Norwegian developer Dani built Crab Game in roughly two weeks and released it free on Steam on 29 October 2021, giving it a deliberately odd name to stay clear of Netflix's lawyers. Lobbies hold up to 35 players who run rounds of childhood games until one survivor is left, and the store page lists 28 maps. Reviews sit at 91 percent positive across about 83,000 ratings.
This walkthrough takes you from your first session to endgame content. Each phase has specific goals, priorities, and milestones. New to the game? Start with our beginner's guide first.
Quick Progression Summary
| Phase | Area | Focus | Build | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Start | Red Light Green Light | Round by round elimination basics | Hider | 1-2 hours |
| 2. Early | Stepping Stones | Momentum based sliding mastery | Hider | 3-5 hours |
| 3. Mid | Hide and Seek | Proximity voice chat + gear | Speedrunner or Hider | 5-10 hours |
| 4. Late | King of the Hill | Build optimization | Speedrunner | 5-10 hours |
| 5. Endgame | Lights Out | Min-max | Speedrunner or Objective Holder | Ongoing |
See our maps guide for detailed area breakdowns.
Phase 1: Getting Started (Red Light Green Light)
Move on green, freeze on red, cross the line before the timer expires. The trap is that stopping cleanly is harder than starting, so most eliminations happen from momentum carrying you a step too far.
Level/Difficulty: Opening round, full lobby Key Rewards: Movement practice, easy survival for patient players
What to Do in Red Light Green Light
- Learn Round by round elimination. A lobby runs a sequence of minigames and cuts the losers after each one until a single player remains. Spend your first session getting comfortable with this.
- Pick Hider as your starting build. See our builds guide for why.
- Learn the diagonal slide before anything else. Sprinting with two movement keys held and then sliding keeps speed far longer than sliding forward in a straight line, and it is worth more than every other technique in the game combined.
- Acquire your first equipment upgrade: Knife or whatever's available.
- Clear all main content before moving on.
Phase 1 Checklist
- Understand Round by round elimination fundamentals
- Hider selected and functional
- Red Light Green Light main content cleared
- Ready for Stepping Stones
Phase 2: Early Game (Stepping Stones)
Two columns of panels where one of each pair holds and the other drops you. There is no way to tell them apart, so the only real strategy is deciding whether to lead or to follow.
Level/Difficulty: Mid round, thinned lobby Key Rewards: Free information from whoever goes first, fast eliminations
What to Do in Stepping Stones
- Work on Momentum based sliding. Sprinting and sliding carry speed rather than resetting it, and sliding diagonally with two movement keys held keeps that speed far longer than sliding straight ahead. This system becomes critical from here on.
- Farm for Knife if you haven't already. It's the key upgrade for this phase.
- On Stepping Stones, position in the pack decides your odds. Leading means you personally test every panel, following means someone else does, and the middle of the pack is where survivors usually come from.
- Complete all objectives before pushing to Hide and Seek.
- Consider whether Speedrunner might suit your playstyle better than Hider.
Phase 2 Checklist
- Momentum based sliding integrated into gameplay
- Knife acquired
- Stepping Stones fully cleared
- Ready for Hide and Seek
Phase 3: Mid Game (Hide and Seek)
Hiders scatter, seekers hunt them with knives, and the proximity voice chat turns the whole thing into something between a horror game and a comedy. Spots with two exits beat spots with better cover.
Level/Difficulty: Any round, works best with 15 or more players Key Rewards: The best use of proximity chat in the game, long round timers
What to Do in Hide and Seek
- Master Proximity voice chat. Voice is positional, so you hear players near you and lose them as they run off. This unlocks a new layer of gameplay.
- Start working toward Pistol. It's the best equipment and becomes accessible around now.
- Red Light Green Light punishes momentum, not reaction time. Stop a fraction earlier than feels right, because the slide you are so proud of on race maps is exactly what carries you past the freeze here.
- This area is the main skill check. If you can clear it, you're ready for late game.
- Start investing in Player hosted servers for the tactical depth you'll need going forward.
Phase 3 Checklist
- Proximity voice chat mastered
- Pistol acquired or in progress
- Hide and Seek fully cleared
- Ready for King of the Hill
Phase 4: Late Game (King of the Hill)
Everyone gets a bat and fights to stand on top of a hill the longest. It is a scrum, and the winner is usually whoever arrived second rather than whoever charged in first.
Level/Difficulty: Mid to late round Key Rewards: Points from time held, knockback fights, chaotic finishes
What to Do in King of the Hill
- Finalize your build. You should be running Speedrunner or Hider with optimized gear.
- Pistol should be your primary. If you don't have it yet, prioritize getting it.
- During Lights Out, spend the seven second grace period finding a spot with two exits rather than the darkest corner. A corner with one way out turns you into a guaranteed kill for whoever rolled a pistol.
- Randomised weapon rounds optimization starts here. Small improvements compound into massive advantages.
- Farm this area for the resources needed to push into Lights Out.
Phase 4 Checklist
- Build fully optimized
- Pistol upgraded to max
- King of the Hill fully cleared
- Ready for Lights Out
Phase 5: Endgame (Lights Out)
Players get about seven seconds to hide, then the lights go out and everyone is handed a random weapon. You either fight or you stay hidden, and the weapon roll decides which one is sensible.
Level/Difficulty: Late round, smaller lobby Key Rewards: Weapon variety, the highest tension round in the rotation
What to Do in Lights Out
- Lights Out tests everything. Come prepared with your best build and gear.
- Check your weapon before deciding to fight. The pipe and the katana hit hard enough to win a straight duel, while the stick does almost nothing per swing and makes hiding the only sane option.
- The endgame loop: run Lights Out, optimize gear, push harder content.
- Experiment with Objective Holder for a fresh take once you've mastered the standard builds.
- This is where Randomised weapon rounds mastery separates good players from great ones. See our tips guide for advanced strategies.
Phase 5 Checklist
- Endgame content on farm
- Best-in-slot gear acquired
- Lights Out fully cleared
- Ready for challenge content
Common Progression Mistakes
- Sliding in a straight line instead of diagonally, which throws away most of the speed the movement system is built to give you.
- Leading the pack across Stepping Stones. Every panel you test personally is a coin flip you paid for instead of watching someone else pay.
- Fighting in Lights Out with a weak weapon roll. A stick loses to a knife, a pipe and a pistol, and hiding costs you nothing.
- Charging the peak in the first second of King of the Hill, when the entire lobby is stacked there and knockback sends most of them straight back down.
- Treating proximity chat as noise to be muted. Hearing footsteps and voices approaching is the main early warning system during Hide and Seek.
Key Tips for Smooth Progression
- Learn the diagonal slide before anything else. Sprinting with two movement keys held and then sliding keeps speed far longer than sliding forward in a straight line, and it is worth more than every other technique in the game combined.
- On Stepping Stones, position in the pack decides your odds. Leading means you personally test every panel, following means someone else does, and the middle of the pack is where survivors usually come from.
- Red Light Green Light punishes momentum, not reaction time. Stop a fraction earlier than feels right, because the slide you are so proud of on race maps is exactly what carries you past the freeze here.
- During Lights Out, spend the seven second grace period finding a spot with two exits rather than the darkest corner. A corner with one way out turns you into a guaranteed kill for whoever rolled a pistol.
- Check your weapon before deciding to fight. The pipe and the katana hit hard enough to win a straight duel, while the stick does almost nothing per swing and makes hiding the only sane option.
For more advanced strategies, see our tips & tricks guide.
More Crab Game Guides
- Crab Game Crab Game Overview
- Crab Game Best Builds
- Crab Game Tier List
- Crab Game Beginner's Guide
- Crab Game Tips & Tricks
- Crab Game Weapons Guide
- Crab Game Combat Guide
- Crab Game Boss Guide
- Crab Game Maps & Locations
- Crab Game Crafting Guide
- Crab Game Classes & Characters
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