As an arachnophobe and all-around bug hater, Grounded 2 is a terrifying time, so having already spent over 20 hours in Brookhollow Park is a testament to how well it scratches that survival game itch. In that time, I've learned a few things that make being shrunk down to size just a little bit easier.
From storing all the grisly bug bits you're picking up, to finding as many ways as possible to improve your combat effectiveness, here are seven tips to survive Grounded 2. And I'll give you a freebie right now: if you hate spiders like I do, be sure to turn on the arachnophobia setting in the accessibility menu, as there are some horrifying sights hiding away in Brookhollow Park I wish I had never seen.
Focus on the missions early on
After leaving the training facility at the start of the game, you're free to go just about anywhere in Brookhollow Park. Sorry to curtail your freedom, but I'm here to tell you that you shouldn't run wild quite yet, as there's little progress to be made outside of the main missions at this point.
Your first few hours are very much tutorialised, introducing you to key systems and vital new crafting recipes. So, learn how to make and use a workbench, go get that Omni-Shovel upgrade, get your red soldier ant buggy, and unlock the all-mighty resource scanner. Only once you've done that do I recommend exploring on your own, though dangers are still everywhere, and there's plenty more to learn.
Analyse everything
You'll be introduced to the Resource Analyser found in every Ranger Outpost at the start of the game, but you might not realise just how important it is to analyse absolutely everything you find. Fought a new bug? Pick up its unique parts and research them. Found a new mineral or twig? Scan it. The Analyser has four charges that replenish every few in-game hours, so check back often.
Analysing items benefits you in two main ways:
- If it's a natural resource, you'll unlock an entry for it in your crafting menu that'll tell you where it comes from and what it's used for, which also lets you track it using the resource scanner.
- You'll get heaps of new crafting recipes, not just for more powerful gear but also handy stations for your base (like a cookery, smoothie machine, and dew collector) that give you access to new systems. Plus, it levels up your brainpower, which unlocks even more recipes.
Craft a canteen ASAP
Brookhollow Park is much bigger than it looks and takes time to explore, not least because you're shrunk down to the size of a pea (and that's being generous). There are plenty of deep caves to delve into, garden furniture (and trash) to climb, and Ominent facilities to plunder, none of which will have clean water readily available. Become dehydrated, and you'll have just two minutes to find liquid gold before you die.
You can get around this issue by crafting a canteen, which lets you collect dew droplets from grass or a dew collector to store for later. No more drying out like a raisin while trying to explore the park. Remember to look for drops on grass stems and whack them down with your weapon or Omni-Tool.
Find Milk Molars
Despite its cute art style, charming locales, and witty characters, Grounded 2 is hard. It's a survival game, after all, and I was caught off guard by how challenging combat can be and how often I had to run away.
Outside of new gear upgrades (or arguably even more so), the biggest boost you'll get in Grounded 2 is by tracking down the many Milk Molar locations hidden across Brookhollow Park. Smash these sweet teeth, and you'll be able to absorb their gooey core. There are two types to find, and you can spend them on permanent upgrades.
You can spend Milk Molars on the following stats, which only affect you:
- Max health
- Max stamina
- Hunger/thirst drain
- Healing
- Max active mutations
While you can spend Mega Milk Molars only on these stats, which affect your entire group if you're playing multiplayer:
- Max consumable stack size
- Max resources stack size
- Max arrow stack size
Equip mutations
By repeatedly performing specific actions, like smashing bugs with clubs, bare-knuckle brawling, depleting your stamina, and even finding points of interest, you'll unlock mutations—perks that boost a certain playstyle.
Importantly, these mutations are only beneficial when they're actually equipped via the menu. You're limited to just two mutations (unless you spend Milk Molars to increase your slots *wink wink*), so you'll need to pick and choose. Since I loved my ant club, I maxed out Smasher for additional stun and damage, and Cardio Fan for more stamina efficiency.
Use hassle-free storage
Low item stack sizes and small storage options make carrying all your bits and pieces incredibly cumbersome, though there are a few things you can do to make things easier. Firstly, all crafting stations (whether it's a workbench or a smoothie machine) will pull items directly from nearby storage, so you don't need to carry anything with you if you're at your base.
Then I discovered hot depositing items, not once, but twice. Walk up to any storage spot, and you can hold the interact button to automatically place any matching items from your inventory into the selected chest. So, if you've got a chest with some sap in it already, you can quickly store it away by walking up to that chest and holding the prompt.
Later, I accidentally discovered that you can actually do this in a radius around you, meaning you never have to manually interact with a chest again, bar placing one of whatever item you'd like to stack in the chest. By pressing "N" on your keyboard, you'll automatically chuck any applicable items from your inventory into nearby chests. Don't worry, it won't yoink useful items like weapons or healing items, just crafting resources.
Upgrade your gear
Both your weapons and armour in Grounded 2 are split into tiers and levels. You'll start with basic gear, and a few hours in, you'll get access to tier two items, which have "II" next to them in the crafting menu, and so on. Higher-tier gear comes with higher base stats, though it's still worth paying attention to the perks each one offers.
Once you've been exploring the park for a few hours, you'll soon realise that gear tier upgrades are few and far between, so you'll find that you're venturing into harder and harder areas with no new gear in sight. That's where the smithing station's gear level upgrades come in.
Using brittle whetstones and brittle plating, you're able to boost the stats of your armour, and it goes an incredibly long way in surviving Grounded's hardest challenges. Upgraded weapons gain bonus damage and durability, while upgraded armour benefits from improved defence and durability.
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