Start with an expedition, learn one attack, then try a free partner. That is a useful first route through the Hub Edition you can play here. No account or mandatory questionnaire stands between you and the game.
This guide covers our changed modes and progression. For the full feature list and older-save changes, read everything we changed in Hub Edition.
Choose a starter and start playing
Press Play Hub Edition, then Press to start. Choose Bulbasaur, Charmander or Squirtle, or select See all starters for the full 29. The personality quiz is optional and can be skipped.
Squirtle is one option for learning ranged positioning with Water Gun. Charmander offers Ember; Bulbasaur uses Vine Whip. Pick a move pattern you enjoy rather than chasing an unsupported tier ranking. See the starter reference for all choices.
Open Play → 8-minute expedition · current partner. The boss arrives at 7:00, and you have until 8:00 to defeat it. Losing HP may end your attempt earlier. A first attempt can still teach you movement and advance goals without a victory.
Learn these controls first
| Action | Desktop | Touchscreen |
|---|---|---|
| Move | WASD or arrow keys | Drag on the game area |
| Select an active move | 1–4 or click a slot | Tap a move slot |
| Cycle moves | Q / E | Tap the desired slot |
| Choose an upgrade card | Z / X / C or click | Tap a card |
| Pause | P / Escape | Top-right pause button |
Your selected attack fires automatically. Learning four moves does not mean all four fire at once. Check the active slot, especially after trying a buff move that deals no direct damage.
Touch menus work in portrait; rotate to landscape for combat. If you rotate back during a run, the game pauses and offers a way to end the run and view its summary.
Your first attempt: space, crystals, one move
- Move in a broad loop and leave an escape route. Do not turn through a crowd for one crystal.
- Collect experience from safe ground. Levelling opens cards that improve moves or run stats.
- Keep a damaging move active. Learn its range before moving close to enemies.
- Follow the recommended cards for an eligible attack while working toward your first move evolution.
- Leave marked attack areas before they hit. Stop pursuing optional pickups when the boss arrives.
Every expedition has a gentler first 90 seconds. Survival gets opening assistance while your best Survival time remains below three minutes. Assistance is not a shield against damage, and it is not used up by a fixed number of menu cancellations.
These are learning priorities, not a guaranteed winning build. The expedition guide breaks down the opening, build phase and final minute.
Make your first move evolution
For an eligible move, upgrade it to maximum, take the required stat card during that run, then choose its gold evolution card. For Squirtle: level-5 Water Gun + Power → Scald.
Buying permanent Strength does not replace the run’s Power card. The move evolution table lists the recipes when you try another attack. Recommended cards help with this first learning goal; you still need to collect experience and select them.
Use the result screen
After a defeat, timeout or win, review the next beginner goal and any completed mission rewards. Journey and event milestone resources are automatic. Ordinary mission rewards need claiming; the result screen offers a collection button when rewards are ready.
A successful expedition adds 100 coins and one single-pull ticket to its other rewards. Those are victory rewards, not a promised payout for every attempt. Your Survival best time and level remain separate from expedition records.
You can also redeem WELCOMEHUB from the menu’s Codes screen for 500 coins and one single-pull ticket, once per local save. Follow the redemption steps if needed.
Choose your next goal
Open Activities & journey. The permanent journey asks you to move, reach level 3, finish two runs, buy a shared upgrade, evolve a move and finish qualifying runs with two different partners.
Try a weekly free partner for that second-partner goal. A qualifying run lasts at least 60 seconds, includes 10 seconds of movement and defeats at least one enemy. A trial does not unlock the Pokémon or change the partner saved in your collection.
Complete all six journey goals to earn a permanent partner choice. Event milestones offer another partner reward during their dated windows. Read activities and rewards for the exact requirements and claim buttons.
Know where your upgrades work
Survival uses purchased shared upgrades. Expeditions and trials use fixed upgrades. Buy an affordable upgrade once and it helps every owned partner in Survival. It will not increase the expedition preset.
Start with the problem that ends your Survival runs: room for mistakes, movement, damage or pickup reach. The shared upgrade guide lists all 13 tracks and their first costs. This is a spending framework, not a proven optimal order.
Keep your lasting progress
Collection, coins, tickets, shared upgrades, completed goals and reward claims save in this browser. Run cards and move levels belong to that attempt. Closing the page ends the current run.
Before changing devices, open Backups & save file → Download current save. Import on the other device, review the summary and confirm replacement. Local restore points disappear if you clear site data, so keep a downloaded copy outside the browser. See save backups and mobile controls.