolution leap you will have a Machairodus be randomly selected to spawn and stalk you. This Machairodus will continually harass you until its killed. Many settlement locations aren't safe from this "stalker cat" as this specific Machairodus is called and you may have them coming into your settlement and attack your apes. Thankfully since it's in your settlement now, just intimidate it and it will flee since most of your apes should be there. Any location that requires climbing or uses caves is relatively safe from the stalker cat.

Thorbjarnarson's Crocodile
These Crocs can be found near bodies of water such as swamps and lakes. They are very dangerous and are capable of short bursts of speed on land. Only branches, sticks, and sharpened can harm them significantly. Attempting to use a rock or bone to bash them will result in your homonid getting an injury. (it will still damage the croc causing it to flee however)

Hyena
The Hyena is almost exclusive to the Savanna biome. Hyenas hunt in packs attempting to take down things larger than them. They can be fended off with any kind of stick, and if your attack success rate is high enough, rocks. After defeating one the rest of the pack should retreat. If not, keep attacking until they all do.

Black-Backed Jackal
The Black-Backed Jackal is a very small predator found in the canyon Biome and in parts of the Savanna biome bordering it. Because of their small size they are much easier to kill and scare off than some other predators. However, they do occasionally appear in packs.

Megarian Banded Centipede
That's right a giant creepy crawly! These guys are bad news. Their armored hides make it hard to attack them with rocks successfully. The best way to kill them is with Sharpened sticks. The Megarian Banded Centipede is unable to kill other animals and can only be killed by the Machairodus. Strangely, it bleeds Red rather than what a Centipede should. It also drops Oviparus meat, meat typically dropped by birds and reptiles in the game. These guys are only found in and around caves. They inflict a venomous bite which is why using rocks isn't recommended.

Hippopotamus
Hippos are typically found around the great lake and certain spots in the Savanna. Hippos are large and aggressive. Because of their size, using rocks isn't recommended to take them down as you are almost always guaranteed to recieve an injury from it. Typically they will flee into water after a successful dodge or fending off an attack at the great lake area.

African Buffalo
These guys are only found in the Savanna biome and are by far the most common irascible animal there. Same rules apply as other large animals, don't attack them with a rock.

Miocene Elephant
Technically their scientific name is Stegotetrabelodon but you try pronouncing that and you'll see why the developers opted to call it a "Miocene Elephant". Like all irascible animals, they will try to intimidate you first then if that fails, charge you. Also as always with larger animals, never try to attack with a rock. Only found in the Savanna biome.

Miocene White Rhino
It's a rhino. Same rules as the last two entries apply to it. Only found in the Savanna biome.

Miocene African Otter
These guys while they may seem cute and docile are actually irascible animals. They are very territorial and will attack the player. They are often found in groups which can be dangerous. Any weapon may be used to fight them, even rocks if your success rate for attacks is high enough. Found around the Great Lake and Ocean Biomes.

With a character limit I was forced to make these last two animals their own section.

Miocene African Horse
These horses aren't super dangerous unless cornered. Worst they can do is drop your dopamine until you scare them off. These horses are rather skittish and will flee if you approach them. If you happen to corner one by getting really close it will attempt to charge you. Any weapon should suffice taking them down, even a rock if you have evolved better success rate for attacks. These animals are found in both the Savanna and Woodlands Biomes.

Dorcas Gazelle
Same rules as with the Miocene African Horse apply here. Only difference is it is exclusive to the Savanna Biome.

This section had to be broken off from the bestiary because apparently steam guides have a character limit. When you fight an attacker, here are the different kinds of attacks you can do:

Stabbing Attackers
If you have a branch, stick, or sharpened stick in your right hand you can perform a counter attack. Timing it right will impale the animal. This probably won't kill it but it will make the creature run away (it might come back eventually so keep this in mind. The stick stays inside its body and you'll see it poking out if it comes back) If for some reason you find yourself under attack without a weapon find a dead tree dodging the attacks of your enemy along the way. Rip the branch off the tree and use it to fend off the attacker. It may break, but it will still scare off the attacker. If it doesn't break though it will impale the attacker instead inflicting more damage.

Bashing Attackers With Rocks and Bones
In times of desperation if you have a rock it can be used to attack certain animals. Larger animals like Aliigators, hippos, Buffalo, Elphants, etc will knock the player down and injure them if they attempt to attack them with a rock. The Rock will still do damage and scare them away however. Bones you obtain from animals you've killed can also be used in this way.

Body Tackle
This is probably the worst possible attack you can use in the game. You are almost always guaranteed to get injured or bleeding status using this, even when successful. This is the attack you will attempt to use on an attacker without a weapon if you decide to attack instead of dodge. When successful, the attacker will get scared away but as stated above it also hurts your homonid as well.

Tricking Animals into Killing eachother
Some animals can be lured into killing other animals. All that needs to be done is to get an animal to chase you towards another animal. Not all animals can kill all other animals. If successful a cinematic of the animals fighting will play. Sometimes depending upon the animal, the animals may survive and retreat away from the fight if they were at full health before it began.
Upon witnessing an animal kill another animal for the first time you will get an evolution feat based on whatever the animals involved were.

Medical conditions are crippling in this game. This section will show you how to cure them as well as a breif description of what each one does to you.
Let's start off with conditions:

Bleeding
Bleeding is a very dangerous condition that will slowly kill your ape if severe enough. Bleeding may stop on its own but its very slow and your ape may die before then if bad enough. Apply stripped cattails to clot the blood.

Broken Bones
Broken bones happen generally when you're too high up and fall to the ground below (if the fall doesn't kill you, which it can which plays a special cutscene for it. If you don't get this it means you're alive.) Broken bones generally aren't fatal as you won't lose health. However broken bones will signficantly reduce your movement speed making it harder to get away from predators. Eating Cattails without altering them will heal bones as will eating red leaves off of certain trees.

Poisoning
Posioning is a bit like bleeding though less severe as it goes away pretty quickly. The Downside to poisoning is that it limits your visibility and clouds your vision. There are several ways to stave off poisoning. Eating Coconuts will do the trick. Drinking water is also an option. Drinking lots of water will eventually flush your system of poison.

Indigestion
Certain foods such as meats, poultry (eg eggs), and mushrooms. Aren't good for you to eat early game. Until you've evolved ominvorism you will get sick to your stomach when you eat these foods.Indigestion has similar effects to poisoning but are far less severe and it wears off faster. Simply drink water to flush out your system.


While there isn't a Doctor in your clan, you can turn some food items into healing items which heal a variety of conditions. stockpiling these is probably a good idea as most of them are at or close to the starting location of the game.. These three foods in particular are of note:
Cattails
Found mostly near small ponds, lakes, and streams, these are good for healing broken bones. They work even better if you alter them via stripping. After they're stripped an ape can apply them to heal bleeding. If you aren't bleeding you can apply it to resist bleeding. Eating them without altering them will work for resisting bone injuries

Small Trees with Red Leaves
I'm not sure what these are called but they're pretty easy to spot as they kinda stick out from the usual green plants. These will heal broken bones when eaten as well as fight off the cold. When eaten without a condition you will gain temporary resistance to these two conditions. These cannot be altered.

Coconuts
Surprisingly, Coconuts are the best thing for poisoning. Drink the milk of one of these and you're good to go. The shell is also edible as well so you can stock pile broken shells to eat later as well. You'll need to smash the coconut open to get to the juicy goodness inside though so keep a rock handy and don't mess up. You mess up and you'll destroy the coconut.

Construction usually takes place after you stockpile enough of a particular item.

You can build bedding with a cycad (I think that's what its called, its the one plant that you can't eat in the starting area.)

A pile of branches will make a section of branch fencing. Presumably for keeping out intruders.

Sadly these are the only recipes I know currently. sorry. You'll have to do some experimenting to find others for now.

To evolve you will need to construct bedding. In the starting area one piece of bedding is placed by default. As you perform certain actions over and over, you'll gain some neuron growth. These growths are basically like a skill tree.

Neuronal
The neuronal growth will allow you to expand your abilities further and learn to do new things such as have your clan mimic your actions, or sense things from further away for instance. And of course one thing you'll wanna evolve is motorcity as its essential for crafting

Generation
This will allow you to reinforce learned Neurons to the next generation. When you move ahead a generation you'll lose whatever skills aren't reinforced which means you'll have to relearn them. The amount of reinforcements you can have depend upon how many babies are currently born and alive.
The more babies you have the more you can pass on to the next generation. this is where recruiting outsider apes comes in handy.

Evolution
The final category is evolution. What this does is lets you skip thousands even millions of years into the future. While this sounds great and all, it should only be done after making significant progress because you're gonna start in a random Oasis. This can be bad if the odds aren't in your favor and you don't know the area.

Babies are important for several reasons. They strengthen the neuronal learning of adults near them and they're super cute too. You'll need to form a couple with a fertile male and female to make one. By default your clan will have at least one or two babies. Elder females cannot produce offspring but can form couples. Elder males can produce offspring with younger females. This is useful if you're short a young male and need more babies. Also each female can only have two offspring at a time. You will need to recruit more females if you want more babies. If for some reason you want to you can also form same sex couples but obviously this won't produce a baby making it a little pointless.

To make a baby, just get an ape that is in a couple to lay down in bed. Drop any babies you got hanging off of you because mating commands won't appear otherwise. You can call your mate over with the vocal button. Once the mate arrives you can then commence mating. Once a female is impregnated. you can then switch to her if you're not her already and give birth to the baby instantly if you wish. This will cause 15 ingame months to pass and a cutscene will play. (which you can skip if you've already saw it)

Keep your eyes and ears open because sometimes you may encounter a lone ape. These apes generally have needs you'll need to fulfill. These can range from getting them food or curing them of poison. their body language is generally an indication of what's wrong with them.

Once you've met their needs they'll be part of your clan and will follow you back to the rest of your clan. if you sit on a bed and choose to end your expedition a cutscene will play of your clan welcoming the new ape.

edit: There is a hard limit on the number of adult apes that can be in your clan. Three males and three females which means each generation is limited to six babies. When you have enough adults, recruitable apes will not spawn. If one of your adult apes die a recruitable one will spawn somewhere in the game world. Where it spawns is totally random.

And that's pretty much all the basic stuff I can share for now. If you would like to contribute to this guide with more information feel free to comment below.