Big Walk is a game about learning to communicate with your friends through various means to solve puzzles. You'll be exploring a huge island, littered with colorful structures and tools to help you on your trek.

There are quite a few things the game doesn't tell you right away, so we compiled a few tips to help you make this long trek a success. Below, we list a few tips to help you cross the mountains and collect those red gourd-things in Big Walk.

Grab as many friends as you can

Big Walk is one of the best multiplayer co-op games in 2026, and can be played with up to 12 players. The game and its puzzles will adjust to the number of players in your session (with the adjustments remaining the same for four or more players). The only problem is that you cannot play Big Walk solo. You need at least one other person to join you.

We also recommend keeping the same group of players throughout your session until you finish the game for the best experience.

Most destinations are reachable, even without trains and lifts

You can complete the towers in any order, once you cross the red pathway out of the starting area. While you may feel like you're stuck, and you need that ski lift to reach an area, you don't! You can walk anywhere, though clearing towers and reactivating nearby transport will help you get there faster.

You can't use tools on your own back and waist

Once you unlock backpacks and waist bags to help carry extra gear, keep in mind that you can't actually put your own stuff away, nor can you take it off of yourself, so you may want to adjust everyone's held items accordingly. Additionally, if you're making a separate journey and need to use walkie-talkies, know that you won't be able to speak into any walkie-talkies you have on your back or hip, but you will still be able to hear them.

Everything you hold and wear will be saved for your next session

If it's time to take a break, and you're worried that you'll lose your backpack, special tool, or even your red gourd-things, don't worry. As long as it's fastened on to you, or you're holding on to it, it'll reappear in a pile in the starting area.

Pay attention to the structures around you

As you go on your walk, you'll notice the various shapes and styles of the surrounding structures. All the puzzles are fairly unique in design, but some buildings share a design to tell you what kind of items are within. For example, the huge blue spiral-y buildings will have some form of inventory management inside, making them a must-grab. There are other patterns among the structures that you'll want to keep your eye out for, too.

Be wary of dropping your items

There's no fall damage in Big Walk, but if you take a tumble from a high spot, you'll be stunned for a bit, and you'll drop whatever item you're holding in your hands. The items on your back and waist will stay secure, but if you've fallen on a particularly slippery slope, you may find yourself losing your precious laser pointer, since it's small and hard to find among the greenery.

If you're very fast, you can pick up the item immediately before it rolls away, so just be prepared before you make any risky jumps.

The proximity chat is realistic and sensitive

If you've played a lot of friendslop (affectionate) games, then you're probably used to a pretty generous proximity chat, allowing you to hear your buddies pretty clearly as you walk near them. Throw that expectation away. Big Walk's proximity chat is much closer to real life. If you're walking a few steps behind your pal, and they're talking while facing forward, you won't really be able to hear them. You'll need to get physically closer to hear your murmuring friends, or they'll need to turn around to project towards you better.

That being said, it may be tempting to use an outside form of communication instead, but don't. Many parts of the game require purposefully-hushed communication, and this is all part of the Big Walk experience!

Turn on the lights

Around the island, you'll see little fruit-looking bulb lights on pedestals, as well as light switches attached to puzzle structures. Make sure to turn these on, even if you're going a little out of your way to grab that fruit-bulb. While these won't make it bright enough to travel the island at night without a flashlight, they'll give you a good idea of where you've been already when you get a bird's-eye view of the island from atop the towers.

Items are multipurpose

There are a ton of tools and gadgets to use in Big Walk, and for most of them, their main purpose is obvious. The flashlight will let you see in the dark, the radio will play funky travel tunes, and the laser pointer will let you point to specific objects in puzzles. They're all useful in their own way, but if you get creative, you can use these items to help you solve puzzles or find your lost pals.

For example, turning the flashlight on and off could be a secret code for yes or no, while the radio's music and laser pointer's light can help you locate your friends.

Get on the same wavelength as your pals

Communication is key when solving all of Big Walk's puzzles, but if you aren't on the same wavelength as your partners, they can become even more challenging. Many of the puzzles will require you to describe a set of symbols, which you'll inevitably call a variety of different names. "Angry Squidward face," "Chex Mix breadstick," and "the number six" are just a few examples of what we used, but it's all something that we were familiar with. If you're able to see your friends' visions, the remaining puzzles will go smoothly.

Jumping is one of the best forms of travel

The island is full of trees and rocks, making the ground very bumpy and difficult to walk over. You'll often find yourself getting stuck on a slope or a miniscule rock, so you'll need to jump to "unstuck" yourself. Jumping also just so happens to be faster than walking in most cases — especially if you're going uphill. Spam jump everywhere you go, and you'll travel around the island in no time. Just make sure your friends are also down to jump or else you'll lose them.