Cave Story

Controls:

• Up Arrow: Look up
• Down Arrow: Action (talk, enter door, open treasure chest, etc.)
• Left Arrow: Move left
• Right Arrow: Move right
• Z: Jump, scroll through text, confirm
• X: Shoot, scroll through text, cancel
• A: Switch weapons (left)
• S: Switch weapons (right)
• Q: Items menu
• W: Map system
• Esc: Pause, quit (while paused)
• F1: Resume (while paused)
• F2: Reset (while paused)

Customization:

To change control settings, locate and run the 'DoConfig' program within the Cave Story installation directory. This menu allows you to customize both your controls and screen size. External controllers can also be configured here.

The walkthrough is divided into 13 sections, with most sections categorized by the area you are in within Cave Story. At the beginning of each section, you will find a chart listing all weapons, items, and upgrades available in that specific area. Items marked with an asterisk (*) are optional.

The author welcomes alternative strategies. If you discover a more efficient method for defeating enemies or progressing through a part of the game, you can email them. If your strategy is effective, it will be added to the FAQ with credit given to you in the Credits section.

Alright, welcome to Cave Story! You're gonna start off in a small cavern. Don't worry if you don't know what's going on, that's part of the mystery. First things first, let's get you oriented. You'll see a floppy disk icon – that's your save point. Make sure to use these whenever you find them! There's also a monitor with a heart on it. This is your refill station; it'll top off your health, and later on, it'll even refill your missiles. To use either of these, just press the Down arrow. Once you've got the controls down, head to the top of this room and press Down to go through the door.

Now you're in what the game calls the 'First Cave'. Head left and you'll immediately see some spikes. If you're still getting used to the movement, take it slow – you only have 3 health points right now, so getting hit is a big deal. You'll see some Bats flying around; just run underneath them. Look up into a small alcove, and you'll find a Life Capsule. Press Down to grab it. These are super important because they permanently increase your maximum health, so always try to snag them!

Keep moving down, dodging those Bats. The next jump might feel a little tricky – you need to do a running jump right before you hit the water. There's a little Critter enemy here, but you can ignore it for now. Just make your way towards that big tiger-head structure.

This is where you'll meet the Hermit Gunsmith. Sneak past him – he's sleeping – and open the treasure chest. Boom! Your very first weapon: the Polar Star. Pretty cool, right? (Yeah, stealing from an old guy feels a bit iffy, but hey, it's a weapon!)

Now that you've got the Polar Star, you can actually fight back! Any enemies you defeat in this cave will drop either a heart, which heals you, or energy crystals. Those crystals are experience points for your weapon, and they'll help it level up. Head back towards where you started, but this time, go to the right. You'll notice some star-shaped blocks that were in your way before. Now you can shoot them! Blast your way through, taking out any Critters you encounter. Before you jump towards the exit door, be careful – it's a mimic! Just keep shooting it until it goes down. Once it's defeated, you can head through the real door. Pro-tip: I'd recommend upgrading your Polar Star to Level 2 before you leave this area if you can!