Drive Beyond Horizons entered Early Access on 24 March 2025, published by Tacty Studio and Santor Games, and it asks whether you can keep a rusted car alive on an endless procedurally generated road. You start at Home with a barely running Dada, scavenge parts from 24 documented points of interest, and manage fuel, oil, radiator water, hunger and thirst at the same time. Up to four players can share the road in online co-op.
Starting Drive Beyond Horizons can feel overwhelming. This guide tells you exactly what to focus on during your first hours so you don't waste time on things that don't matter yet. For the full progression path, see our walkthrough.
What Kind of Game Is This?
Drive Beyond Horizons is a sandbox game built around Part by part vehicle assembly and Fuel and fluid upkeep. The core loop involves mastering these systems to progress through increasingly challenging content.
What to expect: Time investment in learning mechanics, experimentation, and gradual mastery. The game rewards patience and knowledge.
Choosing Your First Build
| Build | Beginner Rating | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Dada | Excellent for beginners | Balanced approach |
| Musgoat | Excellent for beginners | Balanced approach |
| Poyopa | Excellent for beginners | Balanced approach |
| TriClops | Excellent for beginners | Balanced approach |
| Bonphiac | Excellent for beginners | Balanced approach |
Our recommendation: Start with Musgoat. It offers the most forgiving experience while teaching core mechanics.
Avoid Bonphiac as your first pick. It requires deep knowledge of game systems to use effectively. Once you're ready, check our classes guide for all options.
First Session Step-by-Step
Step 1: Learn Part by part vehicle assembly
Every car is a stack of slots: engine, radiator, battery, wheels, lights, seats, dashboard, shifter and more, each removable and swappable. Any engine fits any engine bay, so a starter Dada can end up with a V8 if you find one and haul it home.
This is the foundation. Spend your first 15-30 minutes getting comfortable with how Part by part vehicle assembly works before worrying about anything else. Our combat guide breaks this down further.
Step 2: Head to Home
The starting property, with a garage, a water tank behind the house, and loose parts scattered around the front and back exteriors. A basket on the garage's left wall holds cleaning supplies and there is always a car radio on the first table.
Clear the main content here before moving on. Everything teaches fundamentals you'll need later. See our maps guide for all locations.
Step 3: Get Your First Upgrade
Look for V8 Petrol Engine: it's the most accessible early upgrade. The Musgoat unit: 5L of oil, 200 kg, 140 km/h stock, and the only engine in the game that takes two turbochargers at once. The Bonphiac V8 variant runs 6L of oil for 190 km/h.
Step 4: Understand Fuel and fluid upkeep
Petrol engines take the green nozzle at a gas station and diesel engines take the red one. Engines also hold between 3L and 10L of oil depending on the unit, and the radiator needs water or the engine burns through that oil far faster than you can replace it.
This is the system most new players overlook. Invest time here early. It pays off throughout the entire game.
Step 5: Push to Gas Station
A run down convenience store and pump island ringed by chain link fence. The pumps carry both fuel types with green nozzles for petrol and red for diesel, and they fill containers as well as tanks.
Essential Mechanics Explained
Part by part vehicle assembly
Every car is a stack of slots: engine, radiator, battery, wheels, lights, seats, dashboard, shifter and more, each removable and swappable. Any engine fits any engine bay, so a starter Dada can end up with a V8 if you find one and haul it home.
Fuel and fluid upkeep
Petrol engines take the green nozzle at a gas station and diesel engines take the red one. Engines also hold between 3L and 10L of oil depending on the unit, and the radiator needs water or the engine burns through that oil far faster than you can replace it.
Procedural road and points of interest
The road generates as you drive, and 24 documented points of interest spawn on it, beside it, or slightly off to the side. Garages are the richest stop because one can contain two whole cars plus loose parts and tires.
Hunger and thirst meters
Both drain slowly for as long as you play, including while you stand in a garage sorting parts. Your house stocks food cans, soda cans and energy drinks, and there is a first aid kit for the moments a zombie or a landmine goes badly.
Road hazards and enemies
Four hostile things exist: zombies, UFOs, landmines and gas station explosions. A speed bump is not classed as an enemy but it will still strip wheels and trim off a car doing 180 km/h.
Common Beginner Mistakes
1. Filling a diesel engine from the green petrol nozzle because it was the closer pump
2. Driving off with an empty radiator, then watching the engine burn oil until it stops
3. Skipping the home garage sweep and leaving the free car radio and cleaning supplies behind
4. Treating the Minefield as a loot stop rather than a hazard and losing a finished car to one landmine
5. Swapping to the heaviest engine you find without checking its oil requirement, then running dry 20 minutes down the road
First 5 Hours Checklist
- Understand Part by part vehicle assembly and Fuel and fluid upkeep
- Choose Musgoat as starting build
- Clear Home main content
- Acquire V8 Petrol Engine or equivalent upgrade
- Reach Gas Station
- Run the full checklist at Home before your first drive: petrol in the tank, oil in the engine, water in the radiator from the tank behind the house, handbrake released. Missing any one of those four is the most common reason a new save never leaves the driveway.
- Ignition is held W, the I key, or a click on the ignition switch itself. If nothing happens, check the battery, because lights, ignition and the car radio all need one fitted before they respond.
Tips for New Players
- Run the full checklist at Home before your first drive: petrol in the tank, oil in the engine, water in the radiator from the tank behind the house, handbrake released. Missing any one of those four is the most common reason a new save never leaves the driveway.
- Ignition is held W, the I key, or a click on the ignition switch itself. If nothing happens, check the battery, because lights, ignition and the car radio all need one fitted before they respond.
- Fuel type is set by the engine, not the car. The Dada, Musgoat, TriClops, Bonphiac and GTR units burn petrol while the Poyopa, IFA, C18 and P-51 units burn diesel, so identify the engine before you pick up a nozzle.
- A turbocharger weighs 5 kg and adds 20 km/h. On a 105 km/h stock Dada that is a 19 percent gain for almost no weight, which makes it the first upgrade worth hunting once the car actually runs.
- Radiator capacity ranges from 6L to 24L and weight from 5 kg to 13 kg. A bigger unit buys distance between water stops, which matters because water is not guaranteed at every point of interest.
- Garages are the highest value stop on the road because they can spawn two whole cars. Strip the donor for the specific parts your build is missing instead of trying to recover both vehicles.
- Hunger and thirst drain constantly, including during long stationary repair sessions. Carry food cans, soda cans and energy drinks out of Home and keep the first aid kit for zombie encounters rather than for hunger.
- The four hostile things in the game are zombies, UFOs, landmines and gas station explosions. None of them pursue you far, so reversing out of a bad situation is almost always cheaper than fighting through it.
- Speed bumps spawn directly on the road and are easy to miss at pace. At 180 km/h in a TriClops one will strip wheels and bumper trim, so ease off whenever the surface ahead changes.
- Do not assume a bigger engine is an upgrade. The GTR inline six makes 212 km/h at 90 kg on 4L of oil while the flat 6 makes 180 km/h at 250 kg on 10L, so read the numbers before you commit to a swap.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Drive Beyond Horizons finished?
No. It entered Early Access on 24 March 2025 and the developers have described a two to three year plan. The 2026 roadmap lists advanced garage customisation, vehicle tuning, more vehicle models, and controller and steering wheel support.
Can any engine go in any car?
Yes. Each vehicle has a stock engine but the bay accepts any of them. The trade is weight and oil: the flat 6 needs 10L and weighs 250 kg while the GTR inline six needs 4L and weighs 90 kg.
How many points of interest are there?
Twenty four are documented. Twelve are major stops such as the gas station, garage, large garage, Chameleon Station, motels, minefield and radio tower, and the rest are smaller roadside props like billboards, bus stops, payphones, cemeteries, cow fields and speed bumps.
Does it have multiplayer?
Yes, online co-op for up to four players alongside solo play. Steam features include cloud saves, leaderboards and 59 achievements.
What is the fastest engine?
The I6 petrol unit from the GTR at 212 km/h stock, and it is also the lightest at 90 kg. On other chassis, adding a turbocharger for 20 km/h is the cheapest way to close the gap.
More Drive Beyond Horizons Guides
- Drive Beyond Horizons Drive Beyond Horizons Overview
- Drive Beyond Horizons Best Builds
- Drive Beyond Horizons Tier List
- Drive Beyond Horizons Walkthrough
- Drive Beyond Horizons Tips & Tricks
- Drive Beyond Horizons Weapons Guide
- Drive Beyond Horizons Combat Guide
- Drive Beyond Horizons Boss Guide
- Drive Beyond Horizons Maps & Locations
- Drive Beyond Horizons Crafting Guide
- Drive Beyond Horizons Classes & Characters
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