Getting started

You start on Maple Ave at 08:00 on day 1 with a Baseball Bat, a can of Canned Beans and a Water Bottle. One real second is one minute in the game, so a whole day takes 24 real minutes and night falls at 20:00.

Your first day

1. Loot the houses. Walk inside and the roof lifts away. Tap furniture that sparkles to search it: kitchen cabinets, fridges, dressers, beds, workbenches. See Looting & containers.
2. Keep an eye on hunger and thirst. Eat and drink before they run low. Pin food and water to your hotbar so they're one tap away. See Health, hunger & thirst.
3. Gather materials. Nails and planks turn up in workbenches and crates. Craft an Axe as soon as you can: it chops trees for logs, which make more planks.
4. Be inside, or be ready, by 20:00. Night brings runners and bloaters, and every zombie sees further and moves faster. See Day & night.

Good habits

• Searching makes noise. Clear the zombies around a house before you start opening cupboards.
• Watch your energy bar. Swinging and rolling both use it, and an empty bar means you can't fight back.
• A roll makes you untouchable for a moment. Use it to get out of a crowd, not just to move faster.
• Your bag has a weight limit. Build a Wood Box to store what you don't need to carry.
• Follow the gold star on the right side of the screen. It's your current quest; tap it to see what's next.

Where next

• Reading the screen explains every number on the HUD.
• Combat covers weapons, energy and dodging.
• Crafting lists every recipe.
• Maps & travel explains how to leave Maple Hollow.