Gang Beasts: Complete Guide

A guide to Boneloaf's wobbly physics brawler: how the grab-and-punch controls actually work, how to knock people out and throw them off stages, every mode, stage hazards, and what has changed in recent patches.

Researched September 2026 — current as of patch 1.28 (7 October 2025, still the latest Steam patch in September 2026), a security and physics update following 1.25's Crane stage and 1.27's glass overhaul. Live games change; check the linked sources if something differs.

Quick Start

• The goal is to be the last beast standing. You win a round by getting everyone else out of the stage: tossed off edges, dropped into hazards, or mangled by machinery.
• Knock out first, then throw. A conscious opponent fights back and grabs ledges. Punch or headbutt them until they go limp, then carry them to an edge.
• Your arms are independent. Each hand has its own button. Raising an arm and holding the button grabs whatever it touches; tapping it punches.
• Holding on saves you. If you are being thrown, grab anything: the ledge, the thrower, the scenery. Hanging on long enough often wins.
• Knocked-out players wake up. Unconsciousness wears off, so do not stop to celebrate; throw them while they are limp.
• Stages kill. Trucks, grinders, incinerators, the subway, the crane's birds: every stage has its own hazard. Use it against opponents.
• Play with friends. Local multiplayer on one screen is the classic experience; online matchmaking and private lobbies are also available.
• Delete old builds if prompted. Patch 1.28 fixes a Unity security vulnerability; Boneloaf recommends removing older versions of the game and installing 1.28.

Controls and Movement

The exact bindings depend on your controller or keyboard and can be changed in the options. The actions you need:

Action | What it does

Move / run | Walk, or hold the run input to move faster

Jump | Hop, climb onto ledges (with grabs), dodge

Duck / crouch | Lower your center of gravity; also used to go into a limp "flop"

Left hand / right hand | Tap to punch with that arm; hold to grab

Kick | A low attack; good for pushing people off edges

Headbutt | A powerful close hit that often stuns

Lift | While holding someone with both hands, lift them over your head to carry or throw

Grabbing

• Raise an arm and hold the button: your beast reaches out and grabs whatever the hand touches.
• Grab with both hands for a firm hold that is hard to break.
• Release to let go. Letting go at the right moment is also how you throw.

Climbing

• Grab a ledge with both hands, then jump to pull yourself up. It takes practice; timing the jump while your hands are firmly attached matters.
• If you are hanging, stay calm. Mashing everything tends to make you let go.

Throwing

• Knock the opponent out or grab them firmly.
• Grab with both hands and lift them.
• Walk to an edge or hazard.
• Release to toss them.

Throwing a conscious opponent is possible but risky: they can grab you and drag you down with them.

Backflips and advanced movement

Backflips and flips are possible by combining jump and body movement, and patch 1.28 made backflips less difficult than in 1.27. They look great and occasionally break grabs.

Fighting

• Punch combos: alternate left and right punches for a flurry. A few solid hits and your opponent's eyes close.
• Headbutt is your hardest hit. Use it when you are close and have their attention.
• Kick pushes opponents away; strong at ledges.
• Grapple fights: when two beasts grab each other, whoever gets the better grip and the higher position usually wins. Try to get both hands on them.
• Knockouts: knocked-out beasts go floppy. That is your moment to carry them.
• Recovering: when you are knocked out, you regain consciousness after a short time. Grab anything as soon as you can.

Modes

Mode | What it is

Melee | Free-for-all: last beast standing wins the round

Gang | Team-based fights; players split into gangs

Football | A soccer variant; score goals in a physics-heavy match

Waves | Survive waves of enemy beasts with your friends

Online play supports matchmaking and custom games. Crossplay was described as planned in the 1.27 notes (August 2025), with background work already done; check the latest Steam news before assuming it is live.

Stages and Hazards

Wikipedia counts 22 stages in the current game. Recognizable ones include:

Stage | What to watch for

Girders | Steel beams high above the city; bricks and edges everywhere

Subway | Trains; roller shutters and tracks

Incinerator | Fire at the bottom of the pit

Grind | Grinders that chew up anyone who falls in

Chute | A meat-plant chute where sausages (and beasts) fall

Trucks | Fighting on top of moving trucks on a highway

Wheel | A Ferris wheel; fights on moving cars

Lighthouse | Glass and a long drop to the sea

Containers | Dockside shipping containers that can come loose

Aquarium | Water and a tentacled creature with its own AI

Vents | Industrial vents and machinery; received stability updates in 1.21

Trawler | A fishing boat; the sea claims anyone who goes overboard

Crane (update 1.25) | A large static dockside crane with a drivable cockpit; aggressive birds eventually divebomb players and carry them into the sky

Stage tips:

• Crane: jumping into the cockpit lets you control the crane, but staying too long invites the birds, which can even follow you to other stages.
• Lighthouse: 1.27 overhauled the glass fracture system; glass breaks more convincingly and can be used to your advantage.
• Trucks and Subway: moving hazards do the work for you; keep opponents near them.

Costumes

Customize your beast from a large wardrobe of costume parts: hats, masks, kigurumis and more. Update 1.25 added bird kigurumis (pigeons, bluejays, seagulls and ravens) plus safety-themed pieces. Costumes are cosmetic; they do not change stats, though some parts have their own physics.

Recent Patch History

Patch | Date | Highlights

1.23 | June 2024 | Moved to Unity's Addressables asset system (clear the com.unity.addressables folder if you hit crashes)

1.24 | August 2024 | New Interactables System; fixes arms grabbing air instead of targets

1.25 | November 2024 | New Crane stage, drivable crane, bird escalation, bird kigurumis

1.26 | February 2025 | Bug fixes, Waves and costume fixes, more kill volumes on Trawler

1.27 | August 2025 | Improved glass destruction, many stage and costume fixes, groundwork for crossplay

1.28 | October 2025 | Unity security patch; easier backflips

Crash fix after big updates

If the game crashes after updating, Boneloaf's 1.23 instructions still apply: close the game, go to C:\Users[your user]\AppData\LocalLow\Boneloaf\Gang Beasts and delete the com.unity.addressables folder. On Steam Deck or Linux, the folder is under /home/deck/.config/unity3d/Boneloaf/Gang Beasts/.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Trying to throw a conscious opponent. Knock them out first.
• Mashing every button while hanging. You will let go. Hold the grabs.
• Fighting in the middle of the stage. Nothing happens there. Drag fights toward edges and hazards.
• Ignoring stage hazards. A moving truck or a grinder is stronger than any punch.
• Standing near an edge while fighting. It works both ways.
• Grabbing with one hand. One-hand holds break easily; use both.

Advanced Tips

• Pin opponents to walls. A beast against a wall is easy to headbutt repeatedly.
• Punch while holding with one hand. Grab with one hand and punch with the other to keep them in place while you knock them out.
• Use your body as a weapon. Jumping into someone near an edge can knock them off without a grab.
• Third-party. In Melee, let two players fight, then throw the winner.
• Hold the ledge, not the player. When dragged, a ledge is safer than grabbing the person dragging you.
• In Gang mode, carry together. Two players throwing one opponent is nearly unstoppable.

FAQ

Is Gang Beasts still updated? Slowly. The latest patch on Steam is still 1.28 (7 October 2025) as of September 2026; it said more development information would follow, and 1.27 laid groundwork for crossplay, but no further patch had shipped on Steam by late September 2026.

What platforms is it on? Windows, macOS and Linux and PS4 (December 2017), Xbox One (March 2019) and Nintendo Switch (October 2021).

Does Gang Beasts have crossplay? Crossplay was listed as planned in August 2025's 1.27 notes. Check Steam news for its current status.

How many players can play? Gang Beasts supports multiple local players on one screen and online lobbies; exact limits depend on mode and platform.

Why do my hands grab the air? Older builds had this issue with many colliders in range; update 1.24 introduced an Interactables System to fix it. Make sure you are on the latest build.

Is there a single-player mode? Waves works as a survival mode, and you can fight CPU beasts, but the game is designed around multiplayer.

Why did Boneloaf ask players to delete old versions? Patch 1.28 fixed a Unity engine vulnerability affecting builds made with certain Unity versions, including the one used for 1.27.

Sources

• Steam news for Gang Beasts (patches 1.21 to 1.28)
• Gang Beasts official site
• Gang Beasts – Wikipedia
• Steam store page (app 285900)