Made in Abyss: Binary Star Falling into Darkness takes the manga's cute-but-deadly world and turns it into a sometimes challenging survival game. There are a number of ways to survive during your many expeditions, but it can be a little hard to know the best ways to start out. In our Made in Abyss: Binary Star Falling into Darkness Beginner's Guide, we'll teach you some of the things you should know during your first forays into the titular Abyss.
Hello Abyss is just a tutorial
Made in Abyss: Binary Star Falling into Darkness features two modes: Hello Abyss and Deep in Abyss. When starting for the first time, you only have access to Hello Abyss. Unlike Deep in Abyss, where you’ll create an original character, this mode has you take control of series protagonist Riko.
In Hello Abyss, you don’t have to worry about tool durability, item management — you’re given more than enough items to survive, and Riko’s companion Reg can be used in place of ropes — and you start with a number of abilities that are locked behind the skill tree in Deep in Abyss. Because of this, it’s best to treat Hello Abyss as a short (roughly two hour) tutorial for Deep in Abyss, letting you explore the first layers of the Abyss without much to worry about. While it is possible to explore and grind items, it’s best to rush to the end since nothing is carried over to Deep in Abyss.
Binary Star Falling into Darkness Beginner's Tips - Gather light items as much as possible
When reaching a new layer for the first time, a new list of Free Quests will unlock at the Guild HQ. While some of them will require you to craft certain items, most involve gathering 50 items from each area in the layer. This can be completed by excavating rocks, disassembling monsters, or just picking plants off the ground. Picking plants and other light items is the easiest way to complete these quests, since you can carry lots of them at once while still having space for heavier items.
Completing these gathering quests is a good way to earn money and experience with little effort, on top of what you’re making from relics and main story quests. It can make a difference, especially during the first layer of the Abyss.
Take at least two weapons at all times
All tools in the Deep in Abyss mode have a certain amount of durability, represented by a green bar. For weapons, this naturally decreases by attacking enemies. With how long some expeditions can go on for — and how often enemies will spawn while you’re trying to climb cliffs — your durability can drop quickly. To mitigate this, you should always try to have at least two weapons at all times. Switching to a fresh weapon before the last one’s durability hits 0 saves a lot of money in the long run — broken weapons are lost forever, while damaged ones will have their durability restored when returning to the surface.
As a side note, it’s generally best to have two melee weapons of the same type. This is because of the skill tree separating weapon abilities by type. Since you don’t actually need a pickaxe to excavate items, it’s fine to go with hatchets instead if you prefer their attacks.
Choose your battles carefully
While it might initially seem like you have to fight most of the enemies you encounter, you can often just sprint past most monsters without having to engage. If you don’t need crafting materials or to complete a kill quest, it’s usually best to save your weapon durability for when it matters.
Most of the time, you’ll want to attack when you’re in the middle of climbing. Enemies have a tendency to spawn when climbing, so taking them out quickly is a must. Certain story quests will also require combat, often against multiple tougher enemies that drain your weapon durability quickly. Save your weapons for these key moments to avoid frustration.
Binary Star Falling into Darkness Beginner's Tips - Know when to stop moving
The Curse of the Abyss hits after going up a total of 10 meters within a short period of time. This can be all at once, or a number of short climbs in quick succession — even constantly jumping can trigger the curse. Thanks to this, you’ll often need to stop moving (or at the very least, stop climbing) to stop the curse from triggering.
Thankfully, the curse will stop building up after standing still or staying at the same depth for a while. You also don’t lose stamina while idle on a cliff or other climbable surface, meaning it’s safe to stop for a while. With the effects of the curse being annoying at best (a large loss of hunger at layer 1, heavy damage and sight loss later on), it’s even better to take a few hits from enemies than continue and trigger the curse.
Take Advantage of Story Quests
Story quests (and certain side quests) have a number of useful benefits that can make exploring the Abyss less tedious. For starters, many will pair you with at least one AI partner. AI characters cannot permanently die, and don’t have to worry about hunger or weapon durability. Because of this, you can use them to take care of enemies without much effort required on your part.
The second benefit is the fact that many quests will take you back to the surface upon completion. This cuts down on the trek back up, saving both the time and food you’d usually need. From the 2nd layer onwards, it can take a while to make it back to the surface, making the quest teleport even more useful the further you go.
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Isaac is a Staff Writer at TechRaptor, handling guides — and the occasional review — for games throughout many genres. Some of his more extensive work at… More about Isaac
