Duck Game: Complete Guide

A guide to winning more rounds in Duck Game: the core movement tricks, what the key weapons do, how Arcade mode and Vincent's shop work, online play, the level editor, and mods.

Researched September 2026 — current as of the May 2022 "Tiny Patch" builds that followed the 1.5 update (November 2020). The game is now self-published by creator Landon Podbielski's company Corptron, which took over publishing in May 2024 when Warner Bros. moved to delist Adult Swim Games titles. Live games change; check the linked sources if something differs.

Quick Start

• One hit kills. Every weapon is lethal, including yours bouncing back at you. Last duck standing wins the round.
• Weapons spawn on the map. Grab the nearest one immediately; a duck with no gun is a duck about to be roasted.
• Learn the six actions: move, jump, grab/throw, shoot, strafe, and ragdoll. Plus the most important button, Quack.
• Strafe to aim backward. Holding strafe locks your facing so you can retreat while shooting.
• Ragdolling makes you a limp duck. It dodges some attacks, lets you fall through tight spaces, and can surprise opponents.
• Empty guns are still useful. Out of ammo? Throw it away and grab a new one, or throw it at an opponent as a desperate distraction.
• Up to 8 players plus 4 spectators locally or online since the 1.5 update.
• Play Arcade for unlocks. Challenges award tickets, and tickets unlock hats and match modifiers.

Controls

Every action is rebindable in Options for keyboard and controllers. The six core actions:

Action | What it does

Jump | Jump; hold for more height. Also used to flap/slow fall in some cases

Grab | Pick up and throw items; also used in menus to open player options

Shoot | Fire your held weapon

Strafe | Hold to keep facing one way while moving

Ragdoll | Go limp; press again or wait to get up

Quack | Quack. Also opens your beak as a taunt

Movement tricks

• Crouch to duck under shots and to slide.
• Slide by crouching while running; you move under bullets and through tight gaps.
• Hold down + jump to drop through thin platforms.
• Ledge grab: jumping to an edge lets you pull up. The February 2021 patch let ragdolling reset your gun pickup delay, making weapon recovery faster after ledge grabs and falls.
• Holsters: some items let you holster a weapon; since the May 2022 patch, holstered item weight counts against your movement.

Weapons and Items

Duck Game has 50+ weapons and items. The ones you'll see most:

Weapon | Notes

Pistol | Basic, accurate. Better than nothing

Magnum | Big pistol, strong knockback

Shotgun | Pump after each shot. Deadly close, useless far

Combat Shotgun | Automatic shotgun. Wins most close fights

Machine guns | High rate of fire, strong recoil pushes you backward

Sniper | One precise, fast shot. Great across long maps

Laser weapons | Fast beams that bounce

Death Ray | Charge up; a huge beam that kills through multiple ducks ("Dr. Death" achievement for three at once)

Grenade | Pull the pin (shoot), then throw. Mind the timer

Grenade Launcher | Arcing explosives

Bazooka | Rockets with big splash. Don't fire at walls next to you

Mine | Place it and wait. The 2021 update made mines work online the same as offline

Net Gun | Traps a duck; follow up with anything

Mind Control Ray | Take over another duck briefly

Magnet Gun | Pulls metal items and armored ducks toward you

Saxophone and Trombone | Instruments. Not weapons, just joy

Sword | Melee; can deflect some bullets with good timing

Chainsaw | Melee; very dangerous up close

Flamethrower | Sets things (and ducks) on fire. Fire spreads

Duct Tape | New in 1.5: tape two weapons together

The Dandylion | New in 1.5

Armor and gear

• Helmets and chestplates absorb a hit from the direction they cover, which can save you once.
• Boots/jetpacks and other gear add mobility.
• Crates and item boxes hold random items; hit them from below to open.

Game Modes

• Local multiplayer: 2 to 8 players on one screen, the classic couch experience.
• Online multiplayer: matchmaking or invite-only lobbies. You can host a "dedicated" style server to run a lobby passively.
• Spectators: up to 4 spectators sit at a table and wiggle, drinking Melon Soda. Change your spectator duck color by holding strafe and pressing ragdoll.
• Arcade (single player): a small hub where you play challenges for tickets and trophies, and eventually unlock the arcade basement ("Basement Dweller" achievement).
• Level editor: build your own maps with blocks, items and objects. Since June 2021, Ctrl+S saves and Ctrl+Shift+S saves as. Placing the Eight Player object marks a level as 8-player compatible.

Arcade, Tickets and Vincent

• Each Arcade challenge awards a trophy tier (bronze, silver, gold, and best). Better trophies earn more tickets.
• Spend tickets on unlocks: hats and match modifiers (such as moon gravity) that change multiplayer.
• Vincent is a merchant character who sells items and buys them from you; several patches in 2021 fixed his inventory behavior.
• The "Arcade Master" achievement requires the best trophy in every challenge. Some challenges are very hard, so look up community routes for the toughest ones.

Profiles, Stats and Hats

• Your profile tracks stats (kills, deaths, quacks, time on fire and so on).
• Hats are mostly cosmetic, and some come with their own visual touches (the 1.5-era patches fixed a cape on the waffles hat, for example). Online, hats can be muted if another player's is annoying.
• The pause menu lets you mute or block players (chat, hat, room and name can be muted separately). Blocking also kicks the player if you're the host and prevents matchmaking with them.

Winning More Rounds

• Grab a weapon first, then fight. Rushing an armed duck bare-handed is a guaranteed loss.
• Know the spawns. On each map, learn where the best weapon appears and race for it.
• Control height. Being above opponents lets you shoot down while staying out of their line.
• Don't overcommit ammo. Watch for the empty-click and throw the gun instead.
• Watch recoil. Automatic weapons and big guns push you back, sometimes off a ledge.
• Use doors and walls. Many weapons can't shoot through solid walls; use corners.
• Bait with Quack. Seriously. It distracts, it taunts, and it tells people where you aren't.

Achievements Worth Planning For

Duck Game has 18 Steam achievements. Most come naturally from playing; these need a bit of intent:

Achievement | Requirement | Tip

Dr. Death | Kill 3 ducks at the same time with the Death Ray | Easiest in 4+ player lobbies on maps where ducks bunch up

Never Mined, I won | Win a round while standing on a mine | Stand on it and don't step off; mines trigger when something moves off them

Books are Fun | Win a round in a 4 player match by converting all players | Needs the item that converts ducks to your side; set up with friends

Draw Breaker | Break 10 draws | Comes up in close matches with many players

Endurance | Play through a match that goes to 50 points | Raise the win target in match settings

Hot Stuff | Spend 15 minutes on fire with any one profile | Cumulative; flamethrower-heavy lobbies speed it up

Flat Top Intervention | Crush 50 ducks | Cumulative; drop or throw heavy objects onto ducks

Power User | Play on 10 different custom maps | Subscribe to a Workshop map pack

Outgoing | Win 10 online matches |

Pillow Maker | Kill 1000 ducks with any one profile | Stick to one profile

Basement Dweller | Unlock the arcade basement | See the Arcade section

Arcade Master | Get best trophy in all challenges | The hardest one; practice each challenge in isolation

A few (That's My Boy, Jukebox Hero, Complete Gamester) have hidden descriptions on Steam.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Firing a bazooka or grenade at point blank. You'll take yourself out with the splash.
• Holding a lit grenade too long. Throw it as soon as you've aimed.
• Chasing a duck with a shotgun across a long map. Pick a range weapon or wait for them to come to you.
• Standing still. Everyone is one hit from death. Keep moving and use slides.
• Forgetting ragdoll exists. It dodges shots and gets you out of trouble.
• Jumping into fire. Fire spreads fast, especially near explosives.

Advanced Tips

• Strafe-retreat: hold strafe while backing away so you can keep shooting at a chaser.
• Slide under bullets and pop up for the shot.
• Duct Tape combos: taping two strong weapons together makes absurd tools. Experiment in private lobbies.
• Track the ammo count by ear. An empty click means that duck is harmless until they find a new gun, so push them immediately.
• Use the editor to practice specific jumps and weapon spawns.
• Mods: Duck Game supports mods through the Steam Workshop. Since April 2022 mods work through Proton on Linux and Steam Deck (Proton 7 or newer needed for mod textures). Keep mod sets identical with friends; the game checks mod hashes to keep online games in sync.

Troubleshooting

• Linux/Steam Deck: the game detects Proton automatically. If detection fails, the -linux launch option still works; -nolinux forces it off.
• Audio issues: switch the audio engine in the audio options (Wasapi, DirectSound and others were added in February 2021). Remote Play sessions switch to DirectSound automatically.
• Controller disconnects adding a ghost local duck online: the host can kick local players from online matches as a workaround (May 2022).
• Crashes with many mods: large WAV files in mods now stream from disk, but huge mod lists can still run out of memory. Trim mods if you crash.

FAQ

How many players can play Duck Game? Up to 8 players plus 4 spectators since the 1.5 update in November 2020.

Is there single player? Yes: Arcade mode, with challenges that earn tickets, trophies and unlocks. Multiplayer is the main event though.

Can I play online with friends? Yes, via matchmaking, invites or hosted lobbies. Steam Remote Play Together is also supported.

Why can't I see the game on some platforms anymore? Adult Swim Games' catalog was affected by Warner Bros. delistings in 2024. Landon Podbielski reclaimed the rights and now publishes through Corptron, which is the publisher listed on Steam.

How do I unlock the arcade basement? Progress through Arcade challenges; the "Basement Dweller" achievement pops when you unlock it.

What's Duct Tape? A 1.5 item that tapes two weapons together into one combined weapon.

Sources

• Duck Game on Steam
• Steam news for Duck Game (1.5 update, 2021 patches, Proton Support Patch, Tiny Patch)
• Duck Game achievements
• Duck Game, Wikipedia