The Outlast Trials: Complete Survival Guide

How to survive Murkoff's therapy solo or in a squad: stealth fundamentals, Rigs and Amps, enemies and Prime Assets, Trials and MK-Challenges, Escalation and Invasion 2.0, and the current Season 7.1 Chemical Leak event.

Researched September 2026 — current as of Season 7.1 (8 September 2026) and the 17 September 2026 hotfix. Live games change; check the linked sources if something differs.

Quick Start

1. Sneak first, run second, fight never. You can't kill enemies. Crouch, stay in the dark, and break line of sight.
2. Pick a Rig that fits your role. X-Ray for scouting, Heal for team support, Blind or Stun for escaping. In a squad, cover different Rigs.
3. Always carry a throwable. Bottles and bricks distract enemies or stun them briefly when thrown at their head.
4. Keep batteries for your night vision. Dark areas are safer, but only if you can see.
5. Hide in lockers, under beds, and in barrels when chased, but only after breaking line of sight.
6. Revive teammates fast. A downed Reagent can be picked up; don't leave them to bleed out.
7. Complete objectives in the order the game asks, and learn the maps; each Trial has a flow and optional side documents.
8. Play MK-Challenges for quick rewards and to learn map sections.

Your First Hours

1. Play the opening Trials solo once. Learning a map's layout without teammates' noise makes every later squad run smoother.
2. Read documents and notes as you go. They carry the story and often point you toward objectives.
3. Unlock and try each Rig early. Your preferred Rig depends on whether you mostly play solo or in a squad (see the Rig table below).
4. Switch on the Hint System for your first run of any Trial, then turn it off once you know the flow.
5. Mix in MK-Challenges between Trials; they're short, teach map sections, and pay out steady progression.
6. Try Escalation once you're comfortable with several maps, and save Invasion for when you know the Trials well enough to spot an Imposter.

Core Survival Mechanics

Stealth

• Crouch walking is quiet; sprinting makes noise enemies hear.
• Light matters. Standing in light makes you easier to spot.
• Watch floor hazards like broken glass and noisy objects that alert enemies.
• Doors: Close doors behind you to slow pursuers, and barricade them in a pinch.

Health and status

• Med kits heal; carry at least one.
• Psychosis (from certain gases and events) makes you hallucinate; use an antidote to clear it.
• Grabs: Enemies can grab you, so keep your distance and don't let them corner you.
• Struggle (Season 7, Invasion): when an Imposter stabs you, a mash-off starts. The Imposter mashes to deal more damage; you mash to resist and cut the damage you take.

Items to prioritise

Rigs, Amps, and Progression

Rigs

Rigs are your active tool: one per loadout, on a cooldown. There are six:

Rigs recharge over time; upgrades extend duration or add effects. Since Season 7 you can also customise how your Rig and knife look, and Loadout Presets let you save up to three builds so you can swap between a solo and a squad setup quickly.

Amps and leveling

• Completing Trials and MK-Challenges gives XP and money.
• Leveling up unlocks Amps (passive skill upgrades) and Rig upgrades.
• Project Relapse (22 April 2025) was a major progression-focused update; check the in-game menus for how it applies to your Reagent.
• Season 7 added Mastery Tasks (unlock variant customisations), Loadout Presets (up to three builds), Rig/Knife customization, and an in-Trial Hint System (press Display Objective for a hint and a visual marker).

Amps worth knowing

Amps are passive perks you slot into your loadout. Red Barrels' Season 7 notes name Evasive Manoeuvre, Last Chance, Self Revive, and Strong Arm among the Amps that also work in Invasion, which makes them safe all-round picks for players who mix modes.

• Solo players: prioritise Amps that keep you alive without a teammate, such as Self Revive, since nobody can pick you up.
• Squads: coordinate so not everyone runs the same survival Amps; one player built for escapes and one for objectives covers more situations.
• Read the tooltips. Exact values change with balance patches, so check each Amp's current effect in your cell before a run rather than trusting old tier lists.

The Sleep Room and your cell

Between Trials you're in the Sleep Room, Murkoff's hub inside the Sinyala Facility. Your cell is your personal space: decorate it, change your Reagent's look, and set your Rig, Amps, and loadout presets there. Denizens around the facility sell and unlock items, and this is also where you pick Trials, MK-Challenges, Escalation, and events before heading out.

Enemies

Prime Assets

Each Prime Asset patrols its Trial, reacts to noise, and hunts you once alerted. Learn their patrol routes and hearing range.

Ex-Pops (Experimental Population)

• Standard Ex-Pops patrol and chase.
• Pitcher: throws Molotovs; keep moving and break line of sight.
• Night Hunter: wears goggles and stalks in the dark; darkness won't protect you from them.
• The Biter (Season 7): armless former forced-labour inmates kept chained by the neck, with mechanically reinforced jaws and augmented legs that make them fast. They appear in Locksock the Warden, Bribe the Judges, and Cancel the Broadcast; don't count on outrunning one in a straight line, so break line of sight instead.

Prime Asset survival tips

• Listen first. Prime Assets are loud and their music and voice lines tell you they're close; stop and locate them before moving.
• Don't hide where they saw you go. Hiding only works after you've broken line of sight.
• Use throwables to redirect them away from an objective, then work while they investigate.
• In a squad, let one player kite while the others finish the task, and swap roles if the kiter gets hurt.

Trials, MK-Challenges, and Modes

Season 7: Project Boneyard (14 July 2026)

• New Trial environment: Prison Farm, with the new Trial Locksock the Warden featuring Sergeant Leland Coyle.
• New enemy: The Biter.
• New MK-Challenges: Bribe the Judges and Cancel the Broadcast.
• Invasion 2.0 and Escalation 2.0 reworks.
• Quality of life: Rig/Knife customization, Loadout Presets, Mastery Tasks, Hint System.

Season 7.1 (8 September 2026)

• Chemical Leak Limited-Time Event: toxic gas fills the Trial. Variators: Chemical Leak (find valves to clear gas from areas) and Shut Off the Valves. Runs 8 September to 6 October 2026, 10 AM ET.
• Chemical Leak Catalog: spend Event Tokens on exclusive rewards before the event ends.
• New MK-Challenges: Change the Program and Fund the Campaign.
• Mod support ended with Season 7.1. In exchange, Red Barrels added built-in options such as an FOV slider, camera-shake control, and toggles for motion blur, film grain, and other visual effects.
• Hotfix 11 September: removed Permanent Damage and No Revive from the Ultra II Escalation variator (to be revisited), fixed AZERTY bindings, and fixed the Kress Twins document being obtainable outside Fund the Campaign.

Solo vs Squad Play

Squad tips:

• Call out Prime Asset positions constantly; the X-Ray user should be the team's eyes.
• Kite in turns. If one player is being chased, lead the enemy away from the objective while others finish it.
• Split pickups sensibly. Call out med kits and batteries so the teammate who needs them grabs them, instead of one player hoarding.
• Don't all hide in the same room. Spread out so one discovery doesn't down the whole team.

Escalation 2.0 Tips

• Weekly themed Escalations give everyone the same sequence of Trials and Variators (only loadout choices stay random), with leaderboards ranked by peak Trial reached (total run time is the tiebreaker).
• Only the host carries the Escalation save; clients can't continue a run on their own.
• In Endless Escalation, from Trial 21 onward maximum-health loss persists between Trials; manage it with Health Sickness pills where offered.
• Revive Pills grant at most 2 respawns (reduced from 5 in a July 2026 hotfix), so play carefully late in the run.

Invasion 2.0 Tips

As a Reagent

• Your focus is survival and escape, not fighting.
• Imposters have gadgets: Mimic, Neuroshock, Stim, Steel Trap, Motion Sensor, Ex-Pop Bait.
• Steel Traps now do reduced damage (12.5), need less mashing, and have a smaller trigger radius.
• Backstab incapacitates rather than kills (July 2026 change) and needs the Imposter directly behind you. Keep your back to walls when you hear one.
• Syringes now spawn throughout Trials.

As an Imposter

• Stab and Backstab charge in 2.5 seconds; Slash has a 2-second cooldown.
• Night Vision has limited effectiveness in darkness but a longer battery since July 2026.
• Against a solo Reagent, respawn camera time is at least 45 seconds, and a solo Invasion lasts 3 minutes.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Sprinting everywhere. Noise brings every enemy to you.
• Hiding while being watched. Enemies can pull you out; break line of sight first.
• Hoarding throwables. Use them to create openings.
• Splitting from the squad with the only Heal Rig. Coordinate Rigs.
• Ignoring the gas in the Chemical Leak event; shutting valves early makes the whole Trial easier.
• Relying on mods. Mods no longer work as of Season 7.1; use the built-in visual options.

Advanced Tips

• Learn each Trial's shortcut routes. Speed matters for Escalation leaderboards.
• Chain Rigs as a team: X-Ray to scout, Blind or Stun to escape, Heal to recover.
• Distract Prime Assets away from objectives with throwables before engaging with interaction-heavy tasks.
• Use the Hint System early in a new Trial, then turn it off once you know the flow.
• Save Event Tokens planning: check the Chemical Leak Catalog before 6 October; its items are exclusive.

FAQ

Can you play The Outlast Trials solo? Yes. Co-op is never required for mandatory objectives; teams of 2 to 4 are optional.

When does the Chemical Leak event end? Tuesday 6 October 2026 at 10 AM ET.

Why don't my mods work? Red Barrels ended mod support with Season 7.1 on 8 September 2026.

What's the best Rig for beginners? X-Ray, because knowing where enemies are is the biggest survival advantage.

Can I fight back? Not directly. You can stun with thrown objects and Rigs, and in Invasion the Struggle minigame lets you cut the damage from an Imposter's stab, but escape is always the goal.

How many Rigs are there? Six: X-Ray, Heal, Blind, Stun, Jammer, and Barricade.

Is The Outlast Trials on consoles? Yes. It left early access on 5 March 2024 on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.

What is Invasion? A mode where player Imposters invade Trials to hunt Reagents; reworked as Invasion 2.0 in Season 7.

Sources

• The Outlast Trials Steam news hub
• Steam News API feed for The Outlast Trials (Season 7 and 7.1 notes)
• New Update: Chemical Leak Event and New MK-Challenges (Steam, 8 Sep 2026)
• Roadmap and Season 7.1 Dev Blog (Steam, 4 Sep 2026)
• Hotfix Patch Notes, 11 Sep 2026 (Steam)
• Hotfix Patch Notes, Project Boneyard, 22 Jul 2026 (Steam)
• Hotfix Patch Notes, Project Boneyard, 16 Jul 2026 (Steam)
• The Outlast Trials on Wikipedia