Guides
PokéSurvivor guides for controls, starters, bosses, move evolutions, gacha, mobile play and saving progress.
Getting started: your first PokéSurvivor run
Choose a starter you can control comfortably, upgrade its starting attack and collect experience along safe loops. You attack automatically with the active slot; movement and card choices are your main decisions.
Read guide →Guides · 02Controls: movement, active slots and touch play
Use WASD or arrow keys to move and 1–4, Q or E to change the active slot. Attacks fire automatically; click inside the embedded game first so it receives keyboard input.
Read guide →Guides · 03Best starters: choose for your attack style
For a simple ranged opening, compare Ember, Water Gun and Confusion starters. For close-range clearing compare Vine Whip; for returning projectiles compare Razor Leaf. This is a mechanics-based choice, not a measured win-rate ranking.
Read guide →Guides · 04Level-up cards: upgrades, new moves and evolutions
Use card choices to strengthen the attack you actually use and collect its evolution prerequisite. New moves create alternatives; they do not all attack simultaneously without Bonds.
Read guide →Guides · 05First boss: prepare for the 3-minute fight
The first scheduled boss arrives at 3:00. Enter that fight with a dependable active attack and clear space; dodge marked attacks before collecting dropped XP.
Read guide →Guides · 06Run timeline: enemy tiers, bosses and extra time
Enemy pools become stronger at defined time thresholds, bosses are scheduled through minute 15, and additional scaling accelerates after minute 60. Plan around these transitions rather than assuming a constant difficulty.
Read guide →Guides · 07Plan a legal build: one active slot, one item
A useful build needs a reachable attack plan, its run-card prerequisites and a survival route. Only the active slot fires; Bonded moves inside it can act together. Equip one held item.
Read guide →Guides · 08Best moves by target: crowds, bosses and support
Choose attack behavior for the job: piercing and area attacks clear crowds, focused attacks help single-target pressure, and buffs improve a paired attack. Raw damage per cooldown does not describe every behavior.
Read guide →Guides · 09Best held items: compare benefits and costs
Choose a held item for the problem your run has now. Leftovers supports sustain, Quick Claw improves firing frequency, Choice Band trades switching for damage, and Amulet Coin targets coin rewards.
Read guide →Guides · 10Melee vs ranged: control space, not only damage
Melee trades safety at distance for a wide nearby hit and an active-slot damage-reduction bonus. Ranged attacks offer separation but still need paths clear of obstacles and incoming warnings.
Read guide →Guides · 11Bonds: make a fused active slot work
Winning a legendary rift grants a Bond. Spend it to combine two loose moves or add a loose move to the unfinished group; moves inside the active group then execute together.
Read guide →Guides · 12Unlock Pokémon: collection routes and battle records
The starter becomes your first playable partner, regional gacha adds owned Pokémon, and rescue events can add a rescued Pokémon. A legendary defeat record is separate from owning that legendary.
Read guide →Guides · 13Regional gacha: choose the pool containing your target
Each of the nine regional banners has its own Pokémon pool and pity counter. Choose the target’s region first, then compare odds using its actual rarity pool; featured artwork does not mean boosted odds.
Read guide →Guides · 1470-pull pity and the ten-pull guarantee
The counter increases before the rarity check: from 69, the next pull reaches 70 and forces 5★. A ten-pull batch guarantees at least one 4★ or higher, using a special last pull only if earlier results did not qualify.
Read guide →Guides · 15Ticket farming: rifts, missions and timed opportunities
Combine safe runs with claimable missions, legendary rifts and rescue opportunities. Tickets come from defined rewards rather than a guaranteed ticket-per-minute rate.
Read guide →Guides · 16Wild shinies: eligible spawns and successful collection
The ordinary wild shiny check is 1/4096 for an eligible spawn. Count qualifying generated enemies, then distinguish a shiny appearing from successfully defeating and recording it.
Read guide →Guides · 17Gacha shinies: 1% check and collection-aware rerouting
Gacha checks for shiny at 1/100 when the selected Pokémon has a shiny sprite. If that shiny is already owned, the game can choose a missing shiny in the same rarity pool; if none remain it becomes normal.
Read guide →Guides · 18Rescue events: escort the lost Pokémon
Touch the lost Pokémon, then lead it to the marked destination while protecting it from enemies. Successful rescue gives healing, coins and a ticket, with a separate chance to add it to your collection.
Read guide →Guides · 19Enemy behaviors: recognize support and warnings
Identify the behavior that is making the pack dangerous. Healers sustain nearby enemies, shielders protect them, summoners add bodies, and warning attacks punish predictable movement.
Read guide →Guides · 20Boss attacks: read the warning before attacking
Treat charges, beams, projectiles and ground zones as different dodge tasks. Protect your escape route first, then maintain damage while the boss is committed to an attack.
Read guide →Guides · 21Legendary rifts: entry, timer, rewards and return
A rift leads the group into a closed legendary arena. Win within the arena timer for rewards and a Bond; losing returns you to the map so the run can continue.
Read guide →Guides · 22Weather: damage, chip damage and movement
Weather changes attack-type damage for players and enemies. Choose an attack for both the target matchup and current weather, and account for snow or sand when planning recovery.
Read guide →Guides · 23Terrain hazards: water, lava, obstacles and traps
Water can slow movement, lava can burn and obstacles change reachable paths. Plan a loop you can actually traverse; a straight line on the screen is not always an escape route.
Read guide →Guides · 24Long runs: survival after the 60-minute transition
After minute 60 enemies gain accelerating extra-time HP and damage. Keep improving real active-group damage, sustain and escape options; maximum upgrades do not imply an endless run.
Read guide →Guides · 25Permanent upgrades: budget for your chosen Pokémon
Permanent upgrades belong to each Pokémon. Spend on the partner you intend to use, compare total costs before purchasing and keep these upgrades separate from run-card evolution requirements.
Read guide →Guides · 26Coins: rewards, duplicates and upgrade spending
Coins fund permanent Pokémon upgrades. Track pickups, run rewards, mission rewards and gacha duplicate refunds separately, then spend against a concrete upgrade budget.
Read guide →Guides · 27Daily and weekly missions: progress and claim rules
Read the active mission’s condition before a run and claim completed rewards in the mission screen. Some goals sum across runs; survival and level goals keep the best single-run value.
Read guide →Guides · 28Achievements: conditions, rewards and legend records
Use the achievement database to find the exact counted condition and reward. Collection, survival, evolutions, missions and legendary defeat records are distinct counters.
Read guide →Guides · 29Play on mobile: touch controls and performance
The original game supports touch play on phones and tablets. Use landscape, drag for the floating joystick and tap the bottom attack buttons to switch; the website’s language does not change the game’s English/Spanish choices.
Read guide →Guides · 30iPhone and Safari: fullscreen, touch and saving
On iPhone, use the original game’s Add to Home Screen instructions for the app-style screen. Embedded fullscreen and cross-site sign-in depend on browser behavior; opening the original site is the practical fallback.
Read guide →Guides · 31Install the original game as a web app
Install from the original game’s own URL using your browser’s install or Add to Home Screen option. Installing the guide site does not install or cache the cross-origin game automatically.
Read guide →Guides · 32Online and offline: what changes
The local game can run without internet when its files are available. Cloud synchronization, friends, cooperative rooms and rankings require the corresponding network services; the embedded page is not an offline game package.
Read guide →Guides · 33Co-op: accounts, friends, rooms and revives
Online co-op supports up to four players through the original game’s cloud account and friends system. The host controls shared simulation and rift entry; teammates can revive a fallen partner by staying nearby.
Read guide →Guides · 34Save and sync: guest, local and cloud modes
Guest progress is not persistent. Local mode stores the account in the current browser; cloud mode synchronizes a signed-in account and retains a local copy. Verify the actual mode before expecting recovery on another device.
Read guide →Guides · 35Game not loading: isolate page, network and embedded login
First compare the embedded game with the original URL. If the original loads, investigate iframe or browser restrictions; if both fail, check connection, resource loading and the game’s current status.
Read guide →Guides · 36Black screen: version, graphics and long-run fixes
Check whether the black screen occurs at startup, after switching apps or late in a run. The October 11 and 12 notes describe specific long-run fixes; a new black screen needs its own symptom record.
Read guide →Guides · 37Lost progress: check identity and storage before cleanup
First check guest/local/cloud mode, the original game origin and the sign-in identity. Different browser profiles or accounts can show different saves; do not delete the surviving copy while diagnosing.
Read guide →Guides · 38Cloud sync: verify the account and merge behavior
Cloud sync applies only in the game’s cloud mode with the intended signed-in account. Compare identities and reconnect before assuming the local save is gone.
Read guide →Guides · 39Co-op not connecting: room, accounts and network
Separate sign-in failure, invitation failure and peer-network failure. The room can retry a failed direct connection; a working game page alone does not prove two player networks can connect.
Read guide →Guides · 40Move not evolving: level 5, run card and next choice
Check whether the move has an evolution, has reached its maximum level and has its required run-stat card. Then choose the evolution card when offered; permanent upgrades do not count as that run card.
Read guide →Guides · 41Rift not appearing: eligible checks and blockers
A rift countdown only advances in eligible conditions. Before enough run time, with a live boss, inside an arena or while an entrance already exists, the usual “every 30 seconds” expectation does not apply.
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