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How to Play
Spelunky

How to Play

Master Spelunky's tutorial mechanics: learn to jump, whip, throw, and use ropes with this essential beginner's guide.

By ···10 min read·Multi-source verified
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Master Spelunky's tutorial mechanics: learn to jump, whip, throw, and use ropes with this essential beginner's guide.

Walkthrough
  1. 1
    Enter doors by pressing R1.
  2. 2
    Jump with the X button; hold for higher jumps.
  3. 3
    Hang off ledges by jumping into them and press X to jump from the hanging position. Press down and X to drop off.
  4. 4
    Crouch by holding down on the left analog stick. Crawling over a ledge will automatically put you into the hanging position but drop your carried item.
  5. 5
    Run/walk with R2. You may need to frequently press and release the run button for precision platforming.
  6. 6
    Whip with Square; the attack swings backward and then forward, damaging enemies and knocking back threats. You can jump and run while whipping.
  7. 7
    Pick up objects by crouching and pressing Square. Throw them by pressing Square again. Dropping an object while crouching places it half a tile in front of you. Holding up throws it diagonally. Running or jumping inherits momentum. Dropping from a ledge causes it to fall straight down.
  8. 8
    Push sliding blocks by walking into them.
  9. 9
    Jump through wooden platforms from below by crouching and pressing the jump button.
  10. 10
    Run across 1-tile wide gaps in the floor without falling.
  11. 11
    Break breakable objects like chests (gems) and wooden crates (ropes or bombs) with standard attacks or by holding up and pressing Square.
  12. 12
    Throw Bombs with Circle; you start with 4 Bombs. They explode with a radius of approximately 2 tiles.
  13. 13
    Throw Ropes with Triangle. Facing a ledge and crouching makes the Rope hang from it; otherwise, it throws straight upward.
  14. 14
    Traverse ladders, ropes, and other climbing devices by holding up or down. Press jump to dismount.
  15. 15
    Swim upward in water using the jump button; there is no breathing system.
  16. 16
    Press the touchpad to bring up the journal when encountering something new.
Tips
  • Holding up or down on the analog stick lets you see further in that direction, useful for spotting traps and judging fall damage.
  • Avoid fall damage by landing on an enemy, grabbing a ledge, or grabbing a climbable object mid-fall. Fall damage occurs if you land on or below the bottom edge of the screen.
  • Time your jumps carefully to avoid hitting your head on low ceilings when running off ledges. A quick turn-around jump is possible if another ledge is one tile above.
  • Instead of crouch-walking off ledges, walk off and immediately flip around to grab the ledge.
  • Doors that are two tiles high are level exits. Doors one tile high are backroom doors.
  • Doors offer invincibility frames when entering; this lasts for a few moments on the other side of backroom doors, allowing time to react to dangers. You can attack and return through a door without being hit. Doors can be entered from one full tile width away.
  • Your feet can be used as a weapon by jumping on enemies. Hanging off a ledge, rope, or standing on a wooden platform can also damage creatures approaching from below.
  • Enemies, NPCs (non-player characters), and yourself can enter stun states. The whip causes a longer stun than other attacks. Blood indicates damage. Wiggling indicates they are about to wake up.
  • All entities have a brief moment of invincibility after taking a hit.
  • Ropes deal 1 damage and stun when thrown into an enemy.
  • Bombs tend to travel further than other thrown objects due to their round shape. You can reposition a Bomb by whipping it or picking it up.

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