You will be a survivor more often than the killer. The goal is to last four minutes, revive people you can actually save, and leave through a glowing door once the exits open.
Crawl and sight
Crawl with Shift on computer, the down arrow on mobile, or LT on Xbox. Crawlspaces in walls are the documented way to break a chase. Hiding after the killer has already watched you enter a locker, bush, or stall is called out as a common way new players die.
Lockers are checked often by experienced killers. A tall avatar is easier to see inside a locker and is a larger target in a chase. The mechanics notes suggest hiding where you can still see the area, and staying near an exit without standing on the door itself.
The three states
| State | What the notes describe | What a further hit means |
|---|---|---|
| Normal | Starting survivor state | You go down with a HELP ME bar |
| Wounded | Left arm held, described as possibly broken | Less time on a later down |
| Very Wounded | Broken leg as well as the arm | A stab in this state is listed as fatal |
Walking near a downed teammate starts the revive. You gain 5 coins. Both of you get a temporary speed boost. The revived player gets a temporary forcefield, described as an anti-camp measure. You can also carry a downed survivor to move them toward a safer spot, and that carry grants a temporary speed boost.
Reviving while you are Very Wounded is described as a last resort. One mistake there is fatal.
Camping
If the killer stays on the body, the revive bar turns a darker green and reads NO CAMPING. The mechanics page says no health is lost from the bar while that happens, and it also says recent updates make the bar heal slowly. Those two sentences are both on the page, so this guide does not collapse them into one rule. The practical warning is the same: do not run in while the killer is still standing there.
The escape window
At four minutes, two doors open. A yellow arrow points at one. Survivor positions become visible to the killer as white diamonds near the torso. A hit during this window kills instantly. A green notice appears near the timer when someone escapes.
A useful route is to be near a door before 1:20 remains, watch for the killer, and switch doors if yours is guarded. Once you are through the glowing door, the notes say you are briefly invincible before the lobby teleport.
Loot on the map also pays coins, with a pickup cap covered in the coin guide. Do not stop for loot if it pulls you across the killer's path in the last minute.