Animal Well Best Tips & Tricks for Beginners

The atmospheric new Metroidvania side scroller Animal Well is making major waves in the gaming world. But beginner players might feel lost because it doesn't hold your hand or provide any major clues. This guide will provide the best tips and tricks to set you forth on the right path.

Best Tips & Tricks for new players in Animal Well

Look for other paths if you're stuck

Animal Well differs from most other Metroidvanias in that its levels are not rigidly linear. While the map is definitely interconnected, there are always multiple ways forward in this stellar indie game. If you're feeling stuck on the path you've chosen, consider exploring the rest of the map. You might find an upgrade you didn't know you needed, opening up an older path you thought you'd given up on. The game's main objective – collecting four flames scattered across the map – is designed to be tackled in multiple ways and therefore not in sequence. So don't be afraid to think outside the box.

Don't forget to use the map (and Stamps)

The map is your best friend in Animal Well. Be sure to refer to it regularly. Using it will teach you the layout of the game's world, show you how different levels are connected together, and reveal places you haven't explored yet. And be sure to mark points of interest using the game's Stamps mechanic. To do this, simply open up your map using the Touchpad on Playstation controllers or the Select key on all other controllers, then press either Y if you're using an Xbox controller or Triangle on a Playstation controller to pick out a stamp and place it wherever you need on your map.

Use firecrackers and candles to fend off enemies

While Animal Well doesn't feature any real combat systems, that doesn't mean you constantly need to be fleeing from your enemies. The game provides you with two crucial tools to help distract and fend off enemies: firecrackers and candles. Firecrackers can be thrown at ghosts to cast away any spirits in your path, while candles can be lit in rooms where ghosts spawn. As long as they stay lit, the ghosts won't spawn anymore.

Experiment with your items and upgrades

As I mentioned earlier, Animal Well's items and upgrade system encourage you to play around with them to find new paths forward. Think about combining together the effects of different items: the disc's forward flight, floating bubbles elevating you to higher places, the burst of the firecrackers – some of these can be used together to great effect. And while some parts of the map and certain puzzles require you to have specific upgrades, make sure to check the ones you already have. They just might do the trick.

Make sure to keep playing after the end credits

When you finally get to the end of Animal Well, it might seem like that's all the game has to offer. But you'd be very wrong if you thought so. I suggest you keep playing after you see the credits roll to fully explore this game's rich world and pick apart all its wonderful secrets. The main quest takes roughly five to seven hours to go through before you see the end credits. But there are easily hours upon hours of extra stuff to do in this gorgeous world.

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