5 Things To Know About Dead Cells Before You Start Playing

Before you start playing Dead Cells, read these 5 tops tips that’ll help you survive the game.

Wally

Updated:

October 18, 2023

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dead cells art of main character standing in front of a castle and lake

Today, I will be giving you my top 5 Dead Cells tips you should know before you play.

Before you start playing Dead Cells, keep a few things in mind: you lose almost all inventory each time you die, there are transportation items you can use to make subsequent playthroughs easier, focus on one weapon class upgrade to become the strongest you can be, pick the Tactics path if you want the best chance at beating the game, and do not be afraid to quit and come back at a later time.

Let’s jump right into the 5 things you need to know about Dead Cells before you start playing.

But first, what is Dead Cells?

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What is Dead Cells?

Dead Cells is a tough action game about exploring interconnected ares in a fantasy setting, fighting enemies and bosses with a variety of weapons, and dying over and over again until you get it right.

It is a challenging experience with a bunch to learn, including 5 important tips every player should know before starting this critically acclaimed adventure.

1) You lose almost all inventory each time you die

Dead Cells game over screenshot of black background with the mai ncharacter's dead body at center and red blood at the corner of the screen — Dying in Dead Cells

Dead Cells genre is called a rouge-like, a genre known for its intense difficulty that focuses on stripping the player of all inventory each time a player dies.

And you will die a lot in this game which means you will be saying goodbye to your precious pickups time and time again.

You will lose all gold, weapons, and upgrades you have accrued and must return to the very first stage the moment your health reaches zero.

Even if you make it to the very last boss but die, you will be sent back to the start with empty pockets. The only items you will keep are permanent upgrades you have unlocked and earned.

This is a feature of the game, not an oversight. The game is crafted around this concept of “starting over from scratch”.

Although it may take time getting used to this gameplay mechanic, it is definitely an important feature that you should know before you start playing.

2) There are transportation items you can find

Dead Cells screenshot declaring a new item has been obtained, the Vine Rune — Obtaining the Vine Rune in Dead Cells

There are 4 transportation items, known as Runes, that you can find and collect throughout the stages you will be traversing.

These Runes will allow you to access different transportation spots throughout the various stages, allowing you to teleport from one area to another, climb up walls, explore previously unreachable rooms, and explore hidden areas.

the Vine Rune allows you to turn green vines in the ground into a beanstalk to climb to higher locations
the Teleportation Rune allows you to teleport between mummy tombs at different places on the map
the Ram Rune allows you to break specially marked floors to access new areas
and the Spider Rune allows you to climb walls to get to out-of-reach locations or to dodge enemy blows

If it seems like you can’t access a certain area, do not fret. It likely means you simply need to acquire a Rune before doing so.

Collect these four Runes to access every nook and cranny in Dead Cells.

I utilized a nifty wiki to help me find all four and I am glad I did.

Obtaining all four Runes gives freedom to traverse each area while providing additional ways to avoid enemies.

It pays to collect the Runes before seriously trying to head to the final boss.

3) Focus on one of the three upgrade paths

Dead Cells screenshot explaining the three upgrade paths — Dead Cells three upgrade paths

You will come across scroll upgrades during your play sessions that allow you to increase one of your three stats: Brutality, Tactics, or Survival.

It’s pivotal to focus on just one of the three main upgrade paths provided to you in order to become the strongest you can be.

Don’t spread your upgrades thin. In other words, maximize one instead of trying to be a master of none.

Each of the three categories strengthens a certain weapon class in the game while also giving you a boost in health.

Brutality strengthens melee weapons such as swords and mallets while Tactics increases the strength of ranged weapons such as bows and arrows and traps.

You will eventually find the type of weapon you enjoying using the most through experience. Therefore, the weapon you enjoy the most is the weapon I recommend focusing your upgrades on.

Your chosen class of weapon will be at its most powerful state if you solely spend all of the scroll upgrades on it instead of upgrading each of the three classes just a little.

And you’ll need ever ounce of strength you come across.

Later levels will require every inch of power you have to complete
Enemies will grow incredibly strong
A single scroll upgrade can mean life and death towards the end of the game

Pick and stick to one class of weapon via scroll upgrade and you will take down enemies and bosses in quick order.

4) The Strategic path will help you beat the game

Dead Cells screenshot of explanatory text concerning the Strategic upgrade path — Strategic path works wonders in Dead Cells

Pick the Strategic path if you are truly trying to beat the game fast and efficiently as possible.

The Strategic class of weapons includes bows and arrows as well as traps. When these two weapons are used in tandem, defeating enemies and bosses become easy.

The goal with the Strategic path is to toss traps near enemies and then shoot from afar to rack up damage as fast as one can.

Toss trap. Shoot arrows. Repeat. Victory!

As I mentioned in the previous tip, I suggest picking one weapon class to upgrade as you play.

Selecting the Strategic path will ensure your ranged attacks and traps will do the most amount of damage they can late into the game.

I played through Dead Cells many times using swords, shields, and magic attacks but I never reached the end of the game until I focused fully on Strategic class weapons.

Doing so made defeating every boss in the game (including the final boss) easier than ever.

The Strategic path is my go-to selection if you are primarily playing to beat the game as fast as possible.

5) If you quit the game, the game will save your location

Dead Cells screenshot of pause menu with the quit button as the main focus — Dead Cells saves your game when you quit

Lastly, you can quit at any time and pick up right where you left off.

I didn’t know this until after I beat the game, sadly, but it is the main thing I wished I knew.

Pausing the game will bring up an option to quit Dead Cells. The game will save and you will be able to pick up where you left off.

This is a great feature for a challenging game such as this.

You can always take a break if you are feeling aggravated, annoyed, angered, stressed out, or mad at a certain playthrough.

And if you just need to stop playing or go do something else, you can.

You don’t have to feel as though your awesome playthrough of upgrades and item pickups was a waste.

Take advantage of the save feature and take your time to enjoy everything this game has to offer.

After all, it’s the Dead Cells journey that matters, not necessarily the destination.