Important things to know before heading out

Outbound it doesn't have a lengthy tutorial or many in-game tips. Just complete a little prologue before you can explore the world with your camper van.

Due to the lack of hints in the game, you won't learn much at the beginning of the game. And there are a lot of things you should probably be aware of if you want to get the most out of the game. To help you with this, here is a collection of tips to help those new to Outbound.

Never stray too far from the van

In a typical open world game where you have a vehicle, it's just a way to get around. In these games, you can always leave the vehicle and walk around. In Outbound, things are a little different.

Your van isn't just a mode of transportation: it's all you've got. It contains most of your items and any machines you've created. Plus, you don't move very fast in this game, so getting anywhere on foot is a pain. That's why it's the best never stray from your van.

Upgrade your backpack as fast as possible

In this game, your backpack serves as your inventory. You can put anything you find in the van, but when first you pick something up, it goes into your backpack. At the start of the game, you're short on space, which means it fills up fairly quickly.

So it's a good idea build a sewing machine as quickly as possible upgrade your backpack and carry more. This means that when you collect resources, you won't have to return to the van as often to drop things off.

Charge your van while you sleep

You will need to charge your vehicle quite often while playing the game. Yet you it cannot be charged in the standard way while driving. You can put wood in the back and let it power up, but once you start moving it stops. This can be annoying if you absolutely need a charge because you're just standing there waiting. To avoid many such moments, let it charge while you sleep.

Every night in the game, before you go to sleep, put wood in the car and start charging. Then, sleep until the next day and charging will be completed before you wake up.

Lock to download vouchers and food in your inventory

When you hover over an item in your backpack, you'll notice it's there “lock” option. By doing this the item will remain in your inventory even if you put your stuff in the van. Most things like wood, fibers, and stones don't need to be locked because there's no benefit to having them in your inventory all the time.

Still it it can be useful to always have download vouchers and food with you. Vouchers allow you to download blueprints from Signal Towers when you find them, while food keeps you from getting too hungry. They must be in your inventory to use them, so you can lock them there.

Playing with a third person camera makes things easier

You can change your dash cam in the settings. You can choose “Dashboard” (first person) or “Behind the vehicle” (third person). Everyone has their preferences when it comes to first-person or third-person control, but the latter makes this game a bit easier.

That's because when the camera is on the dashboard, it's much harder to see which sources are nearby. Therefore, if you are trying to stock up on things, you may have to constantly stop to take a closer look at what is around. When the camera is behind the vehicle, it's much easier to see what's outside.

Make sure you don't overload your car

You can really customize the top of the car build a full base there. However, many of the structural elements you build, such as floors and walls, have weight If you build more than your van can handle, you will start weighing it.

You can check how well it handles weight by interacting with the motor on the back. You can see from here “Evaluation of Energy Consumption”. If it is low, your delivery may be slowerand it will the charge will burn faster. So make sure you don't add too much weight.

You can do things while driving

All machines you build, such as a recycler, saw, sewing machine, etc., will be located either in or on top of your van. The ones on top retract when you close the vehicle and start driving. However, the ones inside are still in operation.

So, for example, if you fill the recycler with trash and start it, you can start driving and it will continue to turn trash into vouchers. That can be useful if you don't want to stand there waiting for the machine finish creating what you need.

Don't just rely on wood to charge your van

Initially, the best way is to charge the van using Everwood as fuel. The downside is that wood is used in many crafting recipes. So, if you're burning it all, you have to keep going on trips to find more to build what you need.

Fortunately, you can eventually install solar panels on your vehicle to generate energy. Plus there there are charging stations on the map which you can use. After you discover these things, you should stop using wood so often and save it mostly for crafting.