Survive the Primal Planet
Primal Planet is a gorgeous, caveman-and-dinosaur-themed metroidvania with a bit of crafting tacked on. Also there are aliens. This BigFriendgly.Guide will help you get started with tips for Primal Planet.
Primal Planet is a gorgeous, caveman-and-dinosaur-themed metroidvania with a bit of crafting tacked on. Also there are aliens. Don’t worry about it.
Aside from having some of the most stunning and vibrant pixel animations of any game, it’s also shockingly difficult with a brutal story. And it can be a little obtuse about your goals.
This BigFriendgly.Guide will help you get started with tips for Primal Planet.
Heal. Heal all the time
Your caveman is going to die. A lot. You’ll get one-shotted by giant dinosaurs, or you might just wander past a swarm of mosquitos and die as a result (seriously, I’ve died to a swarm of bugs like a dozen times). Everything can and will kill you and there’s very little you can do about it (more on this in a second).
You can, however, heal. Both fruit and cooked meat will give you back an HP or two. Don’t ever assume that you’ll survive the next encounter with literally anything.
You should keep a little food on hand, though, because…
Fighting isn’t always the answer
I have checked several times now to see if there’s a setting somewhere that turns off the caveman’s ability to do damage. Yes, you’ll be armed with a stone knife and, occasionally, spears, but you are outclassed and it’s really hard to hit the small, fast dinosaurs.
You do, however, have your big caveman brain. Those swarms of mosquitos can be distracted with thrown food. The small- and medium-sized dinosaurs also won’t attack (right away) if you throw some food. If and when you light a spear on fire to turn it into a torch, you can set the environment on fire and deal some tick damage to dinos caught in the blaze.
The same advice even applies to some of the boss fights. It’s not always about killing the dinosaurs (and UFOs) outright. Sometimes, you just have to deal enough damage to move the fight along to the next phase.
The map is useful
The map in Primal Planet is, in a word, primal. It’s muddy and bare bones. But that doesn’t mean it’s useless (even if it kind of feels that way at first glance). You can use it to find (your way back to) campfires if nothing else, but it's also a good way to find new routes to explore.
Early on, you can use it to find your way to the next checkpoint. Look for big, obvious landmarks and the occasional giant question mark — those are your goals.
Better yet, each area has a torch puzzle (light the pedestal next to the map on the wall) that reveals the map for the area.
Explore a ton
Speaking of the map, beyond using it to go where you need to go next, you can also use it to just explore. Look for secret rooms and new paths to poke around.
If nothing else, those new paths will lead you to some crafting materials that you can use to make some spears or throwable bone shards, or even stuff you can use (eventually) to set up a house.
The most valuable crafting resource is wood. You’ll need it to make spears (and torches), but you’ll also need some just to light campfires. Campfires are where you’ll do your crafting and get to the skill tree.
Which brings us to…
Don’t skimp on skills
As you play, you’ll earn XP, and enough XP will earn you a skill point. At campfires, you can spend those skill points. Early on, spend them on health (so you die slightly less often) and extra room in your backpack for resources. Once you’re comfortable with those, branch out into increasing the damage on your weapons.
And don’t forget to throw a few points toward your dinosaur sidekick. He’ll be doing a ton of work for you, so every increase you can spare for him will only help you out.
This post originally appeared on BigFriendly.Guide
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