Trash Sailors: Beginner’s Guide – Tips and Tricks to Get Started

by Lordtoto01 / Game Guides, General Guides, Tips & Tricks / 11 Dec 2021

Trash Sailor couldn’t have launched at a better time. It acts as a prelude to the earth’s unfortunate future if we don’t clean up our acts and take actions towards its well-being. The developers may have unintentionally created a game that preys or at least feeds the insecurities about rising environmental global concerns among the current generation.

The concept of a huge tsunami is nothing new. The concept of a huge tsunami terraforming earth, leaving behind only junk and floating rafts for humanity to subsist, is also cliched. But the surrealist art style of the sprites is what makes the game unique. It’s bizarre enough to facilitate a sense of anxiety at the degrading state of the environment and funny enough to make the game enjoyable.

fluckyMachine and tinyBuild did a phenomenal job with the game, and in this beginner’s guide, we’ll share a few tips to help you better enjoy it when it hits the Steam market on the 16th of December.

The game objectives at every level

You begin the game floating on a raft made with the trash that’s barely holding together. The goal at each level is to reach the end of the ocean in one piece.

The ocean is filled with trash. Your goal is to fish it out and feed it into the makeshift ‘grinder’ that converts the junk into scrap/resource.

You can use the resource to repair the raft and fuel the engine that’s going to carry you through to the end.

You will face several obstacles, such as crocodiles that bite off chunks off your raft. People that board your ship to beat you up. Waves that knock you off, mines, geysers, spiders, etc. Your goal is to keep fighting and dodging until you reach the finish line.

You will also have to navigate your raft to avoid colliding with floating obstacles.

In solo mode, you have to play with two characters. You control them one at a time and switch between them by using the RB/R1 button on your controller or Shift + Tab on the keyboard.

There is a small progress bar just above the scrap combination indicator that indicates your progress throughout the level.

Now that you know what to do let’s see how to do it as efficiently as possible.

Character list: Everything you need to know to pick the best team

Characters	Traits	Special Attack	Specialty
Francis	Steer – Good Catch – Good Fight – Good	Execution – Slightly Delayed Cooldown – 5 seconds Ability – A single powerful strike.	A balanced character, best for beginners.
Herman	Steer – Good Catch – Bad Fight – Great	Execution – Instant Cooldown – 5 seconds Ability – Body slams into the raft, causing structural damage.	Huge & powerful character that causes the boat to sway in the direction he is in.
Mary	Steer – Bad Catch – Great Fight – Good	Execution – Slightly Delayed Cooldown – 7 seconds Ability – Shoots out four harpoons in a single direction.	The little girl is quick on her feet and specializes in catching trash.
Baron	Steer – Great Catch – Good Fight – Bad	Execution – Instant Cooldown – 5 seconds Ability – Charges forward, flailing two rowing paddles.	Looks like a pirate. He is an expert in steering the raft but lacks sufficient damage.
Rob	Steer – N/A Catch – Good (timed) Fight – Good (timed)	N/A	A robot that automatically catches trash and fights off enemies on board. You can use another character to palace him anywhere on the raft. He must be near the edge to catch trash but can hit onboarded enemies from everywhere.

How to pick the best team?

The character roster isn’t big enough to make a diversified team comp, especially when you are playing co-op with four individuals. However, if you are playing solo or with only one person, then picking the right character can help a lot.

Solo – If you are playing alone, then Baron and Herman are possibly the best team. Herman’s high damage output makes quick work of enemies, while Baron steers the ship with better accuracy.

You can also go with the Rob Baron/Mary/Herman combo. Rob does a decent job of collecting scraps. However, the robot is not viable in higher levels since it cannot move or do anything else other than collect trash and throw punches.

Duo/Trio – Baron and Herman are the best picks for duos. In the case of the trio, pick Mary since she is the fastest trash collector of them all.

4 player co-op – Anyone but the robot is a good pick. Hopefully, the developers will add more characters in future updates.

Trash collection tips

Avoid dropping random trash into the grinder. Always try to match the combination as shown on the screen. The order doesn’t matter.

If required, keep excess trash in store. For example, if you accidentally caught a ‘telephone’, don’t throw it away. Set it aside for later use. The boat may get crowded, so pick the blocks on either side of the motor to store the excess trash (just above the medkit and sunflower).

Combat tips

Herman’s special attack damages the raft, so don’t use it if you are short on resources.

Baron’s special attack forces him to dash, which can throw him overboard if you are too close to the edge. There is a small delay before you are allowed to board the raft after getting thrown off, so be wary of your position when using his special ability.

Knocking off enemies from your raft is more efficient than straight on defeating them (unless you’re playing as Herman).

Survival tips

Scrap is king. Mass produce it if necessary. In co-op, there should always be a player whose only goal is to gather scraps and feed them to the grinder. The difficulty ramps up as with each level, and you’ll become helpless without a consistent supply of scrap.

Never use the robot (Rob) if you are playing solo. An auto trash gatherer may seem like a good idea, but you lose the ability to steer the boat and do chores at the same time.

You will need one person to steer the boat at all times, so Baron is an auto pick for solo missions.

Parting thoughts

Trash Sailor’s has a lot of potential. The unique art style, quirky soundtrack, and enjoyable gameplay offers tons of laughter and enjoyment.

However, as it stands now, playing solo is quite challenging as you have to look after a lot of things such as manning the mast, reloading and firing cannons, repairing the raft, gathering trash and feeding it to the grinder, fighting off enemies, and finally steering the raft through minefields, crocodiles and sewer geysers.

The game is still in its infancy, so there is still lots of room for improvement. The developers might as well introduce some crutch to dial down the difficulty in the solo experience. For example, more bots like Rob to automate specific activities.

Hope you guys found this guide useful. Let me know if I missed anything in the comments below. Happy gaming!

Lordtoto01

I’ve loved games ever since I was a child. I like playing them and sharing my feelings with other like-minded individuals. I started off writing as a hobby, and a few years later, my love for games is still as lively as ever and I intend to spread it throughout the gaming community.
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