Bend Studio brought Days Gone to PC on 18 May 2021, two years after the PlayStation 4 release, with unlocked frame rates, a wider field of view and ultrawide support. Deacon St. John rides through post outbreak Oregon across six regions, from Cascade in the north down to Crater Lake, and his bike is the only transport he gets. Hordes are the reason to stay: the Old Sawmill horde alone packs roughly 500 Freakers into one moving mass, and there is no version of that fight you win by standing still.
These tips go beyond the basics. They're the strategies experienced players use to play more efficiently, the hidden mechanics most people miss, and the optimizations that compound over a full playthrough. If you're just starting, check our beginner's guide first.
Essential Tips
1. Fuel governs the early game more than ammunition does
Fuel governs the early game more than ammunition does. Keep a can strapped to the bike, top up at every abandoned vehicle, and buy the larger tank upgrade before any cosmetic bike part.
2. Trust is per camp and so are credits, so decide early which encampment you want to shop at
Trust is per camp and so are credits, so decide early which encampment you want to shop at. Selling Freaker ears, meat and plants at that one camp reaches Trust 3 far faster than spreading deliveries evenly.
3. NERO checkpoints follow the same pattern every time: find the generator, feed it a fuel can, then disable all the speakers before triggering the door
NERO checkpoints follow the same pattern every time: find the generator, feed it a fuel can, then disable all the speakers before triggering the door. Missing one speaker calls every Freaker within earshot.
4. The 30 NERO injectors are split across all six regions and take Health, Stamina and Focus from 100 to 350
The 30 NERO injectors are split across all six regions and take Health, Stamina and Focus from 100 to 350. Stamina first is the correct order, because running out of stamina during a horde fight is what actually kills you.
5. Hordes have schedules
Hordes have schedules. Scout one during daylight while it sleeps in its cave or building, plan the funnel, then come back and wake it deliberately rather than stumbling into it at night on the bike.
6. Attractors are the most undervalued craftable in the game
Attractors are the most undervalued craftable in the game. One thrown at a distance moves an entire horde off a road, out of a camp approach, or into the pipe bombs you already placed.
7. Survival Vision costs nothing to use, so use it constantly
Survival Vision costs nothing to use, so use it constantly. It marks ambush trails, hunting tracks, loot inside buildings and enemies through walls, and it is how you find the ears and plants that pay for camp upgrades.
8. Ambush camps respawn marauders if you leave survivors, so clear them completely
Ambush camps respawn marauders if you leave survivors, so clear them completely. Each cleared camp also removes a set of road traps that will otherwise wreck the bike at speed.
9. Melee weapons break
Melee weapons break. Craft a spiked bat, keep a fire axe as backup, and repair with scrap rather than relying on one weapon through a long Ripper camp.
10. Screamers are the priority target in any Freaker group
Screamers are the priority target in any Freaker group. Their scream pulls in everything nearby and turns a manageable fight into a horde encounter you did not prepare for, so remove them first with the crossbow.
Advanced Strategies
Role Optimization
The difference between an average build and an optimized one is massive. See our builds guide for full breakdowns.
For Stealth Trapper (A-Tier):
- Focus on Bike fuel and durability combinations for maximum output.
- Core gear: Drifter Crossbow
- Stat priority: Offensive stats first
For Horde Runner (S-Tier):
- The build the whole game points toward. High Stamina, a crowd control primary and a bag full of explosives, used to funnel 300 or more Freakers through a gap where the crowd cannot spread out.
- Core gear: Chicago Chopper, attractors, pipe bombs, Molotovs, napalm where available, maximum Stamina injectors
- Stat priority: Stamina first and by a wide margin, then Health, then Focus
Mechanic Interactions
Understanding how Days Gone's systems interact is where the real optimization lives. Our combat guide covers this in detail.
Bike fuel and durability + Camp Trust and credits: The bike burns fuel on every ride and takes damage from crashes, Freaker hits and gunfire, and both are fixed with scrap and gas cans looted from the world. Combined with Camp Trust and credits, each encampment tracks its own trust level and its own credit balance, so everything you earn for copeland does nothing for hot springs.
Freaker hordes + NERO checkpoints and injectors: A horde is a single crowd of Freakers with a daily routine: it feeds, drinks and returns to a cave or building to sleep. When paired with NERO checkpoints and injectors, every nero checkpoint needs its generator restarted with a fuel can, then its speakers disabled before you can take the injector inside.
Survival Vision and Focus scaling: Survival Vision highlights tracks, loot and enemies through cover at no cost and is how you follow ambush trails and hunting paths. Focus is separate, slowing time while aiming down sights and draining the Focus bar, which is why the Focus injectors matter for anyone relying on headshots.
Weapons Efficiency
| Weapon | Best Use Case | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Drifter Crossbow | Silent ambush camp clears and any approach where waking a nearby horde would end the attempt. | An upgraded crossbow supplied through Iron Mike's camp, with better damage and accuracy than the starting version and access to explosive and poison bolts. |
| MWS | Marauder camps, Ripper outposts and general open world defence at medium range. | An assault rifle available early with a clear step up in stopping power over the starting weapons. |
| Chicago Chopper | Horde fights and any moment a crowd of Swarmers closes to under fifteen metres. | A drum fed submachine gun modelled on the Thompson, with one of the highest rates of fire and largest magazines in the game. |
| SMP9 | Emergency close quarters defence and clearing Newts in tight interiors. | A compact stockless submachine gun carried in the sidearm slot, firing fast with good accuracy but a limited magazine. |
| .50 BFG | Breakers, Ragers and picking off camp leaders before an assault starts. | A heavy sniper rifle that removes most enemies in a single hit, including armoured militia and larger Freakers. |
Location Efficiency
Cascade (Opening region, available from the start): The northern forest region where the story opens, thick with trees and short sightlines. Copeland's Camp sits here, built on Mark Copeland's radio broadcasts about personal freedom, and it is the first place to spend credits.
Belknap (Opening region, available from the start): More open than Cascade, with wider roads and longer engagement distances. Hot Springs Camp, run by Ada Tucker as a forced labour operation, trades better weapons than Copeland does once its Trust rises.
Lost Lake (Mid game, unlocked by story progress): Opened after the No One Saw It Coming mission, and home to Iron Mike Wilcox's camp, the one settlement actually trying to rebuild something democratic. It supplies the Drifter Crossbow and better bike parts.
Iron Butte (Mid to late game): West of Lost Lake and south of Belknap, dry, industrial and heavily contested by Rippers. The Old Sawmill horde and its 500 Freakers sit in this part of the map, which makes it the region that tests a horde build properly.
Crater Lake (Late game, reached through the main story): The southern region and the endgame, dominated by the Deschutes County Militia. Wizard Island is Colonel Matthew Garrett's fortified stronghold and Diamond Lake is the militia outpost under Captain Derrick Kouri.
Mistakes Even Veterans Make
- Trying to fight a horde in the open, where 300 or more Freakers spread out and surround you within seconds, instead of using a chokepoint with an escape path behind it.
- Spreading missions and supply deliveries evenly across camps, which leaves every camp near Trust 1 and locks the good weapons behind thresholds of 12,500 and 25,000 points nobody has reached.
- Riding everywhere at full throttle and arriving at a mission with an empty tank and a damaged bike, with no scrap or fuel to fix either.
- Skipping NERO checkpoints because the speaker puzzle feels slow, then hitting the mid game with 100 Stamina and no way to survive a horde chase.
- Wasting rifle ammunition on Newts and lone Swarmers when a crafted melee weapon or a recoverable crossbow bolt does the same job for free.
Pro Quick Tips
- Fuel governs the early game more than ammunition does. Keep a can strapped to the bike, top up at every abandoned vehicle, and buy the larger tank upgrade before any cosmetic bike part.
- Trust is per camp and so are credits, so decide early which encampment you want to shop at. Selling Freaker ears, meat and plants at that one camp reaches Trust 3 far faster than spreading deliveries evenly.
- NERO checkpoints follow the same pattern every time: find the generator, feed it a fuel can, then disable all the speakers before triggering the door. Missing one speaker calls every Freaker within earshot.
- Start with Horde Runner, switch to Stealth Trapper when ready
- Invest in Drifter Crossbow above everything else
- Clear areas in order: Cascade → Belknap → Lost Lake → Iron Butte → Crater Lake. See our maps guide
- Bike fuel and durability + Camp Trust and credits together are stronger than either alone
More Days Gone Guides
- Days Gone Days Gone Overview
- Days Gone Best Builds
- Days Gone Tier List
- Days Gone Walkthrough
- Days Gone Beginner's Guide
- Days Gone Weapons Guide
- Days Gone Combat Guide
- Days Gone Boss Guide
- Days Gone Maps & Locations
- Days Gone Crafting Guide
- Days Gone Classes & Characters
Similar Games
If you enjoy Days Gone, check out these related guides:
- Helldivers 2 Tips & Tricks: action game with similar mechanics
- Black Myth: Wukong Tips & Tricks: action game with similar mechanics
- Monster Hunter Wilds Tips & Tricks: action game with similar mechanics
