Labyrinthine: Complete Survival Guide

Everything a new or returning Labyrinthine player needs: story chapters and their collectibles, how Case Files and leveling work, monster survival rules, co-op teamwork, the ticket shop, and what is new in 2026.

Researched September 2026 — current as of the April 5, 2026 "Small Fixes" patch, with the "Lost in the Sands" DLC store page announced September 25, 2026. Live games change; check the linked sources if something differs.

Quick Start

• Two modes, two purposes. Story Mode follows Joan, the mysterious fairground worker, through six chapters. Case Files are procedurally generated mazes where you level up, unlock maze types and find cosmetics.
• Play with friends if you can. It supports 1 to 8 players online. More players means more eyes, more revives and more monster distractions.
• Your light is your life. You carry a flashlight; later chapters give lanterns. Learn which monsters react to light before you wave it around.
• Every monster has rules. Over 30 monsters each have their own AI. Survival is about learning each one's behavior, not fighting it (you cannot kill them).
• Downed is not dead. Teammates can revive you. Revival resources are limited, so do not waste lives.
• Split up with purpose. The store page itself advises that splitting up may be your best chance. Cover more ground, but stay in voice contact.
• Carry a flare gun when you have one. It can stop a charging monster if fired just before it hits you.
• Do daily quests. They reward tickets, the currency for the in-game equipment and cosmetic shop.
• Hardcore Case Files come later. They are harder and give exclusive cosmetics; learn standard ones first.

Game Modes

Mode | What it is | Why play it

Story Mode | Six hand-built chapters following Joan and the Happisburg hedge maze's history | Lore, set-piece puzzles, chapter achievements and collectibles

Case Files | Procedurally generated mazes with escalating difficulty | XP, levels, unlocking 19 maze types, new monsters, cosmetics

Hardcore Case Files | Tougher version of Case Files | Exclusive cosmetics and the hardcore achievements

Story Mode chapters and collectibles

The Steam achievements track completing each chapter plus a hidden collectible set in several of them:

Chapter | Completion achievement | Collectible achievement

Chapter 1 | Who you gonna call? | Where's the Guide? (all guide books)

Chapter 2 | 50 Shades of Green | More Guides?! (all guide books)

Chapter 3 | On my way to Cuba | None tracked

Chapter 4 | Crypt Master | Key Warden (all 10 keys)

Chapter 5 | Get out of my swamp! | You can't hide them from me! (all medallions)

Chapter 6 | Way down in the mines | Seek not your fortune... (all hidden miner cards)

Chapter tips:

• Collect on a dedicated run. Collectibles are hidden off the critical path. Do the chapter once for the story, then replay with a friend who searches while you watch for monsters.
• Chapter 6 (the mines) was reworked in August 2025: lives reset in the final area, revival bracers are scattered around, the mining lantern got much brighter, a sliding puzzle bug was fixed, and the Miner had its vision reduced so it no longer aggros onto players behind it.
• Chapter 4 keys: ten keys, so sweep every side corridor before progressing to the exit.

Case Files and Progression

Case Files are the long-term loop.

• Structure: you enter a generated maze, complete the case objectives, and find your way out while monsters hunt you. The end of a case is marked with pathing to guide you out once objectives are done.
• Leveling: completing cases gives XP. Levels unlock new maze types (19 total), new monsters and rarer cosmetics. Achievements track levels 5, 10, 25, 50 and 100.
• Cosmetics: over 200 cosmetics can be found inside mazes. Achievements track 25 and 100 unique finds, wearing something in every slot, and buying every cosmetic in the shop.
• Map variety: themes include swamp and dead forest mazes, and special large-monster maps (the "David and Goliath" achievement asks you to complete an Extreme Giant map).
• Hardcore: "A Test of Skill" for one hardcore case, "That's Hardcore!" for 50.

Tickets and the shop

Source | Use

Completing cases | Tickets and XP

Daily quests (complete all for the day for an achievement) | Extra tickets

Spending in the shop | Equipment and cosmetics

Ticket achievements trigger at 1,000 and 10,000 total tickets spent. Buy useful equipment first (anything that helps you see, revive or escape), cosmetics later.

Monster Survival Rules

There are over 30 monsters and new ones unlock as you level, so this section focuses on universal rules rather than a list you would have to memorize.

• Listen first. Almost every monster has an audio tell (footsteps, breathing, music cue). Play with headphones.
• Identify the type in the first encounter. Ask: does it react to light? to sound? to being looked at? Does it charge in a straight line? Adjust immediately.
• Line of sight matters. Some monsters (like the Miner) rely on vision. Break line of sight around corners rather than outrunning them.
• Chargers: straight-line rushers are dodged by sidestepping at the last moment, or stopped with a well-timed flare gun ("Bulltrue" achievement).
• Do not lead monsters to teammates. A chasing monster can switch targets. The "Cheers buddy!" achievement literally rewards the monster killing someone else, so be considerate.
• Stamina discipline. Sprinting everywhere leaves you empty when a real chase starts. Walk while exploring.
• Remember dead ends. Mazes are full of them. Mentally mark the last junction so you have an escape route.
• Giant monsters are about keeping distance and using the maze walls, not hiding in the open.

Co-op Teamwork

• Assign roles. One navigator (keeps track of explored paths), one or two searchers, and one "lookout" who listens for monsters.
• Call out junctions. Short, clear callouts like "left at the broken statue" save lives.
• Revive smart. Reviving takes time. Only go for a revive once the monster has moved away. The first revive unlocks "Trust me, I'm a doctor".
• Do not betray on purpose unless your group is into it. Yes, "Et tu, Brute?" rewards getting a friend killed with the flare gun; do it with consent.
• Private + friends lobbies work with Steam friend join requests (fixed in September 2025).
• Crossplay: console crossplay support was added in August 2025 and updated for the December 2025 Christmas patch.

Equipment Basics

Tool | Notes

Flashlight | Standard light source. A "strong flashlight" setting exists; an April 2026 fix stopped it resetting to the regular flashlight.

Mining lantern | Found in Chapter 6 and in Case Files; significantly brightened in August 2025.

Flare gun | Can stop a charging monster at close range; also usable (mischievously) on teammates.

Revival bracers | Chapter 6 places these around the final area for extra revives.

Other equipment is bought with tickets in the shop; check what is available at your level.

Events, VR and What's New

• VR: the game supports SteamVR. The April 2026 patch updated SteamVR/OpenVR integration and fixed older-version issues.
• Seasonal cosmetics: Halloween events spawn Halloween cosmetics in mazes (the 2025 event ran October 1 to midnight UTC November 1 and included cosmetics from previous Halloweens). A Christmas 2025 patch added four Christmas cosmetics.
• Lost in the Sands DLC: a new Labyrinthine DLC, with its store page announced on September 25, 2026. No release date was given in the announcement; wishlist it for news.
• CRYO: Valko Game Studios' newer co-op horror game (1 to 4 players), released October 2025. It is a separate game.

Your First Three Sessions

Session | Goal | Why

1 | Play Chapter 1 of Story Mode with friends (or solo) | Learn movement, the flashlight, reviving and how monsters announce themselves

2 | Run a few standard Case Files and clear your daily quests | Start leveling, earn tickets, find your first cosmetic ("Look At Me!")

3 | Continue the story while leveling Case Files in between | Story chapters teach monster rules that carry over to procedural mazes

Once you are comfortable at mid levels, try your first Hardcore Case File with an experienced group, and start cleaning up chapter collectibles on dedicated runs.

Achievement Hunting Checklist

Labyrinthine has 39 Steam achievements. Six are for finishing story chapters and five for chapter collectibles (tables above); the rest fall into these groups:

Group | Achievements (description from Steam) | How to plan for it

Case File levels | Level 5, 10, 25, 50, 100 ("Reached level X in case files") | Pure grind; play Case Files with a regular group

First steps | Complete a case file; Look At Me! (first cosmetic); Trust me, I'm a doctor (first revive) | Come naturally in your first few sessions

Cosmetics | An Entire Wardrobe (25 unique); You're gonna need a bigger tent... (100 unique); Look at the Drip (a cosmetic in every slot) | Search dead ends thoroughly; seasonal events add extra cosmetics

Shop | Deep Pockets (1,000 tickets spent); Shopaholic (10,000 spent); No Price on Fashion (buy every shop cosmetic) | Long-term ticket sink; daily quests speed it up

Daily quests | On a mission... Or four! (all dailies in one day) | Check the daily list at the start of a session and play toward it

Hardcore | A Test of Skill (1 hardcore case); That's Hardcore! (50 hardcore cases) | Only after you know most monsters on normal cases

Maps | David and Goliath (complete an Extreme Giant map) | Needs a level that unlocks giant maps; bring a coordinated team

Co-op antics | Cheers buddy!; Et tu, Brute?; Bulltrue; Tis' just a flesh wound! | Easiest with friends who agree to set them up

A handful more are hidden (for example "A noble sacrifice", "I choose you!", "Skip King", "Oh I don't think so.", "Fly Swatter" and "How did this get here?"). Steam gives no description for these, so treat community explanations with some caution and expect them to unlock through normal play, co-op interactions and exploration.

Collectible runs that work

• Chapter 1 and 2 guide books: move slowly and check every dead end; these chapters are the gentlest place to learn how collectibles are tucked away.
• Chapter 4 keys: there are exactly 10, so count as you go; if you reach the exit short, you know to backtrack.
• Chapter 5 medallions: the swamp is dense with vegetation, so sweep it methodically with a partner covering the other side of each path.
• Chapter 6 miner cards: with the August 2025 changes (brighter lantern, revival bracers, lives reset in the final area), the mines are far more forgiving to search than at launch.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Sprinting around blind corners. You run straight into monsters and burn stamina.
• Flashlight always on. Know which monsters respond to light.
• Everyone bunched up. You clear the maze slowly and a single monster can down the whole team.
• Everyone scattered with no comms. Splitting up only works with callouts.
• Wasting revives early. Save them for the final push to the exit.
• Skipping daily quests. They are the easiest steady ticket income.
• Jumping into Hardcore too early. Learn monsters on normal cases first.

Advanced Tips

• Wall-follow in unfamiliar mazes. Keeping one hand on a wall guarantees you eventually explore a connected section instead of looping.
• Listen for target switches. When a monster stops chasing you, warn the team immediately; it is going somewhere.
• Flare timing: wait until the charge is almost on you. Early shots are wasted.
• Hunt cosmetics in groups. Split the maze into zones; the more ground covered, the more cosmetics found.
• "Tis' just a flesh wound!" needs you to finish a case after being downed 5 or more times, so it pairs well with a team that revives aggressively.
• Join the official Valko Discord to trade cosmetics and find groups.

FAQ

Is Labyrinthine single-player? Yes, you can play solo, but it is designed around 1 to 8 player co-op and is much more forgiving in a group.

How many chapters does Story Mode have? Six chapters, each with a completion achievement.

Can you kill the monsters? No. You survive by evading, hiding, distracting and using tools like the flare gun.

What do Case File levels unlock? New maze types (19 in total), new monsters, and access to rarer cosmetics.

Does it have crossplay? Crossplay with consoles was added in August 2025.

Does Labyrinthine support VR? Yes, via SteamVR; it received VR fixes as recently as April 2026.

What is Lost in the Sands? A new DLC for Labyrinthine whose store page went live on September 25, 2026.

Sources

• Steam store page — Labyrinthine
• Steam news — Labyrinthine patches and events
• Steam global achievements — Labyrinthine