Grounded: Surviving The Steam Demo

As part of the Steam Summer Games Festival, Obsidian launched a demo for their upcoming Open World Survival game Grounded. Players take control of one of four teens, who awakens in a ditch and quickly realizes they have been shrunk down to the size of an ant. The demo itself lasts for just 30 minutes, so players who want to get the fullest experience out of it might need a bit of help getting started. There is a lot to unpack, ranging from tips on killing Orb Weavers to the right items to be crafting. Without further ado, let’s unpack tips on surviving the Grounded Demo.

Spiders!

Orb Weaver Spiders are one of the several creatures you will encounter in Grounded. These are nasty and very hostile enemies who will hunt you to the ends of the earth if you catch their attention. If you’re unlucky enough to encounter one of these nasty foes, my tip for you is going to initially sound incredibly unintuitive: Let it kill you. With the 30 minute timer on the demo, you don’t want to spend too much time running away from a spider just for it to kill you in the end. If you’re confident though, spiders can be defeated through a bit of an exploit. If you can get a wall between you and a spider, such as the small science hut you find early in the demo or some grass walls you build, the spider will try to hit you through the wall. In my experience, it could not damage me, but I could consistently hit it through the wall. If you are willing to put in the slight time investment, you can take down a spider to gather some of their drops. Ultimately, its best to avoid these incredibly fast and incredibly deadly enemies. If you see one in the distance, turn the other way, you’re better off keeping a wide berth between you two.
 

Resource Management!

Jumping into the world of Grounded, you need to do whatever you can to survive and keep a close eye on your resources. In such a short term demo, this is doubly true. Luckily, there are a few ways to get a large amount of some resources fairly quickly. First of all, you want to get as many rocks and sprigs and pieces of plant fiber as possible as quickly as possible. With these, you can start crafting items like axes, spears, and hammers, the three primary tools you need. In my first few runs through the demo, I made the mistake of not building a hammer, but this item is a must have. It allows you to destroy the larger pebble rocks but also some other rocks you find later on. You also need to make sure you get your hands on sap to make torches and bandages as well as both Mite Fuzz and Ant Parts to craft sturdy armor. There are some locations, such as a small cave which is full of mites, where you can find plenty of enemies that drop valuable crafting materials.

Another resource you may not immediately consider is your time. As you play through the demo, you need to remember that you really only have 30 minutes before you have to restart. You can play as many times as you want, but you can’t save your game and you can’t play for more than 30 minutes. For the most part, you can avoid cutting down Grass or Weeds to collect planks and stems, because you likely won’t need actual walls or doors in your 30 minute playthrough. You’re better off spending your time looking for Clovers, Dried Grass, and sources of food or water.

Pick Your Battles

In the insect sized world that is Grounded, not everything is your foe. Some creatures, like spiders and mites, will attack you on site. However, other creatures like ladybugs or ants, will only react when you attack them. If you don’t have any weapons, you should try to avoid combat all together; you won’t be able to deal enough damage without taking serious hits to your own health bar.
Unless you’re up against a mite or a spider, your best bet is to ignore it and walk away until you’re prepared to fight. If you’ve garnered the ire of a spider, I’ve already explained my thoughts on taking them down. However, if you come up against a mite, you’re probably better off punching it to death. A single mite isn’t a serious issue, but if you come up against a group, you need to be careful. Some creatures are much friendlier than even neutral insects like ants, and these are something to absolutely keep an eye out for: Weevils and aphids. These passive insects are easy pickings, and weevils in particular can be turned into a fine weevil roast over a fire, which provides a hefty food source.

Overall, there is a lot to uncover in Grounded, and this demo is sure to excite plenty of people. If you’re interested in what you’ve read here, make sure to download the demo and check the game out when it releases in late July.

Tyler Krasnai.
Editor, NoobFeed
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